It seems that every time we pay our 2 lira to enter a new beach, the locals claim that it is the best beach in the world. I think they have some strong competition, as all the Aussies we meet claim they have the best beaches in the world. Either way we have had a great time lazying about on the Meditterean and Agean seas.

Hanging out at OluDeniz Beach near Fethiye

After leaving Olympos, we drove down the coast with intentions to find a place to stay somewhere between Olympos and Fethiye. There were some really beautiful beaches along the way, but all the towns and villages were quite a ways from the actual beach. Eventually we decided to push on to Fethiye and spend 3 nights in the port city. As we first drove into Fethiye it looked very industrial and we could not see the water anywhere. We were a little concerned that we had 2 full days to spend in the town. After asking for directions we found our way to the water and to a pleasant port city full of yachts and tourists. Our travel friend Kyra had a friend who owned a hotel in the city, so we found our way slightly outside the downtown in a beautiful little hotel with a fantastic view of the water. We also got a fantastic deal on the room so it made it even better!
Our two days in Fethiye were all about the sea! We spent our first day on a 12 Island cruise. The boat had about 60 people on it, and it drove to different islands and bays where we could swim and relax in the sun. Shawn did not even hesitate in jumping off the high platform on the boat (I went off the lower side one) and into the water. On one of the jumps he unfortunately lost a contact, so he could only see clearly out of one eye for the rest of the day. The water was beautiful, and despite all the other boats we had to share docking space with, it was very pristine. Well worth the 20 dollars, and a nice lunch and sun burns were also included (Shawn and I did not actually sunburn, but poor Erfan learned that spray on sun tan lotion doesnt work unless actually rubbed in).
One thing that is really different in Turkey is how late you stay up and how late you eat meals at. Restaurants are bustling well past midnight, and before you know it you are eating at 9pm. Even children are out well into the night.
We spent our second day at the famous Oludeniz beach which is famous for its blue lagoon. The lagoon was very crowded and appeared somewhat dirtier then the ocean side, so we decided to relax on the opposite beach. It ended up costing us 8 dollars to get into the beach, and 12 dollars for two chairs and a sun umbrella. Turkey does seem to suck back the money, Shawn nearly panicked when we saw another bank machine we had to stop at (It is costing us basically 100 dollars a day, including hotels, food and sights, so it is not as bad as it seems).
On the issue of cost, gas is absolutely crazy expensive in Turkey. We are paying about 2.60 a litre. Luckily our car goes about 15km to the litre, but still! We somehow expected gas to be cheap in Turkey, strictly based on location.
For our final afternoon in Fethiye we went to a Turkish bath. This was the second experience for Shawn and I, but it was way better then the first one. You lay in a steam room baking for what feels like eternity. You can douse yourself in cool water from little taps along the walls if you get too hot. Then the bathers come in and scrub your body down with brillow pads. I think you actually lose weight from all the skin that comes off your body. You do actually get rolls of skin flaking off, and the bather has to continually clean the scrubber so it will still work. After this good scrubbing you go and jump into a freezing cold shock pool and then back to the steam room where you get a soapy massage and final bath. During this bath they actually scrubbed my hair with a bar of soap leaving a crazy amount of tangles!
You leave feeling very refreshed and with the softest skin you can imagine.
We left this morning to drive to Ephesus, stopping along the way to admire the natural wonder Pamukkale. Pamukkale is created when natural spring water flows over the rocks and evaporates leaving calcium deposits. The result is a glacier like rock formation in dripping wax like cascades on a hill side. The area is also surrounded by the ruins of the ancient city of Hierapolis. Apparently they had made a number of 5 star hotels at the top of the hillside, but have had to tear them down because they were stopping the natural water flow and ruining the site. You do get somewhat mixed feelings touring the site. A lot of the water and pools have evaporated and there are hordes of tourists clamering to find a small pool to swim in. We couldnt help but thinking that it would have been so much better with walkways and viewing paths to better preserve the site. As it was, you take off your shoes and walk down the limestone and through the very little water that is left. Somewhat disheartening.
Off to Ephesus tomorrow, where hopefully on a Monday there wont be quite so many bus loads of tourists. Following Ephesus we head back to Istanbul for a day and a half, and then our adventure comes to a close. We still cant believe it is nearly over.

Shawn jumping off the boat on our 12 Island tour from Fethiye

Port at Fethiye

Pamukkale

Shawn at Pamukkale