Villages of Datca Peninsula

We are spending our summers in the Datca peninsula. July and August are the most crowded times of the year at the beach. However while all the buzz going on at the sea side, there was an entirely different life goes on at the local villages.

There are I think 9 villages in this rather small peninsula and guess what?? All their locations are not in the immediate coastline, but always distant from sea, because of the pirates which was a huge problem until the beginning of the 20th century.

Until couple decades ago all the sea side lands which were considered low quality and not suitable for farming were inherited by the daughters. So as you can guess all the women became rich after the tourism boom. I always think that its a very funny irony.

So here are some photos from the Karakoy village which we have stopped for tea last week. It was all peace and quiet..

Full Moon

Yesterday there was a beautiful full moon. When it first appered on the sea it was in a gorgeous red colour. Then slowly as it rises up, the red turned into a bright yellow.. It's reflections on the sea were breath taking and inviting you to dream and ponder.

While laying on a deck chair and having some 'me time', I remembered a zen story about the moon and ponder about how little actually we need to be happy....

One night a thief visited the little hut of a zen master only to discover that there is nothing to steal. Then zen master caught him and offered him his clothes as a gift not to send him empty handed. Afterwards as he sat naked, looking up, seeing the moon, 'poor fellow' he said ' I wish I could have given him this beautiful moon'

Hope you are not neglecting to enjoy full moons...

First photo: Last night

Second photo: Another full moon in Datca...

Turkish Coffee

As I am a dog person, I can definitely say that I am also a tea person. I especially love green tea. During winter times I think, I can drink it in unlimited amounts. However after a heavy dinner, my one and only favorite is a good cup of Turkish Coffee without sugar...Tips for a good Turkish Coffee: (1) Freshly grinded coffee beans, (2) no tap water, (3) cook it very slowly.. And after you finish drinking if you have a friend who can read your fortune by looking at the shapes in your cup, it means that you are having a perfect Turkish Coffee experience...

Photo: from an application in facebook

Cherries..

'' Live in each season as it possess; breath the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit and resign yourself to the influences of each''

Henry David Thoreau

Have a great week and enjoy your fruits...

At the beach

Yesterday our dear friends Selal and Juha from Finland came to visit us. We took them to Palamutbuk which is one of the most beautiful bays in the Datca peninsula. Things to talk was endless as well as the food and drink. French fries, pastry, calamari and cold beer. Our usual lunch at the beach...but when you share them with friends they even taste better.

Transformation

One of the favorite dishes of the Aegean region is stuffed zucchini flowers. It's a lovely transformation of a vegetable. First you are buying the flowers from the farmers market You can only find this delicate flowers early in the morning.Then before cooking you can chose to put them in a vase and adore couple hours
When you start to get hungry, prepare minced meat with onions and herbs and stuff them..Mımm... they are delicious...Bon appetit

Mirror..

One of my favorite pieces in the beach house is this mirror, that I made right after my visit to Guatemala. One day I saw mirrors like this there but thank God I was on a sane day, so I did not attemp to carry it all the way from Guatemala to Turkey. Instead I bought these tiny hand made dolls from a local woman and I think the price was USD 1 for 5 of them. Then I ordered round mirror and glued the these Guatemalan ladies. And since then we keep looking at each other every morning...