Antalya and Fethiye - Mediterranean Days in Southern Turkey

Описание: After the full sensory swirl of Cappadocia, we were ready for sea air.

So we took the long bus south to Antalya. Nine and a half hours. A slightly questionable knee. Mountains, tunnels, and the quiet satisfaction of staying on the land rather than hopping on a plane. It felt right.

Antalya was warmth. Palm trees. Roman stones folded into modern streets. Wandering through Kaleiçi, standing at Hadrian's Gate, looking down over the old Roman Harbour and remembering how many layers of history this coastline holds.

We moved from a tiny city room to an apartment at Konyaalti Beach with grand plans to cook for ourselves.

That lasted… briefly.

Somewhere between buying industrial quantities of tomato paste instead of tomatoes, forgetting pasta entirely, breaking the salt cellar and discovering that the cooktop had opinions about my morning coffee, we accepted a simple truth:

Turkey is better when someone else cooks.

Lentil soup breakfasts. Menemen. Local burgers. Fresh bread and salads. Eating out became part of the rhythm rather than a splurge.

From Antalya we headed on to Fethiye. Beach swims. Sunset light. Breakfast with table dogs. Lycian rock tombs that I admired sensibly from below rather than conquering every stair. A bazaar wander. A dolmuş that almost cooperated. A ferry departure that claimed my walking stick.

This is what travel looks like for us.

Not rushing to see everything. Not pretending we’re twenty-five.

If you’re curious about Antalya and Fethiye, wondering what semi-slow, independent travel in your 50s and beyond really feels like, or maybe even designing your own long-term travel life, you’re in good company here.

Next stop: Rhodes.

Gregg and Maddy continue their international journeys in 2025, learning about the food, culture and people of new countries, and going back to some favourite places too.

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