What is it about Kalkan? (aka Martyn gets a bit soppy).

[MartynE]

There was another power cut in Kalkan yesterday morning. It started around breakfast time and, as usual, there was no indication of how long it was going to last. It was a Saturday, so that could mean it was going to be a long one. It was a bit annoying, as I has planned to do a lot of work on the Kalkan Secrets website and, of course, no power means no internet.

So, after a visit to the gym (no electricity needed to pump a few weights!) I headed back to the apartments, grabbed a paintbrush and did some final pre-season touching-up.

The thing about painting is that it give you a good opportunity to think... I started reflecting on the power cuts, and the water cuts, and how much of an annoyance they were for us during the winters when we lived in Kalkan between 2012 and 2015. When you live here, you learn to take it in your stride... but, when you are only visiting, it becomes more of an issue because your time in Kalkan is limited and you naturally want to make the most of it! We've seen it from both sides.

So I'm thinking, "haha...Kalkan isn't perfect, but..."

Well, anyway... then the power came back on. And almost immediately, the sound of power tools started echoing around the hillside as the builders frantically tried to get their work finished before the 15th May deadline. Now, I contribute to a lot of forums and social media sites centred on Kalkan, and I'm well aware that two of the things that cause most controversy on those sites are:

1) the creaking infrastructure, and
2) the amount of building going on in and around Kalkan.

Nope, Kalkan certainly isn't perfect,

But...

I mentioned it to the guests in one of our apartments. They were Kalkan first-timers, and I apologised for any inconvenience caused by the power cut. They just smiled, shrugged their shoulders and said, "guess it's just part of the charm of the place."

Then I remembered the first time Fiona and I came to Kalkan, in July 2004. It was actually our honeymoon, so I suppose wherever we went would have generated special memories... but that week changed our lives completely. We'd both travelled quite a lot and "never go back to the same place twice" had always been the motto. After all, there are so many more places to see in the world, aren't there?  But... by the third day of that holiday, we were sitting  opposite each other in the old Sofra rooftop restaurant saying... "this place is really special". We simply couldn't believe the friendliness of the people; or the quality, variety and value of the restaurants; or the views from the rooftops; or the colour of the sea; or the boat trips; or the sunsets; or the funny, friendly street animals. Of course, in our travels we had experienced all of these things before, but never all in one place. We had to come back. It was as if we had been bitten by a Kalkan bug.

As I looked back, all misty-eyed (it was the paint fumes, honest...) I remembered.

There were power cuts then, too.
And water cuts.
And unfinished buildings.
Kalkan wasn't perfect then, either.

But... here we are, still.

Linkback: https://www.enjoykalkan.com/forum/index.php?topic=13300.0

[Sezkalkan]

  aw that made me feel very emotional!  It is a very special place.  It only took us 2 visits to realise that and we ended up buying a place there!  I now spend every single waking moment counting the days until my next trip.  Only been jome 16 days, and not sure if I can wait the 54 days until the next trip!! 💞💞