Cooking Facilities

[felicity]

I''m afraid - I am greedy and like both....   I have a dishwasher at home and the thought of being on holiday and having to wash up the merest mug or plate fills me with utter dread   Even if you always eat out - I would have thought that most people will breakfast at home and therefore a dishwasher is pretty high up on my priorities..LOL...I know Im VERY LAZY - but it is a holiday after all..!!   

Oh and by the way - our oven doesn''t get a huge amount of use - but I find it useful for keeping warm that bbq food - because my bbq-ing skills are never that good when it comes to timing how long things will take to cook on the bbq...and also for doing those all important roasted veg to accompany the bbq - the turkish vegetables are sooo lovely and tasty and fresh - I just chuck the whole lot in a roasting tin with garlic and olive oil and hey presto - deliciouse roated meditteranean vegetables....always a hit when we bbq!!  Mmmm!!! 

[littlelin]

Felicity, I think we''ll all be coming round to yours for dinner then!

[Blue Lizard]

ooo err.....when you are doing a BBQ..always have a back up plan!!make sure you have got plenty of salad /fruit and some pizzas you can put in the oven if things go horribly wrong!!...ply your guests with copious amounts of vino collapso and hopefully all will be forgot.... 

[jofoss]

When deciding on our rental property in terms of facilities, my top priority is a washing machine, so nice to be able to quickly freshen up favourite items, wash those awful beach towels and saves on luggage space - well, a little!! We are not too bothered about a full oven but it is nice to have. We too generally eat out most nights but there are times when you just don''t feel like going out, so the option to BBQ or cook is always welcome.

For us also, distance from town has now become more of a priority, given taxi costs.....so this year we have booked a townhouse in the old town, a couple of mins, literally, from restaurants and bars.

Roll on June.........as always, can''t wait.

Jo

[Lorretta]

I have to say that although we have a full oven it doesn''t get used much either by us or people who rent from us. I also have a slow cooker which is good in the colder months for doing lamb casserole etc.

[felicity]

Now that''s a good idea Loretta - a slow cooker...did you buy that in turkey (do they have such things?) or did you bring from the UK....I must think about purchasing one of those....

[Lorretta]

Hi Felicity,
I did have a look for one locally and in kas but couldn''t find one so I am afraid I took one out with me. Knowing what I know now thanks to the information supplied by other members on the forum, I should have declared it at customs and taken it home, but I really wasn''t aware of that at the time. It was a few years back so you might be able to get one locally now.
If you get a good cut of lamb and add some stock and lots of veggies, maybe a glug of wine and some garlic it makes for a lovely casserole and all you have to do is bung it all in the one pot. The other good thing is that slow cookers are very energy efficient too.

[felicity]

Mmmm - I feel another recipe thread and beer thread coming on  ...that lamb casserole sounds scrummy..!!

Cheers"

[vicksen]

Lorretta, you can rest easy with a clear conscience - you don''t have to declare a slow cooker; it''s electric not electronic; it''s only electronic items (such as dvd players, computers, televisions, amplifiers) which should be declared.

[Lorretta]

Thanks Vicksen, I think I was being a bit paranoid! I have re-read your advice on electronic items and it all makes perfect sense.

[Mercimek]

Though I would hope anyone trying to declare such items has more luck than I did last year when I brought back a new phone. I was told I couldn''t ''register'' it with customs as customs had gone home!!

[Clive]

Bosch and  Siemens just like the company which has what you describe as ''''the rude sounding name'''' which is pronounced archalik have their own manufacturing plants  in Turkey. Bosch is manufactured here, as is arcelik so can''''t imagine why anyone would turn up their nose at a Turkish manufacturer with a worldwide reputation but would buy a product also made here just because it has a foreign name. Why on earth would they want to come to Turkey if they cannot bring themselves to cook on a Turkish cooker?

Since actual imported goods carry a very high import tax, local manufacture is always a better bet and arcelik offer a 5 year guarantee on all appliances.
 please don''''t tell people not to buy local manufacturers products just because you had dealings with an incredibly stupid and bigoted potential customer.
 Lantana

[kalkan4eva]

I think Felicity is right - we rent and do look for a "home away from home". It''s about options and we want to have the choice of using a hob/full oven/microwave if we feel like staying in for a night. We probably do that once or twice over a fortnight, and whilst we''re not about to cook a four course Michelin starred menu, it''s great to be able to use the lovely fresh produce in Kalkan and create a really nice meal. I see cooking as a pleasure rather than a chore, so we would only chose to rent somewhere that had decent kitchen facilities.
Like most posters, a washing machine is a must! I have a dishwasher at home, but make a point of not using one on holiday, particularly if we know there are energy shortages, as I''d rather use the electricity keeping cool. It''s only a small contribution, but one we can make without too much hardship. So I don''t neccessarily look for dishwasher as part of the set-up.
I always like to know if there''s an iron, hairdryer etc...the kind of things that weigh the case down... I do like a nice view, so those of you with apartments and villas overlooking the bay probably have no trouble renting....you are sooohhh lucky 

[Lorretta]

It''s amazing how many people want an Iron! I never had one in the apartment as I don''t mind looking a bit crumpled! but after feedback from guests we now have an iron and as space is limited a "mini" ironing board from Ikea.

[Mrs B]

Must admit to not using an iron myself, but the apartment we stay in has got one just in case.
Hairdryer is very useful, c.d player and radio is nice, alarm clock for those daytrip early mornings!! 

[Lorretta]

We have a C.D player. We also supply alarm clocks which I thought may go "walkabout" so far so good. Can''t keep track of the number of plug adaptors that have gone missing though!

[kalkan4eva]

oooh yes, talking of adaptors, those plug-in mosquito repellent thing are really handy. We bring some from home, but then find the bottles you buy in the supermarkets don''t fit them (valuable diamante flip flop space wasted!!!!  ) It would be handy to know if the accomodation had them in advance.
I find most of my things don''t need ironing after I''ve hung them up, but if I wash a few bits and pieces whilst I''m there they will generally have to be ironed (more''s the pity)  So an iron is a must for us, as I can''t do crumpled...I''ve tried...just can''t.

[felicity]

Home from home - it has to be for me and therefore all of the above which are standard for me at home - I have to have in my villa - the iron is also used by our cleaning lady to iron the sheets for our guests (and I NEVER iron sheets at home - so that is a lovely treat)....I would have thought that all the items in the previous posting that have been mentioned are what holidaymakers to Kalkan would expect...wouldn''t they...

And yes - the odd adapter has gone missing - but we ensure plenty to cope with all the UK plugs around and plug in mossie repellents in each room - they don''t go walkabout - no need for them in the UK...lol!!  :

Cheers!