Kalkan Turkey Forum - EnjoyKalkan.com
Kalkan Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: hodstar on September 30, 2014, 12:37:04 PM
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Just returned from another great holiday to Kalkan wishing we were still there. :(
Seen a few changes even since May. Price increases in many places, 10 TL for an Efes in a few bars and 54 TL for a fillet steak.
The most disappointing thing though, was the opening of a new T shirt/bag and trainer stall opposite Limos restaurant. Very aggressive selling techniques by the traders including looking in peoples carrier bags and telling tourists they should have bought from them as their products were better and cheaper than other traders. My friend asked to try on a pair of shoes and was told only if he was prepared to buy. When he declined the offer, a load of Turkish expletives were burbled out accompanied by a lot of arm waiving by the very rude and unpleasant trader, not the behaviour you would expect in Kalkan.
On the plus side though, the same warm welcome you receive from other shop owners and restaurant staff etc, is still as overwhelming as ever. Had some great food at Sade, Kosk, Fez, Hunkar and Rose but disappointed at Limos. Merkez still our favourite place to sit, chill, have a drink and watch the world go by. We were also impressed with the new Botanic Gardens bar which is something different.
Still love Kalkan but hope the standards you expect from the fabulous people of the town don't diminish.
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Glad you had a good holiday hodstar but shame about the pushy trainer stall guy. Is this the new stall just down from the taxi rank and does he sell towels as well? If so I have had dealings with him too on our last day and although he wasn't rude - he was very pushy indeed. I was looking at buying some beach towels for my mother in law but I wasn't impressed with the quality or the price. He just would not let me go and ended up shouting after me as I walked off - 'I'll remember you'! He wasn't threatening; I think he thought it was banter but I thought he was plain cheeky and OH was not impressed either and we both mentioned that we would give this stall a wide berth in the future.
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After so many years of walking past this as a derelict shell, it was good to see it being used but we were a liitle saddened it wasnt a restaurant or bar. This used to be a lovely restaurant with gorgeous views. The market-stall type place with strip lighting is a backward step in our view irrespective of how rude the traders were >:(
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Didn't like the derelict shell....but definitely better than tacky market stall that's there now!
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Yep, I went out with friends in September and what used to be a lovely traditional pancake restaurant opposite Ali Babas is now a tacky horrible shoe / clothing market which to be perfectly honest is embarrassing for new visitors who look forward to the Kalkan hospitality we have enjoyed. I can only assume the Council have sold off a short lease until the end of the season but it is really not very nice.
I can only assume that it will not be there next season, thank goodness!
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I dont remember a pancake place there...? I do remember a lovely restaurant with a terrace at the back - cant remember the name of it now. Think there was a travel agents...barbers...? They had to move as the Belediye had plans for the area...then as we know, nothing for years and years until this eyesore :(
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We also had a very bad experience with these horible people at this stall, they were very rude to my 10 year old grandaughter and at one point actually smacked our 2 year old grandson hard on his bottom and made him cry, I made a pont of telling them they were so rude and they were very confrontational.Not the sort of people you expect in Kalkan and so not the kind of impression Kalkan would want to give to people especially as it is the 1st point of call on the walk into town, I really hope the tacky stall is not there next year. This is the first and only negative comment i have ever made about kalkan as other than this it is a magical place with fantastic local people who are always so friendly and welcoming.
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Kalkan4Ever, you are right it was never a pancake restaurant but there was a Turkish lady at the front of the restaurant who used to sit and make the big puffy bread and maybe pancakes too, so I have always called it the pancake shop! I am going back a bit mind......we have been going out now for over 20 years and owned for 12 now! Certainly seen some changes that's for sure, but the heart of the village is still preserved and still a of of the lovely faces in the local shops who have been around since we have been going out.
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I believe the restaurant was called Ilban. We once met some first time visitors to Kalkan who ate there every one of their 14 nights holiday!
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Your right it was Ilban fish terrace that later moved into the place that keeps changing 100 yards up from Kaya that has been a tea and cakes room also a Chinese and Alis fish restaurant to name just a few ;)
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yes it was Ilban. Arif our neighbour used to own it and his family used to make pancakes in the attatched building. there was talk at one time of becoming a small hotel. and yes it has to be the eyesore of kalkan now! :(
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Ilban....of course. Lovely fish there, I recall, although I'm ashamed to say we never went when it moved up the road :(
I do remember the puffy bread though, macrefield mom :D
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I agree, 1 rotton apple though, that's the worry.
We also had a very bad experience with these horible people at this stall, they were very rude to my 10 year old grandaughter and at one point actually smacked our 2 year old grandson hard on his bottom and made him cry, I made a pont of telling them they were so rude and they were very confrontational.Not the sort of people you expect in Kalkan and so not the kind of impression Kalkan would want to give to people especially as it is the 1st point of call on the walk into town, I really hope the tacky stall is not there next year. This is the first and only negative comment i have ever made about kalkan as other than this it is a magical place with fantastic local people who are always so friendly and welcoming.
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I remember it as a pancake shop ,A very beautiful Turkish Woman who always had a fresh flower in her hair.She cooked pancakes at the front of the shop.Behind her ,mixing and preparing sat a very elderly lady ...... Mum or Mum in Law I suspect ... .The pancakes were delicious . She was there for a couple of seasons ,must have been eight or nine years ago.
Prior to that,as you say B.L. And K4E. It was a wonderful restaurant.
Two special memories of that ....apart from the food,views and hospitality !! .
It was the first and only place that I have ever heard Willie Nelson played in Turkey :o...... Lovely . And a young couple eating next to us had just won 3.2 million on the national Lottery !!! :o :)
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Willie Nelson???.............. isn't that a wrestling hold??? ;D
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Oh God I thouht it was just my imagination. I had the same experience the other day. I dont live here full time but am here a lot and this attitude they have just doesnt go with Kalkan. Best way to get rid of them is just not buy anything.
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Darcy, the lady you are referring to is Hatice, sister of Arif who ran the restaurant. Their mother was the elderly lady.
Their business premises were situated on top of their parents home, which was once a pansyon, the first in Kalkan. It was built onto the side of the hill.
For me, the nighttime view from that terrace restaurant typified Kalkan. It was always so fabulous and very romantic, especially with the moon just hanging over the islands. Sigh.
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Thankyou Cuddles. It's always good to find out some history .
We are in Kalkan at the moment ......... I have avoided the stall referred to by always crossing at the top of the road .
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Thankyou Cuddles. It's always good to find out some history .
We are in Kalkan at the moment ......... I have avoided the stall referred to by always crossing at the top of the road .
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Darcy......I am seeing double !! It must be the strong Efes.Having an excellent time in Kalkan at the moment,avoiding the stall and the rain !!
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Kas Belediye doing a great job just now. Street bins being regularly emptied, workers sweeping the back streets in the old town, and clearing up the landscaped area behind the town beach today. Kalkan looks so beautiful at the moment - even in the rain.
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Looks like a load more clearing up to do ....check out KTLN report/pictures of damage caused by rain.
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Just seen the Lipsos Facebook page with photos of torrents of brown running down cardiac hill towards the harbour, Autumn has certainly arrived with a splash.
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Looks dreadful - hope there's not too much destruction!
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Terrible forces of nature at play in Kalkan over the past 24 hours. But I don't understand why the new roads are collapsing after only 6 months. I hope the contractor guaranteed the workmanship.
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Have spent the best part of the day clearing up in our house due to flooding from the rain storm last night & again this morning, we must have had approx. 6 inches of rain over the period. Have been paddling in ankle deep water trying to keep the drains cleared in the garden, thank goodness for the respite later in the day so we could dry out a bit. Kalkan certainly not Paradise at this time.
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Have to say all the pictures and films I've seen today look terrible. I can only hope there isn't too much damage and things get back to normal as soon as possible. Strange to see the torrents of muddy water cascading down Cardiac Hill in brilliant sunshine.
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sunshine this morning thank goodness give us chance to dry out, did need the rain but must admit in all the years have not seen seen so much come down & for quite a long period of time, usually shorter strong down pours, then sunshine then more over a longer time. Still better than those high winds. lovely morning here , very warm with just a hint of cloud, still a lot of roads etc to be repaired now, it looks greener on the mountain side that's for sure..
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Kas Belediye out in force in town yesterday (Saturday) to clear up the carnage caused by the storms. There was the usual - one worker shovelling up debris outside Coast while four others watched - but at least progress was being made. Groups of workers also huddled on the roads putting back the hundreds of stone setts that had been washed away. One whole side of the newly laid carriageway has disappeared outside the PTT, and the concrete slope down from DoyDoy has a huge cordoned-off crater in it. Trouble is, all the sand has been washed out from between the stones of all the other cobbled streets as well, so the setts are all sitting like 'loose teeth' in the road. I imagine that further extensive work will be needed to secure these before the worst of the winter weather sets in. Meanwhile the layers of sand and grit are in themselves a slip hazard. Some gentle rain is back as I write.
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raining again but it has been good in between showers.
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Mmmmmm .. .. The repair to the carriageway opposite PTT/Minibar is not as seamless as I'd hoped. From a distance it resembles a ski jump. What construction methodology allows this to happen? Such a shame.
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That I think is better repair than Moonlight bar down past Alternatif Restaurant to harbour. Replaced granite blocks are not set right ,and have not been filled in between,gaps and if you allow for settlement [that is if they not swept allow in next heavy rain] there will be big craters..
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Why weren't they cemented in last Spring when the work was completed?
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No one should be surprised about the way in which the new roads have disintegrated after the recent downpour. This isn't the first time new roads in Kalkan have collapsed and wont be the last. If you were around early this year when they were laying the new cobbles then the speed at which they completed the works was a big clue. The total lack of a suitable sub base is why they are now collapsing. The sand they used as the sub base is being washed away down the many hills, most likely to block drains! Unfortunately the rush to get the Old Town open for the start of this season has come at a cost. Regrettably the repairs now being carried out are just as bad!!
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This makes me worry about the proposed plans for the harbour area. I understand completely why the work needs to be done but the potential for getting it wrong is enormous. Before the storms the new roads looked great, but they need to stand up to the weather conditions.
While in Kalkan a couple of weeks ago we frequently talked about how beautiful the area between Kleo and the harbour is. Fener cafe is so picturesque with all the trees built around it will be such a shame to see it go especially as it is used by many of the locals. Fingers crossed that whatever takes place is sympathetic and done to a high standard! ::)
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How right you are Happy Days, we were here in April/May and watched them lay the cobbles, so obvious what was going to happen when the rains came, and so sad. We are near the White House Hotel and there is a crater appearing there.
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I was there last Friday outside the Samira and watched cobbles rolling down the road, pushed along by a river of red sand. Within minutes, the sea had turned red as well. The word "biblical" came to mind! It's still only October! At this rate there'll be nothing left by next season!
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Time to bring in the professionals before the roads are out of commission twice in the same season!
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It's is too late for that, the professionals would want to take up the roads/pavements and relay them on a hardcore base.
Running repairs will be the way forward. Still repairs shouldn't take too long. Last October while having lunch at Ali Baba's we watched them lay the 10m of road outside the restaurant in about 50mins, straight onto a bed of sand and all held in place by a bit more sand.
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it is usual in the UK to bed it in with a sand and cement mix which is also swept into the cracks on finishing and lightly watered to set it..But that's the UK!! Where it takes 10 times as long and 10 times the amount of tea and cheese and pickle sandwiches consumed so I imagine cost is also factored in.Also the delay that put things back by a considerable amount of time and the rush to get things done for the start of the season I guess has to factored.I think now this is here to stay as water will only go into the pipes underneath if it can go nowhere else..The hillsides natural barriers have vanished by and large due to development and it will just continue to roll down hill when kalkan gets a deluge .I thought it looked very nice in june but I guess you never know what is happening underneath while you are enjoying yourself above in the dry heat of summer :D ;)
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A cement mix would probably crack up with thermal movement in that climate. Probably the sand was not thoroughly tamped down with a vibrating plate machine when the blocks were laid.
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Then maybe the 'ski jump' is a master stroke! The new stone setts used in the repair have been deliberately laid higher than the rest of the road, in full knowledge that they will eventually sink, then Hey Presto! A perfectly level road again. Genius!
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I agree with BL that it looked lovely in the Summer, despite everyone's concerns. Just a shame to watch it all rolling away again!
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Cobbles and setts are widely used across many towns throughout turkey...and seem to stay in place probably because they have been swept in with a mix of S&C :P
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I would imagine that few of them are on quite such a slope as well. (Although I have to admit to having very limited experience of any other Turkish towns!)
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Oh dear, looks like I'll have to go over and take a look and report back next week.... (flights booked 4 sleeps to go)
from what I have seen so far (facebook KTLN etc) the old roads suffered as well as the new, some people say it was the worst flooding in 20yrs. However when I was there in July it was obvious that the grit between the sets had settled (as it does) so there wasn't any visible .. not sure if the new roads get grit/sand brushed in on a regular basis but that's apparently needed. Other areas in Turkey have similar sets (and similar hills in places) it does seem to work and roads have been constructed like this for 100s of years.
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One issue that makes the situation worse in Kalkan is that the fastidious and house-proud bar and restaurant owners regularly hose down the streets in front of their properties - which should be a good thing. But for months they have been washing out the sand and grit from between the setts. Just back from a lovely early morning stroll down to the harbour and the loose grit that has had accumulated into piles further down the roads is treacherously slippy underfoot - like walking with tiny marbles under your feet.