Shopping in Marmaris

Tuesday 2nd October

Very briefly this morning, I had an internet connection up in our room but it didn’t last long and the excitement was soon over. Oh well, back to the daily mountain trek to post this blog – at least my calf muscles have adapted if not my lungs – am still out of breath when I reach the top.

Today we went on a ‘shopping trip’ to Marmaris, organised by Annabelle. This consisted of Annabelle dragging a group of 14 to four different shops in Marmaris with whom she has a special arrangement – Annabelle is not one of those people who does anything for free. I’m sure that she must get commission on our purchases (and two groups a week for the whole season must add up to a fair bit) and the gold and diamond ring on her finger that the jewellery store gave her as a 40th birthday present last year confirms that she must put quite a bit of business their way.

The day started out pleasant enough though with a 50 minute boat ride from the beach club. We pootled out of the bay and around the headland, gliding past the private Amos resort and then the town on Turunç, before joining the boat superhighway into and out of Marmaris. Most craft were heading out for the day – off to find a quiet little cove to stop for some lunch and swimming. The red and white crescent and star emblazoned flag of Turkey flies proudly from the back of all these craft and its colour against the deep blue sea and sky allows it to stand out prominently and distinctively. As Debrah would say, “It’s a top bit of branding”.

When we reached Marmaris we had a five minute walk along the seafront to our first shopping stop. On the left was the beach stacked with deckchairs, loungers and sweaty sunbathers and on the right were cafes and bars and restaurants, all gaudily decorated and offering a varied ‘international cuisine’. One such was advertising ‘liver, onions and gravy’ – a combination you would be hard pushed to find in the UK. Outside all these places were their owners or staff who are very persistent and in your face about trying to entice you in – you just have to remain strong and focused and brush them aside or you will get stuck for ages.

Our first stop was the Vogue diamond and jewellery centre, with a branch in Brighton apparently. We were given a free drink and a sales spiel emphasising the relaxed nature and no pressure atmosphere, which only confirmed the hard sell nature of the place. Debrah is very hard to please and try as our sales assistant might there was very little that he could show her that took her fancy. There was one £3,000 necklace but that was way out of our league and one pair of gold earrings which at a discounted price of £295 was still too steep – besides I think we could find the same in London for much less – the prices start very high here to give the illusion of a good deal when the discount is applied. Shop 1: Jewellery : no sale.

We were driven to the smart marina behind the old town where we had a brief lunch stop before wandering around the usual array of clothes, shoes and bag shops that you tend to find in a modern marina development. Debrah was sold a pair of shoes by a transvestite, which was a new and interesting experience. When she remarked in her deep voice that she also had size 8 feet, I very nearly blurted out “That’s because you are a man”, but thankfully stopped myself. Nice shoes though. There was no joy for the owner of the ‘genuine fake’ bag shop.

A five minute walk from the marina brought us to the old town and the bazaar. Our next stop was the pashmina shop and at £10 a go, I could tell that good business would be done here and so it proved with all the women buying something. Debrah sensibly managed to just buy two although I wouldn’t have objected to more. In fact, two was a good decision as the next shop contained even more leather goods, both real and fake leather and design. After a thoroughly civilised haggle, and an iced apple tea, we settled on £180 for a new handbag for Debrah and a pair of shoes for me. We came close to buying another bag from a different shop but couldn’t settle on the price and sensibly walked away – the end of the shopping experience.

There is no doubt that Marmaris has expanded along the shoreline in a very grim way, like many a costa town in Spain, but the old town and marina areas have more than enough charm about them to pass an interesting day there. The two heavily armed and serious looking guards next to an army bus were a bit scary and the public toilet attendant fast asleep in his booth at the entrance to the loos was very funny – business must have been slow.

After the return boat trip we headed up the hill for a lie down before the evenings live music entertainment – a band called ‘Five in the City’ – and the meze dinner. It seemed that virtually everyone in the hotel had decided to stay in for the event as the place was far more crowded than on any other night. We ended up sitting with in a four with Catherine and Irene – the boring Scots to my right and brides, who turn out to be Polish, not Russian, behind. Oohh, how we all gossiped, which I am sure Debrah will tell you all about. As for the band, well they weren’t that good really and tried to play something for everyone and some of their own tunes – they stuck to belting out some well known covers later on, which was better, or had we just had more to drink by then?

GUEST BLOGSPOT
candidate no 5: Tantric Yoga Mistress
Fit, brown and forty something. Works for the Bank of England and clearly one of those Thatcher girls who forged forward with her career and forgot to get married and have kids. An obvious target for City blokes to have an affair with. i suspect she will be always the bridesmaid and never the bride.
verdict: WHEAT - given the benefit of the doubt as she is too nice for her own good.