We can hardly believe we’ve been here nearly 5 weeks.  We leave next Wed.  It’s been a really nice trip over all and we’ve experienced a lot of great things and spent some quality time as a family and with our family.

My Dad arrived on Sunday night after a very long flight (and 8 hour layover in Athens).  It was really nice to see him.  We’ve been hanging out, catching up on work since we have a little extra help again and doing some more sightseeing.

Paw-Paw and Stella

We hiked up the cliffs

Stella in the Kelty Kids Backpack

where the “Guns of Navarone” was filmed using our new baby carrier, “Kelty Kid.”  So far so good, very good hiking backpack.  Would recommend it.

We also checked out Prasonisi at the very southern trip of the island where the Aegean Sea meets the Mediterranean Sea.  A sand barge appears in the summer that you can walk across. Very pretty and tons of windsurfers out and about.

As our time here comes to a close I feel quite sad to be leaving but excited for the other adventures that lie ahead.  We have been hitting all our favorite spots one last time and went to Rhodes Town again for some shopping.

Octopus Drying at Tsambika's Tavern

Rhodes Old Town

The weather here has gotten a lot cooler and it’s very nice except I really like it to be hot when I go swimming!  A bit cold when you get out.

Everyone is getting excited about Oktoberfest next week.  Even Stella is learning to do a bit of the German beer hall dancing in preparation.

Yesterday we went to Turkey.  We visited the port town of Marmaris, which is only about 12 KM from the coast of Rhodes.  Marketing for Marmaris is for shopping but I think they need to change their message.  It was a beautiful port town and really nice people.  The shopping wasn’t much and really the only disappointment (fake purses, etc., but they promised nice leather goods).

Marmaris, Turkey

Getting to Know the Locals in Another Bike Shop

We were lucky enough to have yet another flat tire on the Mountain Buggy and got to rub elbows with the locals even more.  We now see the flat tires as a way to meet the locals and have just embraced it and laugh!

It was a very long day for us all…up at 6 AM and not home until 8:30 pm.  1 hour drive to the port, waited for customs to decide if they were going to strike for 45 mins., 1 hour ferry and then we did it all again (minus the strike) on the way back.  We’ve decided no more day trips for us until Stella gets much older.  It’s just too much for a baby and to be honest…I didn’t follow my “Golden Rule” of baby travel which is to get plenty of sleep before you go…Justin and I were out (not too late but too many bottles of wine) the night before for a little alone and uninterrupted dinner time.

But worth the trip just to see Turkey and experience the culture (which was much easier to find than here in Rhodes).  We had a nice lunch in the port, walked around town, experienced the call to the Mosque several times and Justin even indulged and got a proper shave and haircut at the barbers.  He loved it, he said it was the best haircut and shave ever (and I have to say, they gave him quite a “scrub…” never seen him so shiny!).

Justin Getting a Real Turkish Shave and Cut

So onto the title of my post.  I got a chance to chat with some of the local Turks.  You don’t really see many women out and about in Turkey so my conversations were with men mostly.  While Justin was getting “polished up” I started chatting with one of the vendors of a “leather coat stand.”  He’d joked with me and asked where I was from (“you from Canada, you need warm leather coat”).

Stella was asleep in the stroller so I sat outside the barber shop waiting for Justin and taking it all in.  Just observing daily life in the bazaar and watching the vendor try to convince people to come into his store.  His “schtick” or line was always, “are you rich?”  He even said to two girls, “if you aren’t rich I don’t want to talk to you…”  Not sure how that was supposed to get people in his store but he must have some psychological magic up his sleeve I just couldn’t grasp.

We also talked about Turkey.  I told him how beautiful Marmaris was and that everyone I’d met so far was very nice.  He asked me to take him to Canada.  I said, “why, you don’t like Turkey?”  He then said, “No, I love my country.”  From what I’ve read the Turks are a very proud country.  But, he continued, “I hate the people in Turkey…”  I found this interesting because for me, the people are the country.

So as we chatted more he looked into the barber shop and pointed to Justin and said “is he rich?”  I looked at him and thought for a second.  We had been told on the way there by our bus driver that the highest paid people in Turkey made about 1000 – 1500 Euros a month.  Not really much if you think about as these are the doctors, lawyers, architects, etc.  So compared to the local income of Turkey I’d say, yes maybe we are rich by his standards.

But really, we aren’t.  So I said, “no, not rich….rich in life, but not in money.”  This really sort of made him think.  He said he liked that and walked away.

This conversation made me think more too.  I feel so lucky to have the experiences we’ve had and truly do feel “rich in life.”  It’s not the money you make or the things you buy that make you rich but rather the experience you have and memories you make.

Granddad and Teresa leave tonight and I know he’s going to miss his little Stella.  They have giggled non-stop since he arrived.  Teresa has been a really nice help and Stella has really enjoyed playing with her.

Playing with Teresa

Enjoying the Pool with Granddad

Granddad (Justin’s Dad) arrived on Monday with his girlfriend Teresa. We’ve had a nice couple of days hanging out and plan to go to Turkey tomorrow as it is very close to Rhodes. I’m counting on my Father-in-Law to do some good bargaining for me with the Turks.

Hanging Out With Granddad

Granddad and Teresa have been great playmates for Ms. Stella and helped out a lot with her so her Dad and I could get some work done and have a little time alone. That’s the one thing about this trip that we didn’t really think about. We don’t really get any breaks or alone time except when Stella is asleep. But to be honest, we miss her so much when we aren’t with her…we are quite pathetic actually.

Justin and I actually hiked up the mountain behind our villa. Every time we’d get over one crest we’d see another one and kept going. Worth the effort as we had some great views.

Granddad also brought us 2 new tires for the Mountain Buggy so we have all new tires now. Hopefully (fingers crossed) we won’t have any more problems. For all those with Mountain Buggies or plan to get a Mountain Buggy if you will be a very hot climate keep the PSI to 17-18, not the recommended 20. This will allow for the inner tube and tire to swell. Since we figured out the air pressure thing and the heat has let up a bit we haven’t had any more problems.

Granddad's Little Helper

A note on the Greeks. Such nice people (for the most part). We went back to one of our favorite villages and restaurants last night, Roula’s in Lardos. We wanted to show Granddad and Teresa how nice the village people were and the restaurant workers. They absolutely love Stella and remembered us from our previous visit. All the waiters kept coming by and giving Stella kisses and picking her up. It was very sweet.

Granddad and Teresa leave on Saturday night and my Dad arrives on Sunday.