Turkish Delight

Where is the sun? Where will it be warm? Where can we go for Easter to escape the cold, gray of Munich?! .... Turkey!! Whoot whoot!!!

After chatting with an Australian friend who lives here who had just returned from Turkey, we decided that we, too, could do with a week on the beach in the sun so at the last minute we booked 7 nights in an all inclusive hotel in a town called Side in Turkey. I would love to tell you all about this little town but I can't ...because we never left the hotel!! I know that sounds dreadful but this trip was purely for rest and relaxation trip where our biggest stress was moving our chairs so we were angled towards the sun. We spent 8hrs a day beach/poolside...blue sky, sunshine, warmth, sand and the Mediterranean Sea .... HEAVEN!! We were very lucky with the weather - it was fabulous to be wearing swim suits and flip flops and leaving the winter coats and boots behind in Munich where it snowed over the Easter break!! Bring on Summer!! The Fitton's are ready!!

This is the first time we have ever stayed in a large, all inclusive hotel and we definitely had our doubts; but it was fabulous and really worked for us for this trip. Everything was covered and paid for up front; flights, transfers, meals, drinks, tennis lessons, water slides, fun park, EVERYTHING!! The entire trip went very smoothly and without a doubt, we would do it again in a heartbeat! Easter time can be a tricky time to find 'confirmed' sunshine and we were THRILLED with our holiday choice.

Just before leaving for Turkey I was told I needed to have the right side of my thyroid removed. Not fun. The whole situation arose after seeing a doctor to have some lymph drainage for my knee that was full of fluid after having surgery on it 7years ago; the doctor noticed a 'lump' in my thyroid and strongly suggested that I follow it up. After many appointments, tests, ultrasounds, mri - the result was that surgery was required. The surgery was scheduled for 2 days after we got home from Turkey. The surgery went well and the scar is healing nicely. I was very anxious about the whole procedure; soooooo many doctor's appointments and then a hospital stay when I don't speak the language was very stressful. The biggest frustration for me personally was that so many of my questions are still unanswered; how long was it there for? what caused it? could it grow back? I don't know. We DO know that the lump was benign - fabulous, fabulous news and a tremendous relief!! The upside is that my hospital room mate was a super fun gal who I now consider a friend; we have been in touch, comparing our experiences since leaving hospital and once our scars are healed we are going out to celebrate. I was overwhelmed with well wishes - thank you all so much for all the love and support - I am very thankful for having such a wonderful group of family and friends!! I have included a photo 5days after surgery so if that sort of thing grosses you out, don't scroll down ;-) It's been a pretty stressful time - so much so that Turkey seems like a distant memory .... better get on to planning the next trip ;-)