Cowgirl

So we are heading off to Bulgaria for my first ever Skiing holiday!! My partner has been Skiing a few times before but for me it was a first. He decided that he would enjoy the challenge of teaching me, what a brave guy hey? Things were going quite well until by accident (well, he said it was!) on my first day we ended up going down a blue run. When I say going down it, I don’t mean stood up on my skis, I mean standing there crying in panic that I couldn’t go up or down!! After a few different angles of attack (like on one foot, my bum, elbows, face etc.) I decided that the only way was to lie on my back and slide all the way. And have a well deserved beer at the bottom to calm myself!!
As the week progressed, so did my skill and confidence. I was starting to really enjoy myself, and had mastered the art of jumping out of my skis, and throwing myself on the floor without hurting myself or others. I did have a Bridget Jones moment, where I had to shout to the snow boarders “Bridget Jones here, out of control and coming through”. Which they found highly amusing, and I think slightly impressed by my off piste skiing, and even more impressed that I stayed upright!!
Anyway, back to the title “These boots are made for walking” The xmas before this holiday, I had brought my partner some rather impressive all weather water proof boots from a Germany company called Englbert Strauss. As we arrived for our days Skiing, the staff at the Ski depot were giving the boots a lot of attention, and asking us where we had got them from, and how much I had paid. One guy even offered cash to buy them there and then but he said no way, they were a gift and the only pair he had brought with him. I then jokingly said to my partner that when we returned from Skiing, I bet his boots would be gone. And yes you have guessed right, he went to the pidgeon hole to put on his boots and the boots had walked!! We couldn’t believe it, we complained to staff but they were far from helpful. I was very surprised how they had all forgot their English which they were quite capable of speaking earlier that day. All they could say was that someone must have put them on by mistake, what are the chances that they would fit? And if so, why were there no spare boots left at the end of the day? Is it possible to wear two pairs and not notice?? We insisted that the Police be called, we caused a scene but still they couldn’t speak English. In the end, we had to give in and get the bus back to our hotel, my partner in the hired Ski boots!! “These boots are made for walking, and that’s just what they did!!”
The next morning, we were greeted by the very excited staff, who said “we have found your boots, they have just appeared” but when we tried to find out where they found them, they could no longer speak English. Now we laugh about the whole scenario but at the time it was far from funny, I don’t think we will bother returning to Bulgaria again. When we tell this story to other people, we tend to hear of other horror stories and bad experiences with the locals. If you have some good stories, feel free to try and convert me…

Just thought I’d take the time to tell you about my experience in Turkey. I must admit that I have always avoided holidaying in Turkey, not sure why but I just didn’t fancy it, what a mistake!
I have been back in the UK for four days now but would much rather be in Turkey. We booked our holiday to Marverde Plus Club, Kuyucak Bay, Bodrum, only a week before we departed. I can’t believe we managed to get such a great deal of £300 per person to an all inclusive, 5* hotel, in it’s own private bay, and including flights for one week. I was slightly nervous what we might find when we got there but all I can say is that it was a very pleasant surprise. Not like my trip to Tunisia but I shall tell you about that another day, when I feel like a rant!!
With the hotel being an ex Sun-sail hotel, the sailing opportunities were amazing, so we booked ourselves in for some lessons and after a short time we were heading out to sea on a Hobby Kat with instructor on board, unfortunately the wind was not being very helpful and kept starting, stopping and changing direction. We found ourselves at a stand still, then out of the blue a gust of wind came from nowhere and we were capsized. The other two were fine but unfortunately I was at the front of the boat and decided to Karate chop the mast on my way out, ouch!! The speed of the rescue team was fantastic, and before you know it I was on the jetty with a nurse tending my wounded leg. The swelling was that severe, they decided I needed an x-ray. After a quick trip to hospital for an x-ray, I was sent back to the hotel with a well bandaged leg (not ideal for sunbathing or swimming, I must say), thankfully no breaks, and some painkillers in hand. I couldn’t praise everybody involved enough, they all did a very good job.
Anyway, I didn’t let it put me off. On my last day there, we went back out to sea with an instructor and had a fantastic experience, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys extreme sport. I will definitely be doing it again..
After a few days taking it easy and sunbathing with my bandage on we decided to go scuba diving. I had done it once before in Majorca and not had a very good experience but I knew that in the right place, at the right time, I would love it.. And boy did I love it. The instructor who was a man in his 50’s, Paddy qualified diver and instructor, and was a mix of Del Boy, Danny Divito and Shrek, with a great sense of humour. He made me feel totally at ease and in control, his english was superb and I understood everything he was teaching me. We had a great day trip out on the boat, where we had lunch, went snorkelling and scuba diving. Their equipment was top notch, and we are planning to return later this year to do our Paddy course, which means we are qualified to dive anywhere in the world. I can’t wait!! We were all given a disc which they had put some video and photos on, taken with their underwater camera’s, what a brilliant idea? Mum and dad really enjoyed the experience too, while sitting at home on the sofa, cool eh?
Well, I expect you are feeling jealous now! There really is no need, get on and book one for yourselves. I know we were lucky where we ended up because we heard some not so good stories on our flight home, so make sure you do your research and check out plenty of reviews on the net. Oh well, happy holidays everyone. Next time I’ll send you a postcard saying “Wish you were here then? xx”