El Andalous - Buggy Trip

Turkey

There are still ways to have fun, even when the beaches are closed, restaurants and cafes aren't open, shops shut early and there’s curfew (now actually only midnight to about 4am, I think).

One thing we (four of us) did was to hire an electric buggy for a couple of hours and drive round Sahl Hasheesh. With the sun shining down, the wind going through our hair, and a constant change of scene, life finally felt like a holiday again.

We went up to the villa district to see how all the building work was progressing round there. The pier, where we like to snorkel, is closed (and even as they open up the beaches, they are still closing the pier). It’s hard to believe how hilly Sahl Hasheesh is at times; it’s somehow not what you expect in the desert.

Anyway, we continued driving past the villas (I took a few photos of the men working on the villa beside Kathryn and Stephen, so I could show it to them – however, in my fear of being spotted, I managed to put my finger over the lens), up the hill until we got to a magnificent viewpoint over Sahl Hasheesh. We stopped, took some photos, identified the major landmarks (mostly hotels).

We went past the solar farm and the ERC (resort company) headquarters.

Then back down and behind the hotels. Again, we could see a lot of building work continuing on the projects along the coast. After that, it was the best part: we progressed to the stables. I’ve never been there. Many people have said that it’s a good place to visit. One time I was even supposed to join friends on a horse riding trip along the sea (living the dream!), but something happened. Maybe I fell ill or perhaps a work meeting intervened. Anyway, this was my first visit.

I had been surprised before when people told me that it had more than three or four horses (which is what I had imagined), but somehow seeing it in real life surprised me even more. There must be about thirty stables. It seemed to go on forever. I know they do camel riding, although I didn’t spot any camels. There were quad bikes, turkeys, monkeys, chickens, dogs, cats… Normally, there’s a nice café (so I’ve heard), but it’s not open due to coronavirus. However, they were happy enough for us to come in and wander round at our leisure, petting all the animals.

Another thing I hadn’t appreciated before was that the stables take in rescue horses. I’m not sure where they are rescued from. We patted one that was so painfully thin, it was heartbreaking. One got jealous when John moved on from him to giving another horse attention and the horse started dragging up dust with his hoof to gain attention.

A group of people were just leaving to go riding on the beach, so we followed them down to the sea to watch. A dog was with them and leapt into the driving seat of our buggy. It took a while to get him out!

After that, we followed the coastline back to El Andalous. It’s really stunning to see all the blues of the sea and some of the beautiful architecture.

I was amazed at how much it felt like a proper day out, even though we hadn’t left Sahl Hasheesh. After having my sole activities as going from inside El Andalous to the pool in our gardens, and the occasional trip to shop at BestWay or Spinneys, this was a wonderful change. It has made me pine for a holiday, though!