Come With Me; Travel Edition Day 10: Scuba Diving in Bodrum, and a night out in Yalikavak Marina

Hi guys!!!!!

I’ve finally come to the end of my posts for the holiday, did I hear someone say Yippee? Lol!

After a wonderful day of rest and relaxation, my friend Princess and I woke up early the next morning for our scuba diving adventure. It was our first time diving, and neither of us really knew what to expect.

We made calls to several dive agencies we found online, but most of them were unavailable, due to the pandemic. We did find one that was open - Aquapro Dive Center, and we booked with them for the day.

We had to arrive at 9:30am as the boat was to leave Bitez, and head to Karaada where our diving adventure was to take place. Bitez is a little far from Yalikavak - about 30 minutes away, so our taxi cost around 100TL. It cost about 450-500TL in total to dive, and this package includes photos and videos.

We were welcomed very warmly when we arrived at the Marina, with our host meeting us at the gate of the pier, and helping us inside and onto the boat. There were a few other divers on the boat, and everyone was polite, and nice.

The head diver at Aquapro is a British lady with the most delightful 12 year old daughter. As we sailed to Karaada, she kept us entertained with stories of things that interest teenagers, as well as tidbits on diving.

Princess and I spent the ride to Karaada acquainting ourselves with some of the other divers on the boat as well as taking photos. I also ate one of the sandwiches provided for free by Aquapro.

Soon we were at Karaada, and as we learned several of the divers on the boat weren’t first timers, and were already very familiar with diving, so they went ahead, while we spent about 30 minutes getting lessons and important instructions from our head diver.

For full disclosure I wouldn’t really recommend Aquapro, if you’re a first time diver. I don’t think they’re bad, but our instructor was really not the most patient with us. I completely understood where she was coming from, as she’s been a diver for over 20 years, and seeing someone struggle with something that comes naturally to you can be a tad frustrating. However, I think that even though she gave us the best experience she could have, it would have been so much better if she was more patient with us.

After our lessons, we were helped into our diving suits and all of the important gear. You have to wear a diving suit provided by the company, and the suit is important because it’s made of neoprene that’s millions of tiny little bubbles that help you under the water. You can also bring your own if you have one. We each had an instructor to ourselves, and our instructor was to guide us in the water and ensure our safety.

Princess swims like a fish, but I on the other hand never really practiced after completing my swimming lessons so naturally I was very afraid of the deep water. If I’m being honest I completely panicked the first time we went in, and made my instructor come up out of the water and give me some time to get over the panic attack. I think that added to her irritation with us. After a couple minutes I decided to go back in the water, and it was the best decision ever.

We didn’t go far from the boat, because our instructor was worried. We did however see some beautiful small fish, as well as touch and feel the rocks under water, and feel the bottom of the ocean.

It was an amazing experience even with all the fear I had to see the fish in their natural habitat as well as see what it all looks like very clearly under the Ocean. Once again I was in awe of God’s creation.

I will definitely recommend Scuba Diving to any and everyone, even if you don’t know how to swim. It’s a very beautiful experience, and you get to see a side of God’s creation that you don’t ordinarily get to see.

We spent the rest of our time swimming, relaxing, and enjoying the waters. I put on a life jacket after much encouragement, and got back in the ocean to swim. That in itself is another amazing experience that I would definitely recommend. It’s so much different from swimming in a pool. The waves were beautiful and not too rough, so they kept me rocking back and forth. It was so amazing watching the top of the ocean rock back and forth - so solid, yet so liquid. I had a lovely instructor helping me and he stayed by my side all the time I was in the water, and I swam a little close to the rocks.

Soon it was time to head back to the Marina, and it was an enjoyable quiet ride back spent sunbathing on the boat.

After our lovely afternoon, we got back to our hotel to get ready for dinner with some friends we made in Bodrum.

Princess has been to Bodrum several times, so she recommended Fenix Restaurant at Yalikavak Marina, and it was a fantastic choice.

Fenix is right opposite Nusr Et on the Marina, and is a lovely restaurant that turns into a lounge as the evening progresses. With open skies, lovely plants that give a garden feel and a few private booths, it’s an excellent option if you want to have dinner and party after with friends. Be sure to make a reservation before you go tho.

There’s a sushi menu, and a regular menu. We ordered a few starters that were so excellent, we got them again even after our Entree’s had come. There was a lamb chops dish that was served with Eggplant mash - I found that interesting. There were several sushi orders, and a ribs dish as well. I particularly enjoyed the sushi, and the shrimp starter. All in all the food was really good. My friends ordered Prosecco, but I decided to opt for this chilli margarita that I found interesting and I quite liked it.

As the night went on, the music turned up, and we switched to dancing with ourselves and a few of the other lovely people we met there until well past midnight, after which we retired to our hotel for the night.

Our flight back to Istanbul was the next afternoon, and so we had some time to get breakfast the next morning, before taking the hour long trip to the Milas - Bodrum airport. We decided to head back to the Yalikavak Marina, to find a restaurant to eat at.

We settled on The Cookshop restaurant, and Princess ordered pancakes while I decided to get the Chicken Mac and Cheese.

My Mac and Cheese was so good. It was perfectly seasoned, the pasta wasn’t too soft - perfectly al dente. The chicken breasts were dry, but it had a hint of rosemary that was really nice wherever it appeared.

Princess’ panckakes were delicious. It had an orange flavor and came with hazelnut spread, strawberries, bananas and this deliciously rich butter that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The cookshop plays lovely blues music not too loudly, so it makes for a nice experience generally. However it did have flies. I quite enjoyed my meal tho.

All in all this was the perfect end to an amazing holiday. I’m so grateful to God for the experience as it was my very first vacation. I learned a lot, saw so many new things and places, and had an amazing time.

I would definitely recommend that you add the locations I visited to your summer holiday plan whenever you’re visiting Turkey. You won’t regret it.

If you have any questions, feel free to send me a message, leave a comment or reach out, and I’ll do my best to respond to the best of my ability.

Thank you all for coming with me on this holiday series, and I look forward to taking you guys on another Travel series.

Love, Yoma.