Antalya, Turkey
April 28th — May 1st, 2025
Oh, this one definitely deserves a story time, mostly because of my dad’s spectacular clumsiness. It’s a trait I may or may not have inherited…
Just before arriving in Antalya, we returned the comically large van we had been driving. It felt like maneuvering a small yacht through city streets. In its place, we rented a sleek, surprisingly new Volkswagen. The switch instantly lifted our spirits. It was smooth, compact, and suddenly we felt like very competent drivers.
Pulling up to the Akra Hotel, things only continued to improve. During check-in, I may or may not have had a little something folded in my hand while chatting with the front desk. Let’s just say we ended up in two connected rooms on a high floor with a view that made the whole trip feel like a movie. Here is a little view from our hotel room taken while greeted with welcome drinks.
We settled in for a well-earned three-day pause in Antalya. It was the perfect break between all the driving and suitcase juggling. At night, we had fine dining at the rooftop restaurant, again with the beautiful view of the coast. At that point, everything seemed to be going too perfectly.
Day 2 in Antalya, relaxing time don’t last…
I’m still recovering from whatever mysterious sickness I managed to catch during this trip, so I took it easy. Slept in extra late, dragged myself to the gym, and did the bare minimum in the name of “working out.” If you’re thinking of staying at this hotel, I will say the gym is top-notch, even if all I did was lightly lift weights and admire the equipment.
The rest of the day, I fully committed to poolside relaxation. My parents, of course, can’t sit still for more than five minutes, so they drove an hour out to play golf. Meanwhile, I was living the slow life, or so I thought.
Picture this: I’m lying by the pool, soaking up the sun, when five cats appear out of nowhere and decide we’re best friends. Why? Because I made the mistake of ordering sausage fries. With my animal-loving heart, I caved and gave them most of the sausages. Relaxing? Not exactly, but definitely memorable.
A bit later, my mom calls. Her voice is beaming, she’s had a fabulous round of golf and says they’re heading back soon. All seems well.
I head back to my room, take a nice shower, and start getting ready for dinner. Feeling refreshed, I check their location just out of curiosity… and they’re still at the golf course. Confused, I text them. That’s when I get a message from my dad saying he lost the car key and they’re now on a full-blown scavenger hunt along with the golf course stuff. So much for the relaxing vibe…plot twist of the trip!
Knowing my dad, I can’t say this came as a surprise. Long story short, they ended up needing to take a taxi back that night. Thankfully, one of the staff members at the golf course was incredibly helpful. He translated everything from Turkish for my parents, helped them keep an eye out for the missing key, and even assisted in contacting Avis and the car tow service. Slight spoiler, oops!
When they got back to the hotel, the tension was high. My mom didn’t even want to look at my dad and spent the evening complaining. I took a more solution-oriented approach. I knew there was no point in making a fuss over something that couldn’t be undone. We ordered room service. My parents ate their dinner in complete silence, not a single word exchanged.
Day 3: No Progress
Car keys: still missing. My mom and I decided to make the best of it — we took a walk along the boardwalk and had a nice breakfast with a perfect ocean view, pretending for a moment that life was normal. Meanwhile, my dad finally got through to the Budget rental team, who suggested towing the car to the nearest Volkswagen dealer. So off he went, taxi to the golf course, waited forever for the tow truck, paid for it, followed it to Volkswagen… only to be told their brilliant solution was to break the window to get the bag and keys out. Naturally, Budget said no. Half a day wasted.
While he was off chasing corporate logic, my mom and I stuck to what we do best — enjoying the hotel. We hit the gym for all of twenty minutes, then surrendered to the pool. At that point, frustration had turned into resignation. The keys were gone, the car was useless, but at least the sun was out.
In the later half of the day, we walked about forty minutes to Antalya’s old town, Kaleiçi, a maze of cobblestone streets that wind toward the Mediterranean. Beside being full with tourists, the place is full of color and character, with stone walls covered in bougainvillea, narrow alleys lined with cafés, and dogs and cats roaming freely as if they owned the place. I loved it instantly. The locals treat the strays with so much kindness, leaving out food and water on every corner, though some of the dogs looked almost too well fed, their fur matted and bellies round like soft balloons. It was both heartwarming and a little sad, but mostly just unforgettable. I’ll let the pictures do the rest of the talking.
When we started getting tired, my dad decided he wanted to recreate the amazing kebabs we had in Konya. Unfortunately, because of how commercialized the area has become, the food was overpriced and not nearly as good, the ingredients just did not have the same freshness or flavor or size. That is when we came to a new rule of travel: if everyone at the restaurant speaks perfect English, the food probably will not be authentic. After, we called an Uber and went back to the hotel.
Day 4: Woke up to the BEST NEWS
Woke up to a call saying the landscaper had found the car key! While my dad went off to pick up the key, then the car, and finally us, my mom and I celebrated with manicures. After days of chaos, we can finally move on to the next destination!
