Sweet water

One character missing from the Bodrum scene is the boat man who rowed from Bodrum to Bardakci and back several times a day. Bardakci had the only tatli su spring near Bodrum but in those days there was no road between the two. He carried the water in used olive and cheese tins with a rough wooden handle attached to the top. He was a tiny chap but wiry and incredibly strong.  I was fascinated by his feet, which were enormous compared to his height and I don't remember ever seeing him wearing shoes.  When he got to the quay in front of Rasit's cafe, he would shoulder a milkmaid's yoke and attach a tin to each side and scurry off in a very smooth trot, not splashing a drop, to deliver the water around central Bodrum.