Retirement in November 2026 at Erendiz Garden Hotel

Guest contribution · Karin Schulze

When the morning swims take a break

Summer is over, and for now I have stopped my morning laps in the hotel pool. My rheumatic bones have decided to wait for the next warm season. All that remains is to wait for the coming winter – though fortunately it is taking its time here.

November in my adopted home

While November shows its dark face back in my old home and temperatures drop, as I gather from the daily news, I sit in the sunshine on the terrace in my adopted home, Türkiye. Just imagining the cold and rain reaching right into my bones sends a shiver down my spine.

Here at the beautiful Erendiz Garden Hotel, November looks very different. It is as if the paradisiacal palm garden wants to prove that it can keep showing all its splendour in the months ahead. The sun shines almost every day at a pleasant 20 degrees, only occasionally hidden by a few rain clouds that eventually decide to move on.

Citrus fruit outside my door

Right outside my door, the orange and lemon trees are waiting to be picked. Hibiscus bushes come to life and produce new flowers every day. Everything is lush and green, and even the winter plants, whose names I do not all know, seem to compete in blooming and growing. It is a lovely scene: local Turkish people walk past in thick winter clothes, while a few tourists still wear summer outfits and some hardy souls even venture into the sea.

Welcomed as one of the family

I would never have thought it possible that, after a lifetime of hard work, I could spend my retirement so peacefully and contentedly – surrounded by warm-hearted hotel owners who have welcomed me as a member of their family, and accompanied by good friends who are always there for me.