*Turgutreis Municipality is the first on the peninsula to require registration of dogs deemed to be dangerous, as ordered by the Ministry of Environment & Forests, Directorate of Nature Protection and National Parks directive No. 126-3070 dated 22.04.2008. The breeds specifically mentioned are the following: Pit-bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa (in photo), Dogo Argentino and Fila Brazileiro, as well as all dogs of mixed with the above. Owners of these pooches are required to register them within 3 months with the Provincial Animal Protection Institution (Il Hayvan Koruma Kurumu) and to provide proof of their neutering within 6 months. In addition, registration of dog and owner with the Turgutreis Municipality is required. Penalty for non-compliance is given as 3000 YTL. Get ready for other peninsula municipalities to follow suit.

**Wags have it that the name ‘golf’ is an acronym derived from ‘Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden’, the macho moniker applied to the game invented by some misogynous Scot. Today golf is the subject of an acrimonious debate between partisans who see it as a means of attracting upper income tourists and environmental protectionists who regard it as a drain on water resources and wasteful land use. A panel discussion entitled “Golf Tourism and the Environment” that took place on 30 May ’08 in Azka Hotel saw harsh argumentation between the opposing parties, mainly Turkish Golf Federation and supporters on one side and Bodrum Volunteers Association and Bodrum Patriotic Front spokespersons on the other. Neither side managed to convince the opposition. Result? Probably the strong will prevail, or not…  

***Until now going by public transport to the next village/town along the coast required travel to “the hub” (Bodrum) to transfer to another minibus to the desired destination. Now direct dolmuş services to adjacent coastal locales are available; schedules should be posted at each municipal minibus terminal. It seems that some drivers are not happy with this service as it may be less lucrative than their normal routes – it will take time and use by passengers to overcome this reluctance, but we must insist that the schedules be adhered to if we want to visit our neighbors directly.