Köyceğiz based engineer Yıldırım Şahin, whilst contemplating the office he uses for his business, had the idea to fulfil a long held dream. Instead of a bare, sterile room with the usual clock, business calendar and football trophy from 2013 for decoration he decided to open a book cafe. Somewhere inspiring and scenic he could work away on his laptop whilst interacting with book lovers, curious townspeople and travellers passing through.

With the help of friends, a sympathetic landlord, and a creatively talented local carpenter, Yilderim has opened the charismatic and attractive Lutra Lutra. Named after an encounter with one of the Köyceğiz lake Otters that visit the town, Lutra Lutra has already had enough love, laughter and hard work invested sufficient to give it the welcoming atmosphere all bibliophiles recognise in a good bookshop.

Lutra Lutra has been stocked with several thousand second hand Turkish books and a few hundred English language books. There’s also a growing shelf of international editions which hopefully will contain a gem or two for other nationalities combing the shelves. The genres range through general fiction, young adult, classics, non-fiction, academic and a handful of coffee table books.

One notable sideline of Lutra Lutra is a supply of greetings cards. These are notoriously hard to find in Turkey so the box of stylish blank and celebratory cards kept here are like gold-dust though priced much lower than those back in the Uk. The majority are a mixture of scenic and familiar designs but there are some eclectic beauties in there!

In true Turkish style, Yilderim is also selling tea and coffee for lingering book lovers to sit down and crack open their purchases in the shade of a Sweetgum tree. Parisian style tables and chairs outside the cafe have been piquing the curiosity and bringing out the smiles of passers-by at this recent Köyceğiz venture. Whilst enjoying a morning pavement coffee I was amused to see a couple of teenage girls sidle by three times before they plucked up courage to bypass the pre-opening melee of piled boxes, ladders and intense discussion to head inside and browse the shelves.

Since I first published this post Yılderım has opened the tranquil secret garden at the back of the shop where you can savour an excellent kahve or çay. Just wander through past the book shelves and seat yourself in the hidden courtyard beneath lemon and mandarin trees. This eclectic sanctuary is perfect to break in your recent purchases with the sound of the nesting Swifts and House Martins and occasional call to prayer adding to its ambience.

The book cafe is situated next to the PTT (Post office) off the high street, down the side road from Köyceğiz Bal. If arriving by boat on market day then it’s a 5 minute walk away and a great place to purchase a decent paperback. Feel free to ask questions, give feedback and maybe venture an order or two. Yıldırım’s suppliers will do their best to source any requests if possible.

Check out and follow Lutra Lutra’s Instagram page for new arrivals and events. If you are based in Dalyan then combine a trip to Lutra Lutra with a boat trip to Köyceğiz market using Dalyan Tekne Turu and the excellent, friendly Nilufer and Kaptan Hakan.

https://www.dalyantekneturu48.com.tr

Special thanks to Katibe, Hakan, Wayne & Aimee, Ebru, Margaret, Sulhi,Talha