Sunday 5 November 2017

Best laid plans...

Woo Hoo it was our Drouseian day out today - our Island discovery or rediscovery day and it was Di and Rob's choice and they had suggested breakfast our followed by a trip to the zoo and then rounding the day off with a cocktail at Oniros before they shut for the season.  The weather forecast had said that today it would be a lovely day after the rains of yesterday but when we woke this morning the storm was still hanging around so it was cold wet windy and thunder was rumbling around.  This did not deter us in our quest to use the pool and I remember that last year when Sally and Tommy came to visit us for the weekend in November that Sally decided to go in - but then again she is a nutter at the best of times!!!  Our early morning dip was accompanied by the sound of thunder and some massive spots of rain but we did it and then we got ready for our day out.

As good friends we had lent Kenny to Di and Rob whilst they await the arrival of a part for their car to come onto the island and we had decided to have our day out in comfort and take The Pug.  We now know that The Pug does not like to be separated from Kenny as last time we had done so The Pug broke down with John's sister and family on board and today the bloody thing broke down when we had gone about half a mile.  An unfamiliar warning sign came up on the dashboard, the car lost power, shuddered and juddered and we decided the best course of action was to limp it back home.  We got as far as Di and Rob's and then couldn't go any further.  A call to our mechanic came with the advice to disconnect the battery and leave the car for some time whilst the computer reset itself just in case the error had been caused by the excessive rain last night.


We decided to take the advice and trundle down to Peyia in Kenny to have our breakfast as planned and then decide where to go from there.  Our destination was Haris's bar where we had a very fine fry-up at a very reasonable price - if anyone fancies a full English or in-betweenie, or large or American this is definitely the place to go.  I had the small American which was a fry-up followed by pancakes and maple syrup for under €6 and which filled me for most of the day.  By the time we had finished eating the sun had come out and it was pretty warm down in Peyia.  We decided to abandon going to the Zoo today, saving it for a less fraught day and to return to Droushia, put the battery back on the car, call the rescue service which is included in our insurance and get the car down to the garage because even if the fault seemed to have cleared itself there was clearly something very wrong.


John called Rescue Line as we left Peyia and explained the situation and they said someone was on their way and true to their word the tow truck thing arrived about 10 minutes after we did and followed us back down to the garage and dropped the car off so that it could be put on the diagnostic computer so we would know what was wrong and how it could be fixed and, more importantly, how much it was going to cost.  We could do no more - it was still only about midday and so we decided to do something with the remainder of our day out.


As we were near to the Baracus beach bar we decided to take a walk along the coast and then stop and have a coffee there before moving on to Coral Bay to check out exactly what lies on the tourist strip there as it is an area we rarely frequent.  It had turned into a nice day and I was happy I had put on the trousers where I can unzip sections of the legs and remove them!

We took a stroll along the beach path enjoying the warm sun and the fresh air - the hotels we walked by still seemed to be pretty full of tourists - I guess some families are making the most of half term and catching some nice weather before winter comes.

We stopped at the bar for a drink - my milkshake costing almost as much as my massive American breakfast had done earlier - I know you pay for the location, and it is a pretty stunning location, and the ambiance but nice as it is it falls a bit short really when you compare it to Oniros just down the road.

The food being brought out did look nice - it is all prettily presented with your chips coming in wicker baskets but it is a bit of a case of style over substance I think.

The staff are ok but not overly chatty or attentive.  We didn't want to order immediately when we first sat down and then it took us some time to get the waiter's attention to eventually place our order.

Still we should consider ourselves very fortunate to be able to enjoy sitting out in the sunshine enjoying the stunning views at the end of October!

We weren't going to get any answers about the car until tomorrow so we decided to forget about it for the time being and not worry - there was nothing we could do and we would have to get it fixed whatever the outcome - that will be John and my Christmas present sorted!

We then moved onto the Coral Bay Strip just to have a look what it was like.  Again it seemed to be pretty packed with tourists.

We walked down one side and up the other.  There are so many restaurants for people to chose from and I think we were surprised at the prices being charged - we get a bit out of touch when we are used to paying about €10 for our main meal in Fitos and it comes with starters and pudding and a free drink!!!  It would also seem that the looky-likey, singy-likey entertainer is a big hit down with the tourists - either that or Elvis is indeed still alive and entertaining the masses in the Millenium Bar!!!

It is nice to be a tourist for a while and to experience the island through a tourist's pair of eyes but it is nice to know we will be returning to the sleepy village we live in when we have finished.


We made it to Oniros and were lucky enough to get a table right at the front with a sea view - we arrived mid afternoon before they started serving evening food which is probably a good time to arrive if you are hoping to have a table for an evening meal.  There is a spectacular view from here - love the wreck or hate it it does add a certain interest factor.  The staff are superb, attentive without being in your face and happy to spend some time chatting.  We reckon there must have been five guys on the bar constantly making cocktails or other drinks, about eight people waiting on tables at least and lord knows how many in the kitchens.  The decor is right up my street and it has been extended without loosing its charm.  I know the food and drinks are expensive but just now and again it is sooooo worth it.  I was driving and even my non-alcoholic beverage was to die for!


Although not starving we got a bit peckish to decided to order a selection of snacks to accompany our drinks and watch the remains of the day - clouds had bubbled up which put paid to any sort of spectacular sunset but we didn't mind we were just marveling at being sat outside at 6.30pm and not feeling cold.


Ok so it has been a bit of a shitty start to the day but that couldn't be helped and we will just deal with the outcome when we know what we are facing.  In the end it turned out to be a really nice day - the weather turned out to be lovely and finishing the day at Oniros was really lovely.


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