Back to some sort of normality...

Well we had one of those elmegamungo-and-chips jet-lag type sleeps last night because boy it was soooo good to be back in our own bed.  Although the weather here is cooler it is considerably warmer than what we left behind in Birmingham but you can tell that Autumn is just around the corner and the evenings seem to be drawing in - having said that it is 9.30pm and John has the fan on and the temperature indoors is 2showing 6 degrees but the weather station is also showing RAIN!!!!!!

When we eventually dragged ourselves out of our pit John shot off down into the village for some supplies and to check the post.  Waiting for us were some brown envelopes from the Inland Revenue - deep joy - letters from the Inland Revenue are never good news - particularly when you struggle, like I do, with an annual tax return.  But HEY!!!!! the taxman loves us this time as we have successfully applied to be taxed in this country and over here we are both exempt - I cant tell you what a difference that will make to our little budget - we might even partake of some €1.70 a litre carton wine tonight!

We had invited Mum and Dad to come up today for lunch so that we could finish off our 'holiday' so before they came John wanted to clean the pool - just as well as we found this fella floating on the top.  Dad says that in 20 years he has never seen one of the island's scorpions.  We feel so blessed - NOT!!  We think it might be the stone that we have around the borders that is providing a home for scorpions and tarantulas.  I guess this is the price that we pay for living in the country!! 

Prospective visitors please dont worry these are very few and far between and if it hadnt been in the pool we would probably have gone 20 years without seeing one either.

We went down to the harbour in Latchi to have lunch in Faros.  We have been there a couple of times and we just love being able to sit out on the water front and look at all the boats.  We had a really really good lunch (despite me knocking over a full pint of Leon!) and we had to question the bill because it was really cheap.  We shall certainly be going there again (NB - good for fish Trev and Mark).

I have spent this afternoon photoshopping the photographs I took at the wedding.  I shall post a series of them over the next few days otherwise you will get bored!!!

Our flight over which seems like a lifetime ago was ok if not a little cramped - Thomas Cook looked like they had unmothballed our plane and it was without any finery - you get what you pay for but give me EasyJet anytime!

First stop was to pick up our hire car where John used his charm to secure for us an upgrade from a saloon car to this rather nice Ford S-Max which was absolutely brilliant and meant that we had loads of room for the four of us and our luggage.  We only insured it for John which did mean that he spent quite a lot of the week driving people around but he was great and didnt mind.

John took the opportunity on Wednesday to go up to Staveley to see his family and to catch up with the long running saga of his step-father's bungled hip operation.  Good news is that a new surgeon in Sheffield thinks that he can rebuild Hadge's leg and if so this will mean that the threat of amputation has been avoided - we are all keeping our fingers crossed and really hope that this will bring a close to the very long running and stressful saga.

I was detailed off to Hull on Thursday with my sister Kaye to check out the accommodation which was being provided by the University and to help with the wedding preparations.  The accommodation was much better than we had anticipated more Travelodge than student doss-house.

Although not a florist I obviously display more artistic talent than anyone else Kaye knows so my main job on Friday was to create fourteen table centres using goldfish bowls, lilies and a bit of bear grass - I must have missed the episode of Blue Peter when they covered this particular subject!!  In addition a 'little something' was required for the top of the wedding cake - bring on the sticky backed plastic and a pair of Val's old knickers and I am well away!  Dont forget that I made all the invitations, orders of service and the seating plan!!  Maybe there is a career in there somewhere for me!

Friday it was all hands on deck...

...The big day was just around the corner and family were arriving from all parts of the globe.  Kaye and Richard had organised for them all to descend on our accommodation for chilli and drinks and a catch up. 

Our two families go back a long way as Kaye and Richard met in Cornwall about whisper...40 years ago and Richard had the slide show to prove it!!

Will fill you in on the wedding day tomorrow but just as a little taster there is a photograph below of the happy couple taken in the garden just before the heavens opened and the thunder and lightening started ...

We are back...

Hi blog-followers...

This is just a quick post to let you know that John and I are back from our whistle-stop visit to England for my niece's wedding.  We enjoyed typical bank holiday weather with hail, torrential rain and thunder and lightening - the latter two just as Ellie and Andy were about to have their group photographs taken in the gardens of Hull University. 

We are exhausted but glad to be back home where all is good - some of the plants look a bit worse for wear and boy have the weeds grown but apart from that and the fact that the pool needs some of John's TLC it feels like we have never been away now that we have cracked open the red wine.

Just about to tackle the photographs I took - they are in RAW so all need some attention before you can see them!

Day 113...

A day of travel using various modes of transport which started with us completing the 30+ kilometres from Polis to Emba on the trusty old scooter which, bless it, managed the trip quite well as it is pretty hilly.

Next was a trip in Dave's 4x4 to the airport which passed without incident. Thomas Cook's aircraft was ancient and cramped but got us to Birmingham airport early.

Hertz car hire has provided us with a rather fancy Ford S-MAX and we got to Kaye's in one piece - we have a list of wedding jobs for today and the sun is shining...

Not sure when and if I will get to post again but there will be a full report in due course.

Day 112...

A short post tonight and the last for a few days because we are off to Ellie's wedding.  It is short because we have had a very full and action-packed day with the Robson family, Barry, Lyn and Joseph.

We picked them up from their hotel at 10.30 and then quickly called into Mum and Dad's for morning coffee.  That was followed by a trip up the coast to Viklari (Last Castle) for lunch with a view to beat all views.  Like we say the food may not be the best in the world but the location is second to none and if you didnt know where it was you would never find it!

We then drove up and round the coast to Lara Bay so that Joseph could see the baby turtles.  This time they had several in a tank ready to be released.  He and I then braved the sea together - in fact it was very warm.  Afterwards we followed the coast road along to Neo Chorio through the goats and into Latchi for a quick drink at the harbour-side.

From there we swung up the hill through Droushia Village and to our home where Joseph and I had a late afternoon dip in the pool.

Our trip back down to Paphos to drop them back to their hotel was via Kathikas and Yiannis for our evening meal.  I cant remember the last time I laughed quite so much - what a brilliant evening!

We have now returned from our day out and it is very nearly 11.30pm!!

So prospective visitors you know what to expect if you come to see us.  Busy days organised with military precision!!

Day 111...

Blimey it has been a busy old day today...

...the normal early morning swim was followed by John cleaning the pool because we were expecting Simon, Lou, James and Millie around lunchtime.  We took a walk down into the village to see if Mel and Simon were around for coffee and to hear about the Lebanese meze they had experienced last night but they had gone down to the beach early to try and shake off a couple of baggy heads - so presumably their evening was successful.  We can catch up with them another weekend. 

We took the opportunity to take a walk around the village going down streets we hadnt been down before and finding the village graveyard.  We were passing by Christos's taverna when Alkisti called us in for a coffee which she served with some of her homemade olive onion and coriander bread (she told us what it was called but I am blowed if I can remember what she called it!!!).  I didn't think for one minute that John would eat it as he isnt really keen on black olives but it was absolutely delicious and he ate two pieces the size of a man-sized sausage roll.

As we were walking back to the villa we saw Simon swing his hire car up into the estate so we had to put a spurt on to catch up with him.  Unfortunately Louise had been feeling a bit under the weather so had chosen to rest up in peace.  It was lovely to be able to show them where we live and for the kids to enjoy the pool.  You look at your surrounding quite differently when you are seeing them through someone else's eyes. 

It was a shame that Lou wasnt able to come but we have said to them 'next time' as we are sure we will be seeing them again.

I know that they have plans for next year when they both reach the big 40 (sorry if that is giving your ages away guys).  Anyway so that Lou wouldnt feel left out I took some photographs which we printed for the kids to take back to her.  John and Simon chewed the fat over old times in the Navy - although their paths never crossed when they were both in the 'mob'.

We showed the Poole family the high spots of Droushia - Tavernas, Weaving Museum, Post Office before bidding them farewell.  Let's hope their journey home is uneventful and Happy Birthday to James who will be 10 on Wednesday - both he and Millie were a pleasure to have here today.

The remainder of our day was spent with various of our neighbours, we will be so wired by all the coffee that we have been drinking!!!  First stop was next door with Gregoris and Theodora who were packing up to go back to Nicosia and to chat about plans that they have for their villa and how we might be able to help them as they are keen to draw on our experience from what we have already been able to achieve.

Next George came round with this daughter and son-in-law.  He too has plans for his villa and wanted to show them what we had done and again to ask where things might be sourced and what the costs might be.  He is desperate for us to go round and have a drink with them but that will have to wait until we return from Ellie's wedding. 

Final stop was to say goodbye to Galadia and her family.  Charalambous and George have gone shooting - a pleasure which John declined - they have gone shooting some sort of pigeon and we understand that they are supposed to be limited to just five each although this morning they had bagged a big fat nothing.  Galadia was pleased as was I!!

We are now chilling and getting organised for tomorrow when we are being tour guides to the Robson family.

Day 110...

Having been much cooler for the last couple of days today was a real scorcher and very clear which it is not normally.  From early on this morning right up to now Chrysochou Bay has been absolutely crystal clear.

We started out today by finishing off the barbeque.  My job was to paint the outside which I did (although not up to John's standard obviously!).  Then John tiled the inside of the bit where you do the cooking.  There is still a bit of grouting and filling to do and doors to be made for the front but it will soon be ready for christening!!

We have arranged for the inaugural lighting to be on September 13th (hope that isn't an omen) Mum and Dad will be there and Aunty Janet and Alan and Aunty Joyce and Uncle David should be with us on their holidays.  We shall invite Nanny Wade too!!!

We were in the middle of getting this job done when Philippos pitched up with the people that own 2b - as they want to sell their villa we think Philippos wants to show them what the villas can look like if you spend a bit of money on them and they will need to spend a bit of money in order to sell it.

No sooner had they left than we were invited for coffee at Galadia and Charalambous' house.  Their holiday finishes tomorrow and then they will only be able to come for short weekends unfortunately.  I gave Galadia the solar lights that I had ordered for her - they were meant for the 'twig' that she has in a pot in Droushia but she thinks she may take them back to Nicosia so that when she looks at them they will remind her of us!

We went to see how Ollie was today.  The fall from the ladder has quietened him down a bit.  Fortunately his facial bruising is not anything like as bad as I was expecting.  He asked us to get him a Cyprus Weekly paper and a copy of today's Sun when we were in town.  I think it will take a bit of time for him to recover but it could have been so much worse if he had fallen and no-one had been around to find him.

On our return our neighbours Theodora and Gregoris had arrived.  Unfortunately we had to turn them down for a meal tonight and lunch tomorrow - earlier we had to turn down Galadia and Charalambous for a barbecue this evening.  This is because Mum and Dad and Eileen (Nanny Wade) were coming up to Stathmos to sample the Stifado.  They arrived at about 6.00pm and we sat outside in the early evening sunshine before walking into the village.

Dad had never eaten in Stathmos before - it must be one of the few Tavernas that he hasnt visited with the walking group.  We had a lovely meal sat outside and it was good to see the taverna full.  A slow walk back home followed by a drink sat under the stars in the Gazebo rounded off a really lovely day.

Tomorrow the Poole family will be visiting before returning the England.  It will be nice to show them where we live.

Day 109...

Well what a busy couple of days it has been...

Yesterday we were calling into the Athena Beach Hotel to pick up Barry, Lyn and Joseph to take them up into Paphos for lunch - we had decided to go to Scorpio's Taverna which is by the market and has commanding views over to the sea and has been there for years - you are always guaranteed a warm welcome there and the food is reasonably good - it has a nice vibe there and you can always go for a mooch around the market afterwards (which we did).  It was good to see the Robson family again although it has only been about 10 weeks since we saw them at the Imperial Beach.  We had a good old catch-up over lunch and have arranged to see them again on Monday when we plan to go to the Last Castle for lunch and then go on up to Lara to see if we can see the Turtles as they are being released back to the sea.

Joseph is a real cat lover so he was fascinated by the woman who feeds all the cats near the sunken car-park.  She was telling us that she has hundreds that she looks after and so Joseph gave her €2 so that she could buy some more food for them all.  Unfortunately cats can be a real problem here in Cyprus and they dont always get a good life so it is good that some people like this lady and Irene in Droushia take it upon themselves to look after them.

Talking of cats Mum and Dad's cat Missy (Ugly Betty) is still around and has taken to finding a cool patch on the step which is right on the turn of the stairs.  She has now become the biggest trip hazard and I can see either Mum or Dad coming a cropper down the stairs because she refuses to move.

I guess you are all waiting to hear how the mighty Spiro's Neighbours got on last night...

...Well after a fantastic start - we won the first round and the third round (two bottles of wine or drain cleaner as Ray calls it) things went steadily downhill.  In fact there was one round where we just didnt have a clue and struggled to get 5 points.  In the end I think we came in about third or fourth.  Still a fun night though!

This morning sadly I took Mum and Dad to the funeral of their friend Thelma.  Thelma was a real one-off, such a lady, she and husband Frank spent many years in Kenya - right up until the end Thelma would insist on being a wonderful hostess.  Her grandchildren described her as 'Cool' and she was - a cut glass accent and a wicked sense of humour.  I know she will be sadly missed - as will her legendary victoria sponges that were always skyscraper high.

We called into Kissos nursery on the way back to Droushia to buy Alkisti a plant to thank her for her help in organising the ambulance for Ollie on Wednesday.  He is now back home having had his dislocated shoulder put back.

Alkisti's taverna is filled with pots so we know she loves flowers.  We chose a hanging basket with fuschia pink and white petunias and called in to drop it off - she was so pleased with it and at least now we know that there is always someone in the village we can call on in an emergency.

On returning to 10b we noticed that our neighbours George and Pam have arrived from London.  They are here for five and a half weeks.  They called round for a drink to catch up on all the news.  We shall no doubt see more of them and their family whilst they are here.

Saber the Egyptian who was clearing gardens up the road pitched up this afternoon to help John put the barbeque together which was fantastic as John so wanted to get it up before we go to England.  It just needs painting now and the inside tiling and it is all systems go - cant wait until we can try it out.

Quick 'shit shave and shower' and we headed off down to Latchi to catch up with Simon, Lou and the kids.  They had been off on a boat again this afternoon.  We decided to take them to Mosfilos for a meal but werent sure if it was open at night as we have only ever been for lunch.  Fortunately it was open although we were the only one's in there and that is because we eat so bloody early - all the locals came in from 9.00pm onwards and by then the place was heaving.  Everyone agreed it was a good meal - finished off with complimentary ouzo's.

I had read that there was free entertainment down in the square so we went down to Polis square to check it out.  Polis square was packed and had a lovely atmosphere - reminds us of all the things we love about where we live.

The Poole family are visiting our house on Sunday before they go to the airport and back to old Blightey - I dont think it will be too long before we see them again though.

Day 108...

I totally forgot after all the excitement of yesterday that we would be quizzing tonight.  The mighty Spiros Neighbours are seeking the top spot this week having come second the last time we met.  It will be a late finish so my full report on today's events (which included catching up with Barry, Lynne and Joseph) will be tomorrow.  We are busy sharpening our pencils and our brains!

Day 107...

Whatever plans we had for today went out of the window when the ladder that our neighbour Ollie was stood on slipped and he fell straight down.

Ollie is 68 and so really shouldnt be up a ladder at all but he has been doing up one of the villas on the estate for George (tailor to the stars) who arrives tomorrow with wife Pam.

John came running in to let me know that Ollie had fallen and I pitched up with a tube of savlon and some micro-pore which was about as useful as a chocolate fireguard.  We think that momentarily he might have lost consciousness but we could not be sure so I was detailed off to ring for an ambulance.  Not being too sure on what to do and concerned that Ollie may have a head injury of some sort I rang Alikisti who came racing up and rang for the ambulance directing it to her taverna.  She shot off and her husband Christos pitched up telling us that he would insist that Ollie was transferred to Paphos General Hospital because it is better.

Ollie's face was quite a mess and even with my limited medical knowledge we could see that his left shoulder wasnt looking like it should do.  Alkisti brought the ambulance up to our estate and Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum the two paramedics pitched up - they didnt really instill us with much confidence when they tried to fit the neck brace upside down!  Bizarrely some holidaymaking Nicosian Doctor had been to get his paper in the village and had seen the ambulance and followed it up the road and came to see if he could lent a hand - he seemed awfully rough when he was poking and proding Ollie's torso. 

Our neighbours Savvas and Persephone pitched up - Savvas is a doctor at an A&E hospital in Nicosia - they were followed by their children Neofitos and Nefeli.  It was quite a gathering and all the time Ollie was lying on the floor in agony looking like he had gone 10 rounds with Mike Tyson.

Christos convinced the paramedics to take Ollie to the Paphos hospital rather than Polis and I went off down to Prodromi to find his wife Trish to explain what had happened and to take her to the hospital. 

To cut a very very very long story short we arrived at A&E and were ushered into the X-ray department where they had taken X-rays of Ollie's head, shoulder and internal organs.  They pumped him with some pethidine and tried unsuccessfully to put his shoulder back into place.  After about a two hour wait we were told that he was up on the orthopaedic ward which we managed to find.  He was well out of it and was developing a fantastic shiner.  We were told that he would have an operation later today and then be in tomorrow and possibly Friday.

Satisfied that there was nothing more than we could do we made our way back to Droushia.  Interestingly our neighbour Savvas was entertaining the head registrar of the orthopaedic ward in Paphos this evening and so they said they would get him to check on Ollie before he came up here.  Apparently his shoulder has been put back successfully and all being well he should be allowed home tomorrow.

This has resulted in a fairly boring photoless blog tonight as we were supposed to be entertaining Simon, Lou and the kids on their way to their second villa.  It is a small price to pay knowing that Ollie is ok.  Today has been one of those days when neighbours and villagers have all pulled together - it just confirms all the good things that we like about Cyprus and Droushia in particular.

Day 106...

The weather has cooled quite a bit and the swimming pool temperature has dropped so this morning it was an oh so bracing 78 degrees which took a bit of getting used to - we are going to have to make sure we cover it and find some way of dumping any extra hot water we have so that our visitors can take a dip without any of their bits dropping off!!

We had a quiet morning as we were expecting Mum and Dad up for lunch.  I realised it was Alkisti and Christos's 25th wedding anniversary today so I needed to get a card sorted for them.  I also wanted to print off a couple of photographs I had taken from their daughters wedding and transfer the remainder of the photographs onto a cd for them.  For some reason the printer was playing up and wouldnt feed through the photo paper I had purchased which was doing my head in!

Mum and Dad came for lunch - nothing fancy just some pittas with lounza and halloumi and salad.  I managed to persuade Mum to get into the pool because by lunch time it had warmed up to a more respectable 81 degrees but with the strong breeze even that felt a little chilly.

They left mid afternoon and I was just trying to make an anniversary card when we heard voices outside and had a visit from Philippos and our neighbours Gregory and Theodora.  Gregory and Theodora had phoned earlier in the day to invite us to have lunch with them at the Akamas Spa (Latchi Panorama) but we were in the middle of our pitta lunch with Mum and Dad.  This was a missed opportunity to check out the rather swish and expensive restaurant but as they are back at the villa next weekend I have a feeling we may get asked again.

They invited us round to have a drink at their Villa - John thinks it was to soften him up so that Gregory could ask him if he fancied looking after their swimming pool and one or two other jobs that they want done before they either keep the villa on for themselves as a holiday home or try and let it out.  We get commission if we find someone for them to rent it but you know that we will be picky as we want nice neighbours.  If Theodora gets her way she will persuade Gregory to keep it as a holiday home and we think we would prefer that.

We stayed round theirs rather longer than we had expected and decided to go down to see Alkisti and Christos with their card and photographs and have something to eat there.  Dont know what happened but somehow my external drive has become corrupted so as it housed all our old photographs in the words of Philippos we are both pissed.  I will have to spend tomorrow trying to find a way of sorting it out and retrieving what I can - wish me luck.

We had a fantastic meal tonight.  Alkisti and Christos were so touched that we had remembered their anniversary and that we had brought photographs of the wedding because they have yet to see any as their daughter is still on her month-long honeymoon in the States.  It was good to see their Taverna full tonight and they had fresh lamb souvla on the go.

We started off with a greek salad, fresh bread and home-made tsatsiki which was yummy.  We then had a 'taster' of freshly made pastichio which was the size of an adult main course.  This was followed by huge plates of lamb souvla and fresh hand cut chips.  Groaning because we were so full they then produced plates of fresh home grown figs, grapes and melon - enough to feed about four people.  When Alkisi asked if we wanted coffee we had to hold up a white flag and say enough was enough!!!  She was quite disappointed that we wouldnt have a coffee on the house with her but we just couldnt take in anymore. 

To say thank you for remembering them and for the photographs she gave John and I a man-sized portion of the pastichio to take home with us and Christos gave us a bag of about two kilos of fresh figs.  We will take both of this down to Mum and Dad's on Thursday so that we can share it.

We are really made to feel very welcome in that Taverna and may well take a quick trip down there with Simon, Lou and the kids when they call in tomorrow on their way to find their holiday villa in Polis - that is if they have time.

Anyway you might be interested in the cost of our mega-meal which included two large bottle of Keo - €33! as Dad would say "a good shout" and now as Zebedee would say "time for bed".

Day 105...

Today is Bank Holiday Monday so it is busy busy busy everywhere in Droushia - in fact it is busy everywhere in Cyprus!!!

You will all be delighted to know that back garden frog has a partner - we saw them both in the swimming pool last night doing whatever it is that courting froggies do - not sure whether it is boy meets girl or girl meets boy or I am being far too stereotypical and it is boy meets boy!!! Anyway whatever they were both in the swimming pool last night making out frog style!

That is the nice face of wildlife in Cyprus and although they can be rather noisy they are very sweet when you see them ....

...this afternoon we witnessed the not so nice side of wildlife when we had a tarantula or bird eating spider in the garden!!  Dont know if you can make him out but he has really beady eyes and was about the size of my palm.  We think it was in the garden and then made its way underneath our swimming costumes which John moved and then there it was - John wanted me to take a photo but had one eye on it as he didnt want it going in the house.

Well it did move and fortunately not towards the house and John managed to get it captured in the swimming pool net so that I could get a picture of him or her!!! 

We leave our doors open all day so are now worried that this might be the sort of thing that is making its way indoors!!!

This afternoon we decided to take a walk around the village and see what was going on as it was the Bank Holiday weekend.  The village is looking lovely and there is more to it than we realised.  We have found that there are at least four places that call themselves 'supermarkets' although they are nothing more than corner shops!!  We ventured up to the top of the village and had a local coffee in a coffee shop that we havent visited before but which we think is next door to the Muhktar.

We have a local cobblers - which apparently is quite a thing in Cyprus and is new to Droushia - the nearest one used to be in Polis and we have a number of houses that sell their own cheese or Halloumi (Xaloymia).  John is desperate to give it a go but it looks like it is strained through the owners American Tan tights!!!  Maybe that adds to the flavour and the quality???

The local tavernas were doing a roaring trade today.  We sat under the vines in Stathmos watching the world go by and laughing at the posturing young lads with their quad bikes trying to cut a dash but failing miserably when one shot off up the hill and then missed a gear and started sliding backwards!!

For once Christos's taverna was busy too with some local ex-pats having a Mezze and some visiting Nicosian Cypriots calling in too.  Both tavernas have their own charm and we like visiting both.  In fact we plan to go to Stathmos on Saturday with Mum and Dad to check out the Stifado which has to be one of the best we have ever sampled and which Nicky insists on when she and Mark come to visit.

Day 104...

So last night then...

I dont think that I had pointed out that John and I had gone for an early tea and had demolished a rather large home made chicken curry before our neighbours called in and landed the bombshell that Philippos might want to see us all for a meal.  I hadnt been quick enough to say that maybe we could do it another time as we were fit to burst and had missed John's signals to that effect but part of me thought that (a) we should go and get to know our neighbours and (b) accept Philippos's kind invitation as he has been pretty good to John and I and is clearly a man in the know who might prove helpful in the future - he has fingers in many many pies!!

So sure enough just as the music outside was ramping up (neighbour at 12a as it turns out and not the hot-shot singer) Gregory called round to say that we had to be down at the Elia Village immediately so we did a quick change and jumped in the car with Gregory and Theodora and headed down into Latchi.

We cant quite work out what the connection is between the Elia Village and Philippos - we surmise that he is there in some sort of consultant capacity to get the village full and profitable.  He is clearly very enthusiastic about the potential of the village because it is in an excellent location and set in 65 acres of gardens with panoramic views all over the bay (these are not my photos by the way - I have taken them from the Elia Village website).

When we arrived at the Village and eventually found Philippos he was like a whirlwind - running around in his shorts herding us to the upstairs dining room where the food was 'on the table' and on the table it was!!  We were treated to a village salad (without tomatoes much to Philippos's disgust because he is, in his own words, a tomato man!!) halloumi, sheftalia, potatoes and souvla chicken and pork.  All rather nice as it happens and John and I did a reasonable job at eating some despite the curry earlier!!

Philippos, Gregory and Theodora proved to be great company and outside of work Philippos is an absolute hoot - he has obviously got a new phrase of "I was pissed off" or the American "I was pissed" which regularly cropped up in our conversations.  Bless them they spoke English all night so that we would not feel at a disadvantage.  We retired to another bar for coffee which was ultimately made by Gregory and Philippos and could do with a little work!!  In this bar the evening entertainment was in full flow (a little too 18-30esque for our liking) - culminating in a challenge for participants to get as many T-shirts from the audience as possible.  The withering look Philippos gave some chavvy girl holidaymaker as she screamed "get your shirts off NOWWWWWWWW" was worthy of an Oscar!!!

Evening finally over we returned home - this time the hot-shot singer was in full flow and I mean full flow - there was nothing for it but to try and ignore him and watch Match of the Day and the Football League show which as you will realise is 2 hours later here in Cyprus and of course now we have to wait until the Championship reports are over before getting to Sheffield United meaning that we didnt get to bed until 2.00 am - hot-shot man still singing his lungs out - we think he finished sometime between 2.30am and 3.00am!!

Needless to say that meant we didnt rise too early this morning.  We were planning a little DIY but nothing too strenuous or noisy as we are conscious that we have neighbours now!  That sort of went out the window when John unpacked the new loo to find that the waste did not, as agreed, go straight down but was in fact designed to go through a wall.  Bugger-it we will have to change it and you can bet that shop is now on its annual holidays.

So we decided to do a lazy Sunday thing and I set about making some birthday cards as Kaye's is early September so I will need to take it back to England with me.  Dad, John and Uncle David all have their birthday on 16th September and will be here together, Nicky's Mark has his birthday the next day as does Suzie who will be well into her 90's.  (Cant show you the handiwork as I know some of the recipients dutifully read the blog!).

John took the opportunity to clean the pool and the solar panels - they needed doing and although the photo doesnt really give the impression it is a lot cooler up here than it has been.  In fact last night we didnt need the fan on in the bedroom.  Philippos tells us that normally the weather gradually cools from August 15th (the bank holiday).  We certainly hope that it doesnt cool too much or Trevor and Vix and Laura and Mark will have to come in thermals!!  The pool is remaining a fairly constant 28 degrees celsius at the moment which is really quite pleasant and refreshing and with the temperatures in Yeovil being reported at around 20 degrees celsius is considerably warmer than there!!! 

Just had to publish this series of photographs which is not John dancing to YMCA.

In actual fact he is trying to get one of the beautiful humming-bird moths out of the kitchen so that I could get on with cooking tea...

...Massive pork chops tonight which will please John no end - they are his favourite and even I will eat them now providing they aren't overcooked.  So pork chops, merrydown cider and two footie matches on Sky TV - what more could a man want?? (Answers on a postcard please and only clean ones!!).

Vix just to let you know that I am testing out the pseudo-Cinzano before you come over and so far so good!!!  In fact so good we may have to purchase a second bottle!!

Day 103...

It is Saturday evening and we are bracing ourselves...

... it is the fifth annual cultural festival of Droushia which started on Thursday with a traditional Greek play in the village amphitheatre - then on our return from Latchi last night we could hear music coming from somewhere and tonight there is some big-wig hot-shot Cypriot singer belting it out in the local school and we dont live very far from the local school and they have been setting up now for the last hour or so and the drums are even making our sunbeds bounce so we just know that there is going to be very little sleep in our house tonight!!!

This weekend is a bank holiday here in Cyprus - this one (one of many I should add - well about 12 I think!!) is in celebration of The Feast of the Assumption, and is celebrated every year on August 15th.  Apparently it is "a very old feast of the Church, celebrated universally by the sixth century. It commemorates the death of Mary and her bodily assumption into Heaven, before her body could begin to decay - a foretaste of our own bodily resurrection at the end of time".

Just another excuse for a p**s up if you ask me!!!

Lordos 1 is a hive of activity for once as all the properties that are owned by Nicosia/Larnaca/Limassol Cypriots are occupied - we had thought it would be very noisy but apart from the musical entertainment coming from the school it has been very quiet.

The weather today would have given an English Bank Holiday a run for its money as it was cool and cloudy - in fact at one point a big black cloud hovered over and threatened a bit of rain.  Having had temperatures in the 40s earlier this week this is a welcome relief if you live here - not sure what holidaymakers think!

This morning we completed the refurbishment of the shutters so they have all been sanded down and stained so should last us a few more years yet.  Having completed this task we walked down into the village to check the post - we ARE loved - today we had a letter from the Bank but more importantly we had our second DVD collection of Only Fools and Horses sent to us by Greg for which we are very grateful and we are saving them for the long winter evenings.

We stopped off for a drink at Stathmos sitting under the vines watching the world go by - the village seems a hive of activity with an influx of people - and to spread the wealth also called into Christos Taverna and actually had the pleasure of Christos himself who we gather is a man of land with fruit, olive and walnut trees.

On our way home we called in to see Simon and Mel as we could see that they were in and Simon was chilling in the garden.  When they are working they rent a house behind Mum and Dad - at the weekends they escape up to Droushia for peace and quiet (not that Mum and Dad are noisy!!).  They have bought a really lovely traditional stone house with a little courtyard.  The house was previously owned by the person that has the Island Interiors shop in Polis and obviously had some serious money spent on it as it has a beautiful arch that separates the living area from the kitchen area, a nice log burner and a really lovely fitted kitchen which has a distressed look which is in keeping with the rest of the interior.  Two small bedrooms (one for the dogs!!) and a small bathroom complete the accommodation - didnt have my camera with me but will get some photos next time.  We were very impressed.  We could have sat in their garden all afternoon but are conscious that they work full time and so their weekends are precious. 

When we got back to Lordos 1 our immediate neighbours had arrived - we have never met them before but they introduced themselves as Gregory and Theodora from Nicosia and they seem very pleasant.  Once they had unpacked they popped round to have a quick look at our place and to have a drink with us but had to shoot off when the cleaner arrived. 

We are a little concerned because they said they were waiting for a call from Philippos for the four of us to go down to Latchi and meet up with him this evening.  John and I had an early tea so dont really fancy eating another meal but it might be good to escape the beating drums that are ramping it up as we speak and it doesnt start until 9.00pm!!!

It is full moon tonight by the looks of things - the regular evening breeze has calmed down and it is now pleasant outside.  John is engrossed in Total Wipeout!!!  Sheffield United have clocked up their second win of the season and Yeovil Town managed to win today too!!  Sorry Trev but dirty dirty Leeds failed again today.

Will close now - if we have to go out later I will report back tomorrow.

Day 102...

Well we had a lovely evening with Mum and Dad and Jackie and Costas at Gabor's last night even though Costas was a little grumpy as he has given up smoking again!!!  He has done this on regular occasions during the 20 years we have known him!

We used to go to Gabor's quite often a few years ago and then we had a bit of an iffy meal so we havent been for a while.  Now they do a very commendable set menu for €18.  I had whitebait followed by lamb shanks topped off with creme brulee, John had baked camembert with honey and beetroot, chicken in a calvados sauce and creme brulee.  Yummy!!

Jackie is off back to England for her parents diamond wedding anniversary celebrations next week and then we are off for a week for Ellie's wedding so we wont catch up with them again until Dad's 80th meal as they are honorary members of the family.

We took the scenic route back home via Peyia going along past a stretch of coastline that I think they call Banana Bay and I am always stunned by the view whatever the weather.  Today the sea was quite choppy but a fantastic colour.  In general it was much cooler today everywhere - much more pleasant than it has been.

We called in at Trakkos donkey sanctuary to enquire about donkey trekking and to have a drink overlooking the gorge and the grazing donkeys.  We were invited to try the home made honey which was delicious but the cost of two freshly squeezed orange juices was a little expensive.

We were catching up with friends this evening, Simon, Lou, James and Millie.  I met Simon when he was our Blackberry account manager at Porter Dodson.  Simon had previously been in the Navy and John managed to organise a helicopter trip to his children's primary school and that seemed to cement our friendship.

Anyway the Poole family had been out on a boat this afternoon from Latchi so we decided to go down on the scooter to meet them.  The views over Droushia are stunning and we are particularly taken by this little pad - lord knows who lives there but it is ENORMOUS!  John would like to pass it off as our second home but we couldnt even afford one of its solar panels!!

Anyway we got down to the harbour-side and waited for the Poole boat to arrive - as they were coming in about half a dozen of the Latchi Watersports boats were coming in at the same time and berths were in short supply so one of the Watersports guys had to squeeze the Princess Riana into a pretty tight spot which is why Simon isn't at the helm.

It sounds like they had a lovely afternoon and we were interested to know the costs as we are looking at all sorts of activities to offer our visitors when they come over.

It was lovely to catch up with them and what we thought was going to just be a drink ended up being a meal at the Faros restaurant.  It was lovely to be sat at the marine side with the hustle and bustle of holidaymakers.  We will definitely catch up with them again when they are in their second villa in Polis next week.  John is now determined to get the barbeque finished now so that we can ask them over.

The ride back to Droushia in the dark on the bike was ok but really quite chilly particularly as John was wearing a sleeveless top - not anticipating being out so late.  We had intended on calling in to see Mel and Simon as we had spoken to Simon on our way down to Latchi but thought it was a bit late so will see if we can grab them for a coffee tomorrow.