A New Sink and Making New Friends...

Oh what glamorous lives we lead up here in Droushia - our job for today was to replace the sink in the shower-room with the new sink and tap which we had brought over with us.  

Revamping the world's smallest shower-room is a challenge as we are limited as to what we can do but little by little we have tried to make the most of the miniscule space available to us.  We thought that a more compact sink would give more room when you are drying yourself having got out of the shower, with the existing sink you get a lovely shot of cold porcelain pressed against your nether regions if you are not careful.  

These jobs are never straightforward and the 'bugger-it' count was hugely elevated today.  Pipes were the wrong size or the wrong length and a hasty visit to Glykkis was required.  Plus the aroma escaping from the waste pipe whilst the sink was removed left an awful lot to be desired.  Poor John had to work in close proximity to it whilst contorting himself so that he could reach underneath.

Eventually (after an initial leak) we managed to get the new sink in situ but with the tap plumbed in the wrong way round - a minor detail.  Well when I say 'we', obviously I mean John with me lending a worse than useless hand - I am never in the right place at the right time - nor can I visualise what John requires without having it spelled out to me in simple terms - I am never going to be anything more than a humble Part Four and a rubbish one at that!

We still have to tidy up the sealant and make sure that no new leaks appear but it seems to have slotted in pretty well and the tap that John was so dubious about will do the trick for a while at least.  There is now really nothing more we can do to improve this room except to try and find out why periodically we get that drain smell inside (and out).  For the lives of us we cannot work out what is causing this - the drains seem free flowing enough - greater investigation into the vagaries of our septic tank are required methinks - at least now John has agreed there is an issue.

On to a more pleasant subject - our evening out...

...as a result of the Droushia Ladies Lunch Club as organised by my friend and neighbour Marian, John and I had been invited to Helen and Alistair Smeaton's for an Indian supper.  We were being joined by Marian and husband Chris and Jane (crafty lunch lady Jane) and her husband Mark.

As I have said before, and I make no apology for another plug, Helen and Alistair run a holiday cycling business http://www.wheeliecyprus.com/ from their beautiful and secluded home which was a bit of a bugger to find but once we did we were greeted by the most fantastic location with views to die for.  Having deliberated long and hard about what to wear because evenings here can be pretty chilly at the moment I needn't have worried because their home was warm and cosy.

 

I understand that they can offer separate accommodation for people joining their cycling and/or walking breaks.  I didn't get a chance to see it but if it is anything like their home I am betting it is fantastic.   They obviously have an eye for style and I had ornament envy - the face on the wall and the metal lizard could well go missing but it would be one hell of a trek up the hill to carry them back!

I think it must be fantastic to be able to turn a hobby or an interest into a business and Cyprus has offered this opportunity to a number of our friends, Jeanette with her mosaics and Nicky with her photography to name but two.  Maybe the easier pace of life here allows people to take time to take a good look at what that want to do and what they can do.

We had a lovely evening, Helen is a very accomplished cook who did everything from scratch and even got John and I to eat things that we may not have normally tried.  The fish curry, not normally top of my menu choice, was stunning and the goan pudding, which was a fragrant milky carrot confection, absolutely fantastic.

The company was great too and hats of to Jane who had been to hospital that morning to have the carpal tunnels on her left hand sorted out.  Spookily there was a West Country connection between us all!!!  Jane was from Exmouth and her husband Mark used to look after banks in the West Country and was familiar with Yeovil, Chris had worked for Clarks in Street, Helen lived near Abbotsbury - perhaps it was the accents that drew us together but then Helen is Welsh so that cant be right!

Thanks to John who opted to drive - I am not normally too bothered about having a drink but I did enjoy the red wine it went bloody well with Goan food I can tell you!!!.