Horrid weather again...

I woke this morning expecting to be greeted by a Winter wonderland as snow had been forecast for our area but NOOOOOOOO it was just incessant rain yet again.  I am now really fed up with this - this has to be nearly as bad as the first Winter we were here and if it continues much longer will be worse and we never thought that would be possible.

We needed to go down to Polis for some food, gas, a haircut and slippers and had put it off yesterday so decided we would need to venture out today plus we had to go and rescue little Kenny who had been left at Fitos last night so we could all have a drinkie.  Kenny was fine - a little soggy but apart from that fine.   We loaded him up with the empty gas bottle and our recycling and wet weather gear and set off - slowly as the roads were awash.

Our journey was dire and the rain was mixed with huge dollops of sleet - welcome to Cyprus, the sunshine island!!!  The one redeeming factor in all this is that the rain no longer fills me with dread.  That first year we had water coming in all over the place and we were just so totally unprepared for the bitter cold inside and out.  We never think twice about lighting the wood burner nor the gas fire and currently bottled gas is about as cheap as it has ever been so a large 35kg gas bottle costs under 40 euros and lasts ages - we reckon this Winter - bearing in mind that we had Mum here for 10 days and we were indoors so much more so the gas fire was probably on more than normal - it has cost us about a euro a day to have the gas fire lit whenever we have wanted it.

There has been some really worrying landslides on the road down to Polis.  These have come from the hills upon which new houses are currently being built.  It would worry me to death to see how the rain has gouged out great fissures in the land upon which my house sits and they are massive constructions so guess they wont be cheap - the view may be outstanding but not if you are admiring it whilst your home slips down a hill.

We stopped to get rid of the recycling avoiding a massive puddle and Tanith and her Mum and Dad who were doing the same thing!

We then stopped to swap out our gas bottle which means that we are well stocked in that respect before we set off in search of some slippers for John - he had an unfortunate encounter with something a cat had left in the garden and we cannot be sure it wasn't left by Miss Minnie who seems to have been spooked by the big balled Tabby who loiters around.  Christmas is still in full swing at Festival Shoes as the life sized statue is still in situ!!

Alleluia we were successful in both getting a new pair of slippers with outdoor soles and not too expensive either - a couple of years' ago the Ugg style slippers were all over the place but now they are like rocking horse poo - these may well have been knocking around the shop for years but they were exactly what I wanted.  I know we are getting old now because I get excited about a new pair of slippers and not a pair of FMS's.

We ventured into the coffee shop next door - Coffee Island.  Had it not been raining we were planning to check out Coffee Me which is further up towards the cemetery and which is run by a lady from Droushia but it was bucketing down at the time.  We had no idea that Polis had such a trendy coffee shop and the price of the coffee was very reasonable.  John had an Americano and I had a Vanilla Filter, no milk, no sugar and they were just 2 euros each.  Next time I want some fresh coffee I will definitely get some from there.

We did our shopping in Paps and then went across to the Clever Shop where John gets his bumper packs of peanuts for footie days.  It is a funny little place but you can get some bargains in there.  I was quite amused by the items for sale right by the till.  Where else would you expect to see sitting side by side Padlocks, packs of Uno cards, spiral bound notebooks and Durex!!!

The weather started to improve and we were lucky to have a whole afternoon with no rain but my god the temperature plummeted tonight - the best thing for that is baking obviously!!!  Actually we had some bananas that were well past their best so adhering to our no waste policy they were turned into a banana loaf along with some yoghurt which had been lurking in the back of the fridge for a while.   It was a relatively easy recipe - will report back tomorrow when we try it - it was too warm to try this evening before we retired to bed!!!

There are no complaints coming from the cats about the weather save for when they want to go to the loo if it means that the wood burner is lit.  We have moved two of the cat baskets so that they are under the dining table and get the full force of the heat.  Mr Boo was so comfortable and as I have said so often nothing looks more comfortable than a happy sleepy cat.  Let's hope the fine afternoon today augers well for tomorrow.

More and more rain...

Today we had possibly the worst weather we have experienced since we moved here.  The continuous storms are taking their toll and today our friends Norma and Malcolm, who rent the white house opposite the entrance to the campsite in Polis, were surrounded by flood water and temporarily cut off by them and then had water coming into the ground floor of their house.  We have managed to escape so far with some peeling paint on the outside wall that takes the brunt of the prevailing weather and some broken garden ornaments which can be replaced in Jumbos.  Our garden furniture is quite elderly anyway so if it disintegrates it is probably due for renewal.

Although we had planned to go and do some shopping we didn't bother and so there was nothing for it but to occupy my time making some Christmas cards.  I want to reduce the amount of craft stuff I have anyway so this seemed as good a thing to do with it as anything else.   I also sorted out a few bits and pieces which I will offer to Gillian as I know she will be able to put them to some good use because each year she adopts a specific charity and then holds fund raisers throughout the year.

It is impossible to capture the severity of the weather not least because we try to do so from the safety of the house.  The cats have been sitting staring at the catflap with their legs crossed only venturing out when they could manage that no longer.  We have to stand awaiting their return with towels in hand.  Boris doesn't mind a rub down - the others are not so keen!

We had been invited out this evening as a 'thank you' from David and Edda for helping them when they had their nasty car accident but with the weather as it was we were uncertain as to whether or not the event would even take place as Fitos's reopening after the Christmas break was delayed because they had leak. I got assurances from Edda that everything was in place so we knew that we would have to brace ourselves for a mad dash out to the car which we had decided we would leave at Fitos and get a taxi home and John had got Fenoula from the Hotel to organise it for us so that there was no confusion.

We kept thinking that the weather was improving and that there was a lull and then it would come back with a vengeance.  Mum text to say that it was equally as bad down in Emba and that she had water coming in to the sunroom where it had never done so before.  I am so grateful she has central heating and can keep warm and can afford to do so - it is one less thing for us to worry about.

In amongst my craft bits I found some modelling clay which you bake to dry out having modeled something.  I had recently seen a video for making icing decorations with soft icing so decided to have a go and made myself a bunny!  I shall paint it at some point but currently it is sitting on the top of the wood burner to dry and harden.  I might make a few different ones and give them to Gillian to sell.

We braved the elements to go out to Fitos to meet up with Edda and David and their son Julian and about 10 others who had been invited for this thank-you meal.  It was actually Julian's birthday today and it had been Edda's last week.  We had a lovely evening - in the end we were about 16 all enjoying a lovely meze.  Sadly it would appear that the attempts made at sorting the leak had failed as there was a corner by the window where the water was coming in although we were well clear of that thank goodness and Fitos had plenty of gas patio heaters indoors keeping us warm although causing a fair bit of condensation!

As we sat enjoying our food we were all aware of poor little Eva (the resident black and white cat) huddled up against the door crying and I was amazed when the youngest son went up to the door opened it and gave her a cuddle.  She did not attempt to come in and her good manners were rewarded by a big bowl of food brought out from the kitchen for her to eat.  It was really lovely seeing her being cared for rather than being shooed away.

One of the people dining with us tonight looked familiar and when we spoke to him he said he came from Pissouri so we thought that maybe we may have seen him when we had been out with Wendy and Bill but it transpired that he was a trombonist in David's band so that is why his face rang a bell and having spoken to him it turns out he once bought a trombone from our lovely friend Hilary and had played with Keith and Hilary in the Big Band.  It's a small world!

Our journey home was courtesy of the local Droushia Taxi man Tassos.  I take my hat off to him - we had booked him for 10.00pm but he rang me at 9.30 to tell me that the flight he was meeting at 7.30pm had been delayed for two hours and so he was unlikely to be able to get to us until about 10.15-10.30pm - I told him not to worry as we were warm and cosy and enjoying ourselves.  Bless him he swung by Fitos with his fare still in the taxi to see if we wanted to go to Droushia with her - we told him not to worry but come back for us when he was free.  His reward was a fat old tip but he deserved it.

A different Monday for us...

I was not at art this morning - poor Sheila is still suffering with her back - fingers crossed that this is a very temporary situation for her but sadly the weather is against us at the moment - some horrendous bank of low pressure is blanketing the whole of Europe and as a result the weather is abysmal.

We were undecided about what to do today but when John's lovely mum was over in the Summer she gave us some money in lieu of missed birthdays and Christmases and we have finally got around to spending it on something specific.

We have changed the lights in the kitchen and the two lights that were in the kitchen are going to be moved out into the conservatory because we like them but they do not cast enough light onto the worksurfaces for you to see what you are doing clearly.

It was a straight-ish swap with a bit of jiggery-pokery but they went up without the need to redecorate the ceiling just at the moment although this is something we plan to do after the wet weather has ceased just in case we end up with any water seeping through or damage done by boiling kettles etc.

The lights successfully installed albeit that they hang a little wonkily until they have stretched out properly we decided to venture down to Paphos and see whether Steptoes still had the TV cabinet that matches our coffee table and sideboard.  John needed to stop for petrol and this was his first opportunity to use our new local filling station.  We have long said that it would be good to have a petrol station closer to us than Stroumbi or Polis but even though we do we rarely use it - we are creatures of habit and like to go to one in Polis where the owner always engages us in conversation and our windscreen and back window get a wash.  There was no windscreen wash today and, horror of horrors the fuel at Stroumbi would have been one cent a litre cheaper!!!

We made our way down to Steptoes which is a massive furniture store and which has been furnishing the island for years.  It has gone from a very cheap and cheerful establishment providing complete house packages for all those ex-pats who came over in the 'good old days' and purchased their holiday homes or permanent homes in the sun to quite the largest home furnishing shop in Paphos with something to suit everyone.  Initially we did not thing they had the TV cabinet we had seen previously but there was something which might have suited and then we found the one we were looking for and decided to spend some of the money John's mum gave us on it.  We could have taken the showroom one there and then but decided to wait until Friday for a new boxed one and even better there was 10% taken off the price.

Pleased with our purchase we decided to bite the bullet and go next door into Euroblinds to see about getting some new blinds for the lounge/dining room/kitchen.  We did not pay much for the ones which are there and to be honest it shows - the one over the kitchen sink is very flimsy and the two roman blinds at the little windows are ok but no longer match anything else in the room.  Euroblinds were very good when Mum had the sun room fitted out and the very very tall girl in attendance was good in that she pointed out that they had two ranges that were in the sale so I checked them out first and found just what I was looking for.  They are coming up to measure on Saturday and this will take care of the remainder of the money from Janet.

We were keen to get back home as the plan is for the new TV cabinet to go in the lounge (obviously) and for the existing one to be moved out into the conservatory to replace the brown plastic box that houses my craft stuff.  That being the case I needed to sort through the brown plastic box and get it emptied in readiness for Friday.

We stopped at the London Road Nursery to buy a plant.  We have been invited out tomorrow night to Fitos as a thank you from David and Edda for helping them when they had their car accident before Christmas.  David told me that it had been Edda's birthday over Christmas but they had been in no position to celebrate but now they were feeling better and their son Julian was over and it was his birthday tomorrow so they were having a bit of a celebration as a result.

We know that Edda loves her garden and so I wanted to chose something she might find a home for at number 13.  We thought this Dahlia was stunning with its white tipped petals - it is called a Dinner Plate Dahlia and has several buds waiting to burst into life.

We were feeling a bit peckish and wanted something instant and John had spied a tiny little Gyros place just down the road from Paps bakery so we decided to give it a go.  The chicken gyros hit the spot and is probably the best 4 euros each we have spent in a long time - all nice and fresh and served by a very pleasant lady who spoke good English with a South African twang.  Don't ask me what it is called but it is tucked next door to the little supermarket/kiosk place which is opposite Tavernaki.

The weather this afternoon deteriorated and this evening was just appalling and we had been trying to get together with Mina for ages but there had been all sorts of reasons why we had had to rearrange not least the fact that Mina has now taken delivery of her new puppy Lottie.  I gave Mina the chance to call off again, mindful of the fact that she may not want to leave Lottie alone in a thunder storm.  Mina had arranged for Toma to sit with Lottie so was more than happy to come and actually got here without getting lost!!!

When I had done our meal for Sunday I had made double the amount so that all I had to do was stick it in the slow cooker and it wouldn't matter if Mina had to call off as it wouldn't spoil.  I was pleased though that she decided to come and enjoy relaxing for a couple of hours which she did.  The house was toasty warm, the chicken casserole went down well as did the crumble.

We were pleased when we heard that Mina had got home safely - the road to the kennels is very rural to say the least and we have witnessed so many landslides when the weather is like this.  We hope to catch up with her again really soon and before her Dad returns to the UK.

Cheers for the bottle of wine Mina - sorry you didn't get the opportunity to try it for yourself but we can confirm that it was up to its usual standard!!  (See what I mean about the Roman blinds!!).

The mountain goes to Mohammed...

We have been promised all sorts of awful weather starting today and we were not to be disappointed by the accuracy of the bloody weather men.  We woke to a thunder storm and were glad that we had arranged with Mum that she should stay in Emba and we would bring our Sunday meal down to her so that she was not negotiating the roads and the landslides that would inevitably happen with such heavy rains.

We had to do everything in stages to avoid getting soaked to the skin - it is at times like this that we rue the fact that we have a long pathway to the front door and that the car is some way away.   This was the view from the carport - a wet and grey Lordos 1 - and boy it looks grim when the weather is like this.  We ferried everything to and from the house trying to avoid the heaviest of the downpours.

So as you can see we are enjoying wonderful temperatures - a whole 6 degrees of miserableness.   Philip and Angela have definitely departed 3B - we know that because all the shutters are closed and the outside furniture has been brought indoors rather than it being lashed to the railings of the balcony - I can only think that they had a very grim time and it would appear that they had some sort of issue as they had called Mohammed the 'builder' over today and were pointing out something to him.  We haven't seen him here since the new family moved into 3A so guess it was not a social call.

We made our way carefully down to Peyia where incredibly the weather was even worse than what we had left in Droushia - it was very very foggy and the rain was running like a river down the main road even though Peyia has some sort of drainage in places.  I wanted to try and take a photograph when cars were ploughing through the rain water and making waves but in trying to avoid the windscreen wipers I missed the show!!

At Mums we were treated to a display of fountains by the water running off the polytunnels across in the field opposite.  I was so glad that we had traveled down with our meal I would have been so worried about Mum driving.  As it happens the weather did begin to improve and by the time we left it was actually quite bright and at 14 degrees felt veritably balmy!!! 

I had made a rustic chicken casserole in the slow cooker which was full of all sorts of wholesome veggies including sweet potato, butternut squash and leek amongst a million other ingredients found lurking in the fridge or the veg box and this was followed by a spiced plum and apple crumble served with custard.  I think everyone enjoyed it - it was hot tasty and filling so that is the main thing and Mum had enough left over to provide her with a lunch today.

We played Rummikub today - there must have been something wrong with the scoring because unbelievably I managed a win - this is unheard of and I expected my victory to be followed by a thunder storm as the games gods must have been well surprised.

As you can see as we made our way back home the weather over Banana Bay was considerably better than it had been on our way to Mum's only a few hours earlier and as we came up through Peyia the roads became dryer and the visibility clearer then by the time we got to Droushia it looked like the weather had not been so bad after all.

John and I decided to go to the Cemetery for two reasons, one because I am not at art on Monday as Sheila is still poorly and that is the day I usually go and secondly we are keen to try and get the surround and headstone organised for Dad's grave. 

It was very wet around the row where Dad is buried as there is only a concrete path at one end which is between Dad's row and the previous complete row where Elena Savvides and Bill Davies are buried.

I have taken a picture of Bill's grave because we think Judi made a very good decision with the style and it is similar to what we think we would like for Dad except that Mum would prefer a rounded headstone and I would like one permanent pot or vase for flowers because when it is windy anything which is placed on top simply gets blown away.  Mum and I will go and talk to Angel Guardians the week after next to see if we can get the ball rolling - apparently it takes at least 6 weeks so it is unlikely that we will have it completed in time for the first anniversary but that doesn't matter.  We keep thinking about it and not really coming to any conclusions so this will get us to concentrate our minds.

First bike ride of 2019

We had another fine and bright start to the day - this makes all the difference to how you feel and how you spend your day.  I had planned our meals for the next couple of days (they just needed preparing) so there was no need to go to the supermarket today so really the day was ours to do as we pleased.  The sun was warming up the conservatory nicely and Mr Boo was taking full advantage - you have to admit that nothing looks quite so cosy and comfortable as a pampered cat!!!


As I have said before we do not have resolutions simply hopes and aspirations this year and we hope to get our on our bikes more often this year.  They have been gathering dust in my shed so the sunshine and warm temperatures galvanised John into action and he got them out and checked them over so that we could go for a gentle spin.  I now have a couple of things on my birthday list - my padded cycling gloves are disintegrating but will last a little while longer and my helmet could probably do with replacing as some of the velcro seems loathe to stick - it was ok for today, once on it felt safe enough.

We set off enthusiastically with no real goals save to do some circuits of the village until we felt we had had enough.  This we did until John realised his back tyre had a slow puncture so we returned home before the wheel got knackered.  John got the maintenance stand out and sorted the issue by which time I was doing some gardening so he decided to go out for a second spin whilst I grappled with the passion flower on the garden wall.



It is a difficult thing as an amateur gardener to cut plants back when you can see them doing so well but many fare so much better having had a good haircut as it prevents them getting woody.  So many produce their flowers on new growth so cutting them back means that the flowers are closer to the original plant and not at the ends.  Case in point is the passion flower which still looks fabulous but the flowers next season will be on new growth and as a lot of the plant is making a bid for freedom over the wall that means we wouldn't get to see the flowers.  It got a severe haircut today!! - sorry that the before and after are the wrong way round but Blogger is a bit picky about how you post photographs.

The goats are back and they will be the main beneficiaries of the garden cuttings as I have put them over the wall so there is a veritable feast of greenery for them when they venture up this far.  It is lovely to see the goats back but with them comes the ticks and so far we have been lucky that the cats have avoided them.

I had promised to make Mum (and us) some breakfast pancakes and you can see the difference that having fresh baking powder has on the overall finish!!!  I was mid cook with pushbike helmet head when Di and Rob arrived - would you Adam and Eve it - it I had been perfectly coiffed we wouldn't have seen them but NOOOOOOOOOO they had to pitch up when I looked like the village bedlam!!



This afternoon John wanted to watch the Mighty Blades and I wasn't so bothered so I spent a couple of hours making some Christmas cards in readiness for this Christmas - I really want to get my crafting stuff down to a more manageable amount so I am using up things which have been sitting around for years.  Sometimes the simple designs are the most effective!  Not that I send or give many cards nowadays but it is a shame for all this stuff to be sitting in a box and not being used.

When I come back to this world another time I am most definitely coming back as a cat in a household like ours.  John had the woodburner kicking out some good heat and the cats were all in making the most of it.  Boris in particular was relaxed and chilled - not entirely sure exactly how he managed to remain on the sofa without falling off but he did.

I had two slow cookers on the go today - packed full of goodies.  One is for lunch tomorrow which we plan to take down to Mum as the weather forecast is dire and the other is for Monday when hopefully Mina will come and have supper with us.  The aroma was incredible - honey and mustard chicken casserole with apple, bacon, sweet potato, butternut squash, leek, carrot and potatoes with a slug of white wine for good measure.

To follow we are having spiced plum and apple crumble with custard when we are at mums and with cream when we are here.  We are to be a no food waste zone this year and a slow cooker casserole enables me to throw in just about anything that might be looking a little weary!!!

A trip to Universal

Today we were going down to Universal to make sure that little baby, his Mitsubishi Pinin, was hale and hearty and would start if nothing else.  Today was a good day to do that as the forecast was for a fine day and we were going down to play pickleball for the first time this year.  We called in via the Paphos Superhome Centre (our equivalent of B&Q) to see whether the lights we had seen before Christmas, and had hoped to buy for the kitchen with the money John's Mum had given us, were back in stock.  The girl who serves in the lighting section can be a little on the unhelpful side but today my opening gambit was to ask in my finest Cypriot whether she had two lights the same and point to the one we wanted.  Woo-Hoo this approach worked as she softened visibly and told me that she thought she did and was true to her word and came back with the two lights we had hoped we might be able to buy but had been stymied previously.  We were really pleased that we had been successful because our plan it to re-utilise the lights currently in the kitchen by relocating them in the conservatory where we desperately need some better lighting.

Little Pinin Naran looked to be ok and started first time albeit a little sluggishly and so John decided to take her for a spin and check the tyre pressure which you can do here without charge - in fact I don't think any of the garages charge for air.  With the tyre pressure at a more acceptable level and the car starting no problem we returned Pinin back to her little parking space but parked her the other way round this time so that anyone with an eye on her would know that she had been moved and so someone was looking after her.

It was so good to get back into the swing of Pickleball - we were a full six today.  Liselotte and John go off on their travels tomorrow experiencing some welcome sunshine courtesy of a beach break in Goa for 12 days and they have only just got back from Denmark and the UK where they spent the festive season with their respective families and friends.

We came home via Banana Bay and watched the sun slipping down through the clouds towards the horizon.  My hastily taken shot through the car window doesn't actually capture the fabulous colours of the sun peaking through the clouds and forming an orange layer on the horizon.  The sea was rough and there was no-one braving the waves but the view was stunning none the less.

Well I say no-one was braving the water but the further along we drove, we came across a group of surfers who were trying to shoot the waves - I didn't have the right camera or the time to get a decent shot of the surfer-dudes but one was just about successful at standing up as we drove by.

We made our way back home up the hill through Peyia watching the last of the sunset.  The forecast for tomorrow is fine and dry so we are thinking about getting the bikes out and going for a little cycle ride whilst it is dry.  I need to get myself organised for Sunday lunch - the weather forecast is awful so we have suggested to Mum that we will bring lunch to her rather than have her drive up here.  This means transporting something that will make the journey in one piece!

All the cats were waiting for us ready for their supper.  John got the fire lit and we settled down to our evening meal which I had put in the slow cooker and set the timer but failed to check whether the socket was actually on so had to quickly heat it up in the microwave - still nothing spoiled!

It is my New Year aspiration not to waste any food at all this so we are in for some eclectic menus!!

A Brighter Day

Today was a lovely day, we woke to glorious sunshine, cool temperatures but bright skies so we decided we would take Lakis' car out for a spin to make sure that the battery was behaving itself and we took the road out toward Pittokopis and then beyond until we came across what looked like newish blue road signs to Fasli and Androulikou.

At Fasli there are a few seemingly abandoned buildings although on closer inspection it looks like the first one you come across has been used recently and may even be being done up although the front door or what we though was the front door had been smashed either by the recent bad weather or probably more likely a bit of vandalism which is a shame.  John tried his best to make the building a bit more secure and stood up some door frames which would have otherwise rotted in the wet weather.

The view from this building is absolutely stunning so you could imagine the attraction in the summer of being up here in the hills away from the humidity communing with nature and looking out at the sea.  The building appeared to have a few home comforts and appears to have been inhabited by an English speaker if the books were anything to go by.

It is a fascinating building and we only went inside to try and make it more secure.  We hope whoever owns it will appreciate that we made an effort for them but really it needs someone to go there soon and sort out where the glass panes in the door have smashed or been smashed.  We have no idea how to find out who that person is but maybe someone reading this might know - we really hope so.  Even better it would be great to meet whoever that person is and to go back and see this wonderful place when someone is using it and loving it.

There are some funny little egg shaped structures dotted around outside - we think they are outside toilets - the construction certainly would bare that theory out and when I delved a little deeper there appeared to be an open 'drain' in the middle with a stone placed over the top so we think they are the Cypriot equivalent of an outside privvy.

We called in to see Bassam on our way home.  Today was Amoura's 16th birthday - she is away on a School trip to Kakopetria and last week it was Lola's 11th birthday - none of the children were at home, it being a school day, but is was lovely to meet up with Bassam and have a coffee with him served in the cups and saucers which Elena used to absolutely love.

Bassam was ok although he is struggling to cope with looking after the three children and particularly so at the moment when the bus drivers are on strike - he gets the kids to school and then no teachers pitch up because they cannot get there.

It was freezing at Orexi HQ - Bassam said there was little point lighting the fire when he had to be in and out at the drop of the hat to pick up the kids or take them somewhere.  It cannot be easy for him and we do what we can when we are called upon.  Elena's mum had returned home yesterday and sadly we had missed her.  We left a card for both the girls in which we had left some money as they are now getting old enough to decide how they want to spend it.  Shortly after we returned home we had a call from Lola thanking us for her card and cash and she told us she would be buying something nice with it bless her.

On our return home I tried to get a photograph of the Troodos from the roof terrace.  There is a lot of snow and today the roads are still closed although I think the situation is improving until the weather deteriorates again at the weekend - rain here means snow up there.  We are surprised to see Angela and Philip have returned to 3B - we thought they had gone back to London but must have gone to Limassol for a couple of nights.  They have had dreadful weather since they arrived on Boxing Day.

For some reason this winter we have seen many many more birds of prey, particularly the smaller ones - maybe this weather has brought about a glut of rodents or maybe the hunters are leaving them alone - whatever the reason we love to see them.

It was very cold today.  John and I and Diana and Rob had organised to go out this evening - we had hoped to go to Fitos in Kathikas but the bad weather had prevented them opening after their short break after Christmas so we had struggled to find an alternative venue but had agreed to try The Old Cinema in Peyia where we had been with Mum and Dad and Jane and John two years ago and had planned to return but never got round to it.  We knew it would be open and we knew it had a fabulous wood burner so we could more or less guarantee being warm.  As a result we did not light the wood burner so mid afternoon the lounge felt very chilly so we are lucky to have the gas fire to keep us warm that and my rather roughly crocheted blankets which today were much appreciated by Mr Boo.



So this evening we went on a big adventure and ate out in Peyia - I was driver but I don't mind.  As I said we went to the Old Cinema which is a lovely traditional building with a cracking wood burner to keep us warm - a simple menu but the food was good.  Di and I had a meze, John had a large pork chop and Rob had moussaka.  Our waitress Jade came from Chesterfield!!!  I would certainly go back, in fact John and I said we really ought to venture out a little more but when you have Fitos on your doorstep and you know how good and how cheap the food is it is hard to go anywhere else.  It is just a shame that Fitos is a modern building so lacked the character that we had in the Old Cinema - not least when you go upstairs to the loo and walk past all those old bits and pieces like the bike and the typewriter and Fitos doesn't have the wood burner - it has gas heaters and the resulting condensation that they produce but we still love it and it is our 'go-to' eatery.

After a lovely evening we felt our lives were getting back to a bit of normality after the festive season and we have decided that we should try and reinstate our monthly Droushia Days out when the four of us would revisit something or somewhere we hadn't been for a while or go to pastures new and be tourists for a while.  We are so lucky to have Di and Rob just down the road from us to share these experiences with.  It will be the first time in 2019 that I have had cause to say....   Ain't We Lucky Bobster?