Blimey Sundays seem to come round so quickly and today Mum was coming up early with her friend Sue. We had decided to meet at the Hotel for coffee first and then come back to Villa 10b for lunch. It was going to be nice to have Sue here - she can't have been up for some time and as it happens she says she did come once before we moved in probably because her son-in-law Tim did a lot of work for us in preparation for making the house liveable.
I had got most things ready for lunch and as I was going to the Hotel first couldn't put anything in beforehand because my legendary chunky wedges need to be watched but the chicken could be part cooked and covered in the bacon, cheese and barbeque sauce to be finished off later and the coleslaw was all done as was the banana loaf so it was just a matter of tidying and cushion plumping and I was ready to go.
It was a fine and bright day but with a definite chill in the wind but nice enough to walk down to the Hotel without a jacket - it is such a welcome change from rain, rain and more rain!! This was a typical busy Sunday on the outskirts of Droushia!! I made a bit of a bad decision to take the rough bit of road past the Val's which comes out opposite the Clampetts - there must be some underground stream or something that has been brought back to life as it was pouring down the road which meant I had to pick my way through carefully.
The Hotel looked to be busy as there were loads of cars outside but I had forgotten that Sunday Morning is one of the days when they hold the shortmat bowls down in the conference room so the Hotel itself was fairly quiet - getting ready for Sunday Lunch service. I grabbed one of the sofas so we had a comfy seat and when Mum and Sue arrived we moved to the fireplace where there was a lovely fire blazing and it was warm and comfortable. It is always nice to be greeted by so many regular staff who know us so well - Irene the Manager and Antoniades the Owner both spoke and then Marianna from the community office came in and also had a chat. It does make you feel that you are part of the village and welcomed for being so. Sue had not been in the Hotel since it had been refurbished (the first time). She used to come up with her husband Malcolm when they had the talks on a Friday night, sadly Malcolm passed away 15 years ago. Sue became a priest in later life having had a calling but ill health forced retirement although now she is quite well. She kindly spoke at Dad's funeral with great compassion but did not come to the funeral so after coffee and whilst Mum went to get her new blood monitor from Klaus who had set it up for her, Sue and I went to the cemetery, joined by Mum later. Sue was impressed by Dad's final resting place. Her husband is buried in Nicosia so she doesn't get to go as often as she might have liked so thought having Dad so close was a lovely idea. Even after all the bad weather of the last couple of days Dad's plot still looked lovely with the plants flowering away as they have done for months and months and months. It was a good choice and I, for one, am grateful that it is somewhere I can go whenever I wish. I had been yesterday but it was rather waterlogged - today's sun and wind had dried it out sufficiently that we were able to stand without getting muddy.
We sat in the conservatory for drinkies pre-lunch and I dipped in and out keeping an eye on the food - I had a bit of a panic on when we got home because I realised that something had tripped the sockets - there had been some sort of surge when we had been at the Hotel so guess that might have done it but it only affected the sockets and I just flicked the switch back and all was ok. It got rather warm in the conservatory but the dining area was decidedly chilly so I lit the gas fire to make sure my guests were warm. It is interesting because Mum says that Sue is such a busy person she doesn't like to monopolise her time and Sue told me she finds things to do particularly at the weekend because that is when her daughter and son-in-law have time off together and she doesn't want to be in their way!!! The upshot is that Sue is going to ask Mum to go to the UKCA film group with her one Saturday a month which is brilliant for her and for Mum. Sue and I shared some Agios Onoufrios wine and it would appear that Sue has not been to the winery for many years so that is somewhere she and Mum and Sue's friend Fran could go for lunch one day - I am sure they would love it.
I would like to say that Sue was so keen to get her lunch that is why she is out of focus but in truth I took a quick snap because I know Mum gets fed up with being the subject of so many photographs in the blog - as I tell her, she cannot be an avid reader without being in it!! I felt my lunch had a lot to live up to as Mum had accompanied Sue, Fran, Heather and Tim to Tweedies on Friday night for a gourmet meal to celebrate Sue's birthday - Sue said the wedges were fabulous so I took extra care with mine. I need not have worried - everyone seemed to really enjoy their food - I have cracked it with Mum - this is a firm favourite as is the banana bread to follow. In fact I sent both Sue and Mum home with some for them to have with coffee tomorrow.
Whether it is as a result of Sue's heart condition or the medication but she gets pretty tired in the afternoon and it was warm in the conservatory, we had full tums and had had some wine so when she began to flag Mum decided it would be a good idea to wend their way home. Mum had an issue with the car as she was nearing Emba - it sounds like what happened to Kenny when the master brake cylinder failed and I got no resistance on the brake pedal. Hopefully she will be able to get it sorted tomorrow one way or the other.
Any once I had washed up (at times like this I would so love a dish washer and I missed my little helper John) tidied everything away and settled down I felt exhausted!!! Some crappy TV and a coffee and I felt ready to hit the sack - off to Art tomorrow after weeks away and a chance to finish that picture of pomegranates which has now been hanging around for too long.
I had got most things ready for lunch and as I was going to the Hotel first couldn't put anything in beforehand because my legendary chunky wedges need to be watched but the chicken could be part cooked and covered in the bacon, cheese and barbeque sauce to be finished off later and the coleslaw was all done as was the banana loaf so it was just a matter of tidying and cushion plumping and I was ready to go.
It was a fine and bright day but with a definite chill in the wind but nice enough to walk down to the Hotel without a jacket - it is such a welcome change from rain, rain and more rain!! This was a typical busy Sunday on the outskirts of Droushia!! I made a bit of a bad decision to take the rough bit of road past the Val's which comes out opposite the Clampetts - there must be some underground stream or something that has been brought back to life as it was pouring down the road which meant I had to pick my way through carefully.
The Hotel looked to be busy as there were loads of cars outside but I had forgotten that Sunday Morning is one of the days when they hold the shortmat bowls down in the conference room so the Hotel itself was fairly quiet - getting ready for Sunday Lunch service. I grabbed one of the sofas so we had a comfy seat and when Mum and Sue arrived we moved to the fireplace where there was a lovely fire blazing and it was warm and comfortable. It is always nice to be greeted by so many regular staff who know us so well - Irene the Manager and Antoniades the Owner both spoke and then Marianna from the community office came in and also had a chat. It does make you feel that you are part of the village and welcomed for being so. Sue had not been in the Hotel since it had been refurbished (the first time). She used to come up with her husband Malcolm when they had the talks on a Friday night, sadly Malcolm passed away 15 years ago. Sue became a priest in later life having had a calling but ill health forced retirement although now she is quite well. She kindly spoke at Dad's funeral with great compassion but did not come to the funeral so after coffee and whilst Mum went to get her new blood monitor from Klaus who had set it up for her, Sue and I went to the cemetery, joined by Mum later. Sue was impressed by Dad's final resting place. Her husband is buried in Nicosia so she doesn't get to go as often as she might have liked so thought having Dad so close was a lovely idea. Even after all the bad weather of the last couple of days Dad's plot still looked lovely with the plants flowering away as they have done for months and months and months. It was a good choice and I, for one, am grateful that it is somewhere I can go whenever I wish. I had been yesterday but it was rather waterlogged - today's sun and wind had dried it out sufficiently that we were able to stand without getting muddy.
We sat in the conservatory for drinkies pre-lunch and I dipped in and out keeping an eye on the food - I had a bit of a panic on when we got home because I realised that something had tripped the sockets - there had been some sort of surge when we had been at the Hotel so guess that might have done it but it only affected the sockets and I just flicked the switch back and all was ok. It got rather warm in the conservatory but the dining area was decidedly chilly so I lit the gas fire to make sure my guests were warm. It is interesting because Mum says that Sue is such a busy person she doesn't like to monopolise her time and Sue told me she finds things to do particularly at the weekend because that is when her daughter and son-in-law have time off together and she doesn't want to be in their way!!! The upshot is that Sue is going to ask Mum to go to the UKCA film group with her one Saturday a month which is brilliant for her and for Mum. Sue and I shared some Agios Onoufrios wine and it would appear that Sue has not been to the winery for many years so that is somewhere she and Mum and Sue's friend Fran could go for lunch one day - I am sure they would love it.
I would like to say that Sue was so keen to get her lunch that is why she is out of focus but in truth I took a quick snap because I know Mum gets fed up with being the subject of so many photographs in the blog - as I tell her, she cannot be an avid reader without being in it!! I felt my lunch had a lot to live up to as Mum had accompanied Sue, Fran, Heather and Tim to Tweedies on Friday night for a gourmet meal to celebrate Sue's birthday - Sue said the wedges were fabulous so I took extra care with mine. I need not have worried - everyone seemed to really enjoy their food - I have cracked it with Mum - this is a firm favourite as is the banana bread to follow. In fact I sent both Sue and Mum home with some for them to have with coffee tomorrow.
Whether it is as a result of Sue's heart condition or the medication but she gets pretty tired in the afternoon and it was warm in the conservatory, we had full tums and had had some wine so when she began to flag Mum decided it would be a good idea to wend their way home. Mum had an issue with the car as she was nearing Emba - it sounds like what happened to Kenny when the master brake cylinder failed and I got no resistance on the brake pedal. Hopefully she will be able to get it sorted tomorrow one way or the other.
Any once I had washed up (at times like this I would so love a dish washer and I missed my little helper John) tidied everything away and settled down I felt exhausted!!! Some crappy TV and a coffee and I felt ready to hit the sack - off to Art tomorrow after weeks away and a chance to finish that picture of pomegranates which has now been hanging around for too long.
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