Getting Ready for our Special Friends

It is the start of a new week and we have amber weather warnings for later on so there are things we wanted to get done earlier rather than later.  Lakis and Argy are due to arrive on Saturday after lots of abortive attempts.  We had arranged for the windows and shutters and railings to be cleaned by Richard and for a cleaner to come in and do the downstairs rooms but they are due to have the area between their buildings glassed in and Theodosis said he would be coming this week and didn't want to have to work around cleaners which is fair enough so I canceled them.

Lakis and Argy have not been here for six months so everything that normally lives outside has been piled into the house and although we go in and air the building periodically the forty-footers (millipedes) and house spiders and wood lice find their way in using the tiniest of cracks.  There was nothing for it but to roll up my sleeves and get out the duster, polish, mop and anything else I could find.  I am not a natural cleaner - John will tell you that and after today I really salute anyone who has a full time cleaning job - when the temperatures are pushing 40 degrees it really is the last thing I would want to do.

I know that Argy is quite particular when it comes to cleaning and that my effort wont come anywhere near her standards but at least when they arrive on Saturday they can walk in and the place will feel like a home and not a dumping ground.  I moved things around so she will be sure I have cleaned - the blue flowers are where the orange flowers normally live and vice versa and some of the furniture is in a slightly different place.  I hope she will see the funny side of this!

Whilst I was being Mrs Mop John worked on the outside pressure washing the tiles and making sure the pool looks sparkly and clean - apparently it needs some salt so we will go to Polis tomorrow and get some.  Overall we were happy with our effort - our fabric strips flapping in the wind seem to have kept the bloody pigeons at by and once that area is glassed in they wont be a problem anyway.

I was knackered but after lunch John suggested we should go down to Polis to run a few errands.  We wanted to book a table for lunch on Sunday and we had decided upon Molos on the harbour because the view is lovely and the menu varied enough that we will all be able to choose something.  Liselotte had also asked if we could check on the state of the tennis court at the Souli as she and John have visitors next week (Lena and Morten) and they have been down and used it in the past.  The hotel are happy for us to use it and it is a bit patchy but nothing like as bad as the Droushia Heights and the court is big enough to play tennis and swing your racquet accordingly!!  We duly reported back!

Supper this evening was a triumph - we had planned a barbeque on Sunday for lunch with mum but it was just too hot to cook something like that so we had Coronation Chicken instead and saved the meat for this evening.  It was the last of the bargain BBQ pack we got from Shuks so we had a Burger, Sausage and two small Lamb Chops served with a mixed salad and my now absolute favourite oven chips/wedges which are a doddle to do and reasonably healthy as there is very little fat involved.  It was delicious.