Fires

It is a bank holiday weekend here in Cyprus - on Monday they celebrate the ascension of the Virgin Mary which is a fairly major religious holiday and falls in the two week island annual shutdown.  Everywhere is packed including Lordos 1 where every house that can have someone in it, does.  

We had decided to nip down to Polis and fight our way around Paps with the great unwashed - we were not to be disappointed as it was bursting to the seams with every sort of holiday-maker, most of which were mask-less despite the current regulations so you can imagine John was in full-on Ove grumpy mode!  

On our way down we could see and smell smoke and then caught sight of the fire spotting planes and a water bearing helicopter circling overhead.  The fire was in the valley just below Evgenios Hills Wedding Venue.  It must have been scrubland because they were using sea water to deal with it.  As we passed by you could see the flames but there were two fire engines in attendance and it didn't look to be too bad at that point.

We had decided to have brunch at Venetico and grabbed the only table in the shade from which we had a front seat view of the fire helicopter coming directly over us with an empty bucket and then going down to Latchi and filling up before circling back to the fire.  It took some time before that exercise stopped and presumably the fire was out.

Whilst sitting there a white Nissan Qashqai parked up and the people inside started waving at us.  John asked if I recognised the car or the people - I didn't recognise the car and the sun shining on the windscreen made the faces of the people impossible to pick out so we ignored them thinking they must have been waving at someone else.

When the people emerged from the car we realised it was Jack and Ross from Droushia.  I have seen Ross recently but not Jack.  Anyway as we had the only shaded table they asked if they could join us which was fine by us and gave us the opportunity to catch up with how they were doing.  They didn't eat, we did - sharing the Cyprus Breakfast which we both love.  John settled the bill and treated Ross and Jack to their coffees.  It will probably be months before our paths cross again even though they live in Sheila and Klaus's old house at the Cemetery and we go there practically every week!!

We managed a video call with Lakis and Argy this afternoon.  He says he is ok - feeling a bit tired which may be the medication he is taking - it is to be a few more days yet before he will be released from Covid confinement so we are postponing our meal out on Saturday until he is fit and well.  We can't do it next Saturday because that is Nicky's Mum's 80th birthday party.

We had our immediate neighbours Gregoris and Dora around for a coffee this afternoon sitting in the garden for a catch up.  They have plans for retirement now although not for a few more years and plans for their house.  We normally go out for a meal with them whilst they are here and we agreed upon lunch at the Winery next week before they have to return to Nicosia.  They have not eaten there before and we know that the tables are well laid out on the terrace so no danger of being shoe-horned in with the remainder of the great unwashed who are not shopping in Paps.  

As they were leaving to go back next door I noticed that one of the vibrant orange hibiscus plants was flowering.  I thought I had lost them after our awful winter but chopped them back and left them and two started to show some signs of life and then eventually so did the third.  Sadly the lovely red one which Lakis and Argy had bought us last year did not fare so well.  I chopped that back and left it in the pot and watered it but it has never progressed beyond being a stick and a dead looking one at that.

For supper this evening we had duck breast and orange salad and it was amazing.  The duck breasts came from Shuks.  We have had them now on several occasions and they have cooked up beautifully and are tender and tasty and I have managed to get them just the right side of pink each time - more by luck than judgment.  I would like to think that is quite a healthy meal as we only put a little drizzle of spicy mango dressing on the salad.