Meeting up with friends old and new

My lovely dad got an early birthday present today.  Months ago I took away the terracotta pot and replanted it with a selection of succulent cutting from our garden and I have nurtured it on the potting bench waiting for a time when the evenings would be cool and damp enough to put it back on his grave.  The time has come.  Today John and I went up to make sure Dad's spot was tidy and the plants watered and to pay our respects to Elena, David, Les and Arthur.

It is Dad's birthday next week, the same day as John's but with visitors here I was concerned we would not get a quiet moment to go and see him.  Happy Heavenly Birthday Day - not a day goes by when I do not think about you.  Love you Loads xxx

We left from the Cemetery to go down to Polis to run a couple of errands before we went across to the Souli Hotel where we were meeting our friends Carole and Paul who, after an absence of two years have managed to return to the place they love.  They will see a few changes in the Hotel as Frixos took the opportunity to give it a bit of a facelift during the covid hiatus.

It was a good job that they had booked a table because it was packed.  It is hard to beat this spot for lunch, almost right on the beach.  Carole and Paul look great - fit and well and are so glad to be back.  We and the cats give them a big thank-you for the bag of cat goodies.  Minnie in particular was thrilled to be tucking into a Lick-e-Lix for her supper - she has already consumed the ones which Jan Fox had given me.  

We had the lunch-time equivalent of a picky tea selecting a number of starters to create a mini-meze for ourselves.  It is the first time I have had calamari since my rash problem and I am hoping that they will not have turned out to be a contributing factor because I love them.  We had fresh chips and a tomato, onion and feta salad and some halloumi to go with the calamari and it was absolutely delicious.  We do not think that visitors and time will allow us to catch up again this year which is a real shame but if we can we will for sure and if not this year then maybe next.  Have a fabulous and well-earned holiday you two and Paul make sure you enjoy your forthcoming retirement.

We stayed longer than we had anticipated at the Souli, it was just so lovely there catching up that we could have stayed all afternoon except we had arranged to go for a drink in Finnikas and meet some new-comers to the village, Rachel and Mark, who had contacted us and wanted to pick our brains (a quick job!).  Earlier in the day we had been contacted by another set of new-comers Dean and Jo asking about where to pay the water and we had given them instructions but nothing more than that so it was quite funny when they too walked into Finnikas when we were there talking to Rachel and Mark.  Even funnier they sat away from us and appeared to be earwigging our conversation.  John then thought he recognised this couple and went over to speak to them and was right.  Dean and Jo are renting the house next door to where Isabel had been living and Rachel and Mark can walk down the end of their road and look down the hill and see that house.  Rachel and Mark are from Portsmouth, Dean and Jo from Southampton.  Its a small world.

We all sat for quite a while getting to know one another and before we knew it it was quite late (well late for us) so we said our goodbye's and as both couples have to return to the UK to tie up some loose ends will not see them now until they return for good.