The sun shines and big sighs of relief

Season safe - celebrations

Saturday the day of expending nervous energy, hunch over the mobile phone and giving continual glances to the Sky Sports updates in the Cottage pub.  This week after an agonizing season beloved Ipswich Town reach a massive 60 pts in the league with a 3-1 win at home to Birmingham.  Relegation fears over and they move to the dizzy heights of 11th in the league. It looks like we could finish in best league position since 2009 and retain status for another season.  Thank goodness we were not relegated.  We could have been really struggling without Mick McCarthy as manager. .  Have now been following Town for just over 50 years so have seen several highs and lows starting with demise after League Championship in 1962. Feel there is once again an air of optimism on the terraces and supporters on websites that  hasn't been around for several years.

The weather is beautiful and getting quite hot with temps reaching 86F with clear blue skies and just a gentle breeze.  As much as we can do to go for a couple of long walks along the beach.  Late afternoon is a good time with the tide at its lowest.  Evelyn wins the prize for the first this year in the pool.  It felt freezing to me.  Love it when people who brave the cold water then say ............ its really quite good, come in.  I will wait for May!

A drive to Zygi for a fish meze is a good trip for visitors and we stuff ourselves with a range of dishes.  Calamari is particularly good as are the large mussels.

The sun has got his hat on ....... hip hip hooray

Full moon

Early start with the ding dong of the doorbell and the arrival of the Rocks.  Real mean not picking them up from the airport but this is the 'new way' for returning visitors especially if they want to arrive on a 5am flight with British Airways!  Get a taxi. This new rule of course does not apply to me .... Lillian was out of bed like a shot to collect me yesterday leaving me standing a full two minutes for the pick up.  Such good service.

Nobody in the pool on the first day.  Evelyn dangled an ankle declaring it too cold.  Couldn't even tempt them into the hot tub which has been filled and heated to a warm 35C.

So it was a day of blue skies, lounging about and a walk along the cliff tops at Faros and back by the waters edge on the beach.  Good time to walk as late afternoon sees the tide out and sand to walk on rather than the large beach stones.

Drinks on the patio but meal inside.  The mosquitos are out!

Away and back again

A very fleeting trip to London.  Leave on Tuesday and back at 0530 on Thursday morning.  Summer has arrived in London judging by the large numbers sitting on the grass in Green Park and the number of tourists taking pictures outside Buckingham Palace! Even though the temps there were not 'hot' it was nice to see some sunshine as I walked to the office.  London certainly looks better in the sunshine.

Back home here the weather is now set for a fantastic week ahead with daily forecast of around 30C.  Just right for the first visitors of the year - the Rocks arrive on the same BA flight as me this morning with a scheduled arrival of 0505.  Not that my flight arrived on time.  With it scheduled to be the second from last flight to depart from LHR at night I can never understand why BA flights never seem to take off on time.  Last night, whilst pushing back from the stand only 10 minutes late we then sit on the runway and eventually take off 40 minutes late.  The flight was surprisingly full.

So a week ahead of sunshine and walks.  Who will be first in the pool for this year?

Days come and go

But they are not all yet summer days.  Blue skies and sunshine are interspersed with cloud and at times rain, although that mainly falls at night with its accompanying strong winds.  Temps hover around 22C.

For us there has been a conscious effort to ensure that we walk each day and briskly as well.  An hour is enough to walk to Faros lighthouse, along the cliff tops, down the steps the Faros Beach and the new beach bar and along the beach until we reach the blue umbrella and home.  Doesn't seem to be making a great difference in terms of the bathroom scales but it is good for us and the walk along the beach as close as possible to the water without the 'wet foot' is a lovely way to pass the time.

Back in the garden we have been inspired by the owner of the Faros Beach bar renewing his canopy beach shades with palm leaves and so we have done the same with our swing seat.  The cover had lasted the two summer seasons but a mixture of summer sun and winter winds had meant it was now looking very sad and torn.  We are quite pleased with our effort, the leaves being cut from the palms that are long the roadside up to the lighthouse.

Friday was the bowls AGM.  I'd like to write something witty about the proceedings but unfortunately it was so mundane and the proceedings following the agenda to the letter there is nothing to report of note.  As ever with any small club a few committee members devote a lot of time to give the enjoyment of playing to others.  One nice part of the meeting was a presentation to the local church attended by the secretary of the Kiti council of an envelope containing the €1500 recently raised at the Charity Bowls event.  The money is used supporting local families 'in need'.  The welfare state of Cyprus does not so readily give out support as it does in the UK.

Saturday was bowls morning and although personal performance seemed somewhat improved from our last visit to the club only Lillian cam away with one win from the collective four games we played.  Lillian and I were not drawn on the same side for any game ..... which means I lost both of mine.

A packed Cottage pub for saturday afternoon football watching with a surprisingly high number of 'visitors' all of whom appeared to be Arsenal supporters!  A draw for Ipswich has almost saved the team from the threat of relegation which has loomed much of the season. To be bottom of the table with only 7pts in November and to be virtually safe now with 57 is a great relief to this long suffering fan.

Busy doing nothing

working the whole day through.  Hmm don't like this sitting at a computer all day and making / taking telephone calls.  Much better to be on holiday!

Artichokes almost ready

 Still there has been times to relax and do not very much over the last few days when the 'phone allows'.  Clear blue skies and sunshine made for a lovely weekend with legs strained and bums 'ached' as a far too long a cycle ride reminded us that we had just spent 5 days dragging a golf cart up and don fairways (and in the bushes).  A total of 10 miles cycled proved to be a bit excessive for a first trip out for a while and after a stroll to the pub for the normal Saturday afternoon football watching we staggered back home and the staggering was not from the drink!  With a day off to recover we have paced ourselves with two hour long brisk beach walks stopping to talk to the local beach vendor on Faros Beach setting up his pitch for the summer months.  A new canopy to his palm leaf covered hut is going to make a nice place to sit for some sun downers in a couple of months.

Time to rest aching legs

There is always things to do in the garden and at the moment the challenge is picking up leaves.  The milder winter meant the bougainvillea did not lose all of its leaves and now as the new are growing the old are falling.  Its like painting the Forth Bridge as you just clear all of the leaves from between the white beach stones and  they are back the next morning.  Still it passes the time.  We have ventured to get the padded seating out and set on the swing and loungers.  The sure invitation for rain. The weather was lovely here until Monday  night, when we had an amazing thunder storm!! It lasted for hours and the lightning really lit up the whole sky. Still, the garden needed a bit of rain, so we are not complaining, and at least it has the decency here to rain at night! Ha ha.

Monday morning gave a chance to go to bowls.  Our bowls is just like our golf -some great shots mixed with some absolute rubbish. Still fun to meet everyone after a gap.  Have only played once in about three months. Annual subscription paid 25 Euro for a year!  Cant be bad?

A great week of golf and fun!

Back home after a great week away with 3 sets of friends from Dubai days in Belek in Turkey playing 5 rounds of golf interspersed with the normal banter, accompanied by lots to eat and drink.  Our fifth year of the annual April trip although the first for three years all eight have been able to attend.

The flight across to Antalya is short, only 40 minutes from Ercan in Northern Cyprus where we were met by the ever efficient Billyana Golf rep for a 30 minute drive to Hotel Voyage.  Highly recommended all inclusive hotel with good rooms, excellent food and beverages, breakfast buffet being first class and a range of a la carte restaurants when you want something different.  The Steak House was very good.

Five rounds of golf on four different courses.  All are very well kept with some challenging holes.  The most difficult being the National.  We played twice on the Montgomerie Maxx course which will host the Turkish Open this coming year.  It will be interesting to see how the pros demolish it in November. Geoff, who was taking his turn at being trip organiser, selected a mix of teams each day and pairings brought a range of scores.  Some good, some very good and some just awful from all players at different times.  In the end it all came down to the last put on the last hole.  Last year I sank a huge put to win by one shot.  This year I missed the final put from 3 feet to lose by one shot!  However I did win nearest the pin 3 times with Lillian once.  Lillian and I were 'married pairs' winners for the first time and Lillian was the Ladies champ.  Jason and Kim to organise next year so who knows where we will go?  Its down to them.

Throughout the time we were blessed with lovely weather with hardly a cloud and only one day of strong winds.

Walking and biking

Days when you just please yourself what you do are always the best.  With minimal 'stress' dealing with work related emails that come in overnight from the USA the day soon  becomes our own.

Both Lillian and I are well into 'pottering'.  We flit from the garden to household chores (well Lillian does) to the biggest decision of the day do we bike or walk?  This compares very well with the other big decision each day ....... white or red wine? A local supermarket is set to close and wine is currently heavily discounted with good local wine at under €3.

Over the last couple of days walking and biking have both featured as a way to pass a couple of hours.  The walk was the longest we have taken for sometime.

The fields are a mix of green and gold with many barley fields ready to be cut.  There is always something different to see.  Frequently we pass a cypriot fishing from the beach.  They use long poles casting lines out with a deft flick of the wrist.  It is always exciting when we actually stand and watch in awe when something is caught.  However you don't often see the fisherman equipped as in the picture to the left.  We waited for a while watching him snorkel although didn't see a success story.

Another unusual sight today was an army transporter plane flying low over the coast and then heading inland and much to our surprise dropping from it parachutists!  Three times it circled and each time 8 more appeared.  It seems that they would land in the hills not far from Teresafanou where the golf course that never was built should have been.

Hot but cloudy

Two really warm days but no sunshine!  Temps have climbed and its warm with 28C / 82F the highest part of the day (mid-afternoon) but a complete grey cloud cover and a slight but warm breeze means T shirts are still on for the moment.  I will not gloat over family and friends who are experiencing such rotten weather in UK except to say ...... bet you wish that you were here.

The last few days have seen two more bike rides both of an hours length and one long walk to to the beach at Faros.  Lillian goes into a 2-0 lead in falling from her bike with a lace caught in the peddles.  Fortunately no bloody nose this time just shaken but not broken!

Saturday afternoon was the normal football score watching a prayers were answered with an Ipswich home win 3-0 against the much hated Leeds Utd.  This year will see the 52nd year since I saw my first Ipswich match at Portman Road against the famous Manchester United.  With Ipswich winning 4-1 that day how could you possibly support any other team.  After recent seasons of despair we at last have a manager who knows his business and things are looking up even though he has not yet saved us from relegation.  Important game today!

The garden continues to provide pleasurable time.  Our activities complete each other.  Lillian pots, clips and trims whilst I collect fallen leaves, tie back where needed and generally sort.  Lillian is far more persistent than I on an activity whereas I seem to change every twenty minutes or so.  However we get things done and its starting to look nice.

The banks are open!  We have seen some queues outside some but have been able to go to the cash machine and although there is a restriction to withdrawing €300 per day, that is plenty for our needs.  Laiki Bank, which we are with is to close down and be taken into the Bank of Cyprus.  Not sure how it will work as yet.