Catching up at last

A wedding … one transatlantic crossing by sea … one house purchase … one mad and deluded vendor … 20 weeks of builders onsite … one legal battle with Cypriot bureaucracy … one lawyer’s  suggestion to sue the Government in the European Courts … one sneaky workaround to get round said bureaucracy … two minor operations … one set of demolished external stairs … lots of fruit trees … several hammered thumbs whilst building a kitchen … an awful lot of paint, and filler, and sanding, and non-square walls … some visitors … some temporary electrics … a few rats … some fresher air and cooler evenings

So, we’re back after a break of almost 15 months.  The intention had always been to keep the blog going but circumstances have kept us rather busy of late.  Of course, there’s nothing quite like being accosted, in the toilets of a hotel during a wedding reception, by a total stranger saying …

“I know who you are, I used to read your blog!“

… to bring on the guilt of letting things slip.

We have now moved, to a property which we first saw and made an offer on in Spring ‘08.  It took until December for us to get vacant possession and then until July ‘09 before it was fit to inhabit.  Considering the previous (see deluded, above) owner said it needed nothing more than a little light replastering and a coat of paint that may give an indication of some of the challenges that have kept us busy over the last year or so ago.

Technically the blog should be renamed …

‘VillageUpInTheHillsAbout30MinsDriveFromLarnaca-Tales‘

… but that seems rather wordy so, for the time being we’ll stick with AradippouTales even though we’ve left Aradippou behind us.

Welcome back :-)

Daybreak over Larnaca bay

 

One of the upsides of getting up at an ungodly hour to pick up visitors from the airport is the chance to watch the sun rise over the island.

Yesterday morning we were out of bed at 3am to meet the early flight of our last visitors of the summer. Having picked up people and bags we headed to the nearest Zorbas, the fantastic local 24 hour bakery, to collect breakfast. With bags of pastries, biscuits and fruit juice in hand we headed up into Avdellero while it was still dark.

The church of Agia Marina, high above the village, has superb views over to the coast and across Larnaca bay. It is near to here that we saw the bee-eaters and saw eagles and long-legged buzzards soar.

As the sun slowly rose and night faded away, the two photographers took a series of photos while the blogger perched on a ledge outside the church, admired the view and captured the moment.

 

 

Looking East

 

 

 

Sunrise, seen through the church

 

Sunrise over the bay

 

 

 

 

Seating within the outer perimeter of the church

Catching Up

I know, I know. We sort of disappeared off the face of the world for a while. Sorry ’bout that and all!

Summer has truly arrived, in fact we’re in the middle of a heatwave according to the government, not unlike last year. This year’s heat is made more challenging by the continuing lack of water. Rationing has now been in place for several months and impacts our lives much more that we anticipated. More of that later perhaps.

In other news we’ve just waved goodbye to our second set of visitors this summer. Both sets had good hot weather, possibly hotter than they might have wanted, and managed to get out and about to see the sites as well as fitting in a fair few beach days. With both we headed to Nicosia and crossed through to the north via the newly opened Ledra Street crossing.

We also managed a couple of weeks off the island sailing across the Atlantic … again. We had such a good time last year that we gave in and booked the same trip once more. As last year the crossing was fantastic, the boat was wonderful and the company was excellent. And, with a crew of 200 or so and only 81 passengers we were spoiled rotten. Long may that continue ;-)

While we were away we managed to pick up a number of bits and pieces that either aren’t available here or are simply too overpriced to justify buying them. Top of the list was a tiny computer for traveling and for use out of the house. Right now, while the temperatures are in the mid 30s and the air isn’t moving it is bliss to be able to update the blog from the comfort of the shaded patio rather than a hot study.

And, in amongst everything else, we’re trying to buy a house. Just a small place, a little way up in the hills where it might be a little cooler. There are a few glitches with the sale (including the small matter of the house being four times the size that the Land Registry think it should be) so no more of that until there’s something definite to report!

The builders are back …

In case we hadn’t realised they made enough noise when they arrived at 7am to wake the entire street.

Mainly these are builders who have full-time jobs elsewhere and do work on other houses on the weekend to bring in a little extra money. As a result we see them for a couple of days and then they disappear for a week or a month before coming back to do a little more work. The house opposite has been part-built since we arrived in August 2006. It looks like it might finally be finished this summer.

Today it looks like they are sanding the rough finish of the external walls in preparation for them being painted. On a previous visit they arranged for a JCB to come along and remove the excess reinforced steel bars (known locally as re-bar).

Even here we’re not convinced that this is an accepted technique!

Househunting in the snow

Today we’ve been househunting in the snow.  Hmmm, doesn’t make a huge amount of sense to us either.  

 

A friend sent us details of a house he thought might interest us, and on paper it did.  Perhaps a little on the small side, perhaps a little further out than we intended, but on the positive side it was on a large plot and was keenly priced so perhaps there was the possibility to extend it a little.

 

So, today we drove out Lefkara way to find the village to get a feel for what it was like and how easy it was to get to and from.  These villages are up in the hills and can be disproportionally tricky to get to.  They also tend to have their own micro-climate, more so the higher up they are.

 

Anyway, we hoped, but didn’t assume, we’d be able to find the house and see what it’s location was like.  Since it’s only being used on weekends at the moment we thought we might even get a chance to get close without disturbing the owners.

 

Well, we found the village and then spotted the house.  

 

Our first surprise was the lack of formal road.  There’s a mud/gravel/concrete-in-parts track which, considering the hillside is around a 1 in 6 slope, could be challenging at times.  

 

Surprise #2 was the water supply.  The entire supply appears to be laid above ground in flexible piping.  The piping extends through the outside area (it might be a little much to call it a garden!) to water the weeds and fruit trees.  

 

Surprise #3 came in response to a lighthearted joke.

 

Hey, it is connected to mains electric, isn’t it?

 

No prizes for guessing the answer to that one.  It turns out the closest telegraph pole sits in the garden of the next house down the hill.  It looks like the folks selling bring a generator with them when they come to stay. 

 

And finally, surprise #4 was the weather.  

 

We expected it to be colder in the hills … this would actually be an advantage in the summer … and we’d even mentioned here that there was a bizarre forecast for snow this week.  We just didn’t expect to end up in the middle of a little snowstorm in sunny Cyprus.  

 

Very light, very fast moving snow, but snow all the same.  Oh, and we don’t think the house is really built on a game reserve, but who knows?

 

 

 

So, should we buy the house?  Needs a new road, connecting to the electric board, replumbing, solar panels, a small extension, and a small herd of goats to keep the weeds down.  

 

Oh, and we haven’t even seen inside the house! 

End of Year round-up

Well, there are about two hours to go until 2008 so just time for a few end-of-year round-ups.

The Beef

Since so many of you have asked we are happy to report that it was absolutely wonderful. Seasoned with mustard and freshly crushed black pepper, it roasted happily in the oven while the trimmings cooked around it. Before the sun set the joint was stripped and the remaining meat was back in a casserole dish with some caramelised onions and the remains of the red wine gravy. Having bubbled for an hour or two it was portioned and popped into the freezer.

That lovely joint will be keeping us fed for some time to come … at least another three meals in cold January!

The Seville Oranges

About a week before Christmas we were offered some Seville oranges. A friend has a tree and, as so often the way here, once it starts to crop it is a challenge to use all of the fruit before it goes bad. Marmalade-makers wandered off with carrier bags full but we have no such leanings. However, if there were half a dozen oranges to spare we might have a beef recipe that would appreciate them, said we.

A few days later we were presented with a carrier containing 17 goodly sized oranges.

Mands did a little research and then amended menus. Instead of Christmas beef followed by tart au citron perhaps there could be a light orange syllabub instead?

After a couple of false starts it ended up being one of the foodie highlights of the holiday, and a perfect foil to rich Christmas pudding.

For 4
o Juice and zest enough oranges to yield 1/4 pint of juice (about two large oranges)
o Reduce juice to about 1/3 of the original volume. Allow to cool
o Mix reduced juice with icing sugar to thicken and sweeten. About 4 tablespoons gives a good consistency
o Whip one pint of cream
o Fold sweetened juice mixture into the cream
o Spoon into small glasses. Serve with almond thin biscuits

Tonight, as part of our NYE meal, we cooked a variation of Gary Rhodes’ Beef with Seville Oranges. This too was fantastic, but does mean that of the original batch of oranges we only have two left. Hmmmm, wonder if there’s another dozen available?

We made another batch of syllabub today to say thank-you to the providers-of-the-oranges. Pity we didn’t know that they’ve gone to Dubai for a holiday! Another friend, who is staying at home by choice, was happy to take them home to add to her planned meal.

The Weather

Bright, clear, warm in the sun but chilly out of the sun.

These last couple of days have given us some of the coldest temperatures this year. Overnight it is dropping to around 6 or 7 degrees. The irony of getting a lightly sunburnt nose during an afternoon and then huddling under a 13.5 tog quilt at night isn’t lost on us! To some extent the issue is made worse by the very poor insulation of our rental house.

At 5pm today the bedroom temperature was 12 degrees and falling. We have no real heating upstairs, and only a gas burning heater downstairs. It isn’t expensive to run but doesn’t heat much beyond that which is in front of it.

The Euro

At midnight tonight we join the Euro. The Cyprus pound will be no more. Well, apart from those liberated from mattress hiding places and cashed in at the bank for the coming six months. There are reams of stories in other locations about the mechanics and the legalities and the difficulties and the dual currency calculators.

Suffice to say that tomorrow we can pay for our groceries (if anywhere were open) with a trusty 10 Euro note rather than a £10 CYP note but we’d almost certainly be standing next to someone, Cypriot or English, complaining that prices have gone up. Same old, same old!

And Finally

Best wishes for the outgoing and the incoming years. We wish you happiness, prosperity and shorter bank queues. Oh, maybe that last one is only relevant to those on the island ;-)

Ian & Mands

Christmas Beef

Warning: Not suitable for vegetarians!

This year we are cooking lunch on Christmas Day. It’s been several years since we cooked turkey for Christmas and didn’t really relish the idea of going back to it. When we were in London we often cooked a rib of beef on the bone, sometimes known as a standing rib, but here it is not a common cut of meat. Actually, many of the cuts that we are used to are not well known here which has led to changes in the types of meals we cook.

That aside we thought we might have a solution. A butcher in one of the villages, Xylotymbou, advertises as selling English (actually, the original butcher was from Scotland, so make that Scottish) cuts. Early last week we hopped in the car and drove there to place our Christmas order. Business must be good because despite it being before his published last order day he was already sold out. Not a single rib of beef to be had, though we could have had a dull sirloin in its place.

Somewhat dejected, we got back in the car and drove back towards Larnaca. The Christmas meal plan revolved around this piece of beef and now it looked like we would not be able to get it. Driving back we talked about where else we might get a joint … certainly not any of the supermarkets but maybe one of the other butchers might understand the cut we wanted?

We stopped at one just outside Larnaca, overlooking the sea.

“No problem” he said when we asked if he could do a rib of beef for Christmas. After quick conversation about the number of people and therefore size of joint and the number of ribs we wanted he made a note in his diary and we agreed to come back to collect it on Saturday. As we drove away we weren’t entirely convinced that we and he had been talking about the same cut. We certainly didn’t know how much this might cost – the price wasn’t mentioned at all.

Today we headed back there as part of our last run of errands.

He recognised us as we walked in and quickly disappeared into the chiller at the back where he hangs the meat. He came back, not with a neat joint, but with a half carcass of beef.

Having confirmed that it was a three-rib piece we wanted he asked if we would prefer the joint cut straight or following the rib. Cutting straight would mean a joint which would stand better but would mean slicing through one of the ribs. Following the ribs would mean a sloping joint but three intact ribs. We agreed that following the rib was a better option so he proceeded to cut. A single slice, with a scarily sharp knife, separated our joint from the rest of the carcass. Then a cleaver was used to shorten the length of the ribs “Otherwise they will not fit in your oven” he said. A slice or two more to neaten and the joint was brought over for inspection.

It looks not unlike this.

Having agreed it looked wonderful it was bagged, popped on the scales and we handed over a little under £15CYP (£18GBP, $36USD) for about eight pounds of prime beef. Had we bought a similar joint from our old London supermarket we would have paid two, if not three, times the price.

The beef is now lightly oiled and seasoned and is sitting in the fridge. Only a few more days before we know whether it tastes as good as it looks. If so, it may be on the menu more than once a year ;-)

Merry Christmas to you all. We hope all of your holidays are wonderful, peaceful and joyous.

Ian & Mands

Yet more contrasts

One of us has been rather sickly with an unknown illness. After (too much) prevarication the sickly one finally agreed that a medical opinion was needed. You may be getting the impression that neither of us are much good at being ill. You would be right.

Anyhoo, the easy solution was a trip to St Raphael’s, the local private hospital in Larnaca. Two minutes with reception secured an appointment for the following day with one of the founders of the hospital. A specialist, not a general practitioner. Standard appointments are 30 minutes, as opposed to the UK standard of 10 minutes.

The appointment started on time, with pleasantries and then a conversation about why we’d moved to Cyprus followed by a lengthy discussion about relative costs of things such as transport, housing and eating out. Essentials, you understand?

When we finally got around to the purpose of the visit the doctor asked a series of questions and subsequently decided that a diagnostic test was needed to get to the bottom of the problem. The sickly one had had exactly the same test a few years ago courtesy of very expensive company-provided medical insurance in England but it had taken a week to arrange, even via BUPA. Here the doctor had the equipment in his consulting rooms and carried out the test there and then. Within five minutes there was a diagnosis, a treatment plan, a follow-up appointment and an escalation plan for if things didn’t work as expected.

We’d have to dig through the records but we think that last time the cost for the diagnostic test (paid for by the insurance company) was about £180. This time the consultation and the test came to … £30 CYP. An earlier consultation at the hospital (when Mands hurt her leg swimming during rough seas) cost £20 so we assume the test cost a princely £10.

Hmmmm, £10 CYP (£12 GBP) and no waiting time vs £180 and a week’s wait even with medical insurance. Tough call eh? A quick trip across the road to the pharmacy got the prescribed drugs, for about £7 CYP. The downside there is that they come with no English instructions and little concern for contra-indications but hey, what do you expect for that price?

House guests …

… mean no time for blogging. Back soon hopefully.

Guest Editor

Apparently they are fashionable so we thought we’d join in. So, this entry is brought to you by Max, Mandy’s mum’s new puppy. Eight weeks old and cute as, well, an eight week-old puppy.

Today’s Guest Editor

Don’t be taken in by the innocent expression, there is mischief hiding right behind.

Being so young he has an, understandably, short attention span. So, as you can see, it’s time for something else now.

Shift Change

The cameraman had to move fast to prevent any accidents. 3 feet is an awful long way to fall when you are only six inches tall.

Max is now recovering from his over-work by having a nap on Mandy’s feet.