Το αεροστρωματόχημά μου είναι γεμάτο χέλια

After the last post full of pictures it's time to go back to the waffle......

 Now contrary to the belief of the Greek Cypriot majority on the Island, Nicosia isn't actually the centre of the known universe and the vast majority of the 7 or so billion of the World's population, don't go to bed at night worrying about whether the Cyprus problem will be solved by Christmas - in fact it's almost unheard of for Cyprus to be mentioned as the second news story on the BBC! But this week it was - this week 100 or refugees or migrants depending on what they are being called this week landed on Cyprus. They skillfully managed to navigate their way past the a huge chunk of coastline belonging to the Republic of Cyprus to by sheer chance end up on one of the little bits belonging to the UK. Good planning or just a fluke - I'll let you decide. Whatever their reasons for landing here it's caused bedlam at work. It shouldn't have been - the SBA have an agreement with the RoC for them to take refugees that land in the bases - but agreements are great in theory but if one side decides it doesn't like the agreement.......Anyway the refugees are still here - I have suggested that "Mr Jif" be called for - but I'm  not sure there is enough money in the overtime budget.
Aside from the excitement of the refugees - which to be honest I've managed to miss most of by virtue of being on the other side of the Island - it's been a good few days. Our stuff has arrived and is now fully unpacked and is currently being moved about and put in a variety of different places to see how it goes. Why stuff which is neither new or particularly great causes so much excitement amongst people it doesn't belong to is a mystery to me.

 When people here know your stuff has arrived they say things like - "it's like Xmas when your stuff comes" - no it isn't it's not new, it's not a gift and you know what it is! Or "you'll feel much better your stuff has come" - I kind of get that one, but only kind of - I didn't feel any better but it is nicer to have pictures of the kids around but I'd not missed much else. Except the computer and the telly - sad I know but I'm a bloke give me a couple of gizmo's and a big telly and I'm happy. I've managed to work out how to fix the computer to the telly and download a thing called Kodi and can now watch as much telly from wherever as I want, whenever I want. It's very cool - the only issue is that we didn't really watch telly at home - so have no idea what is good and what isn't - I had to ask Dave what was good telly. He was useless - only suggested Breaking Bad - that might be good I don't know - we've not really ventured past "Death In Paradise" yet!

The biggest emotion we felt when everything was unpacked was relief - Gladys has arrived in tact and nobody has asked why we have the ashes of somebody else's mother in our stuff. I believe witchcraft is still a crime in Cyprus so the importation could have led to an interesting interview with Cypol - "So Meester Reed why are you planning to resurrect this Gladees woman and who is she to you???" - Anyway she seems happy in her new home - that's her in the photo in her armchair - the bear is to keep her company when we are out. - Gladys by the way is Cathy Brown's mum (wife of the aforementioned "Mr Jif") - her ashes are to be scattered off Cape Greko at some point in the future when Jeff and Cathy come and visit.

Speaking of people who I thought may have been in need of resurrection, "Diver Dave" was on Island last week (diver Dave taught me and Mr Jif to dive last time I was here) - why might Diver Dave have been in need of resurrection - well because since deciding due to bad ears that he couldn't dive anymore he's decided that doing triathalons is a good idea - and he was in Cyprus to do one. I went to see him at the end of it expecting to be laughing and pointing at the daft old git barely being able to stagger over the finishing line. Imagine my disappointment to see that not only did he manage it without the need for an oxygen mask, he looked like he could do it all again! It was good to see him and Lynne - we'll hook up again when they move back out to Cyprus early next year.

Our car arrived this week, having completed numerous bits of paper and handed them to the RoC Customs officials who all looked like they had either just arrived from or were going to a nightclub - there it was in a container at Limassol Port barely wider than the car - so who did the movers send to drive it out of the container - a big fat bloke who couldn't get the door open wide enough to get in and had to climb in through the window - once in he tried starting it to find it had the flattest battery in the history of flat batteries and a tyre that was almost as flat. Eventually we got it out and running - it's a relief to be able to go where we want - being in an Official vehicle all the time does make trips anywhere further afield than Larnaca difficult.

Lastly and definitely the best bit - the boys arrive today - can't wait to see them.

Cheers

Andy

PS The title of this post translates as "My hovercraft is full of eels" (google it)  -  our Greek lesson was tough this week!

So it's my turn.....

I believe that Andy has a knack at the story telling which I don't have so I intend my posts to be more picture based.  This may also reassure Wendy who is slightly worried about my typing skills and whether or not anyone will be able to read anything I type without correcting all the spelling mistakes first. Well I ll have you know Miss Wendy that I got a distinction in my RSA Typing many many many many moons ago, its just texting I have problems with lol

So on to the pics, we were less than a week in and Mr Reed brings home a dog, just temporary he says we are fostering him just for the weekend, but just look at this little man, how could I not fall in love immediately and never want to give him up, so as you all know we didn't just foster him, we adopted him!!!! This is his 'after' pic, when I first set eyes on him he was a scraggy, skinny, very very dusty mutt covered in fleas and ticks, poor little soul needed us to take care of him :-)

So on to the cat situation............................... so there I am having my morning coffee (only 2 days after we arrived) and Puss appears,

As the days pass it appears that Puss has some kittens in tow, Dad has also shown an appearance, he is a big long haired grey cat, and a bit of a bruiser!

So on to our new home, it is a traditional concrete built villa and now our 'stuff' has arrived is beginning to look and feel more like home rather than a holiday villa, a few pictures on the walls and photos of the sproglets makes all the difference.

The all essential big telly has arrived, which makes watching football and rugby all the more enjoyable for Andy especially when Newcastle hammer those goals in :-)

Rather a large pile of empty boxes and packaging making a fantastic wall to keep Dusty in the back garden!

This is where Dusty and I hang out when we aren't wandering all over the village practicing our Greek greetings with the locals.

Finally we have a small selection of herbs, I managed about two weeks before needing to get my hands dirty, so pootled off to buy compost and basil, marjoram, chives and thyme and found some largish pots to transplant them in.  Think Andy then had a yearning to  potter on and off he pootled to lift some aloe vera plants which I had found growing like weeds out of the pavement round the corner from our villa. 

We also have four mature citrus trees, 2 lemon, 1 lime and an orange. This is the lemon tree which I m, reliably informed is the only tree to flower and fruit at the same time, you can just make out the flower on the left, its a delicate little thing but the fragrance is fantastic.

Now off to finish the unpacking, Sam and Matt arrive on Saturday so I need to find the spare beds which are buried somewhere underneath mountains of Andy's clothes and diving stuff.  

Beccy xx

This Is Cyprus My Friend

Words that either make you shudder or smile knowingly depending on whether you still live here or have left for the "normal" world away from the relaxed chaos that is Cyprus!
There's quite a bit to get into this post - so bear with me, it'll bring you up to speed with our first month or so back.
Week One - Arrived at our new house, it's in a village called Oroklini, known as "Little Britain" to many because of the number of expats who've settled here. We are very pleased with our house it's nicely furnished, not too big but not too small and has everything we need until our stuff arrives. We had been worried - choosing somewhere to live from photos on the internet and from a "Whatsapp" video made by Dave (a colleague) is a bit scary! Why do we not live on the base I hear you cry - well basically because we aren't married so the Military won't let us live in married quarters - but will quite happily pay for us to live in a nicer property off camp - go figure, but we aren't complaining. Monday brings my first day in the Office - I'd already met Dave and Harry, when they picked us up from Akrotiri - but how would the Cypriots take to Andy the Roster Monster coming back? Well to my relief the natives seemed friendly - they all welcomed me back with smiles - they all looked exactly the same - like they'd all been locked away in a cupboard and stored away for the last six years and wheeled back out again to greet me!
Went to the Dive club on Tuesday - what have they done to it?????? I'm not going to expand on that at the minute for fear I go off on one and offend half the diving expat population of Cyprus! But the goods thing was I met Ian and Anita and little Ralph again - it was genuinely good to see them.
Tried to get the internet connected this week - tried to it online at work - now this should be easy, you fill in a form, have pay some money and a few days later you have telephone and internet don't you? Not in Cyprus, you pay some money, fill in a form, print off the form which tells you to take the form to a shop. On the way to the shop somebody rings and says because you are foreign you need another 150 euros before they will connect you, you get to the shop and a very nice girl completes the form you'd already completed, says she's sorted out the 150 euros and I don't need to pay it, asks you to take a photo of the phone box thing on the front of your house and e-mail it to her and then in 24 working days time they will connect the internet. I asked why it took so long, got a shrug....this is Cyprus my friend
End of week one I find a dog at the checkpoint - Jo the office clerk runs a rehoming charity place so through her find said dog a home - but we have to keep him over the weekend. Fatal mistake - Dusty turns out to be cute as a cute thing, doesn't bark, plays nicely and generally behaves himself - he hasn't left us yet!

Week Two - No idea what happened in week two - I met loads of people who's names I can't remember now, went to umpteen meetings about stuff that isn't really important and to which I will delegate a deputy and Beccy walked around the village and sunbathed around our pool.

Week Three - still no internet - but a man has been round to inspect the box at the front of the house, He scratches his head a bit because it hasn't got a label in it - makes some calls and goes away. Our car is due to arrive this week - I give it a few days after it was supposed to be here then ring up and ask when it's coming. Imagine my surprise when I'm told that it hasn't left England yet (by e-mail mind because the girl dealing with it was "on the other line" when I rang) - apparently there'd been a strike which had delayed it. I checked - no there wasn't they just forgot to put it on the bloody boat. Still haven't changed the roster - the Cypriots are still asking though - they are definitely worried! I just smile it worries them more.

Things I've learnt this week - I'm not very bendy - yoga (yes you read that right yoga) might not be my thing.I struggle with standing on one leg holding my toe with my leg stretched out in front of me - my arms simply aren't long enough - Beccy is happy I'm going with her though.

Week Four - Meetings continue unabated, I've now met all the dignitaries within the SBA and reacquainted myself with Nejdet the Muktah of Pyla - he still won't look me in the eye! The internet has been connected, no idea why it took so long but it's sorted now. The car should be here on 18th October - I'm not holding my breath though. Went diving with Ian at Konnos Point, I was a bit nervous to be honest six years is a long time but after a couple of minutes back in the water it was like I'd never been out of it. There were more fish than I remember which is good. Greek lessons have started -  learning the alphabet frazzled Beccy's brain - not sure she'll make it to the next class - Bs pronounced V, H that is EE and about seven other combinations of letters that are all pronounced EE blew her away! Numbers next week - that'll be fun!

Right that's more or less up to date - so off for a home made version of Brandy sour made with lemons off own tree - cheers

Here I go again........

Who'd have thought it, six years after leaving the sunny shores of Cyprus for the not so sunny banks of the Humber I'd be back here again?

I'm not really sure how it happened, there I was, minding my own business, looking after a 2.6 acre field, complete with pigs, goats, chickens, geese, dogs, cats, occasional sheep - oh and Beccy. Quite happy we were milking, making, growing and generally being partially self sufficient. In fact happy enough to be looking to retire from Border Force and packing in Winteringham Fields as soon as economically viable to move to a house in the middle of rural Brittany to do the "Tom and Barbara" thing (only those of a certain age will know what that means) permanently.

Then one day my phone pings - Civil Service job alerts have sent me an email saying that the Officer in Charge job in Dhekelia is available. I ring Beccy say shall I give it a go - she says yes, so an interview, much discussion about the pro's and cons, (big pro - sun always shines and it's an escape from Border Force, big con - leaving the kids, family, friends and animals etc behind) and the sun always shining pro wins out.

Much form filling, waiting, more form filling, security checks, waiting, form filling and yet more waiting follows - but now six or so months later here we are. The sun does still always shine (which is good because I'd told Beccy it did) - although we have had rain three times since we arrived. It's a Sunday morning, I'm sat in shorts, next to our pool telling you all about it. Now to be fair I have no idea how good we will be at this blogging thing. Previous attempts will indicate that we'll be erratic at best, but we will try to keep you all abreast of our life out here. We'll try not to be smug (did I mention the sun always shines?), it'll be a warts and all chronicle of the up and the downs - and indeed the often huge frustrations of living and working in Cyprus - contrary to popular belief work isn't a walk in the park here! Beccy will largely be in charge of photo's I'll provide the accompanying waffle - apparently I'm better at it.

To get us started, the picture below is the sun going down over mountains to the west of us - taken from the hill just behind our village - you'll get lots of sunset pictures I think - Beccy likes taking them!

That's enough of said waffle for now - over the next couple of days we'll give a resume as to what has happened in the month or so since we arrived - but for today I don't want to bombard you with too much stuff!

Cheers
Andy