Lisa goes to Morocco

News reaches us that our cousin Lisa has gone on her travels again, this time to Agadir in Morocco.

In Her words

"We went on a daytrip to Marrakesh which was about 4 hours away but the coasch drive was lovely through the Atlas Mountains and some parts were like a road in the middle of a desert it was lush!My friend Amanda was in Marrakesh so we met up with her for a few hours to. I had a henna tatoo done on my leg and arms and now ive got the urge to have a real one on my foot or something "

Dinner under the stars

After the boat trip we were invited by Theo and his family to share late poolside dinner under the clear skies of a beautifully cool Summer's evening.

Xenia and Mandy both cooked their variety of chicken casserole and both families enjoyed a relaxing evening helped by a number of bottles of chilled wine.

Full day Boat trip from Paphos

On the Twins final day in Cyprus we decided to take them on a full day boat trip. We drove into Paphos and had a hearty full English breakfast at the Rose pub (excellent value at £1.50) and then took the short walk to boar the "Sea Star" cruise boat.

We sailed from Paphos passing the stricken hulk of a Greek cargo ship that in 1997 grounded on rocks just North of the harbour, we sailed into Coral Bay where we took the chance to have a cooling swim.

We then sailed onto Lara Bay on the Akamas peninsular which is a protected beach for nesting turtles.

A evening on the Wave Dancer

Along with our friends, Alan, Jan, Pam and Arthur, we boarded the 'Wavedancer' for an evening cruise from Paphos harbour. As we left the harbour we enjoyed a perfect sunset.

The buffet was superb as well as the onboard entertainment including an impressive firework display launched from the bow of the ship.

A storm in Troodos

 

We packed our faithful cool box and headed into the Troodos mountains. Our first stop was the village of Platres, as soon as we left the car we all noticed the drop in temperature down to 15 degrees from mid 30's.

We sat having coffee and it started to spit with rain, something we had not seen for several months. The light rain soon turned into an electrical storm with torrential rain which lasted several hours but the coast of Cyprus remained bone dry. 

We continued up to the highest point in Cyprus (Mount Olympus) but the weather was so bad that we had to take refuge in a local taverna.

Leaving Party at Pissouriana.

Along with Robin & Johan we attended a leaving party at the Pissouriana bar. The Managers Patrick and Irena along with barman Peter were saying farewell to their regular customers.

On a warm and muggy evening there was a good turnout for the champagne and BBQ party.

The Twins hit Cyprus

We drove to Larnaca airport to pick up the twins who flew in from Sweden. Robin & Johan certainly noticed the difference in temperatures between the two countries, especially as they arrived right in the middle of this current heat wave.

We all spent most of their first day in Cyprus just trying to keep cool in the pool.

Guests for a day.

We welcomed our first guests ( Pauline and Ken) from Wales. We collected them from Paphos and showed them around the village of Pissouri. We then drove down to Melanda beach for a fish lunch.

The afternoon was spent relaxing by the pool and then we headed up to the Hillview restaurant for drinks and to take in the stunning views before returning them to Paphos as the sunset along the coastline.

SCUBA Diving at St George's Bay

 

On the weekend we drove over to St.George’s Bay (North of Paphos) with our friend, Steve, to do a couple of dives. The water was warm and clear and we managed to see some Barracuda and wrasse.

The temperature of the water was 27 degrees, but it’s a different story out of the water as a heat wave hits Cyprus sending temperatures soaring to over 40 degrees.

Summer Solstice at the 1911

We celebrated this years Summer Solstice with an evening of music at the Pissouri residents club (The 1911 club.) The entertainment was provided by local singer "Christian".

Theo and Roger laid on a good spread and everyone entered into the spirit and a good old singalong was enjoyed by all.

Lee boxes at the Coal exchange

Back in our hometown of Cardiff we heard News of my cousin Lee and his first amateur boxing contest. Lee boxed at Cardiff’s historic Coal Exchange in front of a crowd of 400.

The evening was a charity event and Lee won his bout on points. Lee is trained by former featherweight World Champion, Steve Robinson.

A trip to Lofou

We took a trip to the mountain village of Lofu with our friends Mary and Steve. Lofou is a very picturesque village with lots of cobbled streets and lanes to explore.

We stopped off for lunch at the Lofou tavern, we enjoyed a hearty meal in the tavern's courtyard which is traditionally decorated and a cool haven from the midday sun.

Elton John Tribute in Pissouri.

We walked down to the village square to watch the Elton John tribute act by Andrew Oliver who performed a variety of the Rocket Mans songs. The Vranka restaurant laid on a splendid buffet to accompany the evening’s entertainment.

A visit to Agros

We took a drive into the lower region of the Troodos mountains, our first stop was for a frappe at the village of Trimiklini. We continued on to the picturesque village of Pelendri, where local workmen were busy building the ornate walls of the village.

Our final destination was the village of Agros which is

famous for its roses which adorn the local streets and parks. We visited the rose factory which produces an assortment of gifts made from rose water.

Manjo’s Opens

This week a new bar/restaurant called 'Manjo's' opened in the Village. Their first theme night was a tapas night complete with complimentary jugs of Sangria.

We wish them every success with their new venture.

The Triple birthday Bash

We went to a birthday party held for three friends of ours, Simmo, Dom and Adie. The poolside BBQ was well attended and Yanni roasted a suckling pig.

There were some interesting speeches and a good deal of singing and all 3 of the main men had a cracking night of Celebration