We woke up quite early and it’s not a bad thing really. It means we can get jobs done in the relative morning cool (it’s 19C at 6am) and then rest as the day heats up. We are pretty much in solid 28-30C now, rain an impossibility for months and a light breeze is there to just take the edge off.
I stripped the bed and got a lot of washing underway. Bob did some wall filling and then unpacked the new terrace lamps and worked out how to put them together and install them. He will need to get some electrical cable at the yapi on Monday. Each lamp does have cable supplied but it is literally “just” enough and he wants more leeway. Anyway, they were easy to put together and he’s ready to install them in the coming week. He put the new blind fitments up and we got one of the two roman blinds back up but as we put the other up, another fitment broke and we will have to get a replacement on Monday. Sigh…..
I got my squeegee out and had a go at the downstairs windows. They have got sand marks on them from the sandy rain of some weeks ago. There are a few window cleaners out here (very far and few) and I was going to engage one but we thought while we were here, we could do our own with the squeegee and the power washer for the odd windows that are difficult to get to ie too high. It was quite nice working with a bucket of water in the warm weather!
We washed around the kitchen, emptying the drawers and washing them all out. Another job done.
Today is the first Sunday in a long time that hasn’t been subject to a curfew. The covid infections here now are so low that they feel safe in removing it and from Monday the night time curfew moves to 11 till 5am. Not something I would notice!!! We are awaiting news of the country codings very eagerly as we hope both Lucy (from Dubai) and Daisy (from the UK) will be able to come out and join us in June for a couple of weeks. Fingers crossed. We are all double vaccinated so that will greatly help. The statistics here are published daily and there is a very good English language site for keeping up to date Current Cases | InfoNorthCyprus We feel very safe here. All shops and cafes, offices etc provide loads of sanitiser at the doors, people mask up….. we think the government have done a very good job at limitting the spread and intensity of the virus and getting people vaccinated as soon as possible. Of course the weather helps. Eating outside is a way of life here, so most bars and restaurants are set up for that already.
I sorted through our linen cupboard here and had a clear out. I brought quite a few new sets of bedding with me from the UK that I’d collected over the year. We have at least 3 sets for each bed, so you need quite a lot and commercial laundering does take a toll after a while. The towels take a beating too. They must boil wash them or something. It’s fine if you like a “bracing” towel, not so great if you like your’s soft and fluffy!!!!!
We were just settling down poolside when the local phone rang and it was Habibi the Gardener’s friends wanting to come up and look at the jobs we’ve got. They all work full time on the maintenance/gardening teams at one of the universities and are always glad for some extra job money. We’ve been totally delighted at the standard of work that they’ve done for us over the last few years. Anyway, up the hill they came and Bob walked them through the jobs: replaster one of the kitchen walls, put on damp proof sealer and then paint; remove two ridiculous downpipes and block off where they branch off the main guttering; strengthen and straighten our end of pool balustrade; repair all cracks and 3 coat special paint the pool gulley. They gave us a super price and they will start Monday evening. Poor Habibi is stuck in Pakistan. He went there to visit his mum who is ill, and now all the flights out are being cancelled….. he and the family will have to quarantine when they get back here too, but they don’t know when that will be. I was afraid that would happen. I hope they get back soon.
Spent the rest of the afternoon sunning, swimming and reading. We bought two new pool floats yesterday. Bob favours the lightweight floating bed sort, I like a big ring and I found one that looks like a slice of watermelon!!!! It looks very nice in the pool and is great to float around on.
Later on, Bob watched the Monaco GP and then we had a lovely dinner beside the pool. I made lamb koftas and wrapped them in a tortilla with tomato, coriander and onion and some chilli! Really yum. So lovely sitting out by the pool tonight as the sun went down. Looking forward to getting our new lights this week.
We have a lot of social activities in the week ahead and it will be so great to get back to a more normal Cypriot life, visiting some of our favourite restaurants, dining out with friends, quizzing….. More jobs to do of course, but a lovely balance. We are so very glad to be here. Quarantine frustrations all forgotten. It’s heavenly!
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