Just back from Egypt and certainly notice the temperature difference. It was 35 degrees in the shade over there, so i stayed in the sun....groan. Did a bit of snorkeling which was pretty sub when compared to the fish and colours on display in Eilat just up the coast in Israel, and one of the little buggers bit me quite hard, drawing blood and leaving me with a mini jaws scar. I had fish and chips for dinner last night hoping I might be getting revenge on their Uncle or other close family member!
The place was full of Russians, as was Cyprus when we went last year, and I hear that some of the Greek islands are going the same way. I have a few phrases of Polish I can trot out as necessary, but had i known i would have learnt the Ruski for 'excuse me there is a queue' or ' no please feel free to open the door yourself'. Still the legs were quite impressive although what they see in their ex-U boat captain partners is beyond me.
We got back in time for Idwals funeral and it was a mighty turnout as had been expected. there was much singing and merriment and I am sure he would have looked down satisfied in the way his life was celebrated. During the eulogy it became evident how little people knew of his life outside the rugby club, he was a Labour candidate in the local elections, a strong charity worker and loving grandad to his extended family.....he also campaigned hard in recent years for an independent state for Palestine, so I wonder how he would of reacted to me in the suk's of Sharm al Sheik pointing out that they had left Israel off their maps of the middle East...seems they assume the Palestinians have a state of their own already!
Showing posts with label cyprus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cyprus. Show all posts
Thursday, 8 October 2009
Tuesday, 11 March 2008
We apologise for the delay to flight EZ1234.....
We flew with GB Airways when we went to Cyprus. They are an interesting airline in as much as they were, until recently, in the private ownership of the Bland Group, with BA operating them as a franchise. The Bland brothers have now agreed to sell the airline to EasyJet, who will acquire the routes out of Gatwick and Manchester, but not the slots at Heathrow more's the pity.
The aircraft seemed to be standard BA stock although it was interesting that the seat pitch was greater flying out than it was flying back when we had those seats that stuck into you somewhere whenever you tried to get to sleep.
I have always been curious of the sub-culture which exists on aircraft. I can rationalise that they never show the Airplane movies or other flight disaster movies, but tell me this, why do you never get chips with the meal?
The aircraft seemed to be standard BA stock although it was interesting that the seat pitch was greater flying out than it was flying back when we had those seats that stuck into you somewhere whenever you tried to get to sleep.
I have always been curious of the sub-culture which exists on aircraft. I can rationalise that they never show the Airplane movies or other flight disaster movies, but tell me this, why do you never get chips with the meal?
Monday, 10 March 2008
Cyprus creek
Well as the out-laws are sunning themselves on their golden wedding cruise around South America, the missus and I decided to try the delights of Cyprus for a week. I had wanted to try out this Aphrodite Hills Resort which had a renowned golf course, and a spa for the ladies, and neither of us had been to the island before, so off we went.
Its a funny island in as much as it is divided by a UN separation zone between the Greek side and Turkish side, and the crossing point near Nicosia is like a front line was zone. The Turkish side is poorer, but many Greeks left and lost land worth thousands of Euro's when the invasion occurred, and they were forced to move South.
Now I have heard of Agia Napa and the various British enclaves which cover the military bases on the island, but other than that it was a voyage of discovery. Did you know for example that Mount Olympus in the Troodos mountains is nearly 2000m high? Well, we drove to the top up some very basic roads, and had we been in the mood, we could have skied in the substantial fresh snow which had fallen earlier. As it was we continued to the monastery at Kykkos, which is impressive, but not quite such a feat of engineering as those on Mount Athos, an area which is called the Autonomous Monastic State of the Holy Mountain in the Macedonia region of Greece.
The golf course which I played four times, was a sound test of golf, particularly when the strong wind blew off the Southern plains of the Sahara. Over the course of those rounds, I played with Dutch, German and Russian partners, such is the cosmopolitan attraction of the area.
Many people, the Russians and English being prime, are purchasing holiday homes on the island, although I certainly would not fly over Portugal or Italy to do so. The island has a serious water problem and is discussing shipping water in from Lebanon. Pathos is already dominated by 'English' bars in the same way Agia Napa attracts the young crowd with its night clubs, and with limited transportation and few activities which could maintain ones interest in the long term, I fail to see the attraction of living there.
Now the locals try hard and are tremendously helpful and friendly, but I can't help but feel the tourist board send people around the island to look for interesting sites to drag tourists to. A natural spring has been called Aphrodites bath, a rock in the sea off Pisseria has been called Aphrodites birthplace, and so it goes on. All have the obligatory tourist shack but little else.
The mosaics at the World Heritage site by the harbour are impressive but they are an exception, and I suspect most of the visitors are there for the sun, Fat Mama's and the Rose and Crown. Ah well, everyone to their own.
Its a funny island in as much as it is divided by a UN separation zone between the Greek side and Turkish side, and the crossing point near Nicosia is like a front line was zone. The Turkish side is poorer, but many Greeks left and lost land worth thousands of Euro's when the invasion occurred, and they were forced to move South.
Now I have heard of Agia Napa and the various British enclaves which cover the military bases on the island, but other than that it was a voyage of discovery. Did you know for example that Mount Olympus in the Troodos mountains is nearly 2000m high? Well, we drove to the top up some very basic roads, and had we been in the mood, we could have skied in the substantial fresh snow which had fallen earlier. As it was we continued to the monastery at Kykkos, which is impressive, but not quite such a feat of engineering as those on Mount Athos, an area which is called the Autonomous Monastic State of the Holy Mountain in the Macedonia region of Greece.
The golf course which I played four times, was a sound test of golf, particularly when the strong wind blew off the Southern plains of the Sahara. Over the course of those rounds, I played with Dutch, German and Russian partners, such is the cosmopolitan attraction of the area.
Many people, the Russians and English being prime, are purchasing holiday homes on the island, although I certainly would not fly over Portugal or Italy to do so. The island has a serious water problem and is discussing shipping water in from Lebanon. Pathos is already dominated by 'English' bars in the same way Agia Napa attracts the young crowd with its night clubs, and with limited transportation and few activities which could maintain ones interest in the long term, I fail to see the attraction of living there.
Now the locals try hard and are tremendously helpful and friendly, but I can't help but feel the tourist board send people around the island to look for interesting sites to drag tourists to. A natural spring has been called Aphrodites bath, a rock in the sea off Pisseria has been called Aphrodites birthplace, and so it goes on. All have the obligatory tourist shack but little else.
The mosaics at the World Heritage site by the harbour are impressive but they are an exception, and I suspect most of the visitors are there for the sun, Fat Mama's and the Rose and Crown. Ah well, everyone to their own.
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