How I wished I had listened to my husband. He kept telling me I was going to suffer, but being the martyr I am, I just had to carry on and prove I wasn’t the weakest link. Well, it served me right. Listening to lovely hubby would have avoided a visit to The General Hospital in Paphos.
And it was all over moving 27 tons of gravel for the garden. Let me tell you more about this.
But first - did you know that plants in Cyprus grow ten times faster – yes, ten times faster than those in the UK? So you would think that gardening on the island is easy - but actually, with a growth rate like that, it’s hard work. You will notice there is a huge amount of gravel used - and with good reason.
When we bought our villa, we had a 1,000 square metre plot. That is a pretty big garden to handle and we knew it would be a massive challenge. We wanted a low maintenance garden, so gravel was high on the agenda. It comes in several different colours, so that was great from a design perspective.
Saying it was a challenge was an understatement. In the beginning, clearing our garden took forever; it was a total and utter mess. To give you an idea, we could hardly see the villa amongst the overgrowth of trees and shrubs.
During the clearance, we found an old chest buried near the back border and wondered if we’d finally struck a pot of gold. No such luck, it was full of old rubbish. Then, surprisingly we found a huge anchor. Apparently the previous owner had a sea-faring connection, but we never did find out why it was buried in the undergrowth.
Anyway, section by section we cleared the garden. I lost count of the number of skips we hired, especially when we were pollarding the trees – on average, 25 feet out of each one - a task that seemed to never end.
Eventually though, there was light at the end of the tunnel. We finally reached the stage where the garden was ready, so it was time to start planting.
We used a top quality membrane (the thick black one you can buy in Cyprus is the most expensive, but it is the best and worth every penny). We laid this over the earth after planting up and then covered it with gravel. In all, we used 27 tons. This was delivered a few tons at a time and yes, we moved it all by wheelbarrow, which was seriously hard work.
This was when I ended up injuring my back – as I said before, lovely hubby saw that coming. After my hospital visit, transporting gravel was off the agenda for a while. (I hasten to add, I did fully recover).
Fortunately, one of our neighbours came to the rescue and in my absence, helped wheelbarrow the rest into the garden, so all was not lost.
An important point to note is not to scrimp on gravel – so many people do this and then regret it. You need your gravel to be at least 4 inches thick or the weeds will come through straight away. Oh, and remember to rake it regularly. This breaks up any weeds and also brightens it up. Gravel does eventually start to break down and becomes very dusty. It will need a top-up every four or five years to continue to look good.
How about colours? Well, white gravel is lovely - but in the very hot summer months, it is actually too bright to look at. We ended up changing some of ours because of this. But eventually, using different colours worked really well and we managed to create a beautiful Mediterranean garden.
Next week I am going to talk about irrigation systems – an essential for all gardens in Cyprus.
Until then, have a great weekend.
Best wishes
Jackie
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Cyprusbuyingguide.com
Thursday 24 March 2011
Thursday 17 March 2011
Eat, drink … and never mind the hangover!
Why? Because Easter is coming soon. Cyprus is traditionally really getting into a party mood. At the moment, we are right in the middle of a period of great fun and eating – but don’t get too carried away, because there is a penalty to pay. There are fifty days of fasting before Easter arrives – that’s right, fifty days - but that doesn’t deter everyone from having a really good time!
Easter is always my favourite time of the year in Cyprus. Not only does the island look beautiful, but everyone seems to be happier now the warmer weather is coming.
The carnival period, when all the merry making takes place, is ten days before everyone starts the long fast.
The first week is known as “Meat Week”, when traditionally, only meat is eaten. The second week is known as “Cheese Week”, when traditionally only cheese and other dairy products are eaten.
I must confess, I don’t know many expats who stick to this, but many Cypriots do. There are so many strange looking products in the supermarkets during this time – I must say, they don’t look very appetising, but I guess that’s all part of the tradition - fasting is fasting and the food is there for a purpose after all.
There is an exception though. The traditional Easter breads are absolutely delicious; especially the cheese bread. When these have just been baked and are put on the supermarket shelves they are really hard to resist.
My neighbour bakes her own cheese bread. The taste is amazing - unlike my efforts, but I won’t go into that culinary disaster too much, suffice to say my cheese bread was a bit like my Victoria sandwich cakes – two dozen eggs later and they still came out of the oven like bricks.
Moving swiftly on, Green Monday was last Monday, but was spoilt by rain. This is a day when people fly kites in Cyprus, it’s very colourful. Whole families take part with picnics on the beaches, in the mountains, by the dams, in fact, wherever they can fly a kite. Shame the weather was not so good.
Green Monday is also the first day of Lent and apart from the kite flying, it is celebrated with vegetarian picnics – and copious amounts of alcohol. Immediately following this, the fifty day fast starts, where the locals shun meat and dairy products and live on a vegetarian diet.
Talking about celebrations, the next one in Cyprus is Friday, 25th March which is Greek National Day. This is a public event with local student parades in all towns across the island.
Well, all this talk about food and drink has made me hungry, so it’s time for coffee and a cake. Never mind the waistline.
Why not come over to Cyprus for Easter and join in the celebrations? There are some bargains flights around if you hunt hard.
Best wishes
Jackie
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Cyprusbuyingguide.com
Easter is always my favourite time of the year in Cyprus. Not only does the island look beautiful, but everyone seems to be happier now the warmer weather is coming.
The carnival period, when all the merry making takes place, is ten days before everyone starts the long fast.
The first week is known as “Meat Week”, when traditionally, only meat is eaten. The second week is known as “Cheese Week”, when traditionally only cheese and other dairy products are eaten.
I must confess, I don’t know many expats who stick to this, but many Cypriots do. There are so many strange looking products in the supermarkets during this time – I must say, they don’t look very appetising, but I guess that’s all part of the tradition - fasting is fasting and the food is there for a purpose after all.
There is an exception though. The traditional Easter breads are absolutely delicious; especially the cheese bread. When these have just been baked and are put on the supermarket shelves they are really hard to resist.
My neighbour bakes her own cheese bread. The taste is amazing - unlike my efforts, but I won’t go into that culinary disaster too much, suffice to say my cheese bread was a bit like my Victoria sandwich cakes – two dozen eggs later and they still came out of the oven like bricks.
Moving swiftly on, Green Monday was last Monday, but was spoilt by rain. This is a day when people fly kites in Cyprus, it’s very colourful. Whole families take part with picnics on the beaches, in the mountains, by the dams, in fact, wherever they can fly a kite. Shame the weather was not so good.
Green Monday is also the first day of Lent and apart from the kite flying, it is celebrated with vegetarian picnics – and copious amounts of alcohol. Immediately following this, the fifty day fast starts, where the locals shun meat and dairy products and live on a vegetarian diet.
Talking about celebrations, the next one in Cyprus is Friday, 25th March which is Greek National Day. This is a public event with local student parades in all towns across the island.
Well, all this talk about food and drink has made me hungry, so it’s time for coffee and a cake. Never mind the waistline.
Why not come over to Cyprus for Easter and join in the celebrations? There are some bargains flights around if you hunt hard.
Best wishes
Jackie
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Cyprusbuyingguide.com
Thursday 10 March 2011
Do you know the secret of SAL?
Sending mail from Cyprus back to the UK – or in fact, anywhere in the world, can be costly. That is, unless you know the secret of SAL. One day when I was in my local Post Office talking to my dear Cypriot friend Angelika, she asked me if my mail was urgent. She explained that if it wasn’t, there was no point paying the high charges for sending it air mail.
But what is SAL? She explained it is Surface Air Lifted mail. Despite the usual long queue, I was intrigued, so asked her if she could tell me more.
She explained that if you send post by air mail, it usually gets to the UK in about 3-5 days from Cyprus. If you send by SAL, it could take up to 3 weeks – but it rarely does - more about that later.
Let’s compare some costs first (in euros), from Cyprus, based on letters, printed materials and small packets:
For a letter weighing 50 grammes air mail costs 1.71 whereas sending by SAL costs 0.68. For a parcel weighing 400 grammes air mail costs 6.86 were as sending by SAL costs 2.73.
Quite a difference! All you need to do when you get to the Post Office is ask to send it by SAL. Along with your stamps, the counter clerk will give you a sticker to put on the envelope/parcel. That’s it!
And here’s a tip you may not know about (this is where it definitely pays to have friends in the Post Office). The plane that takes the SAL mail usually leaves Cyprus on a Thursday, so try to get your mail to the post office by Wednesday. Most of the time, it gets to the UK the following Friday, sometimes faster.
(I really didn’t want to mention the “Christmas” word in March, but here goes. If you are sending mail back to the UK for Christmas and you are using SAL, then get everything in the post by the 3rd week in November at the latest. At this time of the year it will more than likely take 3 weeks – but it will save you a fortune.)
Oh, and don’t forget, you can buy all your jiffy bags at the post office along with any boxes you need for posting. Don’t ask for jiffy bags though, they won’t know what you mean; they call them bubble bags in Cyprus. It’s much cheaper to buy them at the Post Office rather than the supermarket.
Registered services are also available and these are very efficient.
I must just quickly mention this too. I was in the Post Office recently and witnessed a scene that was unbelievable. A lovely Cypriot lady wanted to send a dolls pram by post but she needed it wrapped. It was chaos. I couldn’t stop laughing.
The staff helped her to wrap it up – yes, they do that in Cyprus. There was sticky brown tape everywhere, cardboard all over the place and very loud voices - each person trying to prove they knew how to do it better. You had to see this to believe it; I was in fits of laughter. At one point I thought someone would get stabbed with the scissors that were flying around.
During all this, I just sat at the table sticking stamps on my post (the counter clerks don’t do that for you in Cyprus) and I really took my time. It was so funny. They got there in the end, to cheers of “bravo!” If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I’d never have believed it. But hey, in Cyprus, anything goes!
So remember – save money and use SAL from now on if your post isn’t urgent.
Best wishes and have a great weekend.
Jackie
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Cyprusbuyingguide.com
PS: You can also use SAL to Cyprus from the UK.
But what is SAL? She explained it is Surface Air Lifted mail. Despite the usual long queue, I was intrigued, so asked her if she could tell me more.
She explained that if you send post by air mail, it usually gets to the UK in about 3-5 days from Cyprus. If you send by SAL, it could take up to 3 weeks – but it rarely does - more about that later.
Let’s compare some costs first (in euros), from Cyprus, based on letters, printed materials and small packets:
For a letter weighing 50 grammes air mail costs 1.71 whereas sending by SAL costs 0.68. For a parcel weighing 400 grammes air mail costs 6.86 were as sending by SAL costs 2.73.
Quite a difference! All you need to do when you get to the Post Office is ask to send it by SAL. Along with your stamps, the counter clerk will give you a sticker to put on the envelope/parcel. That’s it!
And here’s a tip you may not know about (this is where it definitely pays to have friends in the Post Office). The plane that takes the SAL mail usually leaves Cyprus on a Thursday, so try to get your mail to the post office by Wednesday. Most of the time, it gets to the UK the following Friday, sometimes faster.
(I really didn’t want to mention the “Christmas” word in March, but here goes. If you are sending mail back to the UK for Christmas and you are using SAL, then get everything in the post by the 3rd week in November at the latest. At this time of the year it will more than likely take 3 weeks – but it will save you a fortune.)
Oh, and don’t forget, you can buy all your jiffy bags at the post office along with any boxes you need for posting. Don’t ask for jiffy bags though, they won’t know what you mean; they call them bubble bags in Cyprus. It’s much cheaper to buy them at the Post Office rather than the supermarket.
Registered services are also available and these are very efficient.
I must just quickly mention this too. I was in the Post Office recently and witnessed a scene that was unbelievable. A lovely Cypriot lady wanted to send a dolls pram by post but she needed it wrapped. It was chaos. I couldn’t stop laughing.
The staff helped her to wrap it up – yes, they do that in Cyprus. There was sticky brown tape everywhere, cardboard all over the place and very loud voices - each person trying to prove they knew how to do it better. You had to see this to believe it; I was in fits of laughter. At one point I thought someone would get stabbed with the scissors that were flying around.
During all this, I just sat at the table sticking stamps on my post (the counter clerks don’t do that for you in Cyprus) and I really took my time. It was so funny. They got there in the end, to cheers of “bravo!” If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I’d never have believed it. But hey, in Cyprus, anything goes!
So remember – save money and use SAL from now on if your post isn’t urgent.
Best wishes and have a great weekend.
Jackie
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.Cyprusbuyingguide.com
PS: You can also use SAL to Cyprus from the UK.
Thursday 3 March 2011
Having a baby in Cyprus?
Congratulations! With so many questions to answer, where do you go to find all the information you need? If you are working or have worked in Cyprus and paid your social security contributions, then you are entitled to 18 weeks paid maternity leave in total. But how do you obtain your benefits?
The hard route is to visit your local Social Security Office where the forms are all in Greek, there is often a language problem and the queues are horrendous. You could also telephone them on (00 357) 22 401 725 - but there is now a much easier way.
When you know you are pregnant, simply visit your new local Citizens Service Centre, who speak good English (and many other languages) and they will help you with all the paperwork you need to complete.
What is so refreshing about these new Citizens Service Centres is the excellent customer service they give. Staff employed here are so helpful and so patient, it’s no wonder they are so popular. It’s a refreshing change for all of us, as we don’t get passed from pillar to post anymore. Well almost – they don’t quite process everything yet.
But for maternity, they will tell you all the benefits you are entitled to, give you the forms you need, guide you on how to complete them and then process the applications for you. You will need to help a little. For instance, your maternity leave form will need to be signed by your employer and your doctor, so that will be down to you to obtain.
Oh, and just while I am writing about maternity entitlements, you may also want to know that at the moment, there is no paternity leave in Cyprus.
The Citizens Service Centres are as follows, it’s best to telephone for directions:
Paphos – (00 357) 26 822 400
Polis – (00 357) 26 821 888
Limassol – (00 357) 25 829 129
Nicosia – (00 357) 22 446 686
Larnaca – (00 357) 24 815 555
They are all open Monday-Friday, 8am to 5pm, excluding public festivals.
And the good news doesn’t stop there. You might also like to know that the Citizens Service Centres can process over 60 different applications - including your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), Sickness Benefits, Electoral Register Registration, Identity Cards, Birth Certificates, Road Tax Licences and more.
Spread the word – it’s definitely worth making them your first point of contact.
Until next week.
Best wishes
Jackie
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.cyprusbuyingguide.com/
The hard route is to visit your local Social Security Office where the forms are all in Greek, there is often a language problem and the queues are horrendous. You could also telephone them on (00 357) 22 401 725 - but there is now a much easier way.
When you know you are pregnant, simply visit your new local Citizens Service Centre, who speak good English (and many other languages) and they will help you with all the paperwork you need to complete.
What is so refreshing about these new Citizens Service Centres is the excellent customer service they give. Staff employed here are so helpful and so patient, it’s no wonder they are so popular. It’s a refreshing change for all of us, as we don’t get passed from pillar to post anymore. Well almost – they don’t quite process everything yet.
But for maternity, they will tell you all the benefits you are entitled to, give you the forms you need, guide you on how to complete them and then process the applications for you. You will need to help a little. For instance, your maternity leave form will need to be signed by your employer and your doctor, so that will be down to you to obtain.
Oh, and just while I am writing about maternity entitlements, you may also want to know that at the moment, there is no paternity leave in Cyprus.
The Citizens Service Centres are as follows, it’s best to telephone for directions:
Paphos – (00 357) 26 822 400
Polis – (00 357) 26 821 888
Limassol – (00 357) 25 829 129
Nicosia – (00 357) 22 446 686
Larnaca – (00 357) 24 815 555
They are all open Monday-Friday, 8am to 5pm, excluding public festivals.
And the good news doesn’t stop there. You might also like to know that the Citizens Service Centres can process over 60 different applications - including your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), Sickness Benefits, Electoral Register Registration, Identity Cards, Birth Certificates, Road Tax Licences and more.
Spread the word – it’s definitely worth making them your first point of contact.
Until next week.
Best wishes
Jackie
The Overseas Guides Company
http://www.cyprusbuyingguide.com/
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