Legal again........dont panic we were never illegal!

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Friday 21st July 2017

Had to be really strong this morning to summon the will power to get up out of bed after our late night Visiting Soner at his place in Getikale. First thing we both said after waking up is we are having a siesta later! Cup of tea and saddled up the hound, picked up Buddy and off we went. Once we had got going it was fine and a nice stroll for an hour or so arriving back home at 7:20 ish. Today is Friday and its a tidy round first thing and once done we headed out to do our weekly supermarket shop. First stop however was a material shop to buy some new foam for the cushions on our whicker outside Sofa. Very nice helpful man who said he would cut to size, fit and give us a call once done. Onwards to Supreme supermarket for the shop....as we were so early they had not set up the deli counter nor the fresh food counter so we decided we would continue onto China Bazaar - where you can buy everything you never wanted that would last the least time expected! We were searching for fly swots.....unbelievably they had none. Managed to come out with two China mugs and a new brush head tho. Back to Supreme and food counter set up. As it's quiz night we wanted to pick up something quick and easy for when we got home so went for the set meal of the day which alternates and today it was rice or bulgar wheat with a vegetable casserole. All for the princely sum of 10.6TL......about £2.20p. Loads of it as well. Also picked up a couple of freshly baked savoury pastries for breakfast. On the way home called in at Tunc Housewares......there they were, the fly swots.....2 for 60p. Back home, unpacked and time for breakfast, tea and chilling for a couple of hours and then as promised siesta time. Us oldies cannot party like we used to.

Mid afternoon and time to get up and stroll to the front balcony for tea and reading; it's a hard life! Then a walk for Kilroy prior to us heading to Club Tropicana for the Friday quiz night. Busy night with a good number of people in attendance. Only 3 of us in our team tonight which in some ways can help,as we have to think harder and not so many answers being thrown in! Didn't help much tho.......we were well down the leaderboard. Quick game of card bingo and home for supper. Excellent set menu from Supreme, great value for money and now we know why it's a popular choice. Sat on the garden patio this evening enjoying supper and then a film before bed.

Saturday 22nd July 2017

On today's walk we got up close and personal with a horse! We see the horse everyday as we stroll past the goat farm and his role in life is to act as a guard horse for the goats. His size and presence makes any predators think twice, although he seemed very friendly to us. Despite him roaming up around the goat farm he was in pretty good condition and certainly did not look stressed at all by his job! Usual walking route followed and half way round there was the Mexican standoff with a group of goats heading down the track towards us. Initially they stopped and stared at us for about two minutes before in typical Italian fashion beat a hasty retreat up another track and into the hills. Home by 7:15am, garden watered, dog fed and planning the day. Off to change money then the veggie shack for veg and fruit and also pick up a paper, then it will likely be a day of relaxing and a quiet evening since we have had two nights out in a row! Changed some money and popped into Lemar supermarket for a paper and a quick wander around - we still prefer Supreme, the staff are much friendlier and more smiley. Onwards to "Ya Beles" the fruit and veg stall before heading home, unpacking and then a late breakfast of bacon and helim sandwich whilst watching a film.....which wasn't to good. Mid afternoon and a stroll to the pool for a couple of hours. Clouds had come and settled on the mountain so the sun was not as fierce although the temperature was still 36C. Bit of reading, swimming and chilling before wandering back home for tea and biscuits. Caught Kilroy fast asleep on his back as we opened the patio doors. He jumped up all bemused and came across to us bleary eyed with the look of "me, sleeping no I was on guard all the time". At around 6:30pm it was time for an evening stroll around Buffavento village and then home for a shower. Gary called and asked if we would like to join him and Ellie for a drink in a bar in Ozankoy. So no "in" night for us and at just after 8pm we found ourselves in Leo's bar in Ozankoy village centre, before moving across the road to Bar 33 for another beer. A nice evening chatting and putting the world to rights and as always time passed quickly and before we knew it was 10:30pm. Time to leave the love birds to it and we headed home to feed Kilroy and enjoy our supper which was a keema curry followed by a raspberry, creamy pud! Another late night for us as not in bed till midnight.

Sunday 23rd July 2017

Same old, same old to start the day. The walk was mostly along the road downhill from Buffavento village to the Malpas hotel and wiggling slowly back uphill. On the way back home we passed a very nice villa and in the garden was a young puppy pointer bitch. Markings similar to Kilroy and of course so very friendly. Had a brief chat with the owner who said she was a pedigree dog and father was from one of those countries ending in "Stan"?? and mother from Turkey. She was certainly very very pretty indeed. Back home and a catch up with the news, Kilroy breakfasted whilst the humans had more tea! Sarah off to church this morning, whilst John is left in charge of the house especially the tv.

A light lunch was followed by a completely chilled afternoon snoozing and reading before the usual early evening stroll. This time it was all on the road around our local area. Whilst walking we met a German girl - well we think she was German, striding purposefully up the hill. She stopped and asked us "Vich vay to ze mountains"? It was fairly obvious but we pointed her uphill and told her to keep walking to the end of the road, join the track and off you go. She was off like a shot, we did feel a bit concerned as there was only about 90mins of daylight left. Walk done it was shower and change and head into Catalkoy village. John headed into Mustafa the barber shop and Sarah sat in the jeep to make a couple of phone calls. First haircut since our arrival out here and so it was the full works, hair, beard, ears, eyebrows plus shampoo, face balm and after shave. All done with a smile and a free can of coke. Haircuts are an art form out here, something not to be rushed but enjoyed. Mustafa had a young apprentice helping him;his son, who was about 10years old. His job was sweeping up, handing across the tools of the trade, getting the drinks and generally keeping the place tidy, plus also Mustafa was showing him how to hold the scissors and shears. He has not graduated to cutting yet, but it won't be long. Haircut done and we had planned to eat at the taverna next door, but sign on the door said closed 24-26 July...........yes we know it was the 23rd today but never mind the place was shut up. So it was off down to see Riaz at Happy Valley. Poppadoms to start then Sarah had chicken passanda and John the chicken hemeel special, with rice, chappati and tarka dahl. Washed down with a beer and white wine spritzer. As always great food, good service and very reasonably priced.

Home by 9:30pm, quick sprint round the block for Kilroy and then time for bed.

Monday 24th July 2017

Took our usual route with the dogs this morning and as we were walking along the track who should appear coming the other way, the german girl from yesterday - surely she had not been walking all night! A quick chat and it seems yesterday she sensibly decided that she did not have time to explore the mountain tracks so headed home and continued her adventure this morning. She had walked a fair way uphill, but whilst you are surrounded by the mountains it is very deceptive - you cannot just stroll to the top. The tracks inevitably wind there way around and what looks to be a short distance is in actual fact a lot further. We said our goodbyes as she headed back downhill to wherever she had come from. Home and John headed straight for the pool to cool off for 10mins whilst Sarah made the tea. Usual chores around the garden, Kilroy then breakfasted on his biscuits plus some nice cooked chicken liver before settling down for a snooze. Sarah headed indoors giving the downstairs area a mop thro to get rid of the dust that we including the hound had managed to drag in on our feet. Jobs done we could then all relax for a while before donning the swimming gear and strolling to the pool for a few hours. Dissapointingly it was a bit crowded with 4 of us sat around! After a couple of hours Sarah headed home for a shower whilst John hung around for a while longer. Whilst lounging by the pool John noticed the lovely golden retriever dog belonging to the young Turkish people renting an apartment next to the pool had managed to escape and was busy having fun chasing cats. No harm in that, except that the young couple were just about to go out and no amount of persuasion or calling would persuade there doggie to come home. These antics went on for about 10 minutes - couple calling, running around the street and pool and dog ignoring! We have all been there for sure. Eventually John spotted the dog not far away so strolled up, called the dog to come and over it trotted - just call him the "dog whisperer"!

Off out for lunch today, meeting Soner and his wife again down at the Asian kitchen in Karakum. Excellent bowl of Thai chicken noodles - tastey and great value. Will be coming here yet again for sure. Nice hour or so chatting before Soner went off to the Cratos Hotel for a Turkish massage and use of there spa facilities, whilst we returned home for a quiet afternoon. Weather today has got hotter again with the hot hairdryer wind blowing as we sped along in the jeep. Our usual cuppa on the balcony at 6pm before John went to give Gary a hand to set up the timer for the pool lights with Sarah taking Kilroy for his evening constitutional. Timer set up it was agreed a sundowner by the pool at around 8pm was in order to check the set up was working correctly!

At last we have an in night - since last Weds we have been out every night, what with quiz nights, invited to friends for meals, joining others for drinks and a meal out just the two of us last night. Need a night with nothing happening and after the pool sundowner we returned home for a night of chilling. As we had eaten at lunchtime we were in no rush for supper but eventually decided a quick jacket potato would be perfect. Then just chatting and chilling under the stars before retiring to bed.

Tuesday 25th July 2017

Guess who we met on our morning walk today? The German girl again! As we were heading home there she was striding purposefully up the track and once again heading into the hills. She must be a keen walker. Once we were back home Kilroy did his Pasdington Bear stare routine trying to outstare a cat whilst we had a quick breakfast, showered and changed. There was little time to sit around as today we are heading into Lefkosa to complete the final phase of our temporary residency visa - hopefully! On our way by 8:30am and after a steady drive we managed to remember where the government offices were located and in particular the immigration department. Word for the day is "patience"! We have been thro this process numerous times and to be fair it does get easier but.......On arrival the first thing to do is press the ancient ticket machine for a number to be issued. This of course then gives you an indication of your place in the queue as you glance at the number board. It really is luck as to whether it's a busy day or not, you can turn up early and still have a wait, add to this that the authorities issued an amnesty for those who hadn't bothered to go thro the process (This was to encourage them to apply for temporary residency and fill the government coffers, rather than hide under the radar and the government get nothing as the fines do mount up). Instead of having to pay the normal fee and a fine for each day overstayed, only the fees needed paying, no fines imposed, even if it meant backdating a few years! Strangely enough they did the same sort of thing with an MOT amnesty! Makes you wonder why we are so honest and law abiding. So today was busy ish day. Also you have to remember it's summer and the offices do close at 2pm, regardless if anyone is waiting - hey ho such fun! For those that know Lefkosa, it is not a pleasant place in the height of summer as it is hotter than a hot thing from hot town. Translated that is bloody hot but needs must for us. We are just over halfway thro our 90 day limit and as we are not returning to the UK till mid Nov we do need to get our temporary residency visa. We were number 44 and as we went and sat in the waiting room number 26 was just called for processing so a bit of a wait. However; things have improved over the years. When we were residency "virgins" a few years ago we had to not only get our heads round the process but also at that time there was no ticketing system, so it was really a bit of a free for all getting things done. The typically polite British way of doing things by waiting their turn had to be put to one side or you would never get to the front of the queue. Then a couple of years ago an ancient ticket machine was installed, all well and good until the electric fails or the machine breaks as it did last year and no tickets are issued. The Turkish Cypriots are anything if not resourceful so they gathered all the old tickets up from the previous day, put them on a tray and you helped yourself to a number......not a bad idea but of course everyone was searching thro the tickets for the lowest number available! Sometimes it's worthwhile having a good book to hand. Eventually our number came up as they say and in we went to be greeted by Miss Glum, who had the customer facing skills of a newt! Mind you it seems to be par for anyone working in a civil service role in the TRNC. No smiley greeting just something bordering on an eastern block grunt. Experience however tells us to just go with the flow. We hand over our sealed envelopes with blood test results, check of passports and we are then handed an invoice and as is the process stroll down the corridor to an office to make payment for the privilege of getting this piece of paper allowing us to stay beyond 90days. Payment done we return to Miss Glum, who predictably has just strolled off for a coffee and we are left staring at an empty seat. We have been here before, don't give up, hold your ground and patience is the key. Stand around for a few minutes and she returns. Checking payment made, its time to recover our very thick paper file from the massed bank of storage cabinets - one file for each of us. Miss Glum sorts thro files and pulls out our paperwork from a few weeks ago which we had checked at the police station in Girne. All ok so far. Then it's time to open the sealed envelope we had handed across with our blood test results in - yes we know they are our test results but you must not open the envelope to take a look! Always a slightly concerning moment because if the efficient TRNC medical system has found any anomalies then the issue of the temporary residency visa is suspended. More smiling from us.......no reaction from Miss Glum. Hurrah, all is well apm'd a few more stamps/signing of paper and passports and we are handed back our pink temporary visa card. So now legal to stay over 90 days. John has worked in customer facing roles so in the early years of going thro this process, found it sometimes challenging to keep "stum" as they say. ?

As is the norm for us, as we were in Lefkosa we continued into the centre via the one way "wacky races" system and entered the old city via the Kyrenia gate and parked in our usual car park within the walls. A very slow stroll into the centre and a wander around stopping at an excellent coffee shop near the mosque for Turkish tea and coffee and the best chocolate cake ever! Bimbled into the old market, it's ok but nothing like the vibrant place it used to be when we lived here in the 90s. Decided why not walk across to the south as the border post was only a few hundred yards away. Spent a bit of time wandering but it was pretty quiet with not that many punters around. Crossed back to our side, first stop was then an ice cream shop, vanilla and caramel for Sarah and vanilla and tiramisu for John. Back to the jeep and found our way out of the city back to Girne with a quick pit stop in China Bazaar a place which just draws you in, but we did need a new broom handle. Onwards to the supermarket just for milk and then home to find Kilroy had yet again behaved himself, mind you it was probably to hot to be bothered misbehaving.

Home for a chill on the balcony, cold drinks and cups of tea before Kilroys evening stroll. Then humans showered, changed, sundowners to hand and next round of scrabble to be fought. This time the victor was Sarah.....in actual fact she announced John had won then realised she had misread John's score. Hmmm...... Supper tonight was Cyprus chicken.....whole chicken stuffed with rice, pine nuts, currants, herbs and a squeeze of lemon, plus salad, helim and the famous grated Cyprus cabbage. Oh and some fresh crusty bread and tashi sauce. Flushed with success in getting our admin sorted we allowed ourselves a second drink or two before it was time for bed!

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Photos

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Today's encounter with a horse.

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Hello horsey

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Fine looking animal and friendly as well.

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Sunrise on another beautiful day in North Cyprus

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Water melon season

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Best fruit and veg stall in N. Cyprus

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Ya Beles - Fruit and Veg stall, Catalkoy

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Sundowners by the pool

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Pool looking great!

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Trying to outstare a cat.

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Fantastic Turkish tea, coffee and chocolate cake

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Mosque, old city of Lefkosa

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Umbrella shade, old city Lefkosa

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Old city Lefkosa

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Ice cream stop - Lefkosa

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Cyprus chicken, stuffed with rice, pine nuts, herbs, currants and lemon juice....plus salad, Cyprus grated cabbage, helim, avocado slices, Tasha sauce and fresh crusty bread. Stuffed indeed.