Puppy Love

You know there is a reason they call it puppy love....because it is extremely hard not to fall in love with a puppy! I spent Monday sitting in the sunshine, drinking wine and playing with some of the cutest little pups I have ever seen. With floppy ears, super soft fur and baby barks they are irresistibly gorgeous.

As much as I wanted to return with one tucked into my handbag, for now one doggie is enough. But if anyone is Cyprus is looking to give a beautiful puppy a good home, wants to love it, cherish it and help it grow, I have some wonderful friends in Limassol who are looking for good homes. Go on. You know you want one!!!

the art of the sign

I think sign language is an astounding skill to acquire. To be able to communicate with someone, without noise, without technology, without fuss almost. Its such a simple yet intricate form of expression and it really fascinates me. While I am not a huge Paul McCartney fan, the beauty of Natalie Portman and the sign language have had me captivated for hours.

the smell of spring

April in Cyprus is a funny old month. One day its raining the next its glorious sunshine. You can never tell what each day will bring and it certainly plays havoc with your wardrobe choices. But the rain and the sun bring some really beautiful spring smells and the blossom at the moment fills the air of the city with a sweet and fresh scent like no other. Unfortunately scratch and sniff blogs are a thing of dreams so you will have to take my word for it. In the meantime some spring inspired images to feast your eyes on. 

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we are young

It's Tuesday morning and I have time off work so it means an extension of the lazy easter weekend. Over the weekend, many a conversation drew upon age and this song really epitomizes everything. We are young, yet we have accomplished so much. This isn't some self idolizing post, simply a reflection about our achievements which I still sometimes neglect to put into context. Moving to a different country, we have established and nurtured our lives here. We have jobs, a wonderful lifestyle, friends, a beautiful four legged addition to our household and most importantly we are happy. And while there are many things still to do, we are so young (although birthdays are just around the corner) so there is no hurry to grow up and be too serious just yet is there. Everyone is always in a rush to do things, get here, get there achieve this. But maybe we should just stop and smell the roses. Or the blossom. There is this wonderful smell in the air, the smell of spring, blossom and sunshine all mixed up in a cocktail that makes me want to smile.

Easter the Cypriot way

Easter in Cyprus is kind of a big deal, probably more so than Christmas. Obviously it resolves around food, with the whole family having what I affectionately call the Easter feast. Seriously the amount of food that is laid down on the table is astonishing. And what's more astonishing is that there usually isn't much leftover. In a nutshell we ate, Souvla (chicken and lamb slow cooked on a Cypriot bbq) Koupepia, Salads, Potatos, Bread and homemade Tatziki. 

However, the whole chocolate easter egg thing isn't really huge here, in fact, to find an egg, you know the type you get in England (a big egg, several little chocolate bars), I had to hunt very extensively. Well to tell you the truth, the boyfriend was instructed to hunt so he did all the leg work really. 

And to end the day a nice long walk in the oasis of green calm we recently found, tucked away in the heart of the city. With grass, trees so tall they touch and block out the full force of the sun and the sounds of nature, it feels like we are anywhere but Cyprus. 

So until next year, heres my Easter Sunday visual diary, food preparation and all. And while I may be a pretty good cook, nothing compares to the skills of yaya and thea (granny and auntie). 

 

yes thats right, he is using a hair dryer on the  bbq!