Around the house

We have stayed close to home this week but have kept busy doing errands and going to parks when we can. During the week there is anywhere from just one to all four of our nieces here for the afternoon. They come after school (which ends at 1:00) and stay until their parents are done with work. The older girls often do homework while here and now Alex and Sofia have started this as well. They have their backpacks with notebooks and pencils/crayons and they join their cousins at the table.
The weather here has been in the upper 60's to low 70's. Cypriots think it is cold. They are still wearing sweaters, jackets, scarfs, and some people even have furry boots. They think we are nuts when they see us in short sleeves. Demetris and Alex love to wear shorts, but we haven't seen many others yet. The temperature here does not fluctuate much and it is steadily climbing now. The winter time was the rainy season and all the plants are green and blooming. The summer becomes very dry and desert like.
For those of you wondering about the local soccer team, APOEL suffered a tough loss on Wednesday.  They played Real Madrid, who is a real powerhouse.  The score was 3-0 , but it was scoreless until the last 15 minutes of the game.  They will play Real Madrid one more time and must win that game or will be eliminated from the tournament.  No team from Cyprus has ever made it this far in the tournament before.  Demetris was able to go to the game with his brother-in-law, and the nephews sat in the "fanatics" section as usual.
On a side note, one of the funniest things people tell us here is that Demetris and I have a "mixed marriage". They mean a Cypriot married to a non-Cypriot but it still cracks me up. They often say things like, "You should meet this couple we know. They have a mixed marriage like yours. The husband is from Cyprus and the wife from England."

We usually pick flowers when we are out

Evelina and Sofia

Alex hard at work at the house

Sofia and her yia yia (grandma)

Alex with his new guitar

We even found a Celtics ball in Cyprus

I love this tree.  The flowers look like little yellow pom poms.

Grandma's house where we are staying.  Diana and her family live upstairs.

And they're off!

This afternoon we went to the horse races.  Last week we drove past the racing club and Demetris said he remembered going there with his dad when he was young. He has fond memories of this and we thought the kids would like to see the horses. We were a bit out of place. Not many families there, plus the kids and I are clearly not Cypriot.  It wasn't crowded at all and behind the racetrack was a nice view of the mountains. We stayed for four races and decided to place a small bet on a few of the races just for fun. Poor Alex picked one horse who walked across the finish line and then picked the horse who came in last for the next race. He liked the horses who were wearing orange, his favorite color. In the last race we bet two euros on a long shot because his name was "Dads of Apoel" (named after the soccer team). He ended up winning! We received 70 euros for our small bet. Made the day even more fun and we left on a high note.
Earlier this week we put up a basketball hoop for Alex on the wall of the carport. All of the cousins have been enjoying it, but Alex has the most fun when Alexis and Stefanos join him. They are 17 year old twins and very identical. Alex usually looks at the color of the shoe laces in their sneakers to tell them apart.

Down the stretch

The youngest one in the stands

Showing the horses before the race.  Alex liked this one because of the orange.

Our winning ticket for the number eight horse

Alex, Stefanos, Tatiana, and Alexis

Snow in Cyprus

Hard to believe, but snow can be found in Cyprus. It was a beautiful, warm day but we decided to head to the Troodos mountain region to see some snow. Most of the island very rarely sees any snow, but the tops of the mountains can get a good amount. We drove to the top of Mt. Olympus, which is the highest point in Cyprus, and then stopped at a "picnic area" to let the kids play. They had a good time and even managed to hit me with a few snowballs.  We stayed only for a short time since we really weren't dressed for the cold. Cypriots, including our family, think we are crazy for wanting to be in the snow. Boston trained us well.

A sloooow blog day.  Pictures of some snails found in the backyard.  There were lots more.

The kids are feeling much better now and Demetris is on the upswing as well. So far I have been lucky and haven't caught the bug. With the recent illnesses I had a couple of people ask questions about the health care system here. Cyprus does have free government sponsored health care provided that you go to the public hospital or clinic. The problem is that there is often a longer wait so many people end up going to private clinics or doctors. For example, when we took the kids to the doctor last week we went to a private doctor because for a sick child we might have waited a week for an appointment at the public hospital. Obviously, we needed to get in quicker.  Instead we were able to see a private doctor within a couple of hours. The other issue is that the government program doesn't cover absoulutely everything. For this reason it is common for people to get supplemental health insurance through their work. The best comparison I can make is to Medicare. Demetris qualifies as a citizen for the government program, as do the kids since they are his dependents. When I completed the paperwork to extend my stay beyond the usual tourist time I had to prove that we would be able to cover my health expenses. I purchased a health insurance plan they have for immigrants for about $250 for a year. That covers all inpatient care for me. Routine doctors visits aren't covered because they don't cost much to begin with. For the kids it was $60 each for the recent visit. Not too bad.
On our way home from the doctors the other day, Alex spotted a new playground. He is always on the lookout. It is located close to the President's house. Today we decided to check it out. The playground was average but it turned out to be on a large park with walking paths that lead fairly close to the presidential home. A very pretty park.  All of the below pictures were taken on these grounds. Demetris said he had never been there before and he didn't even know about that park. A learning experience for all of us.

Wild rosemary was everywhere

The home of the president

The tall skinny trees are a type of cypress tree

Construction outside of the president's home.  See the fence that encloses it?

Sofia

Typical Cyprus rock formation

In a patch of chamomile

Date palm tree sprouting where the dates will grow

Bay leaf bush

Daddy picked some flowers for Sofia

Shamrocks provided much of the ground cover

It has been a bit of a slow week.  Alex has had a fever on and off and today we took him to the doctor and he has an ear infection.  Sofia and Demetris aren't feeling great either.  The funny thing about the doctor was that at the end of the visit we paid the doctor directly and in cash.  Apparently standard practice here. 
On Wednesday we took a drive to the town of Paphos on the Western side of the island.  Demetris' mom, Electra, needed to do some paperwork there.  Then we headed to "the village" as the family refers to the place where his mom grew up.  The name of the village is Salamiou.  It is located about 20 miles from Paphos in the mountains.  Electra owns the home she grew up in and recently had it completely renovated while preserving how it looked originally.  That evening Demetris and several members of his family attended the Apoel soccer match that was part of the Champions League in Europe.  Apoel was playing against Lyon from France and won following a shootout.  Apoel is now in the quarterfinals and this is a huge deal to them since Cyprus is such a small country and no team from Cyprus has made it this far in the tournament before.  Demetris' dad once played for Apoel.

Cousins Evelina and Sofia.  Sofia is older by six months.

Herd of goats that crossed in front of our car on our way to the village.

Alex in front of the house in the village.

Courtyard at the village house

Roadside view outside of Salamiou

A bit of background about Cyprus:
Cyprus is an independent country, but the majority of people are of Greek heritage and they still identify closely with Greece.  It is typical to see the Greek and Cypriot flags flying side by side, and the European Union flag is often present as well.  In 1974 while coups were happening against both the Greek and Cypriot governments, Turkey took advantage of the situation and invaded Cyprus.  They took control of the Northern third of the island and continue to illegally inhabit this portion of the island today.  The only countries that recognize Northern Cyprus as a country are Turkey and Pakistan.  This is one reason that Turkey has not been allowed to join the EU.  Prior to the invasion, there were Turks living throughout Cyprus as immigrants, and there continues to be Turkish Cypriots on the Southern (Greek) side.  Nicosia, (Lefkosia in Greek) where we live, is the Capital of Cyprus and it is currently a divided city.  In the past eight to ten years the border has become more relaxed and Cypriots (and Turks) can travel freely between the sides by showing proper identification.  Demetris, like many Greek Cypriots has mixed feelings about returning to the Northern side.  Even though he was young at the time of the invasion, he has memories of visiting that part of the island and knows family friends who were displaced and have never been allowed to return to their home.  He would like to see that part of the island again but knows it will be with a mixture of many feelings.  Many buildings were destroyed during the invasion and along the current border some are still in disrepair.  The government (with the assistance of other countries, including the USA) is attempting to revitalize the area by offering financial assistance to young families who want to return to this area.  It is a very old part of the city and the families must rebuild the house to look as it did before the invasion.  A friend of Demetris lives with his family in one of these houses.  The border is literally right behind the fence in their backyard.  But, it is a very interesting home and they feel safe there. 

The blue flag is the EU, white one is Cyprus, and way in the background the red one is Turkey

Part of the border, marked by sandbags and barbed wire fence

Old section of Nicosia by the border.  This is supposed to be a two way street!

The UN provides a "buffer zone" at some parts of the border

Cypriot and Greek flags side by side

Similar to the home of Demetris' friend (another UN car)

Home from the early 1900's

The Turkish side, notice their flags

Building damaged in the invasion with Turkish flags in background

And the Greek side across from above picture

Turkish mosque on Greek side built prior to the invasion