Easter day

Happy Easter!  We slept in a bit this morning since we had a late night last night.  There were twenty of us for Easter lunch and we ate at a long table in the courtyard area of the house.  We feasted on souvla (larger pieces of pork grilled on big skewers, compared to souvlaki which is small pieces of pork), koupepia (stuffed grape leaves), roasted potatoes, and salads.  Everything was very yummy.  Salamiou is a small village, with a population of about 300 people, but they had organized activities in the afternoon at the local school.  The games were like those you would expect at a grade school field day; sack races, carrying an egg on a spoon, the three legged race, tug of war, and a short race. Alex had fun participating in most of the events. I joined Diana and Maria in a couple of races in the all ages category. I'm happy to report that Demetris, Alex, and I each were on the winning tug of war team in our respective group.

These large chocolate eggs are popular and often have a toy inside.

Michalis supervising the souvla

This is where we attended Easter service.

The egg race.  Maria in the turquoise, me next to her and then Diana.

Preparing Alex for the egg race.  He dropped his.

Tatiana cheering on Alex in the sack race.

After the ice cream

Three legged race.  Stephanos and Alexis as a team, and Nayia and Alex together.

Ready for tug of war.

Welcoming Easter

Most of the day was spent doing projects around the house and visiting with family. We took a late "nap" around 7:00 in the evening to prepare for the midnight church service. The Easter bunny isn't a tradition in Cyprus, but somehow he managed to find Alex and Sofia while we were sleeping. They didn't really want to wake up but became a bit more alert when they discovered there was hidden chocolate.  We left for church a bit after 11:00 p.m.  The church is only about a block away and since it is a small village everyone walks there.  Candles are given out at the church for the candle light service, but must people decorate their own to bring. Aunt Maria and her girls made some for our family. It was already pretty crowded when we arrived, with people standing in the aisles. We headed to the balcony where there were few people and a much better vantage point.  Alex liked peering over the edge to see what was happening. There was an area in the middle of the church decorated with flowers that represented Christ's tomb.  Men at the front of the church chanted/sang until midnight. At that time everyone lit our candles to welcome Easter day. The priest then walked down the center aisle, made a stop at the "grave" and then headed out the back of the church to speak to the people. The most surprising part of the evening was the "bombs" that were constantly being set.  They are actually incredibly loud firecrackers, but they are placed right along side the walls of the church.  It is mostly teenagers who set them off.  Honestly, it sounded like we were under attack, and as midnight came it got so loud you could barely hear the service.  There is also a large bonfire that burns behind the church, all done as part of the celebration.  Apparently, this does not happen in the cities, only the villages.  Once we got home, we had some small fireworks and sparklers like the type I remember as a child. 

Candles for Alex, me, Demetris, Sofia, and grandma

Easter baskets for Alex and Sofia.  Orange is popular here.

Before midnight

After midnight.  The red and white flowers decorated the "tomb".

Bonfire behind the church

Sofia with a gift from the Easter bunny

Tatiana, Electra, Nayia, and Alex with sparklers

Good Friday

Since we are all sleeping in the same room here, we had an early start to the day and decided to take a drive before everyone else arrived.  Not far from the village is a good size river dam and we stopped to enjoy the view. Petra tou Romiou (Rock of Aphrodite) is a famous rock in Cyprus. In Greek mythology the goddess Aphrodite was born from the foam as the waves crashed against the rock. It's a beautiful area. The water appears turquoise color from a distance and is crystal clear up close. It isn't a sandy beach, but instead covered with good sized rocks. Sofia added many rocks to her collection.  Demetris tried to sneak some out of the bag because it was getting too heavy but Sofia caught him and had to try to retrieve her rocks. Stopped in Pafos for a quick lunch and then to the grocery store to stock up on essentials. Demetris' brother and sister and their families arrived late this afternoon. His Uncle Harris and family have the adjoining property and also came today. Let the fun begin.

At the dam.  They really aren't sitting on the ledge of a big drop off.

Close to Petra tou Romiou

No respect for the law

At the base of Petra tou Romiou

Petra tou Romiou is the large rock on the left

Another view of Petra tou Romiou

Sometimes the mountain roads literally slide down the side.

Along the roadside

Maundy Thursday

We arrived in the village of Salamiou for the start of the Easter weekend (remember Greek Orthodox Easter is a week later than Easter in the USA this year). Grandma Electra came with us today and the rest of the family will arrive tomorrow. Once we got settled in we took a drive to a nearby river. The road winds down the mountain and at some point changes from a paved road to gravel. It was slow going but worth it in the end. We walked along the river bank and of course took time to throw rocks in the water. There was a beautiful sunset over the mountains as we were leaving. The only person we saw the entire time was a goat herder.  It's pretty chilly up here in the mountains at night.  I wasn't expecting that and didn't pack warm jackets.  Also, there is no Internet connection available to us, which is why I'm just now posting these.  At the end, I included some pictures of Easter decorations I have seen around. Those giant red eggs are everywhere!  Sometimes the egg has a chick that looks like it is exploding (hatching) out of it.  Most of the decorations are a bit unusual in my opinion, but Demetris says at least they put something out. 

On the way to the river

Throwing rocks as usual

It isn't a large river, but moving pretty quickly.

The river runs right over the road.  See the road signs in the background?

Salamiou town center

In another village.  Red is the traditional color for Easter eggs for the Greeks.

In Larnaca

Nayia, Alex, Electra, Sofia, Evelina, and Tatiana

Bunny and the beach

We started off the day by heading to the mall for an Easter party.  The party was sponsored by Lindt chocolate and there was a magician/clown who also led some songs and made balloon animals. Typical entertainment for little kids. Naturally, there was also an Easter bunny available for photographs. This bunny wasn't the most attractive. I believe he was meant to look like the gold Lindt foil bunnies. I was sitting with Alex and Sofia coloring a picture when Sofia apparently saw that bunny for the first time.  She screamed and started crying like I have never seen.  I didn't even know what had happened because she just kept screaming to go outside.  Then I realized that she was absolutely petrified of the bunny. Demetris and I  had to take turns taking her outside.  She would only stay inside for short periods until she would catch a glimpse of that bunny again. Alex on the other hand had fun dancing with the bunny and even gave him a high five.  Had to give up and call it a day to keep Sofia from being traumatized for life.  At least they were generous with the chocolate samples to help make up for it.
After that semi-fiasco, we drove to one of the closer beaches. It is located in Larnaca, close to the airport. The beach itself is average but the reason many locals go is to watch the planes land. It was a pretty warm day in Nicosia, but cooler at the beach.  The kids had a blast running in the sand and at the edge of the water.  Sofia managed to take a tumble in the water and get completely soaked.  We took a nice walk and collected some rocks for our growing collection.  Hardly anyone was there since it isn't really beach season yet.

A "salt lake".  It will dry up in the summer and leave salt deposits behind.

Here comes a plane

They are "mixing cement"

Sofia laughed when the water went over her feet

"Watch my feet sink"

Ready and waiting for the tourists

After falling in the water

Symphony

Yesterday afternoon we took the kids to their first experience with the symphony.  The Cyprus Symphony  Orchestra was presenting "Babar the Elephant" specifically for young children.  There was no assigned seating, but we got there early and found some great seats in the balcony.  It was a sold out event.  We weren't sure what to expect but it turned out to be very nice.  The orchestra played about twelve short songs while a narrator spoke/sang the story.  There were pictures that coordinated with the story  on a large screen behind the orchestra.  Of course, the narrator spoke in Greek, but Demetris tried to translate a bit for Alex to help him understand the story.  Alex recognized the first song as the theme to the Babar show.  The kids did very well and made it through the whole show, which lasted about 45 minutes.  I have read a couple of kids books to them about orchestras and they were able to recognize some of the instruments.  When I asked Alex if he liked the concert/show, he said, "I liked everything.  I liked all of the music.  I liked the chocolate."  Always good to have a little chocolate to make it more fun.  Luckily, they were selling some. 

Before it started

The man in the green shirt was the narrator