Cyprus times part 1

Cyprus times part 1

Our first family holiday outside of the uk was in 1996 in Spain, we had a fab time and caught the bug of foreign travel.

Because we had no experience of booking holidays and feeling that Spain was a safe bet we decided to book up to go with my brother in law and his family as they had travelled that bit more.

As they live in Essex and we live in Dorset organising something as important as this had to be done via phone calls and duel holiday brochures. To me 1997 does not seem so long ago but the truth is in terms of technology it is a life time ago.

During the planning process we must have travelled all around the world trying to find somewhere that suited all of us. In the end the little Island of Cyprus became favorite.

I had known some people from Cyprus from my school days  but all I had known was there had been a war there and thats why so many Cypriot people had come to London.

Back then going to Cyprus was considered a little bit exotic and so we were really excited to be going. 

Our Hotel was showing in the brochure as Protaras which is a family resort with restaurants bars beaches and something for everyone. However when we arrived we was actually in a place called kapparis which is actually about 10 minutes (by car) away. What took my interest initially however was the shepherd herding goats up the main road outside our hotel.

My brother in law was not the most patient person at that time and so the sight of a shepherd and the seemingly isolated location meant that Dr Harold Shipman would have had more patience (oh yes I just did!). To add to the issue we did feel like we had been travelling for a considerable amount of time and it was getting dark. So it was decided to dump bags and solve our woes the only sensible way an Englishman abroad can!! Alcohol!

The good news is the holiday gradually got better and better, once we had found our bearings things improved. We found a taverna next door called socrates the guy who run it had only come back to Cyprus a few years earlier from London and so made us feel well at home. He didn't bat an eyelid when my nephew set fire to the table during dinner! even though we were all looking at each other expecting each other to deal with it! Caroline "Jack the tables on fire" Jackie  "Martin the tables on fire" Martin "the tables on fire? shit the fucking tables on fire". All par for the course for us.

It was at this holiday that we met some friends Demetris (who's family owned the complex) was working as the manager and Sandy his girlfriend who was the entertainment person. Sandy worked very hard with the day to day activities and we took part happily. There was water volleyball and our favourite water polo. Demetris little brother Marios and his cousin Demetris (yep its a common name) would come over after school and try to drown us as we played.

It was on this holiday that there was a few medical emergencies. Firstly my two youngest children got chicken pox and my eldest son was rushed into the local hospital for an emergency circumcision! To be fair that was a bit of a worry at the time, strange country strange hospital but they were fantastic. Two days later he was doing backflips into the pool and he had no infections or complications at all!

The biggest medical situation however was the massive hangover I suffered mid way through the two weeks. One of Demetris jobs was running the Kennedy pub adjacent to the complex. It was here that he plied me with 2 and a half pint sized glasses of Keo. My Mrs made the mistake of leaving me there on this particular night with just my eldest son for company. I do recall leaving the bar however after that point I have to rely on my sons recollection. He was nine years old at the time but he managed to direct us back to our apartment. Fortunately we were on the ground floor and the Mrs had thoughtfully left the patio doors unlocked so as to gain entry. 

All was going quite well as my boy assisted me climbing over the railings until I fell over the patio furniture the other side making an almighty din. "its OK dad just lift your leg you're nearly there" he said just before the fateful event. It was good practice to be fair I had to do it for my dad and I am sure my grandson will have to do the same for my son at some point. Its in the DNA!

It wasn't just my family who had the disasters, my nephew underestimated the heat in Cyprus where the temperature can reach the high 40 degrees and got himself so badly sunburnt that he could not go out in the sun for two days. Additionally my brother in law did a very impressive swan dive into the pool almost knocking himself unconscious by banging his chin on the bottom! 

One of the customs I particularly liked was the keeping of receipts in a shot glass and then paying at the end. I enjoyed it the most when I enquired what would happen if the receipts were lost? Yep you guessed it that was the only copy. There was only one thing for it! pop them in your mouth and chew. Demetris was stunned initially but did what any business man would do, try and prize my mouth open to retrieve the payment details! He took it all in good fun.  

There was a  craze in the 1990s for Laser pens, we had never seen them before and so when the kids bought them my brother in law and I turned into big kids ourselves. One particular night we were sat in socrates having just finished our meal, when an elderly couple came walking down the road. My brother in law decided it would be funny to shine the pen on the back of the elderly mans bald head. As he was walking slightly ahead of his wife she could see it, the bright red spot moving around.

We sat in the restaurant in hysterics watching the woman slapping the old fella around the back of the head. You know what they say simple things please simple minds.

What began as a one of holiday to somewhere different turned into a 16 year (so far) love affair with Cyprus and its people. We have had many adventures there so look out for part Two...

TO BE CONTINUED...............................