Anastasia

October

It's almost end of October, yet summer  is in the air - this cool October air reminiscent of autumn. Autumn is the shortest season in Cyprus if it ever arrives!  I don't mind, though, as I'm not a great fan of  the crunch of crimson leaves beneath my feet! What's more, I hate gloomy skies and rainy days. In October, it's neither too hot nor too cold and we're still enjoying bright blue skies and sunny days. I usually swim till end of October, but this year a bad cold  in September put an end to swimming - a little earlier than usual. 

However, I do enjoy walking while contemplating the sunrise and feeling that crisp October air in early morning. It's so invigorating!

In August

Time has flown by in a flash since June 16 when school broke up. I had so many things to do: take a holiday on the magical island of Syros, , see good old friends I don't see very often when I work, blog more often, walk barefoot along the beach, swim, read books, cook, go shopping, play chess with Alkis or ... simply enjoy a romantic dinner with my significant other on our veranda. I love cooking and creating recipes of my own. Neither me nor my husband are night crawlers. We both hate loud music and busy restaurants, so we rarely go out. However, early in the morning, at about 6:30 am, I enjoy an invigorating walk along Makenzie Beach and a great swi

 

Mackenzie Beach - Larnaca

August in Cyprus is not only the hottest month of the year but also the month when almost everyone goes on holiday. A few years ago, I used to enjoy spending time in my hometown Nicosia which is a ...ghost town in August since most people are away. I used to enjoy the empty streets, the quiet cafés despite the heat which would often flirt with 40°C / 104°  F.  That was back in the 90s when I still missed hometown Nicosia a lot. Not any more. I love Larnaca so much now and can't imagine spending one single day of my summer break away from the beach! Early in the morning, between 6 - 7 am, the beach is quiet, not  really crowded, it's not too hot to walk in the sun as the temperature hardly rises above 24°C  / 75°F.

August is a .... lazy moth filled with the beauty and the relaxing scents of the Mediterranean.

Don't Cry Over Spilt Milk

I had a wonderfully carefree childhood and a relatively easy adolescence despite the fact that I experienced war at the age of sixteen. Thinking positive has helped me to mature a lot and realise that what matters most in life is counting my blessings instead of crying over spilt milk. There's no point in thinking negatively or trying to change an irreversible situation. There are so many benefits in thinking positive including health benefits. For instance, you walk tall, your voice is loud and clear and your whole attitude shows the way you feel. What's more, you emanate a blithe, cheerful and light-hearted  air, you anticipate happiness, health and success instead of brooding over problems or situations that cannot be undone.

I've always looked on the bright side of life. This doesn't mean that I keep my head in the sand and ignore hard times. I just think the best is going to happen, not the worst.  Life, however, isn't always a bed of roses. The worst may occur. I've been through hardship and pain and suffering, but when something set the alarm bells ring, I prayed and hoped that better days would come. Hoping for the best instead of assuming the worst is the key to a happier and healthier outlook on life. Hardships and difficulties are often a blessing in disguise. After all, every cloud has a silver lining. And don't forget that beyond the darkest of nights, there's the promise of the dawn and the greeting of the rising sun.   

 

My Carnival

I must admit I'm not a great carnival fan. Born and reared in Nicosia – the capital city of Cyprus – I've never been keen on Carnival and hated dressing up as a princess or witch or whatever when I was a child! No one celebrates Carnival in Nicosia, and as a child or even teenager I thought I'd stand out if I dressed up! Funnily enough, as an adult, I took to dressing up and truly enjoyed some crazy carnival parties! Surely, this is because I've been living in Larnaca for the last 30 years or so!! I can't say, though, that people in Larnaca have a blast dressing up for the carnival, yet they have made an all-out effort to be decent carnival fans!

This said, there is not one city in Cyprus which approaches the show Lemesos annually presents. The carnival  festival  begins two weeks before the 50-day Greek Orthodox Lenten period. Some trace the customs back to Greek times although the customs are now all their own. The first week is called the Meat Week (Kreatini), as it is the last week for eating meat before Easter. The second week is known as the cheese week (Tyrini), when cheese and other dairy products may be consumed.

Carnival festivities begin on the Thursday of the Meat Week, and the day is known as Tsiknopefti, gaining its name from the unmistakable aromas of the meat cooking. The festival starts with the entrance parade of the King Carnival, entering the town of Limassol which is decorated for the occasion. 

The first of the two Sundays is the Children's Parade and then the serenaders with their melodic guitars and mandolins become the focus of much of the Carnival.  These serenaders will wander the streets on foot enchanting young and old alike. Many fancy-dress balls and parties take place each night.

 Parties are held and people gather to feast, sing satirical songs and play games. The last Sunday of the Cheese Week is the highlight of the Carnival. This is when the Grand Carnival Parade takes place on the last Sunday of the Carnival Festivities before Green Monday or the first day of lent. 

Colourful floats and groups of people, singing and dancing, parade in the main roads of Lemesos -  a truly festive atmosphere. The open-air celebrations and feasting  take place throughout Cypriot towns but the  Grand Parade in Lemesos is the peak focus of the Carnaval. During the Carnival parade large crowds from all over the island gather to watch the floats accompanied by the serenaders and other amazingly- costumed groups.  

During the cheese or Tyrini week of carnival, look out for seasonal specialties such as pastry bourekia filled with mint flavour cheese and ravioli. Also sticky sweetmeats such as daktyla and kandaifi.  Many Cypriots will pack a picnic on Green Monday and head for the countryside where their picnic feast will include vegetables, olives, bread and salad and local wines.

These customs date back to ancient times with a particular nod to the days when Dionysus ruled the Mediterranean Sea as a deity of mystery and wine.  With the passage of time it has acquired a different, purely entertaining character, with a large, popular following.  During the Carnival parade there will be many  serenaders and other masqueraded groups

Hard Times with Free Time

Every year on November 3rd, my Typepad billing info is updated and I take the opportunity to promise myself that I will blog more often. Apart from reading and walking at least 7 km a day, writing has always been a very relaxing occupation. In my childhood and teenage years, I used to keep a diary. As a child, I enjoyed giving a detailed account of my day and as a teenager I'd share my thoughts and aspirations with my personal journal. I also used to read 4 - 5 books in a week - poetry, biographies, fiction. However much I enjoy reading and writing, though, free time is a luxury these days. Due to my busy schedule at work, I can only make time for walking - an activity I enjoy very much. I really don't mind getting up at 5:30 am and going walking. Actually, this is an activity I look forward to every morning. 

Regular brisk walking helps me maintain a healthy weight, stregthen my bones and muscles and improve my mood. It's easy, it's free and it's such an invigorating activity! I've also read that walking slows mental decline and lowers Alzheimer's risk. It also lowers the risk of blood clods and greatly promotes positive thinking. While walking early in the morning, I watch the rising sun and I listen to the sea, lost in the rhythmic  percussion of foamy waves on sand. In winter, the waves are like wild horses, rearing up before crashing down onto the beach pounding the sand with their white foam hooves. What a wonderful energy booster!

Chess is yet another great energy booster.  My husband is a genius at chess and he was the one who helped me improve my skills! I play chess with Alkis every Saturday afternoon and , although I hardly ever win, I enjoy every single moment of the game. When my free time didn't go through hard times - that was years ago - I used to play chess online on Yahoo Games. I remember playing with someone from Vietnam.  He was a chess freak! We started playing at 8:00 pm (my time) and at 01:00 am, I was left with the king! I decided to give the man a hard time.... It was 03:00 am when he eventually checkmated my king!I only wanted to give him a hard time! Anyway, chess sparks my creativity.

Epiphany 2016

January 6th marks the end of the twelve days of Christmas and of the Christmas holidays. The Greek Orthodox Church observes the baptism of Jesus Christ by St John the Baptist and the blessing of the waters.

In all coastal villages, towns and cities in Greece and Cyprus, a long procession starts soon after the church service heading to the seafront. When the priest throws a large cross into the sea, young men brave the cold waters and compete to retrieve it. The one who finally recovers the cross is said to have good luck throughout the year.

Photo Credit

Also known as "Fota" or "Theophania" - the Feast of Light - Epiphany celebrates the revelation of God's Son as a human being in Jesus Christ. After the church service, people get "drossos" or "ayiasmos" - sanctified water which they drink. They also use it to sprinkle their houses, thus receiving Jesus Christ's blessing. Just like on Christmas Eve, on Epiphany Eve, children sing "Kalanda ton Foton" - Epiphany Carols - over sweets or a small amount of money. 

According to an Epiphany tradition in Cyprus, people throw sausages or "loukoumades" - local honey doughnuts - to the goblins so that they eat and go away. Goblins are deformed demons living in the bowels of the earth and appearing on Epiphany Day to dwell the roofs of  people's houses.

The Blessing of the Waters

 

Saint Lazarus Church, Larnaca

 

In Larnaca, the blessing of the waters was heavily attended and, considering the crowds, it was practically impossible to approach the marina and take photos of the priest throwing the cross into the sea. It was a brilliant celebration which both Alkis and I enjoyed very much.

A Hectic Fortnight and an Invigorating Walk

Just after the Easter break and our wonderful holiday in Corfu, things got hectic at work with the IGCSE examination coming up. With all the marking I had to do PLUS teaching PLUS extra lessons, I ended up working 12-14 hours daily including the weekends! It was a rather stressful fortnight, yet the good thing is that I don't easily get stressed out as I've always considered stress to be the worst counsellor and the source of many evils.

A hectic fortnight and an invigorating walk along Mackenzie Beach

 

The British Council was both very co-operative and efficient, so all statements of entry for the IGCSE examination in English Second Language arrived in time. That was a great relief! I'm also very happy with my IGCSE class this year. Most of my students show interest and motivation and willingly participate in class. I'm very proud of them because their understanding of both written and spoken English is very good. I sincerely hope that they will all pass with flying colours.

After a good night's sleep, I got up today at 6:30 and went walking. I did 9,080 steps, covered 6,25 km in one hour and fifteen minutes. It was such an invigorating activity!

My Friend , the Sea

As I was walking along the seafront this morning enjoying the early morning breeze, I couldn't tell where the blue seas ended and the blue skies began. I could only feel the rhythm of the foamy waves and the morning sun scattering diamonds across the water.

In my teens I thought I was very unlucky! In Nicosia, I couldn't see the sea nor could I go for a walk along the beach just after school. I had to wait for the school holidays to spend a few days by the seaside. Later, as a student in Switzerland and despite the breathless beauty of lakes and mountains and forests, I always missed the sun shimmering on a calm, blue sea , pebbles startling the sea water into ringlets, the silvery sheen of the moon on the water , sleepy lagoons, the wave's trough, lazy, dozy days on a golden beach or miles upon miles of endless sea and sky.

This morning I could smell the fishy aroma saturated in the air and felt the sweet surge and retreat of the sea . Slushy sand filled in my footsteps, denying my passage, I could even picture mermaids in the deep, blue water . Sometimes, the shoreline vanishes beneath the greedy fingers of fog, yet the beauty of the sea remains unspoilt.

I'd sit hours on end just contemplating the sea - I do feel so lucky I now live only a short walk away from her. The Venerable Lady as Mrs Claire Angelides describes her. So, when I talk to her, I always call her "My Lady". In her own, unique way, Her Ladyship always provides me with soothingly invigorating answers when I'm sad, and with a gay laughter when I'm happy. Some people call her "ocean" but to me she's nothing like the ocean. She is the sea - thalassa in greek.

Home, Sweet Home!

I sometimes take for granted the beauty of the town I've been living in for the last 30 years. When Alkis and I first moved to Larnaca back in November 1984, I could hardly call it home.. We both missed our hometowns - Nicosia and Serres.  Living in Larnaca wasn't easy for either of us, but very soon we both fell in love with the beautiful city of Zenon to such an extent that we no longer miss our hometowns as much as we did when we first came to live here.

Having spent my childhood and adolescence in capital city Nicosia and five years in Geneva, Switzerland, as a student, I really felt miserable when Alkis and I had to move to Larnaca  because of Alkis’ work back in 1984.  Back then, Larnaca was a small, quiet town where nothing happened!  There was only one cinema, where we used to go at the weekend, a couple of shops and a few tavernas. I used to hate Larnaca and would often travel to hometown Nicosia  to see my family, shop or simply go out  on my days off work.

Thirty years later,  Larnaca is still the small quiet town I first came to know, but it has grown into a bustling little town I’ve fallen in love with.  I guess I’ve fallen in love with the sea and the wonderful people of Larnaca who are so friendly and hospitable unlike the people  in Nicosia who are often so posh and distant.

Home is a place where you hang your hat. It is a place where you can relax, put your feet up. It is a refuge from the busy world outside. It is a place where you can be yourself.

In Larnaca, I am myself!

The Promise of Dawn

I always tend to think positive even when I feel hopeless. I never see my glass half-empty - it's always half-full. In my life, I've been through a lot of hardships, yet I always thought they were a blessing in disguise. My father used to tell me that a pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities while an optimist is one who makes opportunities out of his difficulties. So I've learnt to make opportunities out of my difficulties. And construct instead of destroying. Beyond the darkest of nights, there's always the promise of  dawn, the greeting of the rising sun. And as Maria says in The Sound of Music, when God closes a door somewhere opens a window.

Photo by Anastasia Marou - Clouds over Larnaca

Photo by Anastasia Marou -Sunrise at Mackenzie Beach - Larnaca

While I was surfing the Net the other day, I came across a site which caught my eye. You might like to have a look as well.

THE OPTIMIST CREED

Promise Yourself -
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.