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Our
adventures in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus continue....
  
We had had the great news, that there was a strong possibility that Frank would be able to retire at the end of June 2002. A whole year ahead of our original schedule.
So now was the time to gamble on the builder being able to start work sooner than planned and get the house ready a.s.a.p.
So we, tongue in cheek, put our house on the market in U.K., grabbed a flight, booked in at our favorite hotel, “The Hideaway” (also: www.hideawayclub.com" target="_blank">www.hideawayclub.com/">www.hideawayclub.com) and set off for discussions with the builder.
We arrived off a Thursday night flight to find our hire car waiting at the airport, thanks to Unwin's organization. The idea was to breakfast and then sleep by the pool to recover, but we couldn’t resist a site visit. We found that two of the other houses were almost ready for occupation and room left for our house to fit in the gap.
A meeting had been arranged with Dennis the builder for Monday morning so we were able to relax for a few days.
Brian and Lil, our neighbours to be, the first inmates of “Chandlers” lane invited us to a BBQ lunch on Saturday. An opportunity to quiz them on their experiences and what to look out for. They had also invited Ian Betts, who had contacted them through their website, www.thechandlersincyprus.com" target="_blank">www.thechandlersincyprus.com">www.thechandlersincyprus.com, and who had come over to buy a property in Ilgaz.
Now I know people talk about it being a small world and neither Joan or I recognised the name initially, but Ian had worked at NCR, Sheffield in the early 70’s, the same time as Joan and I had worked for NCR in Liverpool and Preston. We very soon started to bore Bri and Lil by reminiscing about people we knew. No doubt, when he and his wife, Dorothy, do finally arrive here we will be able to have an old boys and girls reunion!
The rest of our “holiday” was a mad rush to agree site plans, select fittings, tiling, colour schemes etc. as Dennis had agreed to start building early June. The lucky thing was that planning consent for our plot had been approved the day prior to our arrival.
Dennis whizzed us round Nicosia to bathroom and tiling shops, with a meze lunch in between. We were like two kids let loose in a chocolate factory, you spend all this money on fittings that you really like and it doesn’t seem like your own money, and guess what, we had chosen way above our building allowance.
We both agreed though that this was the one opportunity of a lifetime, to build the house that was to fulfil our dream of retirement in the sun, so having selected the fittings, we now selected the swimming pool.
Fuat at “Cyprus Pools” was very helpful in explaining the different pool types and the most suitable for our site, so in the end we signed a contract for the same pool as Bri & Lil (copycats!) and we were assured that it would be ready at the same time as our house.
Somewhere in the middle of all this we managed to get a few days on the beach or around the terrace at the Hideaway. One day, whilst lying on a sunny beach, we got a call from the U.K. estate agent to say they had exchanged contracts on our house. The one major factor was that the buyers had to be in at the end of May. Did we panic? You bet your life we did. Now we had to get home, complete on the sale, arrange furniture storage, and find somewhere to live until about mid-July. Jill and Les help!!
We also needed somewhere here in T.R.N.C. until about the end of October. Again Unwins came up trumps, they found us this rented villa in Catalkoy with air.co. in the bedrooms, an essential in July and August, no swimming pool at this one, but anyone for tennis. We signed a contract for 6 months, to mid-November, so this should cover the building period.
The other advantage was that we were able to use the washing machine and leave most of our summer clothes here. Joan travel with an empty suitcase, that’s a first.
Finally we had to agree exactly, the position on the plot that the house should be built.
Joan checked her site planning very carefully and made sure that the current facilities were going to be removed. Then it was back to the U.K., start to plan and dream of retirement. I also had to part company with the Land Rover as it would have been too costly to transport and pay import duty. Besides which it also had no air conditioning.
One other thing we almost forgot. A postal address. Post does not get delivered to your door here so you need a Post Box No.. We went to Lapta village post office to ask to buy a P.O. Box, but there were non available at this time, sort of all sold out. The village postal manager said "No Problem" just have all your post sent c/o of The Post Office, Lapta and we will keep it here for you to collect. Could you just imagine that happening in U.K.
Look on the Intro tab for the correct address.
Just as we promised ourselves, a couple of quiet days to do things in the garden etc before Joan goes back to school tomorrow. The weather was nice so we where also able to just relax together in the sun and admire what happens over here in the gardens at this time of the year. It was only the first week of March that Joan cut all the roses down to about 1 foot from the ground and look at them now. Just about everything is growing profusely right now and I am even thinking about investing in a new hedge cutter to keep better control than I did last year. We had a think about this and the existing machine. It has quite a short blade, cuts on one side only and weighs about 1/2 a ton, so makes hard work of it. But then we remembered buying it in 1984 when we first went back from Holland to UK, so guess we might have had our moneys worth out of it.
Last month it was Annemarie's (from the Lardy Dars gang) 40th birthday and we had put a little note in her card that dinner for her and Lorraine, at a restaurant of her choice was to be her present from us. She chose Roxanne's down on the front in Kyrenia, mainly it seems, because they serve the best T-bones in town. The four of us had a super dinner and she was right about the T-bone. We had also chosen an early eat as tonight was the second leg of the Chelsea/Liverpool semi final.
Joan dropped me off at the Pine Bay bar just 15 minutes in to the game and heart in mouth I was able to watch Liverpool get through to the 25th May final which is to be against AC Milan. now one thing is certain I will be watching that one. There was even a thought going through my mind of trying to get tickets to watch live, as it is being played in Istanbul, but previous experience tells me that apart from the atmosphere, you get to see more of the game on a big screen TV.
This evening I went along to the "Eupro" meeting, which was supposed to be for Estate Agents and Property Developers and a fund raising evening to try to raise sufficient to pay for a concerted attack on the current Greek Cypriot legal threats and propaganda machine. The idea in principle was good, build up a war chest that can be used to attack the legal cases using top flight barristers and legal firms with experience in particular of European law. The Eupro group have selected what they suggest is an experienced team of legal wizards, a big gun team in London, with as they put it, long experience of the Northern Cyprus issues. Unfortunately one or two of the well known solicitors here in TRNC questioned the fact that this "big gun" team had been involved in previous cases which had all gone against the TRNC, so I think that the court is out on this one. Brilliant idea and much needed but not too much faith in the team selected so we will have to wait and see. It would seem that the first major attack is against the advertising ban introduced by Mr Ken Livingstone for London Transport. Also they are suggesting that they are to take over the Oram's case, so another opportunity to prove themselves, but the criticism must have hurt their fund raising.
Just before the half term holiday at school the kids where to have done a children's day show but unfortunately on the day it was very cold and damp so the whole show was delayed. So today is the new day and first everyone waswelcomed at the school before the show started. The little ones as usual neededa little encouragement to remember their steps but the older children did well with their folk dancing and really looked the part in costume. Finally we got ageneral salute to all the parents who attended to watch their kids produce the usual practiced show performance. Great show, always worth a visit and the next one should be around summer holiday closedown, although I do understand that they are already giving thought to what to do at Xmas.
Oops, up early this morning because poor Joan had a really bad night and consequently me as well. Yesterday when she got back from school she complained about her left elbow swelling up and being very sore. It looked just like a bad bite of some sort, anyway it has got steadily worse so we went down to The Kyrenia Medical Centre early this morning, the place I had my op done, and they attended to her immediately. Within a couple of hours she was checked and blood tested etc and diagnosed to be suffering from a bad case of her rumatoid arthritis. As the swelling was in her left arm, closest to the heart they kept her in and gave her steroid injections etc and she was being very well looked after when I left her there,but a little fed up at not being home.I have to say that now when I am writing this, on Tuesday morning, that she is home again but has to keep taking steroids for the next week and then visit a specialist after more blood tests are done, the strange thing is that she has never had problems other than in her knee before, so guess we need to be asking this specialist some serious questions when we get to see her. The treatment was again superb at the Medical Centre, no trolleys in corridors, blood test results back from the lab within the hour and the doctor on hand to give the initial treatment followed by a specialist within the day and that at the weekend. Guess that beats the NHS system and am happy to tell you that at the end the total cost was £186.00 for the lot
A lot has been happening over the last week which has caused some considerable comment in the press. CTA have been on strike so any of you who tried to fly over on Friday or Saturday will have been well pleased, as always it was about money. There appears to be a severe crack down on immigration at the moment and it is suggested that more than 300 people where turned away at TRNC's ports over the last week. This is of course as a result of the increase in crime which has been experienced over the last months and the general concern that it is easy to get on to the island with only an I.D. card, so reckon that there might be a severe crack down on the Brits etc here who have not bothered to get a residents permit and in some cases a work permit, we will see.
The biggest emphasis of all was of course on the Greek Cypriots continued action against residents here. The general opinion is that the Greek Cypriots are intending to continue with attempts at legal action of individuals to cloud the whole issue as they do not want to settle the island problem in either the short or the long term.
We are all aware of the Orams's case. A warrant issued in the south against Linda and David Orams requiring them to demolish their house and pay compensation to what is supposed to be the original Greek owner. Surprise, surprise they lost the case in the south and surprise again they lost the appeal. I think that it was guaranteed from the outset that the court in the south was never going to find in their favour. I have this week received a legal opinion from a UK based lawyer who is suggesting that the whole thing has no validity in the EU courts. Click on "Legal Opinion" to read all about it, as the saying goes. This is one of the cases that Eupro is supposed to be advising on so we will see if there is more pressure now put on the issue, to resolve it once and for all.
Another first this week is a Greek Cypriot legal action against a Turkish Cypriot restaurant owner in the Famagusta area. This is the first action in the propaganda routine against a Turkish Cypriot and it seems that this time the TRNC government has appointed a lawyer to act on behalf of the restaurant owner.
A European Arrest Warrant has been issued in the courts in the south, against Mark Unwin. This time basically for property development although couched in different terminology than that. Unwin Estates is an Estate Agency and has never been involved in property development, only selling other developers property, so that makes a bit of a joke of it already. Mark has in fact issued a statement to the press and below is his statement for you all to read.:-
As reported throughout the press in the past two weeks, lately I have been the target of calculated Greek Cypriot propaganda which is going to great lengths to try to subvert the European Union judicial system. This statement is my response to the recent events.
I moved here in 1999, with my Turkish Cypriot wife, Hayran, and our 3 children after a long and successful career in estate agency in the UK. Our plan has always been to build up our business interests here and support the Turkish Cypriot community, something we will continue to do. Contrary to popular folklore here in North Cyprus, I have never been in any form of trouble here or in the UK and have been a law abiding citizen of good character for this country.
It has come to my knowledge that an arrest warrant has been issued against me at the request of the Greek Cypriot police for cultivating previously Greek Cypriot owned land. However benign such a charge sounds, I and everyone around me knows that this is the first chain in a string of judicial subversions and politically flavoured legislation calculated to put undue pressure on the Turkish Cypriot community and their ex-patriot friends who are residents of this beautiful country. Contrary to the conception of the people organising this conspiracy against me and the foreign nationals living in the North, I will not jump ship in the face of these empty threats, on the contrary, I will defend this charge and I will defend any other charge, order or warrant issued against me and the Turkish Cypriot community until the moment that the Greek Cypriot community understand that Turkish Cypriots have a right to exist and live their life on equal terms to them.
As for the charge ploughing, cultivating, sowing and trespassing to previously Greek Cypriot owned land my answer is simple. I am no farmer and I have not cultivated any land belonging to any Greek or Turk or otherwise. Further, I am not a developer and to date neither myself nor the company that I am associated with has developed any land. That aside, I do believe in the title deed and any rights conferred by any deed issued by the very administration that provides the environment and protection for me, my family and our company, has issued.
I consider myself a Turkish Cypriot as much as an Englishman and I have found only good things in my life in the TRNC. I hope that the day will come when the two communities will live happily side by side in some shape and form in the future and I hope that the Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots who have sustained loss because of the said events of 1963 to 1974 will be compensated. However, until that day comes I will defend myself, my family and this country against all threats and actions from all those that do not wish that day to dawn on them.
Mark Unwin.
Well said Mark and as suggested by more than one e-mail sent to me, it is time to get behind him and offer any support we can to stop this stupidity which has only one aim in mind, to endeavour to damage the growing economy of the TRNC.
I have received other e-mails this week which are interesting in that they comment on:-
1. The legality of the Greek arrest warrants, this time written by Mr Ali Ozman Safa, Chairman
of theAssociation of Construction and Property Investors in TRNC
Read the Greek Arrest Warrant document.
2. Finally I received another mail with an article written by a Greek Cypriot journalist and
published in a newspaper in the south. Now this one makes forVERY interesting reading.
Guess that's about enough for this week, should have given you all something to read and think about, but most importantly all this should show you all, that we who live here are living in peace and realise that all this hog wash will eventually flow down the Greek Cypriot drains, because eventually some of the EU and UN members will wake up from their political slumbers and to the fact that it is all a lot of publicity and lies. Finally I do believe that this new government sees that it must take some of the initiative and counter this propaganda.
Well the boss was actually allowed home this afternoon, but I do have to take her back down town tomorrow morning for some blood tests and in the meantime she has to keep taking the steroids. Suppose that when she develops big muscles and a hairy chest she might have something to complain about.
Michael and Barbara's friends Brian & Pat arrived yesterday to stay with them and to follow up on their house build, on the borders of Lapta and Karsiyaka, so Barbara kindly said if I am cooking for four then I might as well cook for six, so she invited us to join them for dinner. Thanks Barbara, saved me worrying about it all and meant I could tuck Joan up nice and early, as she is still a bit under the weather.
Took Joan down to the lab for her blood tests this morning, which because they are apparently quite specific have to go to the mainland, so will be a week before the results come back.
This afternoon I had every intention of commencing the hedge cutting, with my new Bosch hedge trimmer, which I bought over in the south. Unfortunately, plugged it in, checked every fuse in sight, but to no avail, it doesn't work. So there you go, all my good intentions came to nothing, will just have to sit and look at the hedge until I go back over and get an exchange.
For the interested, this piece of equipment is a Bosch machine, has a 420 watt motor, 18 inch double sided blades and double handle grips. Cost on the other side £39 Cyprus pounds or around £47.50 in Sterling, guess that compares favourably with UK prices.
Quiet week all round really as Joan is still at home and not allowed back to work until next Monday at the earliest. Did take advantage of her not using her car and had Rob Spaull come and collect it to have a service done and a cam belt change, as we have no idea if this has ever been done previously so seemed like a good idea. Rob is running a do at home car servicing service, or as in this case he took it back to his house, but it is good and worth noting for those who live here.
Having done my chief cook and bottle washer service this week, decided that time for a change. Friday night and the Tai restaurant sounded a good idea. Sarah and Savas have reopened on 1st May, after the birth of their baby and although we went up for a drink a few weeks ago we have not been up for a meal yet. Savas has spent some time during the winter building an indoor area on the roof terrace so now you can enjoy the view and the cuisine without sometimes having to put a brick on your lettuce leaves to hold them down. He has made a lovely job of it and now we have the best of both worlds up there. Michael, Barbara, Brian and Pat all joined us for a very pleasant evening. The only strange bit is seeing Joan drinking nothing but water, guess that will change in a couple of weeks.
Joan and I took off early this morning to the south with the non working hedge trimmer in the boot. No problem, we where able to exchange that for a working variety and also do some bits of shopping whilst we where over there. We had also been told about a big new furnishing and DIY store called Sun Tower, near the Metro supermarket over there so spent a little time investigating that. We did find a big timber and canvas roofed gazebo, almost as big as the one I had to rebuild over here and the cost was about half of what I paid for the timber here, without the work involved, so interesting for the future if we do get our bungalow built.
DON'T FORGET FOLKS, WE STILL HAVE A HOUSE FOR SALE. THAT'S MY PLUG FOR THE MONTH.
What's in the papers this week?
A suggested "Radical reform in days" of the procedures to obtain permits to work and reside here are proposed. The government department are aiming to complete the procedure in around 10/15 days instead of the 3 months it currently takes and interestingly they are to look at the discriminatory fees structure for health tests and permits. At the moment non-Turkish foreigners are charged three and four times the fee charged to Turkish foreigners and this is to be reviewed and hopefully eliminated. The minister of the department said "To suppose that non-Turks are more foreign than Turkish applicants is wrong", he said. Hurray finally somebody has recognised what the word discrimination means.
The property legal cases situation escalated by the actual issue of European Arrest Warrants this week. Interestingly the European Union Commissioner for Enlargement has just made a two day visit to the island, visiting both the north and the south. He diplomatically condemned the legal actions being waged by the Greek south by saying:- "The current situation is increasing tension on the island and I would find it very difficult to support the use of civil and criminal law on an issue which is predominately a political matter." Does this mean that the EU is finally waking up to the fact that the Greek south is trying to use the EU membership to further their own ends, ignoring the rules and regulations which they have signed up to and that the instigators of all the trouble where the Greek Cypriots in the first place and that they have no rights to the bogus title Republic of Cyprus.
This evening Joan and I are having Roger B over for dinner, his wife is in UK, together with George and Susan and hopefully if the weather remains as warm and calm as this, then we will be able to dine al-fresco.
The weather seems to have really settled now into the start of summer. We were able to sit outside on Sunday evening until quite late and all had an enjoyable evening.
This morning I had some fun. I had arranged to go out to the village of Kayalar and meet a couple whose villa was complete, as a prelude to putting their kitchen white goods in. There seemed to be a lack of connection points for most of the equipment and in fact when Kevin and I removed some of the socket switches to see, there was an amazing lack of wires behind them. Maybe the builder thought nobody would ever notice? Just another one of those little episodes that make you say "This is Cyprus"
This afternoon Joan and I went down to the harbour to have a look atall the boats that have come in today. This is one of the ports visited on the 16th Eastern Mediterranean Yacht Rally. There are apparently 78 boats taking part and they started in Istanbul on April 26th and finish in Israel in about 10 days time. Because of the number of yachts they where spread between the two harbours, we where content to look at allthe boats decked out in the old harbour, just a good excuse to sit in the sun with a cold drink really.
Joan had an appointment with the specialist in Nicosia this afternoon and Susan went with her, so that they could both go to the dress maker afterwards to have some minor tucks put in to the dresses they have bought for the BRS ball we are going to next month.
Brian and Pat came round this evening early so that we could agree what kitchen equipment they needed for their new villa, they were followed by John and Pat Creasey, who are over for just one week on an inspection visit. Whilst we were all sitting chatting I had a call from a lady researcher from the "Tonight with Trevor Macdonald" program and it appears that they are considering doing a program on the position of the two sides of the island. The lady promised to keep me updated with progress and any possible visit so it might get a bit interesting.
As George had gone off to take some friends back to Larnaca airport, we all picked up Susan and went round to the Serenade Court restaurant here in Lapta,one of our local favourites and well worth a visit. From their we went to the opening night at The Hut, where Roger B is playing Wednesday nights this summer. He was on until 10 p.m. this evening followed by a karaoke session which was not quite our cup of tea, very, very noisy; so we all came back to our place for a final drink. Maybe we are just getting old, but I do like to be able to hold a conversation without shouting!
Weekend again and this Saturday we had been invited round to Terry and Irene Kitson's villa here in Lapta for a lunch time BBQ. They are friends and work colleagues of Pat & John Creasey and George supervised a couple of locals who gravelled their garden for them so that it is easy maintenance, necessary for a holiday home. George was in fine form and was taking the pip as usual, but this time out of a water melon slice.
Christening day for the new hedge trimmer and I am glad to say works well. This lantana hedging we have is a real mecca for butterflies. I just had to get the camera out when I spotted a pair of huge bright yellow butterflies around. They where difficult to capture on camera but managed this one and here you can maybe see just howlarge and beautiful. I would guess that the wingspan must have been at least 8 cms.
Nothing much of interest to non locals in the Saturday paper this week but I did receive a couple of interesting notes during the week:-
There is a BBC interview with Mark Unwin going out on BBC World and BBC News 24 on Tuesday morning next, all about his arrest warrant etc and providing there are no other schedule items to intervene, it should also be on BBC 1 Breakfast News on the same day, so guess it might be worth a watch.
I also received this article which has been published in one of the leading Australian newspapers that expresses an attitude towards immigrants that I would whole heartily concur with. The e-mail asked me to pass it on around the world to maybe get the message across to the politically correct gang, so what better way than on this site and does anybody fancy sending on to your beloved leader in UK.
Our friends, Michael and Barbara are now back from their trip to Istanbul, so this evening we are all four going down to The Serenade Court so that we can hear all about it.
Susan and George invited us around for dinner this evening and as a reminder of the time when Terry had the last piece of steak and kidney at Henson's, Susan cooked a delicious pie to make up for the loss. George has been doing lots of work on his garden of late and it is beginning to look really nice now, guess he had to get a move on as his sister is due later this week. It has also given him lots of ideas for what to do when other people ask him for a quote to do their garden.
This afternoon we visited the specialist in Nicosia again, this time with some fresh blood tests and some x-ray pics that Joan had taken at Kyrenia hospital on Monday. Things are looking better, Joan's blood tests are showing marked improvements, all the swelling has gone down and the specialist reckons the joint movement is back to normal. She has to stay on the steroids for the next 4 weeks, which means little salt intake, little sugar (oops that means no alcohol) and then back for another visit. If the improvement is maintained then all should be hunky dory by the time we head off to Singapore, Australia and Bangkok early in August because she should have been weaned off the steroids by then. Fingers crossed.
Some good news in yesterdays local press. The tax on new build has been reduced down to 5% again. This is confirmed as effective from today. Seems like the pressure that has been brought by all involved in the construction industry and in property sales has won the day. Now all we have to do is get the stupid Greek propaganda machine silenced and some recognition from Europe, which has been promised by so many for so long and this wonderful part of the island can start to become more settled and with a growing economy.
I put thefinal touches to the boat for the sailing club this morning so now she is already for the big launch on Sunday morning.
Almost the end of another month and many things are happening here viz-a-vie the recognition of the TRNC and the actions being taken in the south to try to damage the economic growth on this part of the island. Remember that I have been to meetings organised by two different groups. Firstly "Embargoed" which in summary is campaigning to bring to an end all embargoes against the people of Northern Cyprus, which currently prevent things like direct flights, direct postal and telecommunications links with the rest of the world, unhindered trade, direct foreign investment etc. Secondly the "Eupro" group, a legal team set up to co-ordinate the legal responses to all the individual cases being brought against individuals here in the north. This team has already had some opening success in countering the ban on holiday advertising on London Transport services, but still has to win the final round in court.
Each of these groups where trying to raise funding from the same sources here in TRNC. Private individuals with properties here, large contracting companies and estate agencies, hotel companies and all the ancillary companies who are effected by property development and by tourism growth. Both of these groups have the same final objective, the resolution of the islands future.
Very sensibly, a non-governmental organisation called The International Council for North Cyprus (ICNC) has been set up to co-ordinate both of the above mentioned groups and to include influential Turkish Cypriot businessmen. The aims of this group where specified as to be promoting, supporting and encouraging by lawful means the economic welfare of North Cyprus, calling on the international community to fulfil its promises to end the economic isolation of the North. Makes sense to bring together these groups and there finances so that they can used for the same end. But non of this takes away the need for the new local government and the new president to be strong in their endeavours to get TRNC recognised by all those who made promises after the referendum and to have its voice heard around the world.
An interesting step in this direction may take place next week. A delegation of American Congressmen are due to visit and most interestingly are due to fly direct in to Ercan Airport. It would seem that there is considerable protest from the Greek Cypriots and from the Greek lobby in the USA, now why does that not surprise me. If this delegation can fulfil its promises to fly directly in then surely the implications are significant, because the signals being sent to the International community are that "the embargoes are over". Surely to follow will be more official visits, direct flights and an International recognition, but let us not get too enthusiastic just yet, first let it happen despite Greek Cypriot lobbying and then see what the spin off effects will be.
Oh yes on a more mundane note, the boat should have gone down to the beach today, ready as it is, but apparently the beach owner has brought in bulldozers etc to make some changes to the beach and the bay. Nothing changes in TRNC. The summer season is about to commence and only now does the beach owner decide to get ready for it, with major improvements.
Today, Joan did have to go to school, some holiday linked to the UK whit weekend I think, so we decided to take off for the day. We drove over the border and went to Larnaca beach, we had coffee in one of the beach promenade cafes and then hired a couple of sun beds on the beach. Very pleasant but oh boy was it windy in the afternoon. Still we went for a swim and stuck it out until about 3.30 p.m., then decided that a walk around the town and shops would be a good idea before heading off back to Nicosia and the hypermarket on the way home. After crossing the border, we drove in to the old town on this side and went to a restaurant next to the big mosque, which Barbara and Michael had found and recommended. There we had two very nice pasta dishes which were obviously freshly cooked, proceeded by some vegetable spring rolls, an orange juice for Joan (still on the steroids) a large draught beer for me, all for £16.00 total. Lovely.
One sad item to record from earlier in the day. On our way down town this morning, I got pulled by a policemen for having my mobile phone stuck in my ear. Cost 30 million or £12.00, silly boy and I even had my hands-free earpiece in the car with us, as well as Joan. OK, you can say it "Stupid boy"
This one is for one of those multimillionaire UK building companies, wanting to invest out here. A local friend has called me this morning and asked me to tell you that he is planning to sell his 19.1 donums of Original Turkish Title Deed land in Bellapais. The price works out at £1,5 million, but with road access and all the utilities within reach, a sound investment with no risk that the guys from the south will try to grab back. My friend has no e-mail address so give us a call if you are seriously interested.
Oh yes, the good news is that the American delegation landed in Ercan Airport aboard a direct flight. That should put the cat among the pigeons a bit.
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