Saturday Wordzzle #52

The idea is, every week Raven (Views From Raven's Nest) gives you between 8 and 10 words/phrases and you have to create a small but coherent paragraph using every one of them and the same with the mini challenge. You can do either, both or a megawordzzle using all the words, or even all three, it's up to you, you can post them on your blog or email them to Raven. If you join in go to Raven's and put your name on the Mr. Linky so other participants can come visit you.



No doodles this week too busy catching up with blogs!


This Week's Ten Word Challenge is: Netflix, mortgage, skunk, flagrant, the New York Times, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, perpendicular, geometry, crabby, shoveling snow


Netflix, a film company who made sci-fi, were making three new movies – ‘Perpendicular Geometry’, ‘Flagrant Skunk’ (apparently it should have read Fragrant Skunk but someone couldn’t spell) and ‘Shovelling Snow’. They had also made ‘The Crabby Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy’ a version of the original which involved aliens and humans doing things I wouldn’t want to imagine. They weren’t the sort of movies you’d read about in the New York Times but the mortgage had to be paid and they made great money, so Netflix made them.

Mini Challenge: pragmatic, crystal ball, laundry, safflower oil, Gregorian chants


Gregorian chants filled the room as Maisie sat down in front of the fortune teller, who was waving her hands over the crystal ball which was sitting on the table. There was a distinct smell of safflower oil and dirty laundry in the room but Maisie was pragmatic – on had to accept these things to get a reading from the famous Madame Gelda.

Megawordzzle


Claire settled down to watch the Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy DVD that she’d hired from Netflix. She couldn’t get interested in it however, all she could think about was the article she’d read in the New York Times about how her mortgage rate was likely to fall and how she still wouldn’t be able to afford it, now she’d lost her job. She turned it off and took her crystal ball out of the cupboard and placed it on the table, hoping that she would see some good news in it’s depths. She saw a black and white shape and a sign which meant an accident, then her attention was drawn to the sounds of Tom trying to stay perpendicular whilst he was shovelling snow off the drive. Tom was very pragmatic about the job and mortgage situation, saying he was sure they would manage whatever happened and that Claire was a born worrier.

Suddenly there was a shout from outside and when Claire looked out of the window she saw Tom trying to fend off a skunk with his shovel. Claire couldn’t help but smile to herself, she’d felt crabby earlier but the sight that greeted her had put paid to that.


Trying not to laugh Claire asked “Do you need any help?”


Tom was making weird noises trying to shoo the skunk away, which sounded somewhat like Gregorian chants. With a flagrant disregard for anything he suddenly dropped the shovel and shot up the back steps into the laundry room where he promptly slipped on the spill of safflower oil that Claire had forgotten to wipe up, his arms and legs akimbo in a geometry of shapes.



“Oops, I should have seen that coming” laughed Claire “especially since I saw the accident sign!”

Friday 55 Flash Fiction # 64 Jetted Off

Jetted Off

Jetted off for a week in Spain.

Looking forward to:

Sun, Sea, Sand clear blue skies.

Wearing sandals and shorts,

despite the odd looks from locals, who were wrapped up in gloves and scarves.

Enjoying eating paella, drinking sangria, soaking up the sun.

Seeing the country by car.

Relaxed, refreshed, then

BAM

Return to work.

Friday 55 Flash Fiction is brought to you by G-man (Mr Knowitall). The idea is you write a story in exactly 55 words. If you want to take part pop over and let G-man know when you've posted your 55.

Proximidade.......

Pam (Finding Pam) passed this beautiful award on to me and others.  Here's the description of the award:


Proximidade is described as follows. This blog invests and believes in proximity- nearness in space, time and relationships. Nominated bloggers are exceedingly charming, they aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes for self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. This blog award should be sent to another eight bloggers and they, in turn, should forward it to eight of their favorites. You should include the text for Proximidade in your blog announcement. And please note that all awards and tags are optional....

I'd like to pass it on to the first eight commenters who may pass it on however they wish.

Thankyou Pam. x

Portrait of Words # 6......

Jeff (A Word in Edgewise POW) has started up this monthly challenge, derived from a previous challenge from R.E.H.'s "Picture Fiction Challenge".   Do pop over to Jeff's to read the other entries, you won't be disappointed.


The object is to:


Write a story of any length or style. Long or short, comedy or tragedy, fact or fiction, etc,etc... it's up to you.


Use each of the picture representations in your story. (one from the wild card options)



Here's my story:

Angela stopped the car and stared at the building in front of her. ‘The Serenity Retreat’ – it sounded peaceful and peace was just what she needed right now. It had been recommended by her psychiatrist, so she’d taken his advice and booked herself in for two weeks.

Entering the retreat Angela thought how pleasant it seemed with quiet meditation music playing in the background and there were staff members passing through, all wearing soft pink (women) and grey (men) leisurewear. Giving her name at reception Angela was swiftly booked in and escorted to her room, which was quite large with everything she could wish for including a view out onto the surrounding fields, the retreat being in the heart of the countryside.

There was a list of classes and times on the dressing table which were open to all guests, or they could choose just to rest and take advantage of the various spa treatments that were available. As it was late afternoon when Angela arrived she decided not to do anything in particular today but familiarise herself with her surroundings and take a walk outside to get some fresh air.

Dinner wasn’t an ordeal as there was enough room for guests to choose to sit alone if they wished, or socialise with other guests. Angela chose to sit alone. The menu was varied and consisted of good wholesome food, fresh vegetables and fruit and she managed to eat, despite the knot that had been present in her stomach since the trauma of losing her children.


Probably because of the fresh air and relaxed atmosphere Angela slept reasonably well that night and awoke refreshed, though not ready to face the world. She had breakfast in her room then scanned the list of treatments to find something to pass the time. She picked up the telephone, dialled reception and booked herself a massage, a yoga class and a Reiki treatment.

Angela was late getting down to dinner that evening and was surprised to see all the tables were taken. She was about to walk out and order room service when a waiter gently guided her to a table for two, with a woman sitting at it. Before she knew it he’d asked the woman if she minded sharing and Angela found herself sitting with a menu thrust into her hands. She introduced herself and discovered the woman’s name was Connie.

Connie was pleasant and Angela found her good company, once they’d both got over their initial hesitation of sharing the table. The time went quickly as they talked about everyday things; the weather, the state of the country, anything but personal details. They discovered they liked the same simple things; walking, reading, horse-riding, painting, all of which were offered on the list of classes, so they arranged to take the classes together starting the following day.

Over the next week Angela and Connie spent all their time together, taking various classes and treatments and they became friends. It was the beginning of the second week of their stay that conversations became more personal and they opened up to each other. Connie told Angela that she had lost her husband and Angela told Connie that she had lost her two young children, they talked about how the loss had affected them and how they came to be at the retreat. They found it easy to talk to each other and healing to talk about the tragedy of losing someone you love.

A couple of days later Angela and Connie were out walking when Connie asked Angela how her children had died. Memories of the burnt out bus flooded Angela’s brain. Choked, Angela explained how the school bus on which her children had been travelling had been blown up six months previously and being unable to come to terms with their death, she had sought help from a psychiatrist who had recommended a stay at Serenity. Connie looked horrified but gently questioned Angela about the details of the tragedy.

Angela asked Connie about her husband. What Connie told her shocked Angela to the core but she found herself feeling so much empathy for this woman she’d only met recently. Connie’s husband was the man who had blown up the bus in which Angela’s children had died and that’s why Connie had looked so horrified. Angela realised it wasn’t just she who was suffering, what happened had affected the families of all the people who died that day. Tears were flowing freely as they hugged each other, they both realised the painful grip on their hearts was starting to ease and together they could get through this.




I'm off to Spain today so I'll catch up with everyone when I get back, especially other participants in POW.

Saturday Wordzzle # 50

The idea is, every week Raven (Views From Raven's Nest) gives you between 8 and 10 words/phrases and you have to create a small but coherent paragraph using every one of them and the same with the mini challenge. You can do either, both or a megawordzzle using all the words, or even all three, it's up to you, you can post them on your blog or email them to Raven. If you join in go to Raven's and put your name on the Mr. Linky so other participants can come visit you.


No doodles this week too busy packing!



This Week's Ten Nine Word Challenge is: ubiquitous, do you see what I see, getting a word in edgewise, wild goose chase, grandmother of five, Freemasons, Pacific Paradise, everything and nothing, insanity prevails



Do you see what I see? Living in Freemasons, a Pacific Paradise, isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, especially when you’re a grandmother of five and expected to be ubiquitous. Looking after five kids, whilst their mother goes to work, means at times insanity prevails. You have to be able to talk about everything and nothing but sometimes have trouble getting a word in edgewise, and be prepared to go on a wild goose chase when one of the kids hides and you think they’re lost!


Mini Challenge: shortening the distance, it’s all about bloggers, the Fortress at Pigeon Falls, finding Pam, a raven’s nest



The weekly newsletter ‘The Fortress at Pigeon Falls’ claims it’s all about bloggers. However, this week’s front page article is all about finding Pam, the editor, a new house which will mean shortening the distance she has to travel to her favourite pub ‘A Raven’s Nest’.

Megawordzzle

Cynthia was surprised when finding Pam enter her little shop that she recognised her.

“Pam?” she enquired “is that you?”

Pam stared at Cynthia for a few minutes before she realised who she was.

“I don’t believe it, Cynthia what are you doing here at ‘The Fortress’ at Pigeon Falls?”


“I just bought it” said Cynthia “I moved here just this week!”


“Last I heard of you” said Pam “ you were launching a new perfume called ‘Pacific Paradise’ or something!”

“Come into the office Pam, we’ll have a coffee and a chat” invited Cynthia.


It had been twenty years since they’d last seen each other and they talked about everything and nothing, with so much news to catch up on they were both struggling getting a word in edgewise. Cynthia was amazed to learn that Pam was now a grandmother of five and she laughed when Pam told her that when they all turned up at her house insanity prevails.



Cynthia suggested they meet that evening at the ‘Freemasons Arms’ for a meal but Pam suggested ‘A Raven’s Nest’ in the next town to meet her friends, so they arranged to meet there at 7.30. Cynthia wasn’t sure where the restaurant was and it took her that long to find it that she thought Pam had sent her on a wild goose chase. Eventually she found it and took a seat at the bar to wait for Pam.


There seemed to be some sort of conference going on and the barman told her “it’s all about bloggers, they get together here about twice a year.” Suddenly the conference room door opened and Pam emerged

“Now's your chance to meet my blogging friends,  Cynthia.”  said Pam.


“I’m a blogger too” Cynthia told Pam


“What’s your blog called?” asked Pam


“Ubiquitous” said Cynthia, “what’s yours?”


“Shortening The Distance” answered Pam.


“We’ve been in touch through our blogs all this time?” they echoed each other.


“LOL, I don’t believe it” laughed Pam “do you see what I see? You turned down the invitation to the conference because you were moving house, you didn’t say you were moving to Pigeon Falls!




No Wordzzle next week as I'll be in Spain.

Friday 55 Flash Fiction # 63 Be My Valentine

Be My Valentine

Valentine will you be mine

In your entirety?

My heart is yours,

As is my soul,

Why must you be so petty?

Take off that frown and raise a smile,

It makes your face look crinkly.

We’ll do your favourite and share a bath,

That will make you smiley


and make your willy very wrinkly.

I was feeling naughty!

Friday 55 Flash Fiction is brought to you by G-man (Mr Knowitall). The idea is you write a story in exactly 55 words. If you want to take part pop over and let G-man know when you've posted your 55.

I won't be doing a 55 next week as I'll be in Spain.

Happy Birthday Dear Blog…..

Today is my blog’s second birthday!

Two years ago I was waiting to go into hospital to have my right knee replaced and my friend Queenie talked me into starting a blog to keep a record of how the operation and recovery went.

I started off posting practically every day about Everything and Nothing (hence my blog name) but now I usually only post four times per week and two of those posts are regular memes – 55 Flash Fiction and Saturday Wordzzles. You may have noticed I have posted every day recently, that is because I wanted to reach 500 posts by my blogversary and I managed it, this is my 500th post and I've had 55,200+ visitors!

Anyway to help me celebrate please take a piece of cake and a glass of bubbly and who knows, this time next year I may still be here!

Packing.......

What do you pack when you’re going to Spain in February and



· the days can be warm and sunny or cool and raining or a mixture of both
· the nights definitely are cool but could be dry or raining or a mixture of both
· there could be a possibility of snow – it has been known
· you are restricted to one suitcase between two of you and it must not weigh anymore than 32 kg?

Well obviously the one suitcase and weight restriction means that MWM will have to take less so that I can fit in everything I need! As it’s cold here we can’t arrive at the airport in t-shirts, shorts and flip-flops; a jacket, trousers and some full shoes are called for, so I suppose that will take care of clothes in case it is snowing.


Do we take swimwear – the pool will be closed and the sea will be freezing.   I suppose we could take just one lot in case the weather is hot enough for sunbathing – what do you think?

I guess a couple of pairs of shorts for during the day would be a good idea and of course we (I) can take lots of t-shirts, but maybe a couple of pairs of daytime trousers are called for too? My trusty CROC toe post sandals will be coming with me for daytime – they are the most comfortable toe posts I have and if truth be known I would wear them all year round if the weather permitted. They’re waterproof so if there’s showers it won’t be a problem.

Maybe cropped pants and a couple of skirts, dressy-up tops and a cardigan for evening and a couple of pairs of glittery flip flops?

How much sun cream, bearing in mind we might not see any sun? We usually use P20 once a day sunfilter and a 200ml bottle usually lasts MWM and I just about a week, so perhaps I should get one of those?


I have to take my hairdryer, magnifying mirror (so I can see to put my make-up on – can’t go out without make-up in the evening), must remember the travel alarm, toiletries etc, sunglasses (just in case), reading material, reading glasses, prescription sunglasses in case it’s sunny and I want to read.


Obviously you all know how much room toiletries take up? There’s shampoo, conditioner, hair mousse, hair serum, hairspray, shower gel, body lotion, face cleanser, face toner, eye cream, face moisturiser – and I’m sure I’ve forgotten something!

You see the problem I have – all this is just mine! Perhaps I should book another suitcase in or maybe I should just put a couple of things in a plastic carrier for MWM and he will have to make do!


Oh I just remembered we’re allowed hand luggage too – I might be able to fit a few more clothes and shoes in after all!


PASSPORTS, TICKETS, MONEY, PASSPORTS, TICKETS, MONEY, PASSPORTS, TICKETS, MONEY...............

I'm Excited.............

Did I tell you we’re going away on holiday on Monday next? We’re jetting off to Malaga, Spain, until Sunday 22nd February. We will be staying in an apartment in Arroyo, Benalmadena, not far from Malaga, with our good friends K & T.

K & T booked the apartment for two weeks ages ago, then in October they mentioned that they were actually going at half-term and suggested we try to get flights and go with them,  it's a two bedroom apartment so there's plenty of room and they were sure Lindsey, who owns the apartment, wouldn’t mind.


K checked with Lindsey who said it wasn’t a problem, there would just be a charge of £90 for us, and I set to work on the internet looking for cheap flights. K & T had only paid about £60+ return but that had been a good few months previous, when Easyjet were having a sale. Anyway I managed to get return flights £230 for MWM and I on the same flight as K & T, so the week’s holiday is only costing us £320 plus spending money – a bargain!

I have been to that area of Spain before, though we stayed in Fuengirola, in my FIL’s apartment. Sadly he sold the apartment some years ago or we would still be making regular visits. We have visited quite a few places whilst we stayed in Fuengirola i.e. Malaga, Gibraltar, Mijas, Puerto Banus, Marbella, we even went to Granada and toured the Alhambra Palace, so this trip we want to go visit Nerja and Ronda.

At Nerja  there is its spectacular Balcón de Europa, the "Balcony of Europe", a magnificent promenade along the edge of a towering cliff, once the site of the great Moorish castle, with sweeping panoramic views of the Mediterranean and the small coves and beaches below, against an awesome backdrop of hazy blue mountains.

Ronda is famous worldwide for its dramatic escarpments and views, and for the deep El Tajo gorge that carries the rio Guadalevín through its centre. Visitors make a beeline for the 18th century Puente Nuevo 'new' bridge, which straddles the 100m chasm below, for its unparalleled views out over the Serranía de Ronda mountains.

The weather there at the moment is cloudy/rainy and 16C which doesn’t sound very warm, but when you consider it’s -2C here I’d rather be in Spain! We may not get sunbathing weather but at least we won’t be freezing and there won’t be any snow, hopefully.

Of course I will be taking the camera and hopefully will have lots of photos to show you when we get back.

Presidents in drag 3.......

Colin Powell

Don Rumsfeld

Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton

Prince Charles

Saturday Wordzzle # 49

The idea is, every week Raven (View From Raven's Nest) gives you between 8 and 10 words/phrases and you have to create a small but coherent paragraph using every one of them and the same with the mini challenge. You can do either, both or a megawordzzle using all the words, or even all three, it's up to you, you can post them on your blog or email them to Raven. If you join in go to Raven's and put your name on the Mr. Linky so other participants can come visit you.

Here's my efforts complete with my doodles.

This week's 10 Word Challenge: author, Wall Street, rage, lemons, channel changer, cookies and milk, candelabra, Pine Cone Motel, illusory, fluffer-doodle

The Pine Cone Motel on Wall Street, Bristol, was an old fashioned place, it had candelabra on the reception desk but pandered to public demand by installing a television with the obligatory channel changer in the lounge. Most of the guests at the hotel were elderly people, who still enjoyed cookies and milk in an afternoon or the lemonade made by the chef from the lemons growing on the tree in the garden. Then Max arrived, an author of some distinction, he gave the illusory notion that he was filled with rage whereas, in reality, he was just like the other guests, old, lonely and prone to fluffer-doodles, which smelt sometimes. He soon settled in.




And the mini challenge: war, wooden shoes, flabbergast, chimera, vodka martini

Chimera was flabbergasted when her agent told her that her first assignment was modelling wooden shoes in some far off war torn country. Now here she was sipping a vodka martini in the bowels of a troop plane!


Megawordzzle

Sipping his vodka martini Arthur tried to calm down. The drive home had been fraught and it had shaken him when the man in the sports car had demonstrated such road-rage over something and nothing.

Picking up the channel changer he flipped over to the news channel and was surprised to see ‘Chimera’ on the news, apparently it had gone into liquidation. Arthur quickly scanned the share prices in the Wall Street Journal, he’d sunk all his savings into the firm and now it looked like they were going under. The shock caused him to pass wind, (though he still called it a fluffer-doodle, as his mother had taught him), he was about to lose everything!

Looking round the home he was so proud of, he envisaged having to sell the beautiful antiques, like the solid gold candelabra, he’d acquired. He had a reasonable income from the royalties on his books, he was a published author of war stories, but it wasn’t enough to keep him in the manner he’d become accustomed to without his dividends from Chimera. There was only one thing to do.

It would be like sucking lemons giving up martinis for cookies and milk, and it would flabbergast people when they found out, but times were hard. His success as a writer gave a total illusory picture of his poor beginnings. He would have to sell the house and move into The Pine Cone Motel. Going to the wardrobe he dug out his wooden shoes and telephoned his agent.

“I need to come back to work” said Arthur “I’m ready to go back on stage again, clog dancing!”

Friday 55 Flash Fiction # 62 Sick

Sick

"Will you see the doctor?" Sam asked Jenny.

"No, I'll just stay in bed and rest."

"But you keep being sick."

She knew what he was thinking .....

A baby, he wanted one so badly, sadly it wasn't that.

She'd have to tell him......

She'd got legless last night and had a doozy of a hangover!

Friday 55 Flash Fiction is brought to you by G-man (Mr Knowitall). The idea is you write a story in exactly 55 words. If you want to take part pop over and let G-man know when you've posted your 55.

Unhappy.........

Regular readers may remember I hinted at how much I hate my boss. Well for the last twelve months she has left me alone to get on with my job in an office I share with two wonderful ladies – I’ve been very happy indeed.



However, the boss and her team of cronies decided that they need the tiny space I occupy for another purpose and today I have had to move lock, stock and barrel back to my previous office, working with the very same people I worked with twelve months ago, where I was desperately unhappy and had a knot in my stomach every morning when I pulled onto the car park.



I will still be doing the same job, which I love, but I am dreading the bitchy backbiting which goes on in the office I’m moving to but I have to put up with it for the next 11 months.



For the past six months I have taken on the extra responsibility of supervising the pupils (I work in a school for those of you who didn’t already know) in the morning, at break and at lunchtime which takes 1 ½ hours a day and I will carry on doing this, so that’s 1 ½ hours a day I don’t have to spend at my desk and another 45 mins will be taken up with a break in the morning and lunch break, so that only leaves 4 hours 15 minutes a day that I will actually have to spend in my worst nightmare!



Now then, bearing in mind I only actually work 38 weeks a year because I get all school holidays, I have calculated I will only have to work for 19 weeks, that’s 95 days, in there, then we finish for the summer holidays of six weeks! Then come September when we go back to school I will only work for 14 weeks, that’s 70 days, until I retire! Now I’ve broken it down into manageable days I think I might just be able to cope. I’ll keep you posted!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I just read at Daryl's, who heard it from Fat, Frumpy & Fifty, who got it from  Don Mills Diva that some journalist at The Times wrote this article in which it quoted Don Mills Diva without her knowledge and went on to belittle the writing of bloggers.     Don Mills Diva is asking that all us bloggers stand up and be counted by flying the flag above.

Well I don't claim to be a writer but a lot of you seem to like what I write so

*raspberries*

to The Times!

All the fours........

Cheshire Wife has tagged me to post and write about the 4th photograph in my 4th folder.

So here it is:

I bet you just knew it would be a holiday photograph didn't you?

This is me sitting in the shade of the balcony to our room at the Abbey Inn, Bellapaix in Northern Cyprus in August 2005.


Bellapaix is up in the mountains not far from Kyrenia, Northern Cyprus and the home of Bellapaix Abbey, a great example of Gothic architecture. Also the author Lawrence Durrell lived in Bellapaix in the early 1950s. His house is still there and is called ‘Bitter Lemons’ a reminder of his book ‘Bitter Lemons of Cyprus’ in which he weaves the politics, history and culture of Bellapaix with his accounts of everyday life for himself and the islanders.

We couldn't fly direct to Northern Cyprus because Northern Cyprus is under Turkey's durisdiction so we had to land at Istanbul, from where the flight was treated as an internal one. We had to vacate the plane, complete with hand luggage, walk all through the airport and board the same plane. This was OK as we needed to stretch our legs but when we got back on the plane our seats had been taken by people who had just booked an internal flight and had boarded  Istanbul whilst we were walking round the airport! Although slightly annoying, we were able to find seats together a little further back on the plane but we wouldn’t have been so accommodating had we paid for extra leg room like some people who had lost their seats!

We arrived at Ercan airport and were picked up by a minibus to take us to our hotel. There were eight of us on the bus and all was well until about 20 minutes into the 35 minute journey when the bus broke down and we had to wait half an hour for taxis to arrive to complete our journey. This was about 1 a.m. and we were tired and hungry but the bus driver was so gracious and apologetic we didn’t complain. Two taxis arrived and we were told they would take us all to the hotels but some luggage would have to sit on the road until they’d dropped us off and they would go back for it! Of course we all refused to leave our luggage sitting at the side of the road so they sent for another taxi for the luggage before we would set off. Once all the taxis were assembled it only took ten minutes to complete our journey. We were stopped in the middle of the main street trying to identify our luggage as the drivers unceremoniously dragged it from the taxis. Eventually one of the drivers pointed to an archway which led to a little cobbled side street and we made out the sign of our hotel ‘The Abbey Inn’.

We entered the hotel and were shown to our room, which opened out onto the pool area. The hotel consists of 10 bedrooms built round the secluded pool and is a haven of peace and tranquillity, the only sound being from birds and crickets. It has its own small restaurant and serves snacks and drinks throughout the day and is just a stones-throw away from the Abbey itself. The hotel is so secluded and hidden away, if you walk up the main street and reach the Abbey you have missed the hotel and will have to retrace your steps.

The village is criss-crossed with old Crusader roads, dating back to the time of Richard the Lionheart, and there are numerous restaurants where you are welcome to have a refreshing drink even if you don’t want to eat. Only once did we venture down into Kyrenia (the main resort) about a twenty minute taxi ride away, it was enough to convince us we’d made the right decision choosing Bellapaix.

We did go on one trip to Famagusta, which was the second largest city on Cyprus but is now divided and Varosha which was occupied by Greek Cypriots is now a ghost town since it was invaded by the Turks. We had seen Famagusta from the southern side of Cyprus, whilst on a boat trip, and took the opportunity to see it from the North. If you don’t know the history of Famagusta you can read about it here and see a covert video of Varosha here.

During the day many coach tours came to Bellapaix, because of the Abbey ruins and the association of Lawrence Durrell, but we never saw them because or days were spent sunbathing, reading and floating in our hotel pool, secreted away from the tourists. Occasionally we ventured out to eat lunch or go for a walk around the village, after the crowds had gone, and when it got too hot we retired to our shady balcony or even our air conditioned room for a nap.



With a reasonable amount of restaurants to choose from we were able to vary our dining and wherever we ate the views were stunning, this was one holiday we weren’t ready to end. Even now when we talk about our past holidays, Bellapaix comes out near the top of the list as probably one of the most relaxing holidays we have ever had.

I hope you enjoyed this, you can click on the photos to make them bigger if you like.


I now have to tag 4 bloggers, so I hope you'll play along:

Elaine (Liebfraumilch & Lipstick)

Daryl (Out and About in New York City)

Riverpoet (Poetic Licence)

CG (The Compulsive Worrier)

Lemonade.........

Award..........

Yep another award folks!  Thanks to Storyteller (Small Reflections), who graciously passed this award on to me with the following rules:

1) You must link back to the person you received the award from.

2) You have to nominate 10 bloggers who are deserving of this award!

 
 
Well that's simple enough isn't it?   No it's not because I can't choose 10 from all my blogging pals, so I'm going to use a complicated formula.    As I have to pass it on to 10 bloggers I'm going back 10 previous posts, which was Flash Fiction #59, and awarding it to the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 11th, 13th, 15th, 17th, 19th commenter - that's fair isn't it?

So step onto the red carpet

Ron (Vent) - the most versatile blogger I know.  He's an actor, writer, blog enthusiasts, holistic healing practitioner, teacher, make-up artist, retail sales promoter.

Elaine (Leibfraumilch & Lipstick) - a talented and funny writer and a great photographer.

RLL (Real Live Lesbian) - a frank, funny and beautiful lady.

 Bee (Muffin53) -  Empress of the High Seas who you will either find on a cruise, in Florida or Podunk eating cake!

Linda (Are We There Yet?) - An ambulance dispatcher who missed her calling - she should have been a History teacher!

Jeff (A Word In Edgewise) - Such an eloquent narrator and the resurrector of Portrait Of Words writing challenge.

Mojo ( Why? What have you heard?) - I've not been reading Mojo's blog for long but I can tell you he's ACE at 55 Flash Fiction.

Deb (Nourish The Soul) - Feisty and Funny, do yourself a favour and go read her blog.

Mike (Rambling Stuff) - such a caring blogger who brings the plight of others to the fore when they most need prayers.

Dr. John (Dr. John's Fortress) - A man who's sermons never sound like preaching.

So there you go.   Take the Lemonade Award and enjoy it's FIZZ!