Tag Archives: holiday

We’re fast approaching Easter in the UK and a week after it will be Orthodox Easter and this year I get to celebrate both, being in the UK for their Easter weekend before flying back to Cyprus for theirs.
I love Easter, for me it truly signals the end of winter and spring and the start of the countdown to the heady days of summer. Whilst for many, it’s just a time to consume tonnes of hollow chocolate objects and have an excuse for another family dinner, for the more religious it marks the most important festival in the religious calendar.
I’ve often wondered, especially since living in Cyprus, why the Cypriots don’t really do Christmas and save all the celebrations for Eastertide until I looked up a theological essay on the subject.
As far as I can see, the birth of Jesus is relatively unimportant in its significance to the development of Christianity and I can understand why Epiphany is more important as being the first time he is acknowledged as King by the wise men. But it’s Easter and its implication in the ideology of eternal life that is the main festival because it’s when Jesus shows us that it is possible to be raised from death, if only as a soul, and to take our rightful place in heaven. The whole dogma of Christianity hangs on that one event and is summed up succinctly by the Easter morning Greek greeting of ‘Χριστός Ανέστη’ and the reply ‘Ἀληθῶς ἀνέστη’, Christ is risen and the reply, truly he is risen.
On a far more light-hearted note, it’s this time of year when I laugh at the friends who have decided upon a ‘bikini diet’ to prepare themselves for their summer holidays. It usually starts when the clocks go forward only to be rudely interrupted when Easter pops up and they’ve just got to gorge themselves on the chocolate eggs and accompanying individual chocolates not to mention those fondant filled eggs that shall remain nameless.
So what should we get for those people who we know desperately want to look svelte in their swimsuit and not bulgy in a bikini? Nothing fits the bill better than a bouquet of flowers and especially at Easter when spring flowers abound and if you want to go for the traditional, you can send white lilies signifying purity and new birth. As always I find the best flowers come from Cosmea Gardens.  Feel free to use coupon “savethiseaster” on checkout and save 10% with a minimum order of 50Eur excluding shipping. It expires the 16th of April. I’ve never had cause to complain about the quality and condition of the blooms they’ve delivered and their flowers last for weeks; a benefit of them using only the freshest cut flowers in their arrangements. They might be a little more expensive than some but when a gift is important for the message it sends, a couple of euros extra is well worth it for the quality. So this Easter, if you need to send a gift to a horizontally challenged friend or relative, be a thoughtful person and send them flowers that will add considerably to their impressions of you and not their waistline!

I don’t know if you’re like me or not but at this time of year it’s always hard to think of what to get for Great Aunt Bertha or cousin Tilly for a Christmas present. Did you know that last year 34% of presents received were classified as ‘unwanted’ generally meaning that the good idea to get Uncle Eric that rotary soup maker wasn’t such a good idea.

Some people go for gift vouchers or cash but that seems too impersonal or shows a lack of thought, so what’s the alternative?

It’s a bit unusual, and personally I’ve thought it a bit unseasonal to do so, but why not send flowers. They last for a good while at this time of year, brighten up drab days and the everlasting message that flowers are sent with love fits in nicely with the season. Last year I sent my aunt a bouquet from Cosmea Gardens; red carnations and gold sprayed bracken and it looked beautiful. The carnations had a slight scent that pervaded the rooms of her house and the colours were in keeping with the season. Each time I spoke to her in the year she brought up that gift. So it shows that if you’re stuck for ideas, give flowers!

Although the weather is noticeably cooler, I can’t believe it’s nearly Christmas, so it’s time for some tips on how to make your home look effortlessly festive.

I love poinsettia plants and although there’s a myriad of colours to choose from these days, I still love the ones with the red bracts. You can spice them up by putting them in a festive looking container or simply get a terracotta pot, paint it green and then when dry, daub some wood glue in patterns such as bells, snowflakes or Christmas trees around it and press on some contrasting glitter. Don’t forget to bung up the drainage hole before putting the plant in it or you’ll have a soggy mess on your table!

If you want to keep the pot plain, then a quick squirt of spray-on glue over the leaves, followed by a dusting of silver glitter gives an instant effect.

If you can get hold of any evergreen foliage, it doesn’t have to be holly or ivy, make up a wreath by intertwining the stems and tie in red or gold ribbon in bows, add small Christmas decorations or small sprayed pine cones – there are hundreds in Cyprus at the moment – then hang it on your door or over a fireplace.

Finally, if you can’t afford one of the really expensive real Christmas trees this year which, to be honest, won’t survive long in the Cypriot climate, buy an Araucaria, otherwise known as a Norfolk Island Pine, which looks exotically similar and which will grace your garden afterwards. A 1.2 metre specimen in a pot can be bought for around 20 euros, less than half the equivalent for a Norwegian Spruce. Check out Cosmea Gardens for their range of festive plants and have a Plant-astic Christmas this year.

Aren’t friends great?

We’re lucky (??) in that by living in Cyprus we have a steady flow of friends who want to come and stay with us. OK, it means several trips to the airport each month but we can keep in touch with home and have someone to share the trials and tribulations of life abroad with.

Our most recent guests have just returned to the UK and after dropping them off very early at the airport we returned home. I doubt we were in the apartment for more than half an hour when there was a ring on the doorbell.

We joked that it was our friends returned from the airport having missed their flight but upon opening the door we found it was a courier who was delivering an amazing bouquet of flowers.

My wife undid the small envelope and read that it was a thank you from our friends. What was more surprising is that it was a bouquet prepared by Cosmea Gardens. I guess the friends must have seen me working on one of my posts and picked up on the name. We’ve phoned them to thank them for their thoughtfulness but I had cause to think that although the bouquet was welcome, we had already received our thanks from the warm smiles on their faces as we showed them the true Cyprus that these days is too often hidden behind the consumerism.

All summer long I’ve been mesmerised by the sight of trees on the road past Coral Bay outside Paphos which have bright green frond-like leaves and vivid scarlet flowers with yellow centres. To say they’re striking is an understatement and I’ve spent ages trying to find out what they are.

I recently holidayed on my second favourite island, Cuba, and saw the same trees there. A local told me that they were called Flame Trees and when I got to a computer I found out that they’re also called the Royal Poinciana and they have been voted into the top five most beautiful trees in the world.

I looked at them in a new light once I’d returned from my holiday and find that each time I pass the tree I’m reminded of my holiday. I got to thinking about flowers that evoke memories and talked to my parents about flowers that brought back memories for them such as Montbretias that remind my dad of his mother and lilac that reminded my mum of her mother. For me, roses always remind me of my wife as they’re her favourite celebration flowers and I’ll be buying some more on Saturday for it’s her birthday. Try thinking about the flowers that bring back memories for others and stir up some with a bouquet from Cosmea Gardens.

I’ve just spent over a month in the UK experiencing what you might call the English summer which, with its usual washout had left gardens and parks looking dull and bedraggled. All it did was to make me wish for the sunnier climate of Cyprus so last Wednesday we grabbed the easyJet flight out of Gatwick and headed for the sun. Before leaving, I texted a friend to ask them to open up the windows so it wouldn’t be too oppressive in the apartment.

We arrived late in the evening and struggled with our bags up the stairs and flung open the door, glad to be home. I wasn’t prepared though for the surprise that greeted us when we went into the dining room for they had organised a bouquet of all my favourite flowers that brighten the island so even though it was dark when we arrived we immediately had a taste of what we’d missed back in the UK. There were the roses that bloom through the most intense heat set against white bougainvillea that in the garden looks like fresh snow in the wintry sun backed with rolled banana leaves. What an amazing creation I thought and looked at the label that accompanied them – Selected and hand-tied especially for you by Cosmea Gardens I should have known!

So it goes to show that if you want something really special or just to say something as simple as ‘Welcome home’ Cosmea Gardens are the ones to help.

Easter is the key festival in the Christian church. Without Easter we wouldn’t have Christianity but looking through the Easter cards in my local card shop made me think about how ‘Easter’ was celebrated before Christianity, for it was the celebration for the pagan goddess Eostre that gave Easter its name.

Eostre was goddess of the dawn and came to signify new birth and hence the ‘rebirth’ of Jesus after the crucifixion. The Easter rabbit, chicks and Easter eggs all come from elements representing Eostre or from pagan ceremonies celebrating her.

It seems strange to me that we should still use these pagan symbols at a Christian religious feast and some, like flowers and especially white lilies are used in churches at Easter just as newly opening white flowers were used to praise Eostre.

Paganism or otherwise, flowers are a great present for Easter – and a lot less fattening than those other pagan gifts – Easter eggs. Choose white flowers for the purity and innocence of new birth and perhaps send some flowers to someone with whom you want a new start.

My wife is joining me in Cyprus tomorrow for what will be a new start for her and for us. When I meet her at the airport, I’ll be giving her a welcoming bouquet of flowers from Cosmea Gardens. Think about someone with whom you can make a fresh start and order some too in time for Easter!

In the past on this blog I’ve told you about getting stranded in Cyprus because of snow in the UK (just about a year ago) and getting stranded again in Cyprus because of volcanoes. I thought that by moving here, I’d have had the last of problems but no, tomorrow I’m due to fly back to my wife in the UK for Christmas but guess what? FLIGHT CANCELLED BECAUSE OF SNOW.

Ignoring the pathetic nature of how the British deal with bad weather – anyone wanting to invade the UK only need wait for the first sign of winter and the whole country would roll over, I am distraught at the delay. I haven’t seen my wife for two months and was looking forward so much to seeing her again. Instead, as with the last two occasions I was in Cyprus, I’m stuck here. Christmas is rapidly approaching and the chances of being reunited with my beautiful wife are diminishing fast. I think the last time I felt this bad was when my wife returned home in September. It’s strange because I feel it’s my fault even though it’s beyond my control. My wife feels just as bad having built her hopes up but what can I do? Maybe Cosmea Gardens will have the answer.

I’ve just returned from spending a wonderful week in my favourite part of the world – no prizes for guessing where that might be! – but even as a seasoned visitor I wasn’t prepared for the breathtaking beauty of the countryside now that spring has firmly made its presence felt. I stood there looking out across the fields around Lara and marvelled at the natural beauty that stretched out all around me. There’s no way that humankind can recreate the beauty of nature in all its glory but travelling back through the villages my eyes were drawn to the way the villagers had brought a little of the beauty of wildflowers into their courtyards and gardens.

In the weeks leading up to my holiday I’d read Laurence Durrell’s descriptions of Cyprus in his book ‘Bitter Lemons’ and even though his words were penned nearly sixty years ago there are still many parts of the island that remain as unspoilt as the day he first gazed upon them. As the days lengthen and the sun gets warmer, pull on those walking boots or get on that bicycle, leave the towns and cities and seek out natural Cyprus. Get out often enough and you’ll be rewarded with changing vistas as the different flowers bloom. If you’re not as young as you used to be and even the thought of getting on a bicycle makes you wince, you can still enjoy a little of the Cypriot flora. Pots of cyclamen will be little different from those growing wild on Akamas and a potted citrus will still bring the heady scents of the groves around Tala to your home.