Over the last couple of weeks we have been busy, hence no post for a while, sorry mom. 3 weekends ago I was in Dubai for an IB conference. There are some pretty exciting changes to the History curriculum, so Else and I took off to learn about these changes. While we were there we were able to hang out with Alex and Brenda, and see some of the crazy and unbelievable sites in Dubai. We saw the Dubai Mall, which was nothing short of overwhelming. I would definitely be lost in there still, if it wasn't for dumb luck and Else. There is an aquarium, in the mall, with guys scuba diving. There is an ice skating rink. There are hundreds and hundreds of stores, which are somewhat organized by category, such as sports stores, shoe stores and stores I can't even dream of affording. We were able to eat some Mexican and Asian food, which was a plus with the lack of good quality Mexican and Asian food here in Beirut.
This past weekend was Teacher's Day, so we had Monday off of school. My exceptional students were so kind with great emails wishing me a happy teacher's day. The holiday is big here, with stores having teacher's day displays in the window. Gretchen, Margaret and I went to the Library Hotel in Cyprus Friday night til Sunday night to celebrate with some hot stone massages, Mexican Train Dominoes, and reading in the sun. The Library Hotel is probably the most quaint hotel, with incredible sisters that run the place. Gretchen and I took some great runs/hikes up into the mountains there, checking out incredible flowers, cactuses (cacti?), and just some general peace and quiet, much needed after the busyness of Beirut. There is an incredible artist right by the Library, who collects rocks from the beaches and turns them into incredible statues and planters.
Ryan spent the weekend busy as well. He ran our track meet, then headed up to the mountains with Mike, Phil and some other people to spend the night in Becharre. The next morning, by 5 am, he took off on a 19k snowshoeing trek, uphill in the mountains with the Lebanese Army. It looked beautiful in the pictures, but he was definitely sore.
Today Ryan is off with the JV bball teams to Abu Dhabi for their end of the year tournament. They are looking to bring back a victory. He has a great group of guys, and one of the nights they are there, they are going to a Drake concert. That should be hilarious.
Showing posts with label Cyprus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cyprus. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 11, 2015
Monday, November 25, 2013
Cyprus
This past weekend we took a trip to the island of Cyprus with Mike and Gretchen. It is a 45 min flight from Beirut, so it is the perfect long weekend trip. We had Friday off for Lebanese Independence Day, so we took off Thursday night after Parent Teacher Conferences. When we landed, we got our cars that we rented, and realized they drove on the other side of the road and car. It was a lot of fun to drive, not that I drove much. We did manage to make a 20 minute drive to our hotel a 2 hour drive, the signs were not the easiest to follow, being in Greek and all! We figured it out though, after a quick stop at a police station.
We got to the hotel and were so pleasantly surprised with how nice the hotel was and we had a quick bite to eat. Our hotel was in Kalavasos, and we flew into Larnaca. Both of those names are different on different signs, which was part of the fun. The next day we took a drive to see some ruins, of course, what trip with Ryan is complete without a stop to see ruins. After, we went to the Cyprus Wine Museum in Lemoses, which is also called Limassol(?), which was hilarious, but the tasting was delicious. That night, we hung out in our library at our hotel for a while playing card games and dominoes, which was hilarious. We headed out to Zygi for dinner, and had some amazing mezze.
The next day we drove all through the mountains and the amazing small villages. We then went down to Aphrodite's Beach and hung out. Ryan went swimming in the Mediterranean, it was a little chilly for me, although the weather was beautiful the entire trip. We then had to find a bar that was showing the Liverpool vs Everton game. Ryan had found a local Cyprus Liverpool Facebook page, and asked the guys the best place to watch the game. We found the place and it didn't disappoint. There were probably fifty guys there all decked out in Liverpool gear yelling and cheering the whole game. That night we ate at a local place called the Bridge House Tavern, and there was a guitar on the wall that Ryan picked up and played for us all.
The next day we went to Lekosia, which is also Nicosia. This is the capital of Cyprus, and it is a divided castle. The northern part of Cyrpus is occupied by Turkey. We went to the Ikea there, which was a treat for us since we needed to get a few cheaper items for our apartment. We then ate lunch in the town square, and took a walk through the UN Green Zone to the Turkish side. That night we went to the Salt Lake, which at this time is not full of water till the winter. We ate on the beach in Larnaca and then off to get lost to return the car. Overall, it was a beautiful trip, and I'll let the pictures prove that to you.
We got to the hotel and were so pleasantly surprised with how nice the hotel was and we had a quick bite to eat. Our hotel was in Kalavasos, and we flew into Larnaca. Both of those names are different on different signs, which was part of the fun. The next day we took a drive to see some ruins, of course, what trip with Ryan is complete without a stop to see ruins. After, we went to the Cyprus Wine Museum in Lemoses, which is also called Limassol(?), which was hilarious, but the tasting was delicious. That night, we hung out in our library at our hotel for a while playing card games and dominoes, which was hilarious. We headed out to Zygi for dinner, and had some amazing mezze.
The next day we drove all through the mountains and the amazing small villages. We then went down to Aphrodite's Beach and hung out. Ryan went swimming in the Mediterranean, it was a little chilly for me, although the weather was beautiful the entire trip. We then had to find a bar that was showing the Liverpool vs Everton game. Ryan had found a local Cyprus Liverpool Facebook page, and asked the guys the best place to watch the game. We found the place and it didn't disappoint. There were probably fifty guys there all decked out in Liverpool gear yelling and cheering the whole game. That night we ate at a local place called the Bridge House Tavern, and there was a guitar on the wall that Ryan picked up and played for us all.
The next day we went to Lekosia, which is also Nicosia. This is the capital of Cyprus, and it is a divided castle. The northern part of Cyrpus is occupied by Turkey. We went to the Ikea there, which was a treat for us since we needed to get a few cheaper items for our apartment. We then ate lunch in the town square, and took a walk through the UN Green Zone to the Turkish side. That night we went to the Salt Lake, which at this time is not full of water till the winter. We ate on the beach in Larnaca and then off to get lost to return the car. Overall, it was a beautiful trip, and I'll let the pictures prove that to you.
This week is another four day week, and we are celebrating Thanksgiving on Friday. Looking forward to a nice dinner with a lot of teachers. We will be back in the States in less than a month, which is so crazy. Enjoy the pictures!
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| Ryan driving on other side |
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| Rocks at Aphrodite beach |
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| Aphrodite Beach |
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| Cairn made at Aphrodite beach |
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| Library at our hotel |
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| Driving through the villages |
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| Breakfast nook at our hotel |
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| Wine museum |
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| Bar we found to watch the Liverpool game Saturday |
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| Lefkosis |
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