Cyprus

Hard to believe a week ago today we were basking in the sun with not a care in the world. As I look out the window the wind blows and today I was forced to pull a sweater out from the bottom of the drawer. Boo hoo.

Our week in Cyprus was great, more then I would have ever hoped it would be. To be honest, I didn't have huge expectations as Cyprus was never on the top of my list of places to go. Cyprus is an island in the Mediterranean just south of Turkey and not too far from Israel. It's history dates back to the 10th millennium B.C. (!); until 1970 it was part of the British Commonwealth. In 1974 there was a civil war of sorts between the Turkish and the Greek communities that make up the island which resulted in the island being split in two (and divided down the middle by barbed wire and UN outposts!), the north is the Turkish side and the south is the Greek side. We stayed on the south side in a town called Larnaka where Mark's business partner/best man/best friend owns a house and was generous enough to let us stay there.

George's place in Cyprus, perfect!

It was the perfect situation really, Calum settled straight into his routine which gave Mark and I 2-3 hours of pool side time to ourselves everyday! With the time difference it worked out perfectly for us to go out for a late meal in the evenings as the Cypriots do and when we did go out, the food was amazing. Think mezes, Greek salads, grilled meats and fresh fish. The people there were amazingly friendly and loved kids, Calum was treated like a king everywhere we went. We took a couple of road trips to the capital city Nicosia for some shopping and to Pafos where we stopped at Aphrodite's Rock on the way to the zoo.

At the zoo
Beach at Aphrodite's Rock

On this night the waiter brought Calum a plate of strawberries that he loved but also got all over his new outfit!

Calum's first birthday was spent relaxing, during the day we went to this restaurant/bar on the beach to watch Mark's beloved Tottenham play Manchester Utd. and in the evening we went to a nice dinner and came back to a little cake and candle for Calum. The next day we took him to the zoo which was probably more for me then him as he seemed more interested in Daddy than any of the animals or birds although the playground was a highlight. He was an absolute star on the 4.5 hr plane ride there and back so let's hope it continues for our trip in July to Seattle & L.A.

Loving his new baby pool, birthday pressie from Mom & Dad
Opening one of his little gifts we brought on his birthday
With Mom at birthday dinner
Calum's birthday cake (not sure who ate more, Calum or Dad!)