We had a superb but very filling meal at the hill view hotel restaurant last night, when we got back we took advantage yet again with our latest discovery channel which enables you to get BBC or it programmes away from home. This morning we weren't up that early afternoon a heavy night but eventually got ourselves sorted and set off on our trip up to the troodos mountains, sue,s first trip there. We were following the route that I'd taken just days ago to the trnc or northern Cyprus. We did pick up s Bedford village bus I hadn't seen for a few years and then later in the day one I saw for the first time. Going two direction s along a road sometimes reveals hidden treasure and after troodos we headed down towards or should it be up to the border and saw the tantalising sights of the bay beyond the border but we didn't have permission to take this car over the border. We stopped for brews and ice creams even apple pie and ice cream. I'm glad she lilked the trip, I was getting a bit weary with the tricky bendy roads and heavy traffic and eventually glad to his the motorway west to pissouri from Limassol. Tomorrow isn't,t our last day but probably my last filming so I'm hoping for a mixed bag of lorries and buses at larnaka, I think there should be a couple of Maltese vessels in. When we leave Tuesday night we'll go back home with sue in hednesford near Cannock and then back to our place later Wednesday. Then its a quick catch up before we head south Friday morning early to film at Southampton docks which I Sussex out at Christmas. We are having the Saturday as a family day and then Sunday it's the Alton rally in Hampshire, we are launching our bargain section with a selection of older stock at just £8 a DVD. All our recent releases will be available and also on board our Sussex and Hampshire photos plus m&d. We look forwards to meeting of our followers there. Then its the countdown to Mandy's operation. We are hoping to get to the s West, east Anglia, Essex, plus Northumberland and the borders plus day trips to Aberdeen and jersey by air.
Thanks to our loyal readers who follow our exploits even when I can't add photos until I return home, there is surely nothing like best interest of our adventures as they happen but numbers drop off a lot without pictures. It wouldn't be a pretty sight today as I wallowed in the pool from morning till teatime. Tonight we are going to the hotel for dinner, our one and only evening out a as we have two fine chefs with Mandy and she doing the cooking plus had m two nights in the north. It was an important day potentially for Cyprus yesterday as I was bridging the gulf between the two a sides on my way back but the news last night told of a meeting which ended yet again in acrimony with the stumbling block the enormous Turkish arming presence and a reduction being a requisite before implementing measures for normalising the country as a whole. Although both sides contributed to the original turmoil the small defence force in the south and the un forces plus the UK bsses Clickare a neutral enough presence but the Turkish forces in the north are really everywhere you go there and all on apermanent war footing albeit the soldiers will smile and return friendly waves of visitors just as the police there do, weighing it up as a visitor it is hard to be objective certainly as a transport buff it comes down to the north and they are friendlier, the road s slightly safer and less aggressive plus it's cheaper but other than that...
so tomorrow we are having a day of sightseeing tsking sue for her first trip to the troodos mountains, I'll take the camera but havjng driven through that way last week I saw little of transport interest. Tuesday will be our last day so Monday I'm going to film in larnaka , there should be some buses there and possibly trucks as well at the small port. The InterCity bus services seem to be run by a rag bag of providers in generally scruffy vehicles which in Nicosia contrasted poorly against the city bus fleet. I seem to have clicked away 900 times so far, heavy pruning will be required! The week is ticking away ever faster although a glimpse of the miserable weather which will greet s on return next Tuesday makes us just ever so tiny weeny bit smug. I think we are all getting used to the heat and it's hovered between top 30s at pissouri up to mid 40,s in Famagusta and Nicosia. My journey today started from Famagusta which occupies a strange position with a sovereign British base in one direction and a Greek ghost resort in another guarded by the Turkish military, the UN have a base in the centre of town. As ever the sun was full in the sky from early morning and I decided to take the indirect route takings some of the small villages and ending up at the Turkish airport which had two Turkish airlines jets at the terminal. I clicked up a few more village buses then headed into Nicosia and by more luck than judgement by the bus stops at the old town walls, I,d parked close by, parking is never an issue in the trnc , certainlyClick would dream of paying and you become quite lazy expecting to park right next to your destination whether it be Costa coffee or the shops. The sun wasn't that good at the stops but spot on where I'd parked and after a basinful of japminibuses I decided to make a move following the bus route out which took me to the bus station serving northern routes, a very large area and nearby the parking place for visiting village buses among which was a traditional Bedford, I haven't seen one of there other than tourist use in many years. I then had a run roundthehouses btrying to locate the road border crossing, by the time I stopped to ask I was just a couple of minutes drive away, none of the road crossings are indicated as neither side would want to endorse a border. Then I headed into the southern part of the capital city and the more modern bus terminal which hasn't changed much over the years, they just have a few polish drivers as I had one who was ranting about no photos or is this how the future lays for the island. I think as people the Turkish are more friendly although inept as most things but do try hard, they certainly get up late and finish work early, seems like a Turkish northern Ireland gobbling up huge sums of money for infrastructure everywhere with Avery small population. It was frantic the traffic south from Nicosia but once on the motorway a fast drive back to pissouri. I had certainly got a thirst on it had been so hot inland, the cooling breeze at the apartment was welcome, dropped off the second hire jeep at the hotel on the hill, we are eating there tomorrow night. Tomorrow mainly pool time. here to edit.
My fairly simple bed and breakfast guesthouse in Famagusta has delivered all that I had hoped for with a good internet signal, quietness, comfortable bed, good air conditioning and very close to the port and trucks that I am filming? As it was quiet at the port this morning first thing I decided to head up the north east peninsula and the furthest city, not slot to find though but of course if you don't try you can never find anything. I did get some truck and bus shots but it was no refuge for elderly Bedford's etc. I got back to Famagusta about 10.30 and set to work at the harbour and also the roundabout at the end of the motorway. I did have an incident with achsp who decided to phone the police who said it was forbidden to film but then all the police who went last exchanged waves and smiles so perhaps it was a young man with special issues as they say. I got massesoffilm done, about 70% of the trucks would've classic at least and nearly all are ex UK or Ireland. Perhaps the best was Beamish transport in their full heritage transport livery. It wasn't as hot as yesterday but still way up in the 30,s. Tomorrow I'll set off early to Nicosia and film north in the morning then south afterwards. I seem to have slot of shots taken so far and about 5 yourself film. The only place this will leave Mei's larnaka r which I'll cover either Monday or Tuesday our last day with the weekend as a rest. I managed to get the sole last night via the internet on my hudle. I've been drinking gallons of water interspersed with coffee and ice cream there is a Costa coffee in town but I couldn't find it again after breakfast this morning. The ghost town Famagusta is only a short walk away, heavily guarded of course although why I'm not sure, it's the former Greek part of the resort untouched since the Turkish invasion in 1974. If you set off down through town in another direction a large broad but empty road ends up at the UK base, strange to see the Turkish police control and the union flag a few yards beyond but I'll be crossing in Nicosia tomorrow. The food isn't the best and breakfast here is too late for me, the size of the coaches is as it assmall nice but I expect it comes with the territory in such shot place and in artistic building. Tomorrow back at pissouri with the girls who visited pathos today which they reported has expanded to a city!
I set off o. My journey to north Cyprus about six this morning, we had a fabulous runner andpuddjng last night and then caught the soaps but BBC escaped us but it was fine. I headed from the motorway up north through troodos where intook s wrong turning and had to back track, as we found previously the signing is atrocious in Cyprus and seems to bounce around dozens of different names for the same thing then jumps from the obvious destination action to some small village off the veatentrack,. The border crossing and xarinsurance was painless being around nine am and I was a queue of one.usingtipsid boyfriend friends Jones that the first location over the border in the rep on Cyprus should reveal some interesting finds and the first garagehad three Bedford's which were painted up and revealed for video and photos plus several Bedford's buses, certainly a good start and everyone seems to speak or return a Kerry wave in the car. There were quite a few old his in farm years but as I headed. North to kyrenia it dried up, nothing there of note save the captured Greek munitions at a prologues museum, buses mainly mini bus around this tourist conglomeratation. Again. Signage poor got to outskirts of Nicosia then tried to park near junction ended up back near kyrenia as no way of turning at any junctions between the two. I did stop and get shots her and there and ended up at Famagusta late afternoon, straight to port got some nice shots and then took an hour trying to find the guesthouse. Took several attempts and many people trying to help, tapping dog may be annoying but not on a road and gardens to rear, I'm in an little room with outside but sole use toilet cum bathroom, it has zircon thank goodness, tried the supposed best restaurants i. Town, guess reviews done on trip advisor by realtives ended up having a couple of ice creams and beers then back to do this blog and get the soaps from home before bed. The harbour truck scene still looks good , let's hope that Thursday is a busy day, it's not far but don't think I'll walk as I will need to find somewhere to eat tomorrow, there is a costs coffee on the Mai road through town, at least there isn't any need to pay to park I. The country which is a bonus. The incredibly large Turkish army presence is a bit off-putting when travelling but guess their economy here would collapse without them. Fingers crossed for a good day tomorrow, Mandy and she had a trip to the shopping mall in Limassol and got wine cheaper in marks and Spencers than in the pissouri supermarket looking forwards to home cooking Friday night.
Another trip to Limassol this morning, I stuck to the main road to the docks from the motorway using several roundabouts a to film from, it was slightly quickdraw to get an hour's film than yesterday although I missed out on the harbour guys such a as the old scanias, I did see an erf and spotted an old dodge the other side of the dual carriageway otherwise it was just standard ex Brit artics in the whole. The temperature shows no sign a of waning, I guess as I come down from the troodos intonthe Turkish occupied areas the temperature will soar into the forties. I'm aiming to work my way west to east including kyrenia on my way to my digs in Famagusta where I'll stay for two nights fingers crossed that I see a lots of golden oldies in the north as much has now vanished I bother south other than pure wrecks which I saw I dealt travelling in the industrial areas off the dual carriageway to the docks. We've eaten well and tonight it's bangers and mash, they dropped the car off which turned out to be a jeep we've just filled it up ready for the morning, I'm going about six am directly north from Limassol and then through the western entry point, the jeep car hire was all inclusive of cdw and slot easier to sort than thrifty rent a wreck with bull shit included foc. I hope I can blog tomorrow supposed to be internet there, we are picking up UK TV from. They do getting our dose of Emmers and Corrie.
Dinner last night and we'll washed down with Chilean wine at four quid a bottle it's a hard life but someone has to do it. Mandy was on top form last night when the electric sent off, she had spotted the fuse box and found it in the dark and reset it. I was up at eight this morning and had toast with a brew , a couple of banana s and a bottle of frozen water. I went straight to Limassol docjs without getting lost and used my old favourite spot by the crane roundabout which was ok with lots of old scanias and a ford d type amongst a plethora of ex trucks. I did try the road front port entrance north and that seemed good as well, its hard to tell as traffic changes with the ship's in harbour to offload. I'm going to have another go tomorrow. I even used the small road out of town to pathos for a short stretch which passes the us depot which looks like a scrap yard from a distance, it still has several Bedford's looking unloved. Spag bog on the menu tonight, temperature at apartment several degrees hotter than Limassol harbour which is strange as we are fairly elevated. I get my other hire car tomorrow tea time which I'll use for my journey to the north up through the troodos mountains.
I start my truck coverage tomorrow in Limassol which isn't very far away and we are near the motorway, I've filmed there before and hopefully it will be trouble free as I know one chap who spent a day with police after getting picked up near the harbour thrre. My car to explore the North arrived Tuesday and I have three whole days in the North. I hope to pick up some bus footage at various stages I understand that there are real bus stations at larnaca and Nicosia now. We are well pleased with the apartment which is quiet on a cul Dr sac and we see to be the only ones in the block and have alsrgepoolto ourselves. She has had bad news which has hit the main BBC news as her nephew died of a heart attack while he was playing rugby aged just 31. The girls are busy cooking dinner, we did a big shop at thelocal supermarked which we used last tkme we werehsre. Its been hot averaging about 38 to 39 today incland its a lot more. The car is ok a downhill or on theflat but sruggkes with the hills. Ill report tomotrow on my adventures at limmasol harbour all the best from daveClick
Fingers crossed that the blog works ok at our apartment it seems a strong signal. The flight from Birmingham was about 45mins late getting away but made up a lot in transit. It was a smoother flight with monarch and possibly better than easyject or Ryanair. The wheelchair was on the ambulift at a the aircraft on arrival which beats Manchester hands down.. we ended up hanging around for an inaccessible minibus to take us to the crummy car hire depot quite a way from the terminal. When we got going in our old Bayer of a ford focus which nominally has air con which obviously hasn't been serviced in years we knew our way to pissouri and found the apartment hotel quite easily but I it wasn't very suitable as it was up loads of steps but they were really helpful and we've ended up in a three bed apartment a few minutes away with loads of room and a terrace and pool down via a lift which we haven't explored with a it beingmidnight.. the air coming here is much better it's still thirty outside at midnight. Looks as if we'll be well comfortable. Need to do shopping Sunday morningClick
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