We failed to avoid the World Cup match last Sunday - The Aphrodite bar/restaurant had brought a TV in just for the occasion and we arrived just as the match was ending to be greeted by Caroline as long lost cousins. Anyway the football fans soon dispersed and we had a very pleasant meal there and a natter with Steve and Caroline at the bar in the garden afterwards.
On Monday, Jeff's little old gardener man came again. His name is Ahmed, he's 60 and is completely deaf, but shouts at us in very good English. He certainly knows his trees, he pruned our young olive tree so that it now actually looks like an olive tree and not the poor neglected thing it was. Ahmed is full of wisdom and sound advice and has taken Jeff under his wing. Between them, albeit Ahmed doing the lion share, they cleared loads of rubbish from the garden again, it is beginning to look so much better, even without any plants.
The pool filling also started on Monday. A neighbour named Gargarin has an all sorts business supplying hard core, top soil, machinery and water. He has a couple of battered old tankers and one of them arrived at 9am to start filling the pool - this was the first of what was to be 9 tanker loads, taking over 2 days to complete.
On Tuesday he brought a big saw and joined Ahmed in pruning the carob tree into shape. It is now totally transformed, what previously looked like a huge bush is now a handsome tree. Ahmed said that a tree is like a man, if he doesn't shave he gets a big bushy beard, once shaved a man looks much smarter, it's the same with the tree. The carob now creates wonderful pools of shade in the garden, so much so we were driven into building a hammock we had bought from B & Q last summer and shipped out with our goods and chattles. This took most of the afternoon but now provides a very comfy place for 40 winks after lunch!
Ahmed words of wisdom today to Jeff - it is good to sometimes walk alone then your thoughts do not get interrupted.
Mehmet's pool men came and commissioned pool - all in working order, chemicals in and in 2 hours from now we can swim (2pm). That was the plan - but we had arranged to meet the proprietor of a pool cleaning and maintenance firm at our house at 5pm, so it was necessary to go off and do a bit of shopping. If we are quick we could swim before he comes. This didn't happen either! No sooner had I put my swimming costume on than Veli arrived.
Veli is an East End boy whose father was Cypriot. He is a builder by trade and decided to move out here 4 years ago when people were first beginning to show an interest in property in N Cyprus. He still has a building business but has now added the Pool Maintenance business too (and I don't doubt he has fingers in other pies too). Boy, could he talk, he told us of his garden, his well, his building projects and much, much more! His wife/partner was with him, Carol and she could hardly get a word in. His maintenance team were in the area and came and checked the pool chemicals. It was decided that more were needed and duly added. This meant that we couldn't swim until about 8pm!
We eventually got into the pool at around 10pm after our supper had settled and we enjoyed a deliciously refreshing swim.
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Great news from UK yesterday. Debi phoned to say that she had just brought baby Joe home from hospital. He is progressing well, almost regained his birth weight and he has passed all the pediatric tests. Needless to say, the boys are so excited to have their new brother home and Andrew is mightily relieved to have both him and Debi home.
Early yesterday morning, Jeff decided to clear a few more of the weeds and rubble from around the garden while the day was relatively cool. He decided that a bonfire would be a good way of disposing of them. It had not been lit many minutes before a neighbour, Graham, came up the road to tell him that you couldn't just light fires here because of the danger of it spreading to the surrounding dry vegetation and it was necessary to get permission from the Police first or pay a heavy fine! Ooops! He sympathised with Jeff though, he has lived here for some years and knew the difficulties of trying to establish a garden, so he offered to send his gardener up to us as he now only worked 3 days a week for him. Sure enough, later on, a little old man appeared. He spoke reasonable English and said yes he could see our problems and he would come back today and start tackling the problem for 40 YTL per day (about £11). How could we resist.
Yesterday our builder Mehmet, sent some of his men around to us to start cleaning our swimming pool, ready for filling, great news. Mehmet later appeared himself with his foreman to check that we were happy with things. Apart from filling the pool and fitting some extra railings to the edge of a patio we just had one complaint. An area of plaster on one of the outside walls had seriously cracked and it was obvious would start to fall off before long. No argument once he was shown it and agreed that his men would tackle it on Monday. He also said the water would go into our pool on Sunday, but it is now evening and there is still an empty hole. The manyana attitude prevails out here so we are sure it will happen in the next day or two, inshallah.
This morning we left the house early as we were joining a group of friends for a day out on a boat and decided we'd have time to go to the 8am Communion first, so we didn't see whether little old man had appeared until we got back in the late afternoon. Sure enough, he had made good inroads into clearing the garden, so we will see what happens tomorrow.
The boat trip was brilliant. There were 16 of us, most of whom we had met before. We sailed east out of Girne harbour, later to anchor off Turtle Beach. It really is a beach where the turtles come ashore and a team of student biologists come every year from one of the UK universities (Bristol I think) to monitor the activity. It was lovely swimming in the sea, the water was warm and so buoyant. The crew made a delicious salad lunch with grilled chicken and lovely fresh tuna that the Captain had caught the day before. A lazy couple of drinks and then we began to sail back towards Girne, stopping at Diana beach for another swim. What a great way to spend a day.
Now while the majority of the ex-pats are watching England play Ecuador, we are going to a bar that we know doesn't have TV to have our supper.
Early yesterday morning, Jeff decided to clear a few more of the weeds and rubble from around the garden while the day was relatively cool. He decided that a bonfire would be a good way of disposing of them. It had not been lit many minutes before a neighbour, Graham, came up the road to tell him that you couldn't just light fires here because of the danger of it spreading to the surrounding dry vegetation and it was necessary to get permission from the Police first or pay a heavy fine! Ooops! He sympathised with Jeff though, he has lived here for some years and knew the difficulties of trying to establish a garden, so he offered to send his gardener up to us as he now only worked 3 days a week for him. Sure enough, later on, a little old man appeared. He spoke reasonable English and said yes he could see our problems and he would come back today and start tackling the problem for 40 YTL per day (about £11). How could we resist.
Yesterday our builder Mehmet, sent some of his men around to us to start cleaning our swimming pool, ready for filling, great news. Mehmet later appeared himself with his foreman to check that we were happy with things. Apart from filling the pool and fitting some extra railings to the edge of a patio we just had one complaint. An area of plaster on one of the outside walls had seriously cracked and it was obvious would start to fall off before long. No argument once he was shown it and agreed that his men would tackle it on Monday. He also said the water would go into our pool on Sunday, but it is now evening and there is still an empty hole. The manyana attitude prevails out here so we are sure it will happen in the next day or two, inshallah.
This morning we left the house early as we were joining a group of friends for a day out on a boat and decided we'd have time to go to the 8am Communion first, so we didn't see whether little old man had appeared until we got back in the late afternoon. Sure enough, he had made good inroads into clearing the garden, so we will see what happens tomorrow.
The boat trip was brilliant. There were 16 of us, most of whom we had met before. We sailed east out of Girne harbour, later to anchor off Turtle Beach. It really is a beach where the turtles come ashore and a team of student biologists come every year from one of the UK universities (Bristol I think) to monitor the activity. It was lovely swimming in the sea, the water was warm and so buoyant. The crew made a delicious salad lunch with grilled chicken and lovely fresh tuna that the Captain had caught the day before. A lazy couple of drinks and then we began to sail back towards Girne, stopping at Diana beach for another swim. What a great way to spend a day.
Now while the majority of the ex-pats are watching England play Ecuador, we are going to a bar that we know doesn't have TV to have our supper.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
We have spent the week cleaning and unpacking, organising gates for the house (no, they don't come as part of the deal), shopping for wardrobes, loungers and sun umbrellas and getting to know the neighbours. We have also found some very quaffable wine at a modest cost too - about £1 a litre.
We have also caught up with the two men from Manchester who we met on the Italy/Turkey ferry. They had hoped to catch the N Cyprus ferry the same day we had landed at Cesme. Unfortunately they were 20 minutes too late for the ticket office, despite the fact that the boat didn't sail for a further 4 hours. It meant that their wives arrived in Cyprus before they did as they flew in from Manchester the following day. The guys had the same runaround as we did on arriving in Girne, infact Brian had to go around part of the system twice as he had a motorscooter in the back of his car! He has a very nice house, back more towards the foot of the mountains than we are, but the extra height gives him some very nice views.
We spent over 2 hours in the HSBC bank, Girne this morning in order to open a local bank account. Everything takes so long because despite being computerised the systems they operate are bureaucratic.
Good news from the Kelseys today. Baby Joe is making good progress and is out of his incubator and Debi is able to start feeding him. The other boys may well be having their new brother at home before too long.
We have also caught up with the two men from Manchester who we met on the Italy/Turkey ferry. They had hoped to catch the N Cyprus ferry the same day we had landed at Cesme. Unfortunately they were 20 minutes too late for the ticket office, despite the fact that the boat didn't sail for a further 4 hours. It meant that their wives arrived in Cyprus before they did as they flew in from Manchester the following day. The guys had the same runaround as we did on arriving in Girne, infact Brian had to go around part of the system twice as he had a motorscooter in the back of his car! He has a very nice house, back more towards the foot of the mountains than we are, but the extra height gives him some very nice views.
We spent over 2 hours in the HSBC bank, Girne this morning in order to open a local bank account. Everything takes so long because despite being computerised the systems they operate are bureaucratic.
Good news from the Kelseys today. Baby Joe is making good progress and is out of his incubator and Debi is able to start feeding him. The other boys may well be having their new brother at home before too long.
Monday, June 19, 2006
16 June 2006 wıll be a very memorable day for our famıly. Not only dıd we arrıve ın Northern Cyprus but our latest grandson, Joe was born.
He was only 5lb 7ozs and hıs arrıval was not antıcıpated for a couple of weeks, but he obvıously dıdn't want to mıss any of the excıtement. He ıs beıng looked after ın the ıntensıve care unıt at the hospıtal for the tıme beıng as he ıs experıencıng some breathıng dıffıcultıes, but we feel sure ıt ıs only a matter of days and he wıll be ok. Obvıously ıt ıs a dıffıcult tıme for Debı and Andy and our thoughts and prayers have been wıth them over thıs weekend.
What of our arrıval though, the ferry, as expected, was old, uncared for and not very comfortable. Also as expected there was a bıt of a performance gettıng on board down to all the varıous offıces that had to see our varıous papers and add theır stamps, but thıs was mıld ın comparıson to what we experıenced on arrıvıng at Kyrenıa. We were on deck at 7am watchıng the coast get nearer and eventually docked at 8am on a glorıous sunny mornıng, wıth not a cloud ın the sky. Two hours later we fınally drove through the port gates, Jeff had to vısıt 4 dıfferent offıces, some twıce and some 3 tımes (must get your papers stamped ın the correct order by the partıcular offıcer!). What a performance!
It was two very excıted people who drove along the coast road that mornıng to Karşiyaka and even more excıted when we fınally opened the front door and arrıved home! (No he dıdn't carry me over the threshold!)
Sınce arrıvıng we have been unpackıng and cleanıng and meetıng some more of our neıghbours. Two couples are on the ısland at the moment who we have not met before. Ian and Carol who have a bungalow behınd ours and Lee and Tracy who have one next-door but one to us. They are both usıng them as holıday homes for the tıme beıng and we have never managed to meet up before, so ıt has been great to say hello at last.
Yestday we went to church and became proper members of the congregatıon ınstead of vısıtors and today we have been ınto Kyrenıa to start sortıng out local bank account and pay a £2 electrıcıty bıll. Hopefully we wıll have the pool people out ın the next few days to clean and fıll our pool, but ın the meantıme we are usıng Sandıe and Steph's pool, nextdoor.
He was only 5lb 7ozs and hıs arrıval was not antıcıpated for a couple of weeks, but he obvıously dıdn't want to mıss any of the excıtement. He ıs beıng looked after ın the ıntensıve care unıt at the hospıtal for the tıme beıng as he ıs experıencıng some breathıng dıffıcultıes, but we feel sure ıt ıs only a matter of days and he wıll be ok. Obvıously ıt ıs a dıffıcult tıme for Debı and Andy and our thoughts and prayers have been wıth them over thıs weekend.
What of our arrıval though, the ferry, as expected, was old, uncared for and not very comfortable. Also as expected there was a bıt of a performance gettıng on board down to all the varıous offıces that had to see our varıous papers and add theır stamps, but thıs was mıld ın comparıson to what we experıenced on arrıvıng at Kyrenıa. We were on deck at 7am watchıng the coast get nearer and eventually docked at 8am on a glorıous sunny mornıng, wıth not a cloud ın the sky. Two hours later we fınally drove through the port gates, Jeff had to vısıt 4 dıfferent offıces, some twıce and some 3 tımes (must get your papers stamped ın the correct order by the partıcular offıcer!). What a performance!
It was two very excıted people who drove along the coast road that mornıng to Karşiyaka and even more excıted when we fınally opened the front door and arrıved home! (No he dıdn't carry me over the threshold!)
Sınce arrıvıng we have been unpackıng and cleanıng and meetıng some more of our neıghbours. Two couples are on the ısland at the moment who we have not met before. Ian and Carol who have a bungalow behınd ours and Lee and Tracy who have one next-door but one to us. They are both usıng them as holıday homes for the tıme beıng and we have never managed to meet up before, so ıt has been great to say hello at last.
Yestday we went to church and became proper members of the congregatıon ınstead of vısıtors and today we have been ınto Kyrenıa to start sortıng out local bank account and pay a £2 electrıcıty bıll. Hopefully we wıll have the pool people out ın the next few days to clean and fıll our pool, but ın the meantıme we are usıng Sandıe and Steph's pool, nextdoor.
Thursday, June 15, 2006
What an amazıng day we have had.
We left Beyşehır quıte early. Glorıous mornıng as we drove through countrysıde rıch ın wheat fıelds and olıve trees - then we began to clımb ınto the mountaıns. The road twısted and clımbed and took us through some amazıng canyons and mountaıns. Hard drıvıng but well worth ıt - we feel as though we have been soaked ın Turkey's beauty today. Almost every bend ın the road revealed somethıng more beautıful than the last.
We drove around one partıcular bend, hıgh up ın the mountaıns and wondered what we could see ın the road. We stopped to dıscover a large tortoıse slowly ploddıng hıs way across. He must have been quıte some age as he was the largest tortoıse we have seen - about 15/18 ınches long. Jeff moved hım out of danger and we went on our way.
We lunched ın a small mountaın town on chıcken doner and a sort of pıtta. Along wıth a glass of Pepsı each ıt cost 1 pound 25p for both of us! We do lıke to lıve well. After drıvıng through more wonderful countrysıde, ın the maın on good roads we arrıved ın Taşuçu at 6pm and Jeff organısed our tıckets for tonıght's ferry.
Wouldn't you belıeve that whıle we were organısıng tıckets, we met another UK couple from Wındermere headıng for Karşıyaka - they only set off last Saturday though! Some drıve.
Whıle havıng a beer a few mınutes ago I was watchıng a famıly of storks that had chosen to nest on top of a clock tower near the harbour. There were 2 young ın the nest and mum was ferryıng back and forth wıth food for them. Earlıer ın the trıp we spotted one that had made a nest on top of a telegraph pole!
The next tıme I wrıte we wıll have slept ın our own beds once more and we hope that ıt wıll not be too long before we can ınsert some photos onto the Blog.
We left Beyşehır quıte early. Glorıous mornıng as we drove through countrysıde rıch ın wheat fıelds and olıve trees - then we began to clımb ınto the mountaıns. The road twısted and clımbed and took us through some amazıng canyons and mountaıns. Hard drıvıng but well worth ıt - we feel as though we have been soaked ın Turkey's beauty today. Almost every bend ın the road revealed somethıng more beautıful than the last.
We drove around one partıcular bend, hıgh up ın the mountaıns and wondered what we could see ın the road. We stopped to dıscover a large tortoıse slowly ploddıng hıs way across. He must have been quıte some age as he was the largest tortoıse we have seen - about 15/18 ınches long. Jeff moved hım out of danger and we went on our way.
We lunched ın a small mountaın town on chıcken doner and a sort of pıtta. Along wıth a glass of Pepsı each ıt cost 1 pound 25p for both of us! We do lıke to lıve well. After drıvıng through more wonderful countrysıde, ın the maın on good roads we arrıved ın Taşuçu at 6pm and Jeff organısed our tıckets for tonıght's ferry.
Wouldn't you belıeve that whıle we were organısıng tıckets, we met another UK couple from Wındermere headıng for Karşıyaka - they only set off last Saturday though! Some drıve.
Whıle havıng a beer a few mınutes ago I was watchıng a famıly of storks that had chosen to nest on top of a clock tower near the harbour. There were 2 young ın the nest and mum was ferryıng back and forth wıth food for them. Earlıer ın the trıp we spotted one that had made a nest on top of a telegraph pole!
The next tıme I wrıte we wıll have slept ın our own beds once more and we hope that ıt wıll not be too long before we can ınsert some photos onto the Blog.
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Managed to vısıt the museum ın Uşak yesterday afternoon. Some very nıce pıeces of jewellery from a Lycıan tomb fınd.
After a short rest we went out for what turned out to be great evenıng's entertaınment. Dıdn't start too well as we found ourselves ın a 'dry' restaurant (we've sınce dıscovered that the majorıty of them are here). Anyway whether ıt was my smıle or Jeff's wınk at the waıter he sent a mınıon along the street to buy us a beer to go wıth our meal. It was a very Turkısh meal wıth the maın part beıng a rather spıcy kebab but there were several unusual accompanıements - some we lıked and some we dıdn't. After we felt ın need of some more alcohol before turnıng ın for the nıght and returned to a bar we had found earlıer ın the day. We hadn't been seated for many mınutes before a gentleman came to see ıf he could speak German to us. but we declıned as we were tıred and dıdn't want to make our braıns work that hard. However we were hardly ınto the 3rd sıp of our drınks when a lady approached usıng her lıttle Englısh to fınd out where we were from and how long we were stayıng. She was joıned by a 2nd lady and they went on to ınterrogate us. ,They had lıttle Englısh and we have even less Turkısh but I had the presence of mınd to put a sheet of Englısh/Turkısh phrases ınto my bag so between us - by poıntıng to the sheet and drawıng dıagrams we spent quıte a hılarıous hour wıth them.
Thıs mornıng we set off for Beyşehır, the 3rd largest lake ın Turkey and one that we had vısıted 20 years ago and had very fond memorıes of. Beautıful scenery, great weather and a very enjoyable drıve. We found a nıce roadsıde restaurant for lunch where they looked after us very well - no problems wıth beer here. Late thıs afternoon, after drıvıng down one sıde of the lake we arrıved ın the town of Beyşehır and trıed to fınd where we had stayed before wıthout success. Over the years the town has grown and our lıttle lakesıde restaurant had been swallowed up somewhere. Anyway we have a bed for the nıght, albeıt not the the standard we have become used to, but the sheets are clean and the plumbıng works, so we wıll be ok.
Tomorrow we hope to reach Tuşuçu but as we have not pre-booked the ferry we may or may not saıl for Gırne at mıdnıght tomorrow - anythıng could happen.
A text message from Andrew thıs mornıng told us that Debı had gone ınto hospıtal as part of her waters had broken. Thıs has happened before partıcularly wıth Tom, so ıt just means that babıes arrıval ıs gettıng closer. We spoke to Debı thıs mornıng and she ıs fıne and ıs antıcıpatıng beıng sent home from hospıtal and baby to arrıve ın about 10 days tıme.
After a short rest we went out for what turned out to be great evenıng's entertaınment. Dıdn't start too well as we found ourselves ın a 'dry' restaurant (we've sınce dıscovered that the majorıty of them are here). Anyway whether ıt was my smıle or Jeff's wınk at the waıter he sent a mınıon along the street to buy us a beer to go wıth our meal. It was a very Turkısh meal wıth the maın part beıng a rather spıcy kebab but there were several unusual accompanıements - some we lıked and some we dıdn't. After we felt ın need of some more alcohol before turnıng ın for the nıght and returned to a bar we had found earlıer ın the day. We hadn't been seated for many mınutes before a gentleman came to see ıf he could speak German to us. but we declıned as we were tıred and dıdn't want to make our braıns work that hard. However we were hardly ınto the 3rd sıp of our drınks when a lady approached usıng her lıttle Englısh to fınd out where we were from and how long we were stayıng. She was joıned by a 2nd lady and they went on to ınterrogate us. ,They had lıttle Englısh and we have even less Turkısh but I had the presence of mınd to put a sheet of Englısh/Turkısh phrases ınto my bag so between us - by poıntıng to the sheet and drawıng dıagrams we spent quıte a hılarıous hour wıth them.
Thıs mornıng we set off for Beyşehır, the 3rd largest lake ın Turkey and one that we had vısıted 20 years ago and had very fond memorıes of. Beautıful scenery, great weather and a very enjoyable drıve. We found a nıce roadsıde restaurant for lunch where they looked after us very well - no problems wıth beer here. Late thıs afternoon, after drıvıng down one sıde of the lake we arrıved ın the town of Beyşehır and trıed to fınd where we had stayed before wıthout success. Over the years the town has grown and our lıttle lakesıde restaurant had been swallowed up somewhere. Anyway we have a bed for the nıght, albeıt not the the standard we have become used to, but the sheets are clean and the plumbıng works, so we wıll be ok.
Tomorrow we hope to reach Tuşuçu but as we have not pre-booked the ferry we may or may not saıl for Gırne at mıdnıght tomorrow - anythıng could happen.
A text message from Andrew thıs mornıng told us that Debı had gone ınto hospıtal as part of her waters had broken. Thıs has happened before partıcularly wıth Tom, so ıt just means that babıes arrıval ıs gettıng closer. We spoke to Debı thıs mornıng and she ıs fıne and ıs antıcıpatıng beıng sent home from hospıtal and baby to arrıve ın about 10 days tıme.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Back on terra fırma after our crossıng from Italy to Turkey. Gettıng through the boat formalıtıes was not as manıc as we thought ıt mıght be and although we had to ask for a change of cabın after a fırst nıght wıth very lıttle sleep (cabın located above the propellors!) once thıs was sorted and we had a new cabın up ın the bow we were very comfortable for the rest of the tıme at sea. The boat was not too busy so thıngs lıke restaurants and bars were not too crowded.
We were able to relax and catch up wıth some readıng on the fırst day, but on the 2nd evenıng we met up wıth two men travellıng from Manchester - to guess where - Karşıyaka. Brıan has a house not far from ours and he had a frıend wıth hım to share the drıvıng. Both theır wıves were flyıng out to Cyprus to joın them later thıs week. Brıan and Bob were hopıng to do the journey ın 7 days (ıncludıng the 3 on the boat), not quıte the way we were doıng ıt. They were great company so ıt put pay to our relaxed readıng the followıng day as the sun was shınıng and we were all on the sun deck sharıng a few tales along wıth a few beers!
Thıs mornıng saw us wıth a very early start - up at 6am for a cup of tea and collectıng our thıngs together before the boat docked at 7am ın Çeşme. There was a bıt of queuıng on shore to complete formalıtıes but by 8am we were on the road out of the port and headıng for Uşak about 150 mıles due east. Nıce journey, not too busy and we have found a lovely hotel mentıoned on my 'Specıal Places to Stay ın Turkey' book. It ıs ın the centre of the large town of Uşak and has been made from a restored 18th century warehous. We have just consumed a lovely lunch of spıt roast chıcken, salad and delıcıous bread all washed down wıth a beer for a fıver for the 2 of us!
Questıon for all the boys: Sam, Josh, Wılls, Tom and Ross: what was ıt lıke to go campıng? Dıd you get to stay up late?
Questıon for Sam: We've been wonderıng now that you have lost your front teeth can you stıll suck up spaghettı?
Questıon for Josh: Are you stıll followıng where we are on your map.
We were able to relax and catch up wıth some readıng on the fırst day, but on the 2nd evenıng we met up wıth two men travellıng from Manchester - to guess where - Karşıyaka. Brıan has a house not far from ours and he had a frıend wıth hım to share the drıvıng. Both theır wıves were flyıng out to Cyprus to joın them later thıs week. Brıan and Bob were hopıng to do the journey ın 7 days (ıncludıng the 3 on the boat), not quıte the way we were doıng ıt. They were great company so ıt put pay to our relaxed readıng the followıng day as the sun was shınıng and we were all on the sun deck sharıng a few tales along wıth a few beers!
Thıs mornıng saw us wıth a very early start - up at 6am for a cup of tea and collectıng our thıngs together before the boat docked at 7am ın Çeşme. There was a bıt of queuıng on shore to complete formalıtıes but by 8am we were on the road out of the port and headıng for Uşak about 150 mıles due east. Nıce journey, not too busy and we have found a lovely hotel mentıoned on my 'Specıal Places to Stay ın Turkey' book. It ıs ın the centre of the large town of Uşak and has been made from a restored 18th century warehous. We have just consumed a lovely lunch of spıt roast chıcken, salad and delıcıous bread all washed down wıth a beer for a fıver for the 2 of us!
Questıon for all the boys: Sam, Josh, Wılls, Tom and Ross: what was ıt lıke to go campıng? Dıd you get to stay up late?
Questıon for Sam: We've been wonderıng now that you have lost your front teeth can you stıll suck up spaghettı?
Questıon for Josh: Are you stıll followıng where we are on your map.
Saturday, June 10, 2006
Thursday 8 June
After a modest breakfast we set off to find a particular hotel in a seaside town called Roseta degli Abruzzi. We had been using a book of Italy's Hotels de Logis and each one had been excellent. The Hotel del Lido here was the only one in the book for this area, so after the previous day's experience in finding what we wanted we decided to plump for this one and check in for a couple of days.
This is where we met Franco, the hotel owner. What a man, he could talk for Italy. Although alteration work was still taking place on the hotel he made us so welcome and was so proud of his half completed establishment. He could not do enough for us and he spoke excellent English, so we immediately felt very comfortable. We had a nice room with a large patio next to the garden (and not too far from the sea one way and the railway line the other - you cannot win them all!). As his dining room and kitchens were not completed he served our breakfast on our patio - what silver service for breakfast! It was great.
There was nothing remarkable about Roseta d A, it has long sandy beaches, all geared up for hundreds of sunbathers but it was still off season so we were able to wander unimpeded. We sorted our clothes out first and gave them a good airing (the bags were getting a bit smelly!). Then we had a lazy lunch of calamari at a beach cafe and spent the afternoon catching some rays of sunshine. We ate extremely well that evening in a fish restaurant where the first course was a series of fish dishes, small portions similar to a meze, they included octopus salad, fresh anchovies, oysters and prawns. Second course was an assortement of small fish and squid deep fried - a beautiful meal.
Our friend Franco recommended that we explore the interior of Abbruzzo a little and with his advice we headed for a small hilltop town that overlooked Roseta d A. It was only small but very old, and walking down its narrow streets we would turn a corner to be confronted by the most wonderful views, some down to the sea and others over the hills and others to the Gran Sasso mountains with snow covered tops. From there we went to a town called Teramo. Again an ancient centre, beautiful piazzas and lovely old buildings. We could have spent much more time there but on Franco's agenda was a visit to Citaveli de Tronto. This we could not have missed. Dominating the countryside for miles around is this huge fortress on top of the hill and the old medieval town tumbling down the sides. We have never seen such a huge fortress and still very much intact (after some resturation of course). It contained 3 huge plazas for the parading of the troops, accommodation for men and horses still intact but most striking was the size and the area it commanded. Well when we got back to Roseta it was "thank you Franco" for giving us the information for such a great day. On this little taster we know there is much more to explore in Abbruzzo so if you are looking for somewhere different for a holiday, think of this area, maybe even combine it with Florence. We can assure you of a great welcome.
The best was yet to come though. Jeff and I were getting a bit "fished out" food-wise, so we went on a serious search for some red meat - and it was not easy to find. We didn't want to drive and many of the smarter restaurants doing local food were just out of town, however we spotted a sign for a restaurant at the back of the town. I wrote what we had in a little note book I carry, because I would not have been able to remember it all. Here goes: First complimentary aperitifs of Spumanti and Tomato Bruschetta.
We shared the started which consisted of little portions of:
Apple Slices on Cheese
Tomatoe sliced with soft cheese
Ham rolled around grapefruit
Rice Mixture
Bressano ham
Tomatoe and sieved egg on bruschetta
Proscuittio wrapped around nectarine
Sweet grated carrot
Potato, cheese and ham slices
Ricotta & herbs
Courgette wrapped around soft cheese
Flagelot beans on bruschetta
Spinach with grapefruit
all served with the most delicious olive bread.
Our main course was the most delicious entrecote steak with a mixed salad
and all this was washed down with some gorgeous red wine at EU4 per carafe!
No we didn't have room for pudding..............
After a modest breakfast we set off to find a particular hotel in a seaside town called Roseta degli Abruzzi. We had been using a book of Italy's Hotels de Logis and each one had been excellent. The Hotel del Lido here was the only one in the book for this area, so after the previous day's experience in finding what we wanted we decided to plump for this one and check in for a couple of days.
This is where we met Franco, the hotel owner. What a man, he could talk for Italy. Although alteration work was still taking place on the hotel he made us so welcome and was so proud of his half completed establishment. He could not do enough for us and he spoke excellent English, so we immediately felt very comfortable. We had a nice room with a large patio next to the garden (and not too far from the sea one way and the railway line the other - you cannot win them all!). As his dining room and kitchens were not completed he served our breakfast on our patio - what silver service for breakfast! It was great.
There was nothing remarkable about Roseta d A, it has long sandy beaches, all geared up for hundreds of sunbathers but it was still off season so we were able to wander unimpeded. We sorted our clothes out first and gave them a good airing (the bags were getting a bit smelly!). Then we had a lazy lunch of calamari at a beach cafe and spent the afternoon catching some rays of sunshine. We ate extremely well that evening in a fish restaurant where the first course was a series of fish dishes, small portions similar to a meze, they included octopus salad, fresh anchovies, oysters and prawns. Second course was an assortement of small fish and squid deep fried - a beautiful meal.
Our friend Franco recommended that we explore the interior of Abbruzzo a little and with his advice we headed for a small hilltop town that overlooked Roseta d A. It was only small but very old, and walking down its narrow streets we would turn a corner to be confronted by the most wonderful views, some down to the sea and others over the hills and others to the Gran Sasso mountains with snow covered tops. From there we went to a town called Teramo. Again an ancient centre, beautiful piazzas and lovely old buildings. We could have spent much more time there but on Franco's agenda was a visit to Citaveli de Tronto. This we could not have missed. Dominating the countryside for miles around is this huge fortress on top of the hill and the old medieval town tumbling down the sides. We have never seen such a huge fortress and still very much intact (after some resturation of course). It contained 3 huge plazas for the parading of the troops, accommodation for men and horses still intact but most striking was the size and the area it commanded. Well when we got back to Roseta it was "thank you Franco" for giving us the information for such a great day. On this little taster we know there is much more to explore in Abbruzzo so if you are looking for somewhere different for a holiday, think of this area, maybe even combine it with Florence. We can assure you of a great welcome.
The best was yet to come though. Jeff and I were getting a bit "fished out" food-wise, so we went on a serious search for some red meat - and it was not easy to find. We didn't want to drive and many of the smarter restaurants doing local food were just out of town, however we spotted a sign for a restaurant at the back of the town. I wrote what we had in a little note book I carry, because I would not have been able to remember it all. Here goes: First complimentary aperitifs of Spumanti and Tomato Bruschetta.
We shared the started which consisted of little portions of:
Apple Slices on Cheese
Tomatoe sliced with soft cheese
Ham rolled around grapefruit
Rice Mixture
Bressano ham
Tomatoe and sieved egg on bruschetta
Proscuittio wrapped around nectarine
Sweet grated carrot
Potato, cheese and ham slices
Ricotta & herbs
Courgette wrapped around soft cheese
Flagelot beans on bruschetta
Spinach with grapefruit
all served with the most delicious olive bread.
Our main course was the most delicious entrecote steak with a mixed salad
and all this was washed down with some gorgeous red wine at EU4 per carafe!
No we didn't have room for pudding..............
It is now Saturday 10th June and we have just arrived in Ancona. We experienced a few problems with the Internet Cafe in Roseta degli Abruzzi where we have recently been staying. It had erratic opening hours, so as a consequence we were rather frustrated over making our postings.
Anyway, to continue our story from Mattinata. The next morning, after picking up supplies from the local supermercator we went inland and up, through the most wonderful countryside of forest and mountains to the tip of Italy's spur, a town called Vieste. A pretty port and old world town. Mixed day of showers and sunshine found us driving up the east coast, past mile after mile of golden sands on our right and to our left snow-capped mountains, it was a really great drive.
We were aiming for anywhere along the coast that took our fancy, but it seemed that hotels were few and hard to find. Although the coast was geared up for holidaymakers. They either took their own accommodation with them (loads of campsites) or else rented an apartment - of which there were hundreds. Eventually, as the evening was drawing in and we had travelled for quite some time, in desperation we saw a sign for a hotel off the beaten track upon a hillside and checked in for the night there. The hotel was small but friendly and the views in all directions were fabulous. We were given a simple but adequate dinner there, with what has now become the norm - a carafe of wine and after an hour with our books we were soon off to bed.
Anyway, to continue our story from Mattinata. The next morning, after picking up supplies from the local supermercator we went inland and up, through the most wonderful countryside of forest and mountains to the tip of Italy's spur, a town called Vieste. A pretty port and old world town. Mixed day of showers and sunshine found us driving up the east coast, past mile after mile of golden sands on our right and to our left snow-capped mountains, it was a really great drive.
We were aiming for anywhere along the coast that took our fancy, but it seemed that hotels were few and hard to find. Although the coast was geared up for holidaymakers. They either took their own accommodation with them (loads of campsites) or else rented an apartment - of which there were hundreds. Eventually, as the evening was drawing in and we had travelled for quite some time, in desperation we saw a sign for a hotel off the beaten track upon a hillside and checked in for the night there. The hotel was small but friendly and the views in all directions were fabulous. We were given a simple but adequate dinner there, with what has now become the norm - a carafe of wine and after an hour with our books we were soon off to bed.
We have been away from the Internet facilities for a few days so while this could be a mamouth entry, I will break it down into sections to make it more manageable.
Saturday 3 June
After completing the laundry on the first day in Sorrento, as the sun was shining we decided to explore the coast a little more. To save any further driving we took the local bus to Positano on the recommendation of an American couple we met in our hotel. This proved to be great fun as the bus twisted and turned along the cliff-side. The driver was taking no prisoners, so all oncoming traffic scattered out of his way. Positano is a small village built up the cliffside from a tiny port and beach below. It is really pretty to see all the white-washed houses tumbling down the hillside. We meandered downhill in the sunshine and wandered about before taking the shorter and less steep circuit out of the village back up to the main road and the bus back to Sorrento. By the time the bus arrived there was a bus load and a half waiting to board it. The driver was a real star and did his best to get everyone on, encouraging everyone to squash up and apart from his knee I believe every other space on the bus was occupied. Then it was foot down and away back to Sorrento - quite an experience!
That evening we dined in the hotel which was located like an eagles nest high up on the cliffs looking out over the Gulf of Naples and down onto Sorrento below. We could not have imagined a more delightful place to be.
On Sunday, the 4th June we decided to have a cultural day and visit the sites of Ercolanum and Pompeii.
We took the hotel shuttle bus into Sorrento and then caught the local train, first to Ercolanum. The day started well with the sun shining on us and as we had made an early start there were not too many people at the site. We really enjoyed wandering the narrow streets and exploring the villas of the wealthy who had lived in that area. Many of the buildings were pretty well intact and there were mosaics and wall paintings intact in many of them (of course the best bits were in the museums). On the way out of the site we bumped into a local parade - Italy down the ages were represented. The parade was led by a centurion in his chariot, then Byzantine Italy, 19 century Italy and then down through the 20th century with flappers, post WW2, and 60s. Jeff managed to catch the eye of a medieval lady in a carriage and she gave him a carnation!
After a bite to eat we caught the train again, just a couple of stops down the line and we were in Pompeii. The enormity of the site was quite mind blowing, plus the fact that there is still much more to be discovered. Everything was on a much bigger scale here, making it less intimate. There were huge temples to Appollo, the forum area and surrounding shops being interesting and we found 2 open air theatres plus a huge amphitheatre (not quite Coliseum size). During the afternoon the weather changed and mount Vesuvius disappeared from view beneath thunder clouds - we had obviously chosen the wrong gods to favour. We had to shelter from the rain for a while but there was a convenient arch or two nearby.
It was two weary people who got off the train in Sorrento and it decided to rain again so in our dash for the hotel bus we got very wet - but it had been a good day and we had all evening to enjoy our view, even if the clouds did roll around Vesuvius across the bay.
Monday 5th June
Monday morning dawned bright and clear and we had a lazy breakfast before packing up again and set off around the Sorrento peninsuar towards Salerno. The whole of that coastline is so pretty. We went through Positano again, a quick coffee stop in Amalfi and through, above and around numerous other little cliffside villages.
Salerno was a great disappointment. A bit scruffy, busy, industrial port, so we headed further south, keeping to the coast road to another historical site I had read about - Paestum. This turned out to be wonderful. We found a hotel immediately opposite the entrance and arrived early enough for Jeff to have a swim in the pool (I paddled - it was a bit chilly for me). Then it was across the road to the site of 3 most wonderful Greek temples, probably more complete than the Acropolis. Obviously a site not known to many outside Italy and although it is cared for, not a lot of money had been spent on it (unlike Pompeii). It was magical wandering around it in the late afternoon sunshine with only a few people about. We were glad we had made the effort to come that little bit further south.
The next morning we retraced our journey to Salerno and then across Italy from west to east. This journey took us through a range of mountains and then across a vast wheatland plain. It took about 3 hours and we decided to make a slight detour and visit a castle I had read about.
Castelo del Monte was interesting for the fact that everything about it was 8-sided. The body of the castle was built in an octagone shape and there were 8 octagonal towers on each corner and all the internal rooms were octagonal too. It was built around the time of the Crusaders and had been occupied until around the 17 century when it fell into neglect. The Italian Government have been instrumental in restoring it in recent years and now it stands magnificent on a hill overlooking the countryside for many miles around.
Then we drove to Trani on the coast - another town with a large cathedral unusually built right on the side of the port. It had an interesting old centre to the town and it rained there too! We drove up the coast to the area on the map that looks like the spur on the boot of Italy - the Gargano National Park. Here we stayed in a small town call Mattinata in a hotel called The Veranda, that overlooked the sea.
Saturday 3 June
After completing the laundry on the first day in Sorrento, as the sun was shining we decided to explore the coast a little more. To save any further driving we took the local bus to Positano on the recommendation of an American couple we met in our hotel. This proved to be great fun as the bus twisted and turned along the cliff-side. The driver was taking no prisoners, so all oncoming traffic scattered out of his way. Positano is a small village built up the cliffside from a tiny port and beach below. It is really pretty to see all the white-washed houses tumbling down the hillside. We meandered downhill in the sunshine and wandered about before taking the shorter and less steep circuit out of the village back up to the main road and the bus back to Sorrento. By the time the bus arrived there was a bus load and a half waiting to board it. The driver was a real star and did his best to get everyone on, encouraging everyone to squash up and apart from his knee I believe every other space on the bus was occupied. Then it was foot down and away back to Sorrento - quite an experience!
That evening we dined in the hotel which was located like an eagles nest high up on the cliffs looking out over the Gulf of Naples and down onto Sorrento below. We could not have imagined a more delightful place to be.
On Sunday, the 4th June we decided to have a cultural day and visit the sites of Ercolanum and Pompeii.
We took the hotel shuttle bus into Sorrento and then caught the local train, first to Ercolanum. The day started well with the sun shining on us and as we had made an early start there were not too many people at the site. We really enjoyed wandering the narrow streets and exploring the villas of the wealthy who had lived in that area. Many of the buildings were pretty well intact and there were mosaics and wall paintings intact in many of them (of course the best bits were in the museums). On the way out of the site we bumped into a local parade - Italy down the ages were represented. The parade was led by a centurion in his chariot, then Byzantine Italy, 19 century Italy and then down through the 20th century with flappers, post WW2, and 60s. Jeff managed to catch the eye of a medieval lady in a carriage and she gave him a carnation!
After a bite to eat we caught the train again, just a couple of stops down the line and we were in Pompeii. The enormity of the site was quite mind blowing, plus the fact that there is still much more to be discovered. Everything was on a much bigger scale here, making it less intimate. There were huge temples to Appollo, the forum area and surrounding shops being interesting and we found 2 open air theatres plus a huge amphitheatre (not quite Coliseum size). During the afternoon the weather changed and mount Vesuvius disappeared from view beneath thunder clouds - we had obviously chosen the wrong gods to favour. We had to shelter from the rain for a while but there was a convenient arch or two nearby.
It was two weary people who got off the train in Sorrento and it decided to rain again so in our dash for the hotel bus we got very wet - but it had been a good day and we had all evening to enjoy our view, even if the clouds did roll around Vesuvius across the bay.
Monday 5th June
Monday morning dawned bright and clear and we had a lazy breakfast before packing up again and set off around the Sorrento peninsuar towards Salerno. The whole of that coastline is so pretty. We went through Positano again, a quick coffee stop in Amalfi and through, above and around numerous other little cliffside villages.
Salerno was a great disappointment. A bit scruffy, busy, industrial port, so we headed further south, keeping to the coast road to another historical site I had read about - Paestum. This turned out to be wonderful. We found a hotel immediately opposite the entrance and arrived early enough for Jeff to have a swim in the pool (I paddled - it was a bit chilly for me). Then it was across the road to the site of 3 most wonderful Greek temples, probably more complete than the Acropolis. Obviously a site not known to many outside Italy and although it is cared for, not a lot of money had been spent on it (unlike Pompeii). It was magical wandering around it in the late afternoon sunshine with only a few people about. We were glad we had made the effort to come that little bit further south.
The next morning we retraced our journey to Salerno and then across Italy from west to east. This journey took us through a range of mountains and then across a vast wheatland plain. It took about 3 hours and we decided to make a slight detour and visit a castle I had read about.
Castelo del Monte was interesting for the fact that everything about it was 8-sided. The body of the castle was built in an octagone shape and there were 8 octagonal towers on each corner and all the internal rooms were octagonal too. It was built around the time of the Crusaders and had been occupied until around the 17 century when it fell into neglect. The Italian Government have been instrumental in restoring it in recent years and now it stands magnificent on a hill overlooking the countryside for many miles around.
Then we drove to Trani on the coast - another town with a large cathedral unusually built right on the side of the port. It had an interesting old centre to the town and it rained there too! We drove up the coast to the area on the map that looks like the spur on the boot of Italy - the Gargano National Park. Here we stayed in a small town call Mattinata in a hotel called The Veranda, that overlooked the sea.
Saturday, June 03, 2006
Yesterday, 2nd June was the Day of the Republic of Italy. We had originally planned to visit the Colliseum but thought we would check with the garage staff where Jeff had left the car, that we could collect it around 1pm and make our departure from Rome then. That was when we discovered the garage would be closed after 10am until that evening as everyone was going to the National Day parade. This was to take place just in front of the Colliseum! A rapid change of plan was called for. We decided to load the car there and forego the visit to the Colliseum. This worked to our advantage because all the roads were so quiet, we were able to leave Rome without any stress.
Once on the autostrade we were heading for Naples. To start with it was an easy journey and we decided to make a break and visit the site of the battle of Monte Cassino. This is where we first met traffic jams. These were not for the battle site and British War Cemetary but because Monte Cassino is in a most beautiful valley and local Italians were taking advantage of the holiday and were visiting the abbey at the top of the mountain. We went to the Military Cemetery, which was very similar to others around the world, except that this has Monte Cassino as it's backdrop. What amazed us most was the number of Commonwealth soldiers who are buried there. We spotted some from India, Pakistan, Canada, S Africa, N Zealand, Cyprus etc. So many of the old regiments I have been dealing with over the years were also represented there.
Moving further south using the main roads and autostrade we eventually reached the Gulf of Naples. Due to a misunderstanding by both of us on how the road system was on the peninsular, we travelled cross country, down little lanes and villages until we reached Sorrento. A popular holiday spot with many hotels, we had booked one that described itself as being located 5kms above the town of Sorrento with uninterrupted views of Vesuvius and the Bay. They offered a shuttle bus service to town and this gave Jeff peace of mind regarding the car being interferred with. We found a sign pointing us onto the winding cliff side road and drove up and up and up until we were almost in the cloud base - oh yes, I forgot to mention that as soon as we hit Naples and that most beautiful of coast lines, the heavens opened and we were in the middle of a terrific thunderstorm!
Eventually we found our Hotel Il Nido. It is in a most fabulous location. From our room and the restaurant we can see the whole of the Bay and we look directly across to Vesuvius. We woke this morning to gloriious sunshine and the view from Capri all the way around to Sorrento below us are simply breathtaking. Well worth the effort of finding this hotel. We have come into town on the shuttle bus and while I write this Jeff is watching his smalls go around in a Laundromat. Then we are off to explore a bit of the coast.
Once on the autostrade we were heading for Naples. To start with it was an easy journey and we decided to make a break and visit the site of the battle of Monte Cassino. This is where we first met traffic jams. These were not for the battle site and British War Cemetary but because Monte Cassino is in a most beautiful valley and local Italians were taking advantage of the holiday and were visiting the abbey at the top of the mountain. We went to the Military Cemetery, which was very similar to others around the world, except that this has Monte Cassino as it's backdrop. What amazed us most was the number of Commonwealth soldiers who are buried there. We spotted some from India, Pakistan, Canada, S Africa, N Zealand, Cyprus etc. So many of the old regiments I have been dealing with over the years were also represented there.
Moving further south using the main roads and autostrade we eventually reached the Gulf of Naples. Due to a misunderstanding by both of us on how the road system was on the peninsular, we travelled cross country, down little lanes and villages until we reached Sorrento. A popular holiday spot with many hotels, we had booked one that described itself as being located 5kms above the town of Sorrento with uninterrupted views of Vesuvius and the Bay. They offered a shuttle bus service to town and this gave Jeff peace of mind regarding the car being interferred with. We found a sign pointing us onto the winding cliff side road and drove up and up and up until we were almost in the cloud base - oh yes, I forgot to mention that as soon as we hit Naples and that most beautiful of coast lines, the heavens opened and we were in the middle of a terrific thunderstorm!
Eventually we found our Hotel Il Nido. It is in a most fabulous location. From our room and the restaurant we can see the whole of the Bay and we look directly across to Vesuvius. We woke this morning to gloriious sunshine and the view from Capri all the way around to Sorrento below us are simply breathtaking. Well worth the effort of finding this hotel. We have come into town on the shuttle bus and while I write this Jeff is watching his smalls go around in a Laundromat. Then we are off to explore a bit of the coast.
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Today is the 1st June and this is Rome .. makes you think of sunshine and heat doesn't it. Well after leaving our hotel at 8am and taking the Metro to the Vatican City, we joined a very long queue for the Museum. Before we reached the ticket office we had to resort to buying an umbrella from a street trader. It threw it down. We had seen the weather forecast promising rain, but hey, this is Rome and its summer.
Anyway it didn't spoil our day, we spent the whole morning and more in the museum, it has so many wonderful things to see and not only are there wonderful artefacts, but the rooms and the buildings themselves are fantastic. Those of you who have been will know that the circuit around the museum ends by taking you to the Cistene Chapel, which is a whole breath-taking experience in itself. The whole experience was worth every minute of the queuing and the soaking we got. It will be an experience we will remember for ever.
After a short respite with a glass of vino blanco we ventured on again to St Peter's Square, where we joined yet another queue to enter St Peter's Basilica. We were behind a group of English catholics from Coventry which was amusing. The Basilica is just awesome and despite all the tour groups being conducted around, we plugged ourselves into our audio guides and lost ourselves in the enormity and splendour of the many wonderful things inside. What an age it must have been to have lived through when Michealangelo and his contempories were alive, so much talent existed. One of the surprising things we found was the grave of the last of the Stuarts - the famous Pretender and his wife have their memorials there.
All in all it was a trip of nearly 9 hours duration and do our feet know it! Fortunately there is a convenient bar just opposite our hotel where we could refresh the inner man at least. We had intended to be back sufficiently early to start downloading some pictures but alas this was not the case - maybe tomorrow.
Anyway it didn't spoil our day, we spent the whole morning and more in the museum, it has so many wonderful things to see and not only are there wonderful artefacts, but the rooms and the buildings themselves are fantastic. Those of you who have been will know that the circuit around the museum ends by taking you to the Cistene Chapel, which is a whole breath-taking experience in itself. The whole experience was worth every minute of the queuing and the soaking we got. It will be an experience we will remember for ever.
After a short respite with a glass of vino blanco we ventured on again to St Peter's Square, where we joined yet another queue to enter St Peter's Basilica. We were behind a group of English catholics from Coventry which was amusing. The Basilica is just awesome and despite all the tour groups being conducted around, we plugged ourselves into our audio guides and lost ourselves in the enormity and splendour of the many wonderful things inside. What an age it must have been to have lived through when Michealangelo and his contempories were alive, so much talent existed. One of the surprising things we found was the grave of the last of the Stuarts - the famous Pretender and his wife have their memorials there.
All in all it was a trip of nearly 9 hours duration and do our feet know it! Fortunately there is a convenient bar just opposite our hotel where we could refresh the inner man at least. We had intended to be back sufficiently early to start downloading some pictures but alas this was not the case - maybe tomorrow.
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