Extreme Park

                                                     http://www.extremepark.com.cy/home

Extreme Park covers an area of more than 6000 sq. metres. It is Nicosia’s leading Theme Park dedicated to children aged 1-13. The Park was founded in 1998 and is located in the heart of Nicosia, at Strovolos district. Fun never stops, offering an unrivalled selection of games to enjoy.

Parents can sit and enjoy peacefully a drink or meal, while children play supervised on the Park’s premises.

The Park is divided into 3 sections - 'Outdoor Fun Factory' covering all agegroups from 1-13 (operating during summer months), and 2 levels Indoors; 'Underwater Adventure' where play areas cover ages 1-8 & ‘Plus 2’ more suitable for ages 5-13.

These boots were made for walking - Paula Manoli-Gray

As an island, we are notorious for the lack of walking we do, and it is certainly one of the top things I miss about living in the UK.

Back in my London days, I never had a car and would walk to the train station to get to wherever I needed to go - a walk that was 15 minutes long. I would also walk to work and back (20 minutes each way), and walk around the area or shopping centre during my lunch break. I would say I probably averaged 60 minutes functional walking a day without even thinking about it, and much more on the weekends. As such, there was no need to join a gym or worry about my fitness levels as they were naturally taken care of in the course of a day.

Where my house is now in the area of Vergina, I couldn't walk anywhere functional even if I wanted to. There are few safe pavements and once you reach the end of my neighbourhood, it is extremely dangerous to try and walk towards any kind of shops or services as you need to pass through some busy/main roads that are completely devoid of any safe routes or crossings for pedestrians. As such, I feel kind of trapped, like the only way out of my neighbourhood is by car, unless I want to risk my life.

But the dangerous car dodging aside, for the most part of the year it is just too hot to walk. Even a trip to the town centre for a walk around the shops can incur sunstroke and is not particularly pleasurable like it would be in the UK. Unless you can get up at 5am to walk before the sun fully wakes then your window for walking is not big. 

I do try and go for a walk in the cooler months down the salt lake or in my area, but it seems that walking in Larnaca is a very contrived and ironic experience; you get in the car and drive to the place that you want to walk around! And the nice places for a walk are few and far between as our 'parks' aren't the variety you can enjoy a walk in. When it rains, you risk being soaked as cars zoom through those massive puddles that occur because we don't have a proper drainage system. You just can't win!

I know that people belittle the locals for never walking anywhere and the car culture we have, and whilst some of them take it to ridiculous levels (parking literally outside of where they want to go), I can understand why people don't walk. It's too much hassle on broken pavements with massive trees in the middle, it's too hot and most of the time it isn't safe.

As such, I am really looking forward to seeing the new pedestrian/cycling paths that have been promised once all the major roadworks have been completed. I hope that when it is all finished, I will safely be able to walk out of my neighbourhood to buy a bottle of milk from the peripetro or go to the cinema without having to take the car out for a two-minute distance… let's just hope they get it right this time…

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 28/06/14

Top Blogs & Websites for Parents

The MAD Blog awards for Mums & Dads 

 www.the-mads.com/winners

2013

This Week : Most Entertaining Blog

The Diary on a newborn Dad: http://goodbyepertbreasts.com/

Most Innovative Blog
Mammasaurus : www.manneskjur.com

Best Food Blog
The frugal queen www.frugalqueen.co.uk/p/frugal-food.html

Best Blog Writer
Mammywoo : misslexywoo.wordpress.com

Best Family Travel Blog
The Family Adventure Project www.familyadventureproject.org

Best Craft Blog
The Imagination Tree : www.theimaginationtree.com

Best Pregnancy Blog
Mummy Daddy & Me make three www.mummydaddyandmemakesthree.co.uk

Best Fashion & Beauty Blog
Style me Sunday www.stylemesunday.blogspot.co.uk

Best Thrifty Blog

Baby Budgeting: www.babybudgeting.co.uk

Aqua Gym

‘Butt’ out of our beaches - Paula Manoli-Gray

Cyprus has once again topped the list for the cleanest bathing waters in Europe, and also has a large number of beaches that are holders of the prestigious Blue Flag award.

This is both welcome and wonderful news, and it makes me proud that our coasts are considered so highly outside of the island. But it also makes me wonder just how filthy the rest of the beaches around the world are if ours are so much cleaner in comparison!

For one, the cigarette butts alone would be enough to make me strip the coasts of their high awards and titles if I was the one judging them. My blood boils every time I see my kids make a sandcastle out of cigarette butts stuck together with a bit of sand.

Smokers reading this are going to get on their high horse and get all defensive about how cigarette butts are biodegradable and that they are not a hazard to the environment. Yes, smokers have the right to smoke – even on the beach if they want – although it stinks and spoils the natural ambience, but they don't have the right to leave our children playing in piles of their cigarette remnants.

First of all, it is darn right ugly, and seeing as we all – including the smokers – use these beaches for a large part of the year, don't we care what we are lying or swimming in at all? Furthermore, a lot of young children do pick things up off the sand and put them in their mouth, or as I just mentioned, end up sitting in them and making cigarette sandcastles.

They are also most certainly not environmentally friendly. It is a myth that cigarettes are easily biodegradable. Yes, some have been found to degrade within 1-12 years, but others never decompose at all. If a smoker wants to use the 'biodegradable' argument then I would ask them this: would you like to see paper bags and tissues littered on the beach just because they too are 'biodegradable'? Just because cigarettes are sand coloured it is not okay to camouflage them in the sand.

And what about marine life ingesting cigarette ends? The safety of our sea creatures is already fragile, but if that doesn't sway people, consider this: whatever a fish eats, we eat. That lovely sushi you tuck into most likely has cigarette butts in it, ingested by the fish then by you through the food chain, and that really is 'food for thought'.

Of course, it is not just cigarettes that are spoiling our coasts and smokers are by no means the only perpetrators. I have seen a large and unusual number of items floating in the sea, and whilst that is in no way excusable, I can at least pick them up and throw them away – a task that would be near impossible with all the cigarette butts.

We all have a responsibility to keep our coasts clean, not only for the sake of receiving awards and accolades, but because our health and future as an island is as much entwined with the sea as it is with anything else.

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 21/06/14

Lavender Festival: Celebrating the healing powers of the Queen of Herbs

Lavender is an aromatic flowering plant which belongs to the Lamiaceae family. There are many varieties of lavender, some are flowering throughout the year, but have no aroma, others flower for a shorter period of time and are highly aromatic. You can't have it both ways! The lavender variety that has the most powerful medicinal properties is Lavandula Angustifolia (English Lavender). It is highly aromatic and flowers in June and July. Lavender is often called the Queen of Herbs, for its fantastic aroma, colour and because it has so many healing properties, you could fill a book with them.

Lavender has been used for centuries as a herbal remedy. It was used to relieve a variety of ailments, such as muscular aches and pains, insomnia, the ache of rheumatism and nervous headaches, colds and flu and digestive upsets. It also has antiseptic, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory, anti-convulsive, and anti-depressant properties.

To benefit from its healing power, lavender can be used internally as tea and externally as essential oil. The tea effectively deals with issues of the nervous system such as stress, anxiety, irritability, nervousness, depression, exhaustion and insomnia. It is also used to combat headaches, migraines, colds and flu, upset stomach and digestive disorders.

To make a relaxing lavender tea, simply pour boiling water over half a teaspoon of dried lavender flowers for one cup of tea. Leave it to steep for 10 minutes, then strain and drink. To use as ice tea, leave the tea to cool after straining and put in the fridge to chill.

At Cyherbia we also make a liqueur with lavender, which is an ideal nightcap. It takes you into Morpheus' arms in no time!

On the skin, lavender essential oil is an effective remedy for acne. Simply dab a drop of lavender oil directly on blemishes. The oil disinfects and dries out the spot without drying out the skin. Face cream and tonic made with lavender are ideal for all skin types but especially for skin with blemishes. The oil can also be used on wounds, burns and scaldings. Lavender oil soothes insect bites and acts also as a mosquito repellent. It is one of the few essential oils which can be used neat on the skin.

Lavender is also a well known moth repellent. Put a few organza lavender bags in your wardrobes to keep your clothes free from moths. A lavender bag will keep its scent for several years. Once in a while you may agitate the contents a little to release more aroma.

All these wonderful healing powers certainly deserve our attention. CyHerbia Herb Gardens in Avgorou will host their third annual Lavender Festival from Saturday June 14th until Sunday June 29th. During the Festival visitors can take a stroll in the lavender lined herb gardens, witness the extraction of lavender essential oil, taste unique homemade biscuits, ice cream, ice tea and liqueur made with lavender, as well as take part in various craft workshops, also with lavender. The gardens will be open daily from 9 am till 6 pm. This is truly the most fragrant festival of the year and not to be missed!

On Saturday the 21st of June at 12.30 the Minister of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment will officially open Cyherbia's new distillation unit.

For more information please visit www.cyherbia.com, www.facebook.com/cyherbia, or Tel 99915443

Just So Crafty

Bare it all… but only on the beach! - Paula Manoli-Gray

After a patchy period, I think we can safely say the hot weather is here to stay and it is officially summer 2014!

I love the sea. Not the beach, as I don't care for sunbathing and have become more paranoid about skin damage as I have got older, but the sea I adore and can happily spend hours and hours of bliss in the briny waters.

Unfortunately, there comes a price for the pleasure of enjoying our coasts, and that is the requirement to strip off into something much smaller and more revealing than I would wear at any other time. Personally, I don't wear leggings, short skirts, hot pants, tight tops, or skinny jeans, all on account of my wobbly bits and imperfections. I hate communal changing rooms in clothes shops and the gym. If a gust of wind threatens to blow my (long) skirt up I will be filled with terror. Yet, you will find me on the beach in my swimwear like none of these issues matter. It's not that I suddenly become more confident, but simply because 'it's the beach'!

And what about hair? So many women run like the wind if it threatens to rain for fear their hair will get wet and frizzy… but not at the beach!

How does the beach manage to strip away our normal inhibitions and have us parading around in smalls? It always amuses and confounds me as to why we have one rule – or set of emotions – for our everyday wear and another for the beach. It is as though there is an invisible line where we feel okay on one side, but not on the other. If someone tried to take a peek at our underwear at any other time or in another place, many (like myself) would probably not be happy, and would be embarrassed, mortified or humiliated. But not at the beach, we simply call underwear 'bikini' and it is magically okay!

Of course, there are also many who live for the chance to strip off and show their honed, toned bodies. You will find them mainly at the trendy spots of McKenzie, dancing in itsy bitsy swimwear and turning the colour of chocolate – most likely without adequate sun protection.

As for me, I like to spend my summers on the un-trendy beaches, anonymous and modestly presented, face covered by a huge hat, hoping I don't run into all the people I work with on the 'outside world'. I would never want them to see me in my underwear, but I guess none of that matters here… because it is THE BEACH!

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 14/-6/14

ANNIE

See no evil, hear no evil - Paula Manoli-Gray

One of the best things about living on the island is the relative safety we enjoy. It's not as good as it used to be; not that long ago people would leave their cars and homes unlocked without any fear, and children were confidently left to play in front gardens and neighbourhoods. We were a small island community built on trust where neighbours knew one another well enough to say more than a cursory 'good morning'. Those days are gone, but it's still good compared to most of the rest of the world.

Although, I am starting to wonder just how good it is following an emerging pattern I have noticed. In recent months, there have been several status updates on Facebook warning people to be vigilant about incidents that have happened, but none of the incidents have been publically reported. This makes me wonder how much more happens on a daily basis that we never hear of. How many crimes are committed that do not see the light of day?

The first was an alleged attack on a lone female in a popular nature spot in Larnaca, the second concerns alleged multiple attempted kidnappings of children in the Famagusta areas by the same individual, and the third is several alleged incidents of indecent exposure on one of Larnaca's most popular strips. I won't give further details as none of the stories have been substantiated by the police, and it is certainly not my place to comment and inadvertently spread gossip, especially not within the media.

It's not that I don't trust the sources. All three updates were from people I know to be honest, decent and trustworthy. Furthermore, when they posted the information, many others commented that they too had either heard of the incident or experienced it themselves.

On the one hand, the police do not want to alarm the public unnecessarily, and I can understand this to some extent. We don't need scaremongering, mass panic or vigilante behaviour. But on the other hand, if people knew, they could protect themselves – and their families better – and assist by being on the lookout for suspicious behaviour in the targeted areas, or by people who match the descriptions given.

Furthermore, the advent of social media no longer allows things to be swept under the rug. Nothing that happens in Larnaca will stay secret. We are a small town and with more and more groups and communities on social media, information spreads like wildfire, whether it is of the good variety (like special offers or achievements), or the bad.

So whilst the powers that be are trying to protect us and no doubt do have the best interest of the many at heart (the greater good for the greater number and all that), in this day and age, maybe the process should change to include the public so that they can assist. After all, the more people are aware, the quicker the alleged perpetrators can be apprehended, and the higher the likelihood of maintaining our reputation for having an enviably low crime rate.

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 07/06/14

Летний лагерь при клубе верховой езды

Клуб верховой езды Horse Leisure Club  предлагает провести "Подкованные каникулы".  Приглашаем ребят от 8 лет. Наша программа для тех, кто любит активный отдых, творчество, для тех, кто занимается конным спортом или хочет познакомиться с ним поближе, для тех, чьи интересы разнообразны, кто хочет раскрасить свои дни в яркие цвета и смотреть на мир позитивно!

В программе лагеря: катание на лошадях/пони и уроки верховой езды, полезный труд (полить цветы, покормить и почистить животных), экскурсии (водный парк, парк каменных скульптур, лабиринт из живой изгороди и др), пикники и походы, активные игры на улице, спокойные игры в помещении, умелые ручки, поварское искусство,  купание в бассейне (на территории клуба), выезды на море, снак, обед.

Мы предлагаем три варианта прибывания в лагере: до 13:00 (от €125 за неделю), до 14:00 с обедом (от €150 за неделю)  или на пятидневку с проживанием (от €300 за неделю). Уроки верховой езды и экскурсии оплачиваются дополнительно. Лагерь будет работать только 4 недели, кол-во мест ограничено.

За информацией обращайтесь по тел. 99673768 – Ирина или пишите на info@cyprus-horseriding.com  Посмотрите нашу страничку www.cyprus-horseriding.com или на facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Horse-Leisure-Club-HLC/211500888878586

LPN June Competition

Did someone say Ice - Cream ? Answer this months LPN Question and Win an Ice -cream eating play date with Larnaca's most Famous Ice - Cream eating parrot ...

Where in Larnaca can you find this Ice Cream eating parrot ?
Leave your answer on the comment section below :0) 

American Academy

American Academy Nursery Summer School, which is for 3-5 year olds.  The cost is €60 per week and it runs for 5 weeks from Monday 30^th June till Friday 1^st August, and starts at 7.30am until 1.30pm.

If a child stays for 4 weeks and pays in advance there is a discount and they will be charged €230.  If a child stays for the whole 5 week period, they pay €285 and there is a registration fee of €10.

I also attach the lunch menu for your information.  Lunch is optional at a cost of €20 per week.

For your information the summer school will work on “themes” as follows:

-          Beach Week

-          Pirate Week

-          Holiday Week

-          Summer Fruits

There will be an English speaking and Greek speaking teacher in the class.

The children will have fun with various activities, like painting pebbles, and making ice-lollies and they will also have a water day, where they will have their swim suits and play in a paddling pool.

World's first sensory restaurant for BABIES - Opens in London

World's first sensory restaurant for BABIES complete with digital menus and interactive menus opens doors Weeny Weaning Restaurant opened doors today in Clapham  - Features sensory area, digital menus and interactive eating areas - Aims to encourage children to adopt healthy eating habits early on


The world’s first sensory restaurant for babies, which aims to encourage healthy eating from a young age, has opened its doors today.


With the aim of helping mothers and fathers introduce their little ones to healthy eating habits early on, the Weeny Weaning Restaurant aims to help families make mealtimes fun through sensory play and expert advice.

The restaurant in Clapham features a dedicated sensory area where mini diners are encouraged to play and explore before taking their seats to tuck in.

'If you can involve your little ones in the food preparation process, such as giving them veggies and fruits to play with, it will make them more engaged from the start,' explained Consultant Infant Nutritionist Claire Baseley.

'Letting them see, touch and smell the food will make them feel involved and in return they will be more likely to try new tastes.'

Babies are then encouraged to try new flavours, in order to encourage them to discover and accept new foods and tastes, in the 'taste zone'.


Little ones will be seated in highchairs at interactive tables, from which they will be able to choose from their very own digital menu, allowing them to select their own mains and desserts.

Creators say that the colourful interactive menu features state-of-the-art technology, designed to be ideal for little fingers to tap and touch.

'The interactive menu is another great way of generating that important sensory engagement, by using visuals of fruit and vegetables to introduce babies to the ingredients they are about to munch on.


'They are able to look at colours and shapes and engage their senses visually, which will make them more excited about new shapes, textures and foods they try,' said Claire.

Depending on the number of times they tap a particular food icon over a 30-second period, the digital menu responds accordingly and the waiters bring the children their selected choice of food, which has been developed with advice from child nutritionists.

Speaking about the new restaurant, Claire, who worked on the menu, added: 'We understand that mums and dads sometimes find mealtimes tricky, and that it can take quite a few tries to familiarise any hungry little ones with a new taste or texture.


'We also know that by introducing little ones’ taste buds to a wide variety of different and exciting tastes, it can help encourage them to grow up to be good little eaters.


'That’s why it’s super important to try to introduce little ones to new foods, especially savoury vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower, every day during the first weeks of weaning.


Article Source Daily Mail :
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2649367/Worlds-sensory-restaurant-BABIES-complete-digital-menus-interactive-menus-opens-doors.html#ixzz33qIF4AJz

Lavender fest

Cyherbia Herb Gardens are organising their third Annual Lavender Fest in Avgorou, taking place from the 14th till the 29th of June.

During the festival you can immerse yourself in the wonderful colour and fragrance of lavender in the herb gardens, and witness the extraction of essential oil of lavender.

Lavender craft workshops will be held on selected days, check out Cyherbia's website of facebook page for dates and times.

In the Tea Room there will be biscuits, ice tea, liqueur and even ice cream made with lavender for you to sample, all made on the premises.

 

In the herb shop you can find our own cosmetics, soaps, teas and many other organic lavender products.

 

Cyherbia park also  features the one and only Hedge Maze in Cyprus! Can you find your way out as well as the hidden items? The Woodland area in the park has been planted in the shape of the island. Here you can literally walk around Cyprus and discover the 7 wonders of the island.

 

During the festival, on June 21st, the Minister of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment mr. Nikos Kouyialis will official open out new Essential Oil Distillation Unit.

 

More information on www.cyherbia.com orwww.facebook.com/cyherbia

 

Miranda Tringis
Herbalist Dip. HM (Inst. NH)
tel. +35799915443

Terry's Crepes

Terry's Crepes 

We specialize in Birthdays Christenings Special Ocassions & Other Events 

Tel: 99757844 

The plight of the little man - Paula Manoli-Gray

Everyone has their button, their Achilles heel; the one thing that sets them off or defeats them. For me it is injustice and being wrongly accused.

Something in particular that really sets me off in Cyprus is the way that somehow, I always get unfair parking fines. My husband and I are the kind of people who will turn back and go home if we can't find legal parking, rather than park illegally. We will always put money in the metre or send the text message, yet, somehow, we always (unfairly) end up on the wrong side of the law, or rather, Sods Law!

Last week I parked on a metre, sent my text to pay and went off to the shop I needed to visit. When I got in, I noticed that I hadn't received a text message back confirming my payment and remarked to the shop assistant that I was going to get booked for sure, then promptly resent the text. Said shop assistant was telling me not to worry, it wouldn't happen. Then after some time, two text messages came back confirming my parking; the one from earlier and the one that I resent. Phew I thought! Anyone else would have been okay, but I knew in the pit of my stomach that the parking curse would strike again, and of course it did! I returned to the car, found a ticket and tracked down the traffic warden who wrote it. She was very nice and told me that often the text messages delay and there is a crossover from the time the traffic wardens get sent the message and the time they are booking. Do not worry she assured me, happens all the time, go and talk to the traffic department and all will be resolved… but still I knew, 'I am parking cursed'.

When I went and explained, they were very nice but the computer had no record of the first text. I showed them the messages on my phone, they jotted it all down and said that they would look into it. The next day I got a call saying that my fine was valid, that the time on their system that the text was sent was later than the time of the fine. I won't bore you with the half hour that ensued of me shouting, pleading injustice, getting offended that they thought I was lying and would make a fuss over €8 for no reason, that I would be daft enough to send a text after I got a fine, and, and, and. The call concluded with the gentleman telling me he would put it to the committee. Well, I have no doubt that it will not rule in my favour and I will have to pay the fine.

When I worked in Nicosia, I had to park in residential streets as our office had no parking. I got three tickets on three separate occasions for parking outside people's houses where the entire neighbourhood parked its cars (but strangely no one else got a ticket). There were no yellow lines, no 'no parking' signs and when I went to contest them, I was told that technically, everyone who parks outside of their house is parking illegally. Apparently, just because there is nothing telling you that you cannot park, it doesn't that you can park; there has to be a sign giving permission to park. When I retorted with the fact that every single home owner would then be fined if that was the case, they told me that if they wanted to fine them, they could and if I tried to contest the tickets I would only incur a lengthy and expensive court case. I paid them of course (they were €45 each…) but knew that the real reason I had received those tickets was probably because I had parked outside the houses of various residents who had then called the police and told them I was parking outside of THEIR property and to fine me to teach me a lesson not to park there again.

So, I am left with this feeling of complete rage and helplessness when I am wrongly accused or treated unfairly. The fact that the little person can never go against the authorities and receive justice because it will always be their word against that of a person in power's scares me no end. That and the fear that these unfair parking fines will eventually bankrupt me!

Kataklysmos Fair

Kataklysmos

Friday 6th June 

In Cyprus, the celebrations also hark back to the Old Testament tale of Noah’s Ark, the Greek myth of Deukalion and ancient ceremonies in honour of Aphrodite and Adonis. Larnaka is particularly proud of the festivities it puts on for several days to celebrate Kataklysmos.

The sea front promenade takes on the appearance of an open-air fair with scores of stalls selling toys and traditional food. Traditional culture takes pride of place with a competition for chatista or rhyming songs in the Cypriot dialect. Other performers include popular Greek and Cypriot singers and dance troupes. In line with the spirit of the celebrations, events include competitions in the water.

Information Provided by :Cyprus Tourism Organisation