Sinful Chocolate Sauce

It's Valentine's Day…..a day of love and passion….perfect day for my Sinful Chocolate Sauce, served with a variety of succulent pieces of fruit  …no plates required……….Enjoy!!!!

What I need….

250g Semisweet Chocolate. Chopped

¾ cup Milk

1 cup cream

2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon vanilla, or liquor of your choice, like amaretto or coffee. Spices are good too, like cinnamon and nutmeg or if you really want to heat things up, just add a little chilli powder.

How to do it…..

Place chocolate in a medium bowl and set aside, just leave it alone and do not touch…for now….

In a medium saucepan combine milk, and all that luscious rich cream and butter and cook over medium heat until mixture just about comes to a boil and looks hot and steamy….

Remove from the heat and gently but firmly pour over the chocolate….and just watch those two ingredients mingle and melt into each other…..mmmmm…

Allow mixture to sit, undisturbed, for 1 to 2 minutes, just so it rests and feels comfortable and soon it will be surprised with what is about to come..

Whisk mixture until all chocolate melts and the sauce is very, very smooth and velvety to the touch….

Now whisk in flavourings…very hard and quickly and serve immediately with pieces of juicy, succulent fruit,….…and I mean right now!! No plates required….XXXXXX

Major infrastructure projects will incorporate shared bicycle/pedestrian lanes - Paula Manoli-Gray

During his English talk for the Larnaca Parents Network (LPN) at the end of January, Larnaca Mayor – Andreas Louroutziatis - outlined the major infrastructure projects taking place in the town, which include a large network of bicycle lanes.

The mayor and his Municipal Council approved four pillars at the start of their term - Development, Employment, Efficiency and Social Solidarity. As the mayor explained, the first pillar is concerned with improving the town's infrastructure: "By development we mean the development of infrastructure and major projects; the quality of the citizens' daily life in terms of pedestrian sidewalks, and the ability to move; more greenery in the town, and the development of different aspects that signify quality of life for citizens."

The redesign of Piale Pasha – which connects the Finikoudes promenade with the area of Mckenzie - is one of the projects currently taking place, and is due to finish by the end of June this year. The mayor admitted that the project is not without its problems: "Piale Pashia is a challenge. It was designed without taking parking (for residents and delivery trucks) into consideration and we are currently looking at options to resolve this issue, one of which is plots in the area that could be used for resident parking."

The major roadworks that are taking place in the area of the stadium down to the cinema are due to finish in September and will incorporate bicycle lanes. The redesign of Pallas Square (near Cyta's main building) will begin in September and finish in April 2014, making the road one-way. Bicycle lanes will also be added to areas that are not going to be reconstructed such as Artemidos Avenue (the old airport road), and the Limassol road. All in all, the bicycle network will total 52 kilometres and will be significant in facilitating movement, as well as encouraging the environmentally positive practice of using bicycles over cars by making riding both safer and easier. Many of the bicycle lanes will serve as shared lanes with pedestrians, thus also making walking safer and more pleasant.

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly - 08/02/14

Mayor’s talk reveals Larnaca plans - Paula Manoli-Gray

English Q+A time frank and informative

Larnaca mayor – Andreas Louroutziatis – gave a frank and informative talk in English at the end of January, where he revealed his personal goals for the town and answered the audience's questions on a number of topics.

The 'Talk of The Town' event was organised by the Larnaca Parents Network (LPN) -which is a non-profit organisation that aims to provide parents and caregivers of Larnaca with events, advice and information. Taking place at the Civil Marriages hall, the packed audience included citizens of all nationalities and age groups, with primary focus on the town's lack of hotels and major development plans such as the proposed marina and Piale Pashia road.

The mayor began his talk by explaining the vision that he and the council set of a Larnaca that is a "vibrant European city with traditional character; a city of choice – where people consciously choose to live…the idea is to develop the city and create this image of a quality of life."

With this in mind, a variety of projects have been set in motion with the aim of improving infrastructure, increasing greenery, facilitating mobility and transportation, and the biggest vision of all – the creation of a unified promenade starting from Dhekelia Road and running all the way through Finikoudes to Mackenzie, without interruption.

The unified promenade would require the removal of the refineries from Dhekelia Road, as well as the redesign and upgrading of the marina to take place. The marina project has been in the pipeline for a while now and has not yet been able to get off the ground. If a serious investor is not found by the end of March, the project will be null and void, and in this event, the government would push to relocate the hydrocarbons from Limassol to the site of the marina - an option that the municipality does not endorse.

Whilst either option would bring money and jobs to Larnaca, the mayor prefers the first option over the second: "Our priority is the removal of the oil storage facility tanks from the beach so we can create a unified beach and we have issued a Termination Order which we are waiting for the Interior Minster to sign. We have interest for the marina from a group of serious investors with a proven capability in operating marinas in their country and the Middle East. We prefer the option of the marina and a unified coast. With the hydrocarbons, we would simply be replacing one heavy industry (the oil storage tanks) with another kind of heavy industry."

When asked about the lack of hotels in Larnaca, that negatively affect tourism numbers, the mayor admitted that this is indeed a major issue: "If we had an offer for a hotel I would guarantee you that the municipality would roll out the red carpet!" He added that the only areas that could situate new hotels would be the area currently occupied by the storage tanks once it was freed-up, and the new marina – if the project were to go ahead.

The lack of hotels also affects the wedding tourism trade and at present the municipality conducts around 900 civil weddings per year, which is not only lower than other towns, but for which many are couples who are only in the town for one day to get married. Larnaca's lack of high-star and resort hotels prevents couples having big weddings in the town, and the mayor noted that "we have no 5-star hotels within our city centre".

Overall, the message conveyed to the LPN was one of a determined effort to improve Larnaca, combined with a roadmap of specific actions that will make Larnaca a vibrant city that offers quality of life and sustainable growth.

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly 08/02/14

Russian puppet theatre of shadows and actor "Reflection"

From 21 of February up to 23 of February 2014 tours in Cyprus puppet theatre of shadows and actor “Reflection” from Moscow! 

Arlekin , Pierro and Columbine invite children and their parents to the colorful carnival pop-show «Dreams about Venice»!!! 
The ball is in full swing...Bright costumes, faces, hidden behind the masks… Two Cavaliers are trying to find the grace of single lady. Butterfly flies, classical music is performed by a musician-virtuoso.This is a dream or reality? Who plays a: people in puppet or doll in people? The answer lies in your imagination. 

Best miniatures with the puppets, clowning, tricks with flowers, rooms with interactive audience participation, tricks, pranks and jokes are waiting for you:

21 of February in Pafos – 18.30 in Municipal School No 6,
22 of February in Nicosia – 11.00 in Theatre Satiriko,
22 of February in Larnaca – 17.00 in Theatre Skala,
23 of February in Limassol – 11.00 in Agios Athanathios Theatre.

Age – from 5 and up.
Duration – 50 minutes without intermission.
Price – 12 Euro.
More information : 96 30 2770 and on web 
www.magictheatre.ru

С 21 по 23 февраля гастроли на Кипре Московского театра кукол, теней и актера «Отражение»!
Арлекин, Пьеро и Коломбина приглашают детей и их родителей на красочное карнавальное эстрадно-иллюзионное щоу «Сны о Венеции». 
Бал в самом разгаре…Яркие костюмы, лица, скрытые за масками. Два кавалера пытаются снискать благосклонность одной дамы. Летают влюбленные бабочки, звучит классическая музыка в исполнении музыканта-виртуоза. Это сон или явь? Кто в кого играет: люди в кукол или куклы в людей? Отгадка кроется в вашем воображении…
Лучшие миниатюры с марионетками, клоунада, трюки с цветами, интерактивные номера с участием зрителей, фокусы, розыгрыши и шутки ждут вас: 
21 февраля – в Пафосе – муниципальная школа № 6 (18.30)
22 февраля – в Никосии – Театр САТИРИКО (11.00)
22 февраля – в Ларнаке – театр «СКАЛА» (17.00)
23 февраля – в Лимассоле – театр Агиос Афанасиос (11.00)

Рекомендуемый возраст - от 5-ти лет и старше.
Продолжительность 50 минут без антракта.

Стоимость билетов 12 евро.
Дополнительная информация по телефону 96 30 2770 
и на сайте: www.magictheatre.ru

The rainbow will eventually appear - Paula Manoli-Gray

I was fortunate enough to attend the mayor's English talk a couple of weeks back, which was organised by the fantastic Larnaca Parents Network, who are a real credit to the town.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect and imagined that the mayor would probably spout a lot of political rhetoric and side-step questions that he didn't like. What I experienced instead was a very frank, humorous and informative exchange between the mayor and the people who had made the effort to attend, and who genuinely cared about hearing what the future of Larnaca holds.

Looking around the room, it was very encouraging to see the diversity of nationalities: Cypriot, Anglo-Cypriot, British, German, French, Israeli, Hungarian, Russian, and probably others that I hadn't discerned. All of these people chose to live in Larnaca and clearly love the town, and this wasn't lost on the mayor who seemed to be impressed, not only by the turnout and mixture of people, but also by the legitimate and intelligent concerns they all had.

Personally, I left feeling that the best of Larnaca is to come, and I truly feel that in a few years from now, this lovely town is going to go from strength-to-strength.

I honestly would not live anywhere else in the world, and I would hand-on-heart still advise and recommend Larnaca as a place to live to anyone – right now. This is despite the hardships we are facing because I still believe that it is a paradise compared to other places, and that this is only a temporary phase – even if temporary means five years and some very difficult times in the process.

The efforts of the fabulous Larnaka Tourism Board (LTB), combined with the municipality, and even organisations such as the Larnaca Parents Network, ensure that things can only get better. The LTB has launched so many projects and improvements that have made our tourism offering better year-on-year, despite the lack of hotels in the town – something that the mayor readily admitted is an issue.

Some of the changes may not be obvious to the average citizen as they are aimed at attracting visitors, but I am privy to them as I do some writing for the LTB, and it never ceases to amaze me how tirelessly and innovatively they work. For example, they have made Larnaca a top destination for some big sporting events that are really putting the town on the map, and they are constantly organising programmes of complimentary events and activities for guests.

But, that aside, if someone was wondering what the future holds for residents rather than visitors, then there is plenty happening there too. The town will either have a new marina or house the hydrocarbons – both of which are going to bring in money and jobs, as will the casino if Larnaca becomes the host.

The mayor's vision for a unified seafront is very exciting, as is the thought of how the town will look – complete with a large network of bicycle paths – once the major roadworks are completed before the end of the year.

I don't underestimate the suffering that is still to come, but I like to believe that after every storm there is a calm… and a rainbow with a pot of gold at the end.

First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly - 08/02/14