Well, I have already paid for a one way journey to the UK as it is my wish to be interred in the same village churchyard in the UK where my deceased relatives reside.
Laughed at the mix up with the wedding dates because for over 14 years the Immigration Department thought I was male even though I had attended Paphos Office on three separate occasions during that time (only rectified when I applied to join GESY and involved a visit to Nicosia Immigration Office) and when I changed my UK driving licence to a Cypriot Licence the document stated I had handed in an American licence (even in those days she could not edit the application but had to cancel that licence before issuing a new one).
Curiosity killed the cat: question?
Re: Curiosity killed the cat: question?
Hi, all!
For those who do not know our history, briefly we had an SME in Switzerland, where we lived for 35 years. We realised that our Swiss pensions would have been totally inadequate to continue living there. However, in 1996, I had already been diagnosed with cancer and, although I was in remission, any future was unknown. We had a look at a few places but without much appeal.
In 1952, I did my National service, mostly stationed in Nicosia. Later, in 1956, I was employed by an international telecommunications company and they sent me here for a six-month stint. My memories of the 1950s Cyprus were very positive, so I made the suggestion and, in 1997, my wife and I did an exploratory tour of Cyprus.
By chance, we met up with an English lady who introduced us to a family with a banker, an architect and a developer.I mentioned to them that we were possibly looking for a permanent place to live and we were given the grand tour. Initially, I was thinking of a traditional village house which was sufficiently intact to be able to be made livable and we were shown two or three such, when we realised that we would be biting off more than we could chew. The banker guy then took us to a property that the trio were just finishing. Margaret and I both realised, in a flash, that this was it. We started negotiations and eventually, after research, bought the property. We have lived in it ever since.
I guess we were very lucky a) because our interlocutors were honest (traditionally Cypriot) and b) it was the nearest thing to an affordable "dream house". We have been living in it now (warts and all) for 23 years and we hope to die in it, sooner or later (we are both in our mid to late 80s). We have no intention of returning, either to Switzerland or the UK; here is home. The cat has died!
For those who do not know our history, briefly we had an SME in Switzerland, where we lived for 35 years. We realised that our Swiss pensions would have been totally inadequate to continue living there. However, in 1996, I had already been diagnosed with cancer and, although I was in remission, any future was unknown. We had a look at a few places but without much appeal.
In 1952, I did my National service, mostly stationed in Nicosia. Later, in 1956, I was employed by an international telecommunications company and they sent me here for a six-month stint. My memories of the 1950s Cyprus were very positive, so I made the suggestion and, in 1997, my wife and I did an exploratory tour of Cyprus.
By chance, we met up with an English lady who introduced us to a family with a banker, an architect and a developer.I mentioned to them that we were possibly looking for a permanent place to live and we were given the grand tour. Initially, I was thinking of a traditional village house which was sufficiently intact to be able to be made livable and we were shown two or three such, when we realised that we would be biting off more than we could chew. The banker guy then took us to a property that the trio were just finishing. Margaret and I both realised, in a flash, that this was it. We started negotiations and eventually, after research, bought the property. We have lived in it ever since.
I guess we were very lucky a) because our interlocutors were honest (traditionally Cypriot) and b) it was the nearest thing to an affordable "dream house". We have been living in it now (warts and all) for 23 years and we hope to die in it, sooner or later (we are both in our mid to late 80s). We have no intention of returning, either to Switzerland or the UK; here is home. The cat has died!
