Today started like every other day, I wake up and I head straight to the computer to check my email to make sure there is nothing I need to respond to immediately. There were a couple of items but my two year old needed some attention, so I gave it to him since my wife made me coffee and breakfast (egg burritos) and back to work (SEO).
I had an appointment with an owner of one of the large development companies in Paphos at 3pm. He was a nice man - we listed one of his properties, a villa in Chloraka for 325k, it was modern and spacious. We also discussed an apartment project he has in Pegeia that he wanted me to list; we will make contact later in the week about it. I am more excited about less expensive property right now. I feel like there are more people that can afford a one bedroom flat than a 300 pound villa right now. I seem to be getting more and more expensive properties on my site and I would like a better variety.
I went to Carrefour for a short shopping list and was home by 6pm in time to spend a little time with my two sons before bedtime and now it's time for real work.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 29, 2007
Garden
One of the most pleasuable things about living in a climate such as Cyprus is the ability to grow so many different type of plants that seem to thrive here. So when I moved here the first thing I did was plant a variety from palm trees, lemon and orange trees to rose bushes and some that I don't know the names of off hand. Over all I have 50 different types of plants and shrubs.
I was so excited about my garden even though it cost me a little fortune. I anticipated the first rains and watching my garden mature was exciting. Now, however it has matured to the point of intolerance on my part. The amount of work it takes to maintain it is unbelievable. It seems like overnight it can turn into a jungle!
I have a pool that I surrounded by my beautiful trees - nice idea - not great for keeping my pool clean! Between the irrigation system going beserk and overwatering them which led to dirt and mud seeping from the pots around the pool area to the falling leaves and flowers and bees that now occupy one of them it is a full time job. I am slowly starting to resent my garden! I like it, but am overwhelemed by the amount of work I need to do to keep my space around my home clean and tidy.
Since Cyprus is especially dusty in the summer and especially muddy in the winter, cleaning becomes a daunting and never ending task. I love plants, trees and flowers espeically fruit trees but I now realize that I will have to spend one whole day of my weekend devoted to caring for it. That old saying "the grass isn't always greener on the other side" will literally come true in my case if I don't manage to devote that day to care for it all! Wish me luck!
I was so excited about my garden even though it cost me a little fortune. I anticipated the first rains and watching my garden mature was exciting. Now, however it has matured to the point of intolerance on my part. The amount of work it takes to maintain it is unbelievable. It seems like overnight it can turn into a jungle!
I have a pool that I surrounded by my beautiful trees - nice idea - not great for keeping my pool clean! Between the irrigation system going beserk and overwatering them which led to dirt and mud seeping from the pots around the pool area to the falling leaves and flowers and bees that now occupy one of them it is a full time job. I am slowly starting to resent my garden! I like it, but am overwhelemed by the amount of work I need to do to keep my space around my home clean and tidy.
Since Cyprus is especially dusty in the summer and especially muddy in the winter, cleaning becomes a daunting and never ending task. I love plants, trees and flowers espeically fruit trees but I now realize that I will have to spend one whole day of my weekend devoted to caring for it. That old saying "the grass isn't always greener on the other side" will literally come true in my case if I don't manage to devote that day to care for it all! Wish me luck!
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Why did you move here?
Ever since I decided to move to Cyprus I have been asked the same questions hundreds of times – why??? Before we left the US it was an excited “why?” but now that we are in Cyprus it is more of a “why would you ‘why’?” as in why would you leave the US to come here? I will tell you “why?” now: potential financial gains, family and getting back to my roots.
At first it was exciting talking about our upcoming move, it was fresh and different, it created anticipation and dreaming. We understood the sacrifice we were making and understood the possible difficulties, but these were not the things you discuss with everyone. I highlighted all the positives that influenced my decision. I saw the opportunities that existed and the potential for the future. I felt that with my background of diverse business experience I could do well. When Cyprus joined the EU I felt a stronger urge to be a part of this new frontier.
I remember the first time I heard of Cyprus I was a 7 years old and living in Jordan. “Gubrus” as it is pronounced in Arabic then represented a holy place far away where Greek Orthodox priests came from to visit us. My mother’s family was Greek Orthodox and I associated them with her side of my family since my Dad was Catholic. Even today in Cyprus every time I see a priest I remember times at my grandparent’s home when we had Greek Orthodox Cypriot priests visiting.
My family moved to the U.S. in 1973 when I was 10. Moving to America was a big culture shock - I had to learn to speak English, adapt to a new culture and deal with kids that didn’t understand what I was going through. With all that I had to adapt to I forgot about my own country so Cyprus was really long forgotten. When my Mom moved back to Jordan after my Dad passed away I felt it was time to at least come visit this part of the world again. It had been 29 years.
Our trip let us scope out the area – we visited my wife’s Mom in Cyprus and my Mom in Jordan. I automatically fell in love with the simpler ways of life and I enjoyed watching everything moving at a slower pace. I felt the need to experience this way of life first hand.
After my wife (then girlfriend) and I got married and were expecting our first child plus her Dad had also just passed away (the day before our son was born) we decided to make the move to be closer to her Mom and mine. We figured if it didn’t work out the kids wouldn’t remember anyway and we could get them back into US school system easily and without much turmoil in their lives. I happily anticipated leaving the rat race, traffic jams and harsh winters behind for awhile anyway. We took a risk and now here we are.
Today I was at the park with my son when another Dad finally asked with a smirk why I came here as if implying I must have done something wrong. This is what prompted me to come home and write this article because he was not the first person to make me feel like people don’t just come here for the weather or slow pace of life. Maybe there is something that I just don’t understand, something rooted in the culture that I am not aware of yet, after all people are much more forward and tend to ask questions that in the US would be considered too personal. The few times I said I was from Jordan I did not get the same reaction and feel as though maybe I should drop the American identity and just say I am from Jordan. What do you think?
At first it was exciting talking about our upcoming move, it was fresh and different, it created anticipation and dreaming. We understood the sacrifice we were making and understood the possible difficulties, but these were not the things you discuss with everyone. I highlighted all the positives that influenced my decision. I saw the opportunities that existed and the potential for the future. I felt that with my background of diverse business experience I could do well. When Cyprus joined the EU I felt a stronger urge to be a part of this new frontier.
I remember the first time I heard of Cyprus I was a 7 years old and living in Jordan. “Gubrus” as it is pronounced in Arabic then represented a holy place far away where Greek Orthodox priests came from to visit us. My mother’s family was Greek Orthodox and I associated them with her side of my family since my Dad was Catholic. Even today in Cyprus every time I see a priest I remember times at my grandparent’s home when we had Greek Orthodox Cypriot priests visiting.
My family moved to the U.S. in 1973 when I was 10. Moving to America was a big culture shock - I had to learn to speak English, adapt to a new culture and deal with kids that didn’t understand what I was going through. With all that I had to adapt to I forgot about my own country so Cyprus was really long forgotten. When my Mom moved back to Jordan after my Dad passed away I felt it was time to at least come visit this part of the world again. It had been 29 years.
Our trip let us scope out the area – we visited my wife’s Mom in Cyprus and my Mom in Jordan. I automatically fell in love with the simpler ways of life and I enjoyed watching everything moving at a slower pace. I felt the need to experience this way of life first hand.
After my wife (then girlfriend) and I got married and were expecting our first child plus her Dad had also just passed away (the day before our son was born) we decided to make the move to be closer to her Mom and mine. We figured if it didn’t work out the kids wouldn’t remember anyway and we could get them back into US school system easily and without much turmoil in their lives. I happily anticipated leaving the rat race, traffic jams and harsh winters behind for awhile anyway. We took a risk and now here we are.
Today I was at the park with my son when another Dad finally asked with a smirk why I came here as if implying I must have done something wrong. This is what prompted me to come home and write this article because he was not the first person to make me feel like people don’t just come here for the weather or slow pace of life. Maybe there is something that I just don’t understand, something rooted in the culture that I am not aware of yet, after all people are much more forward and tend to ask questions that in the US would be considered too personal. The few times I said I was from Jordan I did not get the same reaction and feel as though maybe I should drop the American identity and just say I am from Jordan. What do you think?
Thursday, October 18, 2007
The Beginning
I am going to using this blog in the truest form, just like a diary. I will think out loud and hope that my thoughts are appreciated and I can get some advice or feedback.
Since this is my first post on this blog I feel as though I must include some background about myself and how I got here. I was born in Jordan, moved to the USA in 1973 at the age of 10 with my family and never left the US except for a month on an operation with the US marines in 1982. After my dad passed away in 1999 my mom moved back to Jordan and in 2002 my wife (girlfriend then) and I went to Jordan to visit her and it was my first time in 29 years. We also spent time in Cyprus where my wife’s mom has lived since 1989. My wife who was born in Kansas City, Missouri also lived in Cyprus for 9 years. I was very attracted to the easy way of life (opposite of the New York minute) but never dreamed of actually moving out of the US. I must admit though that I felt that I was missing out on a part of life that we don’t experience much in the US especially for me at the time. I owned and operated a restaurant and as many will tell you that it’s a full time job plus some.
My father-in-law and I became friends and when they came to visit us on two occasions over the next two years we talked about the opportunities that were available in Cyprus. Cyprus had just joined the EU in ‘04 and he is a successful lawyer, it didn’t take much convincing to finally decide to make the move. Our friends did not believe it at first but when I sold the restaurant everyone knew it was happening.
Since being here I have experienced the easy going lifestyle. However, I must admit that sometimes I do miss the fast pace and the crowds. I do miss a good taco, burrito, corn tortillas and salsas ( I did own a Mexican restaurant). I also miss the shopping malls and the NFL, NBA, and baseball, I can’t find a plastic baseball bat for my son so we are having one shipped from the US. We order things often actually since there are items we just can’t get here that have become necessities (Tums, Cream of Wheat, Desitin, Seasoning, etc.).
Career wise things are not what I expected, the language barrier and flaws in the the system makes it harder for a new business man to be able to find the resources needed to research a particular field and to accomplish the simplest of tasks. One example is when I submitted the paperwork to form a marketing company in October 2006, my lawyer and father-in-law said the process takes two weeks, 4 months later after numerous attempts to find out what the hold up was I received a call. The government offices in Nicosia said that they apologized for the delay and they had lost the paper work which they eventually found and will now respond to me quickly, Two days later I was informed that they rejected the seven names I submitted and I must submit a new name to be considered. We took a previously selected name, not one of our top choices and finally the company was formed on April 25, 2007, a six month delay.
My wife Charina, son Phoenix and I have had a lot of quality time together, we have made some very good friends and see a lot of both of our families and since arriving here have added another member to our family, Julian. I currently own and operate Cyprus Marketing Solutions in Paphos, Cyprus. Our primary source of work comes from marketing properties for sale in Cyprus using http://www.cyprus101.com/ and http://www.propertyofcyprus.com/ among many other forms of advertising, although we are doing well registering homes to sell and have managed to sell a few properties I am afraid that it will only get harder to sell as the market is very flat. With so many vacant homes and new builds available there does not look to be any relief in sight for those in need to sell.
I will continue to post updates on this blog about the course life will take us, I will report on all fronts from personal experiences such as the difficulty of having two babies under 2 “2 under 2” a term I use a lot now, and please share your experience because I know a lot of you parents or grandparents have been through the same experience. I will also share work related topics such as the slow trend the housing market is in now. Please share your thoughts on this subject and share ideas which I will also do in future posts.
Post on my friends.
Since this is my first post on this blog I feel as though I must include some background about myself and how I got here. I was born in Jordan, moved to the USA in 1973 at the age of 10 with my family and never left the US except for a month on an operation with the US marines in 1982. After my dad passed away in 1999 my mom moved back to Jordan and in 2002 my wife (girlfriend then) and I went to Jordan to visit her and it was my first time in 29 years. We also spent time in Cyprus where my wife’s mom has lived since 1989. My wife who was born in Kansas City, Missouri also lived in Cyprus for 9 years. I was very attracted to the easy way of life (opposite of the New York minute) but never dreamed of actually moving out of the US. I must admit though that I felt that I was missing out on a part of life that we don’t experience much in the US especially for me at the time. I owned and operated a restaurant and as many will tell you that it’s a full time job plus some.
My father-in-law and I became friends and when they came to visit us on two occasions over the next two years we talked about the opportunities that were available in Cyprus. Cyprus had just joined the EU in ‘04 and he is a successful lawyer, it didn’t take much convincing to finally decide to make the move. Our friends did not believe it at first but when I sold the restaurant everyone knew it was happening.
Since being here I have experienced the easy going lifestyle. However, I must admit that sometimes I do miss the fast pace and the crowds. I do miss a good taco, burrito, corn tortillas and salsas ( I did own a Mexican restaurant). I also miss the shopping malls and the NFL, NBA, and baseball, I can’t find a plastic baseball bat for my son so we are having one shipped from the US. We order things often actually since there are items we just can’t get here that have become necessities (Tums, Cream of Wheat, Desitin, Seasoning, etc.).
Career wise things are not what I expected, the language barrier and flaws in the the system makes it harder for a new business man to be able to find the resources needed to research a particular field and to accomplish the simplest of tasks. One example is when I submitted the paperwork to form a marketing company in October 2006, my lawyer and father-in-law said the process takes two weeks, 4 months later after numerous attempts to find out what the hold up was I received a call. The government offices in Nicosia said that they apologized for the delay and they had lost the paper work which they eventually found and will now respond to me quickly, Two days later I was informed that they rejected the seven names I submitted and I must submit a new name to be considered. We took a previously selected name, not one of our top choices and finally the company was formed on April 25, 2007, a six month delay.
My wife Charina, son Phoenix and I have had a lot of quality time together, we have made some very good friends and see a lot of both of our families and since arriving here have added another member to our family, Julian. I currently own and operate Cyprus Marketing Solutions in Paphos, Cyprus. Our primary source of work comes from marketing properties for sale in Cyprus using http://www.cyprus101.com/ and http://www.propertyofcyprus.com/ among many other forms of advertising, although we are doing well registering homes to sell and have managed to sell a few properties I am afraid that it will only get harder to sell as the market is very flat. With so many vacant homes and new builds available there does not look to be any relief in sight for those in need to sell.
I will continue to post updates on this blog about the course life will take us, I will report on all fronts from personal experiences such as the difficulty of having two babies under 2 “2 under 2” a term I use a lot now, and please share your experience because I know a lot of you parents or grandparents have been through the same experience. I will also share work related topics such as the slow trend the housing market is in now. Please share your thoughts on this subject and share ideas which I will also do in future posts.
Post on my friends.
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