"That was a really good day, that was"

The title of this blog is a quote from my dad just now as we sat out eating our BBQ on the balcony and you know what, he wasn't wrong. It has been a really good day, just as expected, and we have another lined up for tomorrow. Anyway, I've got lots of pictures (117 to go through, to be precise) and it's already getting dark and 8.30pm so I'd better crack on.

Yesterday's sun goes away

The update starts yesterday evening after the blog was published. I went back outside onto the balcony with A to enjoy the evening as the sun set while my mum and dad went for a brief walk down the back bank and then back up the lane through the village. It was a really lovely sunset and we were hoping that the parents would be enjoying it as well, with a slightly better view than we have with the trees on the perimeter.

My mum and the puppies

They returned after about ten minutes and yes, they had loved the views and the stroll and felt a lot better for it. My mother took a turn around the garden before coming in and collected quite a following, Rambo had demanded to have the kong thrown for him and when this was done, the girls appeared to get involved. All the puppies are loving being here and Rambo is looking better and better all the time, after being a little overweight after winter.

Before the sun appeared

The first sight of the sun

We headed to bed quite early for us last night but I think we all slept through very well. Before I dropped off I could hear my mother spraying flies and I can't blame her as they are very annoying. It was actually cold in the night and I woke up wanting a cover but found that the very light one we currently have isn't up to it. I think tonight I'm going to request the full duvet be within reach though I expect it to be a bit warmer. It was a very normal morning with A being up before me but I got up to finish the brews off and off to the balcony we went. The parents were a little later joining us but we encouraged them out in time to see the sun peak over the ridge. This morning it seemed to take a lot longer than normal to first appear but then it shot up as per usual. Stunning.

Both girls on the top bank

We were up early enough for two cups of coffee for A before she headed off for the men. The girls were up the top bank as per usual and were having a great time running around, chasing each other, and fighting. They have started to explore a bit further afield along the top bank past the burning circle and into the thicker grass up there which is good and bad as it is even harder to see them in longer grass. While A was out I decided not to do anything too sweat inducing like chopping wood and so I sorted the humanure (for the first ever time finding the smell of emptying to be a bit offputting) and then collected some manure from the village pile and potted up the chili plant I bought the other day. The plan is to keep this inside and encourage it to survive as much of the winter as possible so we can continue with fresh chilis. We shall see, shan't we.

Dad doing his chore of wiring in the pump

My dad was off up into the roof space pretty quickly after the sun rose to get started on wiring in the pump so we can have a slightly better shower. We have refrained from using the wet room (everyone had a shower in the trough last night, including my mother which was VERY impressive) so the grout had a chance to completely dry but this morning we really wanted our showers. He got it wired in and then everyone piled through the shower so as to be out for when A got back with the men and then she could use it. There was no hot water sadly but anyway we wanted a cold shower as it was warm already but that got added to the list for Bekir. One other thing we learned was the water pressure from the reservoir is not enough to leave the pump on "auto" so we will need to get a switch which is a shame.

Mum with the girls this morning

Yesterday it was my dad's turn to have the girls sat on him getting a cuddle but this morning my mum was there sat on the balcony with both the girls on her cuddling up. They are loving having more people around to get affection from and my parents are loving having them being friendly also.

Both hard at work in Room 13

Bekir and Sally waited nice and patiently while A had her shower and then they got stuck in. We had arranged for them to work today and tomorrow but they have decided that they'd like to have a little holiday and so happily we have agreed they will finish today and come back next Monday. Bekir had a look at the shower and sorted out the falling-down shower head and then got on with looking into why the hot water wasn't coming through. Sally was straight into Room 13 to finish the grouting but then he struck the problem of my badly done teracol which was forced up between the tiles and getting in the way of the grout. Bekir took a break from plumbing to give a hand with a nail and scraped away all the offending teracol.

Information board at the entrance to Perperikon

Initially he thought the switch was broken in the shower however then he had a brainwave and did some more looking and found that the hot water pipe was being constricted when the shower was hanging on the wall and preventing water getting to the mixer. This prompted a super fast trip down to the builders merchant to get two L shaped adapters to stop the pipe from bending. We left him fitting this, and Sally cracking on with the huge job of grouting all of Room 13, and headed out for our day out to Perperikon.

The altar of Dionisius

So I have just been through the pictures from the trip and picked out as few as I could to capture the day and there were far more than expected. So I will scatter them above these paragraphs with not much reference to the words typed below and you can click through them as you wish. We headed out in Thomas and I drove us, following the sat-nav which took us most of the way correctly but the signposting was good anyway. There is a good road up to this site and at the bottom a carpark (1 leva to park) and a load of little stalls with maps and other items.

Gorgeous view back across the valley

We declined a map but in hindsight realised it would have been a good idea so bought one when we got back down. The walk up was really rather hot and exposed and we forgot to bring enough water which was another huge mistake. The girls ran up OK but after a while Louise started complaining and she ended up being carried until we got to the shade of some trees. It was a lovely walk up with stunning views back across the valley.

The archaeological dig

Pillars on a ridge

We started to come across some ancient leftovers including a couple of sarcophagi and then suddenly we went through a gap and entered an amazing stone city. There were multiple levels to this and this first area we entered had some large rooms, some of them obviously previously multi-level as you could see the pole where floor-beams stretched across. There was also an altar to Dionisius which apparently had been a huge mystery for many years as to where it actually was until it was discovered here.

Steps carved in the rock

Thirsty puppies getting a drink from a puddle

Checking out the extensive ruins

A reservoir which would have held drinking water

After chilling out here for a bit, letting the girls have some water out of the cap of the one bottle we had brought, we headed onwards and climbed further until suddenly we emerged onto the top and what was clearly the main part of the site. This was overrun with archeologists excavating the ruins and they had shut part of the pathways down which was a shame. There was still a lot to look around however and we spent a good while strolling around, looking at everything, and marveling at the engineering prowess of the ancients.

A late addition; a guard tower from 1200s

Amphorae from the Roman Era

An awesome photobomb

Pretty soon we were heading back down the hill and I'm glad we went then as I suddenly became very lightheaded just as we reached the bottom. There was the ubiquitous water trough right there though so I soaked myself and drank a load and eventually I came back to life. Unfortunately my speed of thinking didn't return before the girls go themselves tangled around a metal bin with their leads and pulled it over with a clang, causing much amusement to everyone around me. We had a little look around the stalls, bought some little bits, and then I asked A to drive as I was still a little dead-headed.

We stopped off in the main town as we went through for some princessas and beer (for me, soft drink for the rest) which took some time to arrive but when it did they gave us twice our order which was the correct outcome. After eating it was via Kaufland (I sat outside dozing off while the rest of them went shopping) and then home. It had been an excellent trip but we were all pretty shattered and so after a brew was made everyone went to bed.

Finished Room 13

I woke up after a short while feeling really rested but very thirsty so I got up leaving A to sleep on. I made another brew for me and found that my timing was impeccable; Sally had just finished working on Room 13 and was outside cleaning the tools and ready for his next task. I wasn't totally sure what to give him, indeed I was tempted to offer him the afternoon as a holiday, but he was keen to work and suggested knocking through the wall for the double door in the kitchen which I agreed to.

Sally making progress knocking the wall for the kitchen double door

He got straight on with it and the banging eventually roused everyone else from their slumbers. I had been going to see his progress for a bit and my mum wanted to see what was going on so down we went. We were joined eventually by A and my dad and sat talking about our plans for the kitchen before heading outside to watch Sally. He was working away with a will and making headway taking apart the really solid stone wall that makes up the base of the school. I helped a bit, shifting the stones as they fell, and I think if they were working tomorrow he would probably have finished this. He kept on with this right up until it was time to leave and then left with a smile on his face having had good progress.

Thelma stole the kong and got away with it, nearly

While we were watching Sally we were also playing with the puppies and Rambo. Louise was being very clingy today but she also wanted to chase the kong so all of us took turns throwing it. Eventually Rambo got too hot and tired and sloped off inside with the kong however Thelma was having none of this so went in and stole it back. She's very brave and it is telling how well Rambo reacts to this; Ralf would have been really growled at for even going near his kong.

A full BBQ of awesome

The drive back with the men was pretty uneventful and quiet and I said goodbye to them for the week. When I got back to the house A was on the balcony with my mum playing with the BBQ and I joined them out there waiting for it to be ready and then, when it was, wolfing down the awesome food. A always makes homemade burgers and they are lovely and the new sausages we tried were probably the best I've had so far over here.

And down the sun goes again

We sat out until the sun went down, and then I got started on this update. After she had done the watering round which again I sadly missed today A got cake together and made us tea and so while I've been typing this I've also been drinking and munching epic chocolate cake from our favourite cake shop in town. It has been a really warm day today and this evening it is back to being really warm with almost no breeze. I reckon tonight there'll be no need for a duvet.

Tomorrow will be another full day as our little holiday kicks in. I'll try and update tomorrow evening but there's a chance I'll not be able to update for a few days now as our plans get more and more busy.