More (Mis)adventures of Miss Lena and Crew -- Lena

It seems that if I am involved there is a recurring theme…MISadventures. I’m not sure how this happened, but it seems if I am around, the silliest things are going to happen. Our vacation here in Cyprus has been no exception. Things began without a hitch; we arrived at the airport on time with no major setbacks. We flew into Larnaca airport with no fanfare and were greeted with hugs from Jo. We were happy to see her. We had expected to see Tine, but we weren’t overly worried that she wasn’t there…and thus the misadventures begin. As Jo has previously stated we waited hours in the blazing sun, alternately smelling jet fuel and salt-scented air, taking the many stares we got as we sat on the side of the road in stride. People-watching when everyone is watching you can be rather entertaining. Other than knowing that a bus actually went to the village we were staying in we had done very little planning for this trip, and it has gone surprisingly well considering this fact. I must admit I did much of the legwork for acquiring our rental property. We found an amazing website that advertises rental properties in most vacation sites, and you can narrow it by region and even city. We had it narrowed to a few miles from the airport, and we had specific criteria to be met. We wanted to be near the beach, have a pool, 2 bathrooms, and be under a certain price (we are poor after all). I narrowed it to a choice of about 7 properties, all fitting the description. We chose this one because it fit the description to a T (including an extra ½ bath), and was the least expensive. I should have known. The drying machine turns out to be a drying rack on the back porch. The “pull-out couch” was actually a mat hidden behind the couch with room for one (not 2!). The 20 minute “stroll” to the beach meant an hour long hike to the waters edge that was completely rocky. And don’t get me started on the nearly 4 full days of no water that we’ve endured.
Despite all of these “misadventures” this has been the best vacation. It’s been a great end cap to an incredible year. Before leaving for Jordan I couldn’t imagine what it would be like, or how I was going to survive 10-11 months away. Now that those 11 months have come and gone, I struggle to remember the time before I was part of the “Jordan – 5” or the “Jordan – crew” and the family that we’ve become. I’d like to thank each one of the Jordan - 5 and the various honorary members we’ve had this year (Sheri, Jo, Mr. Register, Michelle, Leslie, Kile, Terry, Shannon and Samantha) for making this an unbelievable year. Also to all those that supported us in so many ways this year (our family and friends, and strangers that prayed for us like family).
Our "sandy" beach