In This Months Issue: September 2009

When 19 year-old Patreascu Peberdy stunned the European Parliament in November 2006, by describing the continued ill-treatment of orphans in Romania, he certainly knew what he was talking about. For Patreascu, near death from neglect and suffering from polio, had been rescued from the ghastly conditions existing in Romania in 1992 by Beverly Peberdy of Paphos – today’s unsung heroine.

The UK property market is finally showing some signs of life. Recent data released by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), Rightmove and Halifax have all indicated market improvement: a recent RICS report disclosed that new enquiries were up to the highest level for nearly a decade and that sales have started to pick up slowly (albeit from a low base). According to a Rightmove statement released in July asking prices rose for a fifth month in a row. Miles Shipside, commercial director of Rightmove, commented-“in most parts of the country prices have consistently improved during spring: with growing confidence that we’ve passed the bottom, buyers are more active although they may discover that many of the best buys have gone”.

Many of the small birds, such as those of the warbler family, that migrate through Cyprus at this time of year have already been spotted, particularly on the east of the island. Known locally as ‘ampelopoulia’, they are the target of those who still illegally trap such birds that subsequently end up being served as expensive delicacies in restaurants and tavernas in defiance of local laws. The most sought after species is the Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla.