IBRAHIM RIP: sad news hit the world last weekend of the passing of Ibrahim Ferrer in Cuba. The original Buena Vista member died at the age of 78 from multiple organ failure. He will be dearly missed by people throughout the planet. I feel blessed for having seen Ibrahim live last autumn in Cyprus. Ibrahim’s music will always be played in my house.
FOOTBALL AS RELIGION: a reader in Larnaca informed me this week of a fervent Anorthosis football fan who celebrated in the street until the wee hours when the Famagusta team went through beating Trabzonspor. So far so good, nothing wrong with a little celebration now and then. Problem was the person was shrouded in a Greek flag and kept chanting the same thing for hours: “Anorthosis is my religion – long live Anorthosis – long live the nation!” Disturbed by this sight, the troubled neighbour asked why wasn’t draped in the Cyprus flag and the football punter said “Anorthosis is not Anorthosis without the Greek flag”. Parallel to this, when the Famagusta team went to Turkey, some of the hot headed local Turkish supporters donned Turkish flags with slogans such as “Cyprus is Turkish”. Whatever the misappropriation, both extremes are equally faulty. A week later, the rowdy Famagusta football fan was quiet as a door mouse when the team lost to Rangers. Whatever happened to ‘religion’ and the ‘nation’ on that night!
FAMAGUSTA = NAPA: a couple of years ago, Ayia Napa was buzzing with clubbing tourists being followed around by flocks of reality TV show makers wanting to unearth the so-called ‘seedy’ side of the town. The attraction for all the clubbers was simply who was playing behind the decks. While Napa remains partly a clubbing destination, some of the celeb DJs are now ‘flocking’ over a few miles over to Famagusta – which may irritate some people for different reasons. Particularly when some of the DJs are linked with British media, such as Radio 1 Xtra. Meantime down Napa way, as I said, its partly clubbing but also the clock seems to have turned back a little. Opting for the likes of Bonnie Tyler – who let’s face it may still sound like the female version of Rod Stewart but seriously lacks the DJ cred of say Trevor Nelson. It may be the municipality’s way of opting for good old retro family entertainment. It does, however, sound like a tackier option than what’s happening in Famagusta. Let’s hope that the reality TV shows stay away this time round!
MUSICIANS UNITED: SOS came to Cyprus as soon as he left. The San Francisco producer was here to conduct a week-long recording workshop via the US Embassy Bi-Communal Support Services. The end result, 15 people coming together in a five- minute song from both sides of the unnatural and unwanted ‘green line’ divide may make a surprising dent on the world of music. Even if most local radio and TV media initially boycott this effort, as they do with most bi-communal initiatives, I can foresee a time in the near future when most will be playing and supporting it. Main reason being the tune is absolutely wicked! More info as and when it happens.
HOUSE PRICES: parts of Oroklini remind me of some semi suburban two up two down housing estates in Blighty. The only differences being the climate – which is more reliably hotter in Cyprus – and of courses the prices. What people pay for a half plot of land with some wood and concrete for a house and a pool the size of my gold fish bowl is beyond belief. The mind boggles if they could see the same patch of land five or 10 years ago, with goats and sheep roaming free on the barren hillside. Why someone would pay £230,000 for a small house with a tiny pool on land that used to be a goat’s pen is simply baffling!
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