Natalie and Mark Reed craved a more relaxed existence and found it on the sunny island of Cyprus, as Natalie tells Richard Webber
“We swapped the Nottinghamshire town of Kirkby-in-Ashfield for Cyprus in April 2008 because we wanted a better lifestyle. We had a nice house and money to spend, but were cash-rich and time-poor. We hardly saw each other, and it was making us unhappy.
We earned what most people would consider to be a lot of money. While Mark ran his own building company, I was national sales manager for a food wholesaler – always driving a brand new company car.
I clocked up 120,000 miles a year travelling the country and sometimes spent three or four nights a week away. We were both so busy we struggled to fit in our annual two-week holiday. Eventually, it reached the point where we had to change.
That moment arrived while holidaying in Cyprus in 2008. I’ll never forget a stroll along a sunny beach one morning. It had been a wonderful, relaxing break, and we agreed that this was the lifestyle we lacked. Moving somewhere like Cyprus and starting afresh would give us more time together and the work/life balance we wanted so much.
Within just eleven weeks, we were living in Cyprus, having sold Mark’s business, our house, car and possessions. It seems crazy when I think about how fast the move happened, but I believe everything happens for a reason. We were at breaking point with our lives in the UK, so it was meant to be.
Home is a rented property in Frenaros, a village on the east coast, just ten minutes from the popular resorts of Ayia Napa and Protaras. It’s a traditional Greek Cypriot village, with just a few shops and tavernas. We’ve chosen not to buy because there are still problems here with title deeds and land ownership. Also, Mark – a bricklayer in the UK for 22 years – will only invest in a property he’s built himself, because the standard of workmanship in Cyprus is very different to the UK.
For now, we’re happy in our three-bedroom house, which is surrounded by fields and farms. Coupled with the beamed ceilings, it’s like living in a country cottage.
Life has turned out just as we’d hoped. The climate is perfect, the pace of life slower and having a large British population helps. We even drive on the left-hand side of the road! The dynamics of the island are good, too. You can drive anywhere in under three hours. If we want a mini-break, we’ll head to Paphos, on the west coast, or Kerynia in Northern Cyprus.
As expected, it took a while to settle. Things were more expensive than we’d envisaged. In hindsight, we should have brought our car and furniture with us because buying such items here is expensive.
Moving to Cyprus was like a holiday at first and we spent loads of our savings very quickly on luxuries. Soon, we realised that we were running out of money and needed to start living ‘normally’ and find a way to generate an income. We’ve achieved that by launching our own businesses.
Mark runs Mr. Shiny, his own mobile valeting company, while I run a free lifestyle magazine called Daxi, which means OK in Greek. It’s online and distributed throughout the Famagusta region, targeting English-reading residents and tourists; it’s packed with community news and useful information.
I’m part of a Women in Business network and quite well known for my work. In fact, I’ve just been nominated for Cyprus’s Business Woman of the Year. The award is open to women of all nationalities operating a business on the island. I’ll be questioned by a panel of business experts and the winner is announced in May – I’m keeping my fingers crossed. Finding work in Cyprus isn’t easy because many jobs are seasonal. Summer offers plenty of bar, cleaning and waitressing jobs but winter can leave residents financially short. Professional roles in the city are reserved for those who can read, write and speak Greek. Generally, wages are low – the average being €800 a month. You really need to work for yourself to have a comfortable existence.
A licence is required for almost anything here, and with all documentation regarding the law in Greek, it’s hard understanding your obligations. For anyone contemplating setting up a business, it’s best to hire an English-speaking lawyer and accountant. Although it’s expensive (€1,200 to set up a company, €2,000 a year in accountancy fees), it guarantees peace of mind.
It’s best to pay for this service than to find out, like our friends, that after having spent €30,000 renovating their restaurant there was a law specific to the use of buildings on that street. They ended up having to restore the place to its natural state at their own expense.
Many people speak English, but I’ve learnt some Greek and enjoy mixing with locals as much as possible. I try speaking the language whenever shopping or in a restaurant. The local people are friendly and our neighbours often bring round lemons, oranges or their homemade olive oil.
There is so much I love about Cyprus, including low crime rates, beautiful weather, gorgeous sunsets and amazing electric storms in Winter. January and February are the rainy months; the rest of the time it’s pretty much blue skies. We open our eyes in the morning and look out from our bedroom balcony on yet another sunny day.
Our new way of life means we get to have dinner together nearly every evening – something we couldn’t always do back in the UK. And seeing Mark two or three times in the day when he pops home between jobs is great.
Sneaking off early together in the summer to go snorkelling is fun, too, while going to work in shorts and a vest top is wonderful. Nobody cares if you wear branded clothes or drive a flash car – life isn’t as materialistic in Cyprus.
Here, we make much better use of our leisure time, even if that’s just relaxing in the garden with a glass of wine, great food and friends around. Something else I do here is sing in a rock and blues band, so summer evenings are often spent performing in the tourist areas. Often, Mark will come along to watch.
Yes, we both miss our families, and I miss Asda and Primark, but that’s all. We won’t be returning to the UK, because it has nothing left to offer us. Our lifestyle is so much better here – we’ve really found our feet.”
For information on Natalie’s magazine, Daxi, visit www.daximagazine.com
