Famagusta

Getting Lunch

Since we were out fairly late the night before, we'd begin the day late be heading over to the local fish store. We had stopped by the day before,  but the owner told us to return as he was expecting fresh stuff the next day.

 

Getting lunch

Touring the Island

Throughout the afternoon we'd hike around to various locations. Churches are everywhere. On top of one hill was a church that held maybe 30 people at most. The facility was gorgeous. There are dozens of churches, just like this tiny one, throughout the island.

 

 Up the hill!

 

Greek Orthodox Church

Famagusta

 

Border of Famagusta

After some driving and hiking around the island, Themi drove us to a lookout point over to the beach city of Famagusta. We went to a lookout point because that’s the closest anyone of any nationality can to the city. The city was abandoned nearly overnight in 1974 after the Turkish invasion. The invasion occurred throughout the island. Themi told me that when he was a child, his father woke up the family the morning of the invasion after seeing paratroppers falling from the sky. He rounded up the family and drove them all to the mud house in Klirou. When they would return to the their home in Nikosia they would discover serious damage to their home.

 

Buildings below the ocean are deserted

Independent Cyprus has a visitors center were one can watch a short movie and view the Famagusta skyline. The movie has a propaganda feel to it, encouraging all viewers to push the UN to enforce certain passed resolutions that would return Famagusta land to its Cypriot owners. In any case, looking at the skyline along the beach is just eerie. The town appears much like downtown Las Vegas, with a string of midrise hotels. There are even some incomplete midrise hotels with construction cranes still frozen in place since 1974. It’s crazy to look at the skyline and know the entire town is a ghost town. It’s even more crazy to think people are waiting to go back home to this area. From what I understand, many of the business owners have moved to Limassol – which has probably picked up most of the Famagusta traffic.

More Hiking

Shortly after visiting the Famagusta visitor center, we’d go back to the house and pick up Maria. From there we’d do more hiking around the waterfront. We’d later head over to some friends we had done dinner with earlier and have some birthday cake.

 

Where we're going, we don't need roads!

 

Themi's family and me

 

Paintball target practice

 

Themi and Maria's lovely family!

 

Saying goodbye is hard :(

 

Later we’d return home for dinner. Maria heated up some of the pasta/cheese goodness her mom made later in the week for me! What a treat

Off to Paphos!

I had expected to leave much earlier for Paphos, but ended up hanging around Themi and his family until around 10pm. I wasn’t sure how to say thank you – I just know every time I did say it Themi got irritated. In any case, saying goodbye was extremely difficult. I felt like I was moving away from a best friend. The truth is, the time I spent with Themi and family as the best time I had on the island. In hindsight, had I not caught up with them I probably would have ended up being frustrated by Cyprus and god-awful transportation system. The highways work fine, but everything else lacks planning. Knowing it's off season for Paphos I didn't feel the need to book a room before leaving.  So, upon arriving at Paphos about 2 hours later I stopped at a McDonalds for free WiFi and tried to book a room via Kayak. The price was sweet, only $26 for an oceanfront room! Problem - since it was midnight Kayak wouldn't let me book for the night. D'oh! Off to the hotel I was, only to have to pay 26 euros instead...about $33 US. D'oh, D'oh, D'oh!