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Welcome to the island of legends that basks year-round in the light of the warm Mediterranean sun. A storied past 10,000 years long has seen civilizations come and go and the likes of everyone from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra stake their claim here – but then, people do tend to get possessive when faced with such beauty. Aphrodite made her home on Cyprus and travelers throughout antiquity came here just to pay her tribute.
The cultural heritage of a people is its most important asset, its identity and a sense of continuation through time. Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean and standing as it does at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa it has had a tumultuous history.
History
The Mycenaeans Achaeans brought their civilisation here, establishing the first Greek roots 3,000 years ago. Many others passed through, including Phoenicians, Assyrians, Egyptians, Persians, Romans, Crusaders, Venetians, Ottomans and the British. The apostles of Christ walked this land. The splendour of Byzantium, founded by Constantine the Great at Constantinople, encompassed the island of Cyprus. Here are prehistoric settlements, ancient Greek temples, Roman theatres and villas, Early Christian Basilicas, Byzantine churches and monasteries, Crusader castles, Gothic churches and Venetian fortifications. In the villages, old customs and traditions are still kept alive. Young girls still engage in lace making in the beautiful village of Lefkara just as their grandmothers did before them. Potters still create wondrous anthropomorphic shapes to decorate their earthenware vessels at picturesque Foini and the sound of handlooms can still be heard in Fyti, home of attractive hand-woven materials, whilst, men in traditional baggy trousers ‘vraka’, still congregate at the coffee shop for a game of backgammon.
In Cyprus the 21st century rubs shoulders with a civilisation 10,000 years old. There are festivals whose origins stretch back into antiquity; like carnival and anthestiria organised in honour of God Dionysos; at Kouklia, where the Temple of Aphrodite once stood, a church was known until a few years ago as ‘the Church of the Virgin Mary Aphroditissa’. The aura of the Great Goddess of Cyprus is still present in Pafos, and all over ‘the Sweet land of Cyprus’ in the beauty of the landscape, the mildness of the climate and the charm of the people. The immortal words of Euripides and Sophocles ring out on warm summer evenings at the Ancient Kourion Theatre and the Pafos Odeon during performances of ancient Greek drama.
And in September wine flows free and the spirit of Dionysos, god of wine and merriment, is present throughout the Wine Festival. The Mediaeval folk songs are still sung in Cyprus keeping alive the legends of Digenis, the unconquerable border guard of Byzantium, and his beautiful Queen, Rigaina. In the narrow streets of the walled city of Lefkosia the coppersmith works with the metal, as did his ancestors 5,000 years ago. In the shade of old houses with their overlooking balconies, the flavour of the past lingers among the old typical stone houses.
In Cyprus the past lives side by side with the present in a unique tapestry of living history.
Geography / climate / population
Cyprus is the third largest and the easternmost island in the Mediterranean Sea, west of Syria, south of Turkey, north of Egypt and in close proximity to the east of the Greek island of Rhodes. Prominent geographic features include the Troodos massif that occupies most of the southwestern part of the country, the Pentadaktylos range in the north around Kyrenia and the Messaoria Plain in between them. It is here that the capital city, Lefkosia is located. The elongated Karpasia Peninsula occupies the northeastern part of Cyprus, while the southeastern point terminates in Cape Gkreco. The southern coast is where the major towns of Larnaka and Lemesos are located. Pafos and the Akamas Peninsula are on the far western edge.
Aphrodite’s island enjoys the ideal mild, typically Mediterranean climate, with abundant sunshine and fine temperatures almost every day.
Population: 802,500 (end 2002)
Language
Greek and Turkish are the official languages. English is widely spoken. French and German are also spoken within the tourism industry.
Religion
The country enjoys an exceedingly high level of freedom of worship. While the majority of Cypriots are Greek Orthodox Christian (85%), other religious faiths are represented on the island as well, including Roman Catholics, Armenians, Maronites, Latins and Muslims.
Metrification
Speed limits and car speedometers are shown in kilometres
Currency
The Cyprus pound – C
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
