Cyprus videos
Flushed with the success of our podcasts and our videos from Syria, here are a few vids that we took in Cyprus. They were all originally made for podcastsinenglish.com our podcasting site for learners and teachers of English.
Famagusta
The guidebooks gave me a very wrong impression of Famagusta. They make out like it is a ghost town with huge Venetian walls encircling a few crumbling buildings with everything overgrown and left to nature. The walls are there for sure as are the ruins but there are also plenty of people living there as well, in newish houses and with the usual infrastructure. In fact the central area around the cathedral has undergone a degree of rehabilitation and pedestrianisation…
Kyrenia
Kyrenia, jewel of the North coast, is probably the most picturesque coastal town in Cyprus. The picture postcard harbour certainly is but the huge residential developments which are spreading like wildfire along the coast certainly aren’t. The harbour itself is no longer used as such, except for tourist boats and the quay is lined with restaurants. Despite its ‘falseness’ it certainly is attractive and there is no better place to have a cold beer and enjoy some seafood while staring…
St. Hilarion
Although not far as the crow flies, to get to St. Hilarion Castle we had to climb up the Kyrenia range of hills. We started at the farwest and here is the view to the north west cape of Cyprus – the Korucam peninsula. From here we drove due East with the narrow plain of the north coast to our left and we could see the snow capped Taurus mountains of Turkey in the distance. The road was narrow and…
Old Nicosia
The day we explored Nicosia was the worst weatherwise of our holiday. Cold and dreary – just like a typical British weekend! It didn’t dampen our spirits though as there were plenty of things to do. Old Nicosia town is completely encircled by a number of bastions, built in the middle ages and as you can see from the map below still pretty much intact. It also means that the old city itself has been relatively untouched by development and…
Walks and the wild west
West and south of the cottage we ventured away from the mountains into the wide Guzelyurt plain and its burgening orchards of oranges. Nearby is the bay of the same name where we went on a few walks and then stretching around the bay we found the ancient cities of Soli and hilltop Palace of Vouni. We also spent an afternoon in the foothills of the Troodos mountains in the village of Lefke. Guzelyurt town is the population centre for…
Welcome to Carob Cottage
Welcome to Cyprus! And more specifically Carob Cottage. This first page is just a few photos of around the cottage we rented. The other pages feature trips to the orange growing areas of the far North West, a daytrip to old Nicosia, Lofty Castles in the Kyrenia Range, Famagusta and the far East, a trip to the charming old port of Kyrenia and a page of various walks we did in the countryside. We finish off with a few videos…