Asia: Singapore 2022

 

"Nobody in Singapore drinks Singapore Slings.  It's one of the first things you find out there.  What you do in Singapore is eat.  It's a really food-crazy culture, where all of this great food is available in a kind of hawker-stand environment." 

Anthony Bourdain

We leave Cyprus behind and head for the tiny Asian city-state country of.......

Singapore

Officially the Republic of Singapore, this island nation is comprised of a main island and 63 satellite islands.  It has the third highest population density in the world and four official languages, with english being the main one.  It is known for its glitz and glamour and is, without a doubt, one of the cleanest, safest and most orderly cities in the world.  For instance, it's a place where spitting is illegal and you can actually drink the tap water - a first for me in Asia.

Known as a foodies paradise!  The food here is cheap, delicious and with a plethora of variety.  This place is home to the cheapest Michelin-starred meal in the world ($2.50 Cdn) and has two street food stalls in the city being awarded a Michelin star!!

Singapore is the quintessential cosmopolitan city with a population of 6 million and is the 12th smallest country in the world.  It is only 42 km wide and 23 km long.....a good trekker could walk the entire country in a couple of days!!

We arrive in Singapore at 2:00AM after a 29 hour flight and headed straight to our hotel and bed.  The next morning we beeline to Song Fa Bak Kut Teh's for my very first Michelin-rated meal.  We were lucky, they had just open, and we walked right in.  A hour later the line-up of customers stretched a full city block! And yes the food was awesome!!

Singapore's name is derived from the Malay language, 'Singa Pura', which means "Lion City".  According to legend, Prince Sang Nila Utama gave this name to the island after he came ashore and saw a creature he believed to be a lion.  Also according to legend, Prince Sang Nila Utama drank a lot and had poor eyesight.

The iconic Marina Bay Sands Hotel dominates much of the skyline.  We went in, we looked at the beer prices, we left.

In the 1960's, the city decided to create a clean and green environment to mitigate the harsh concrete urban environment and improve the quality of life in the city.  Today Singapore is known as the Garden City and most new buildings incorporate greenery into their facade.

Our hotel was near the tourist area of Clarkes Quay, Singapore's party bar scene and riverside dining spots, which all means over-priced and low quality, but hey, when in Rome.....

The historic riverside Clarke's Quay with the ancient Singapore bumboats lined off.  The bumboat (real name) is now used to ferry tourist up and down the 3.2 km Singapore River. 

Clarke's Quay has had more comebacks than John Travolta and Mickey Rourke, with the current resurrection featuring a desultory collection of restaurants and bars.

That look you get when your beer arrives fast and ice cold.......

......and that look you get when your beer doesn't arrive at all!!!

With Clarke's Quay firmly out of our system, we headed for the much more tolerable and equally close to our hotel; Chinatown.  The celebrated cultural heart of the city, it is a strange mix of ebullient commerce and nightlife.  It's a cultural experience to immerse yourself in the maze of streets that make up Chinatown - the only Chinatown in the world to boast a Buddhist temple, mosque and Hindu temple along a single street.

Wandering Chinatown where you can buy souvenirs and trinkets all made in China.

Dorian Fruit - that stinky (and I mean STINKY) fruit that is banned from just about everywhere, including hotels to public transportation.  Taxis in Singapore even have signs to let you  know they refuse to carry passengers transporting the smelly fruit.

The Temple of Heavenly Happiness is Singapore's oldest Buddhist temple.  The rooftop dragons represent the principles of Yin and Yang.

Devotees practicing their faith at the temple.

Statutes in Chinatown depicting memories of more desperate times when impoverished Chinese immigrants survived on their wits, hard work, prayers and good fortune.

Rows and rows of old shuttered shophouses line the streets of Chinatown.  Most of these have now been turned into luxurious boutique hotels and condos.

Standing in front of the massive Buddha Tooth Relic Temple.  Its main drawcard being what is believed to be a sacred tooth of the Buddha, however dental experts have expressed doubts over its authenticity.  For me the draw would be the 420kg gold pedestal that the tooth sits on (that's $26 million in gold....one mofo expensive tooth). 

Chinatown at night, city of light.

Chinatown's version of Jellybean Row.

Melanie heading for the buffet table.

We leave Chinatown and head for Little India - which is worlds apart but mere neighbourhoods away in distance.  Produce, marigolds, spices and other trinkets spill into the streets and crowd the sidewalks and the air has that constant smell of a million sticks of incense!

Marigold neck chains hang everywhere - the spiritual meaning of the marigold is that they represent the sun, symbolizing brightness and positive energy.  Who knew?

The shophouses in Little India are smaller than their Chinese equivalents just down the street.

The dazzling colourful Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple (say that five times real fast) is dedicated to Kali, the bloodthirsty consort of Shiva. 

Five hundred metres off the south coast of Singapore is Sentosa Island, the city's resort getaway.  In the 1960's the Singaporean government made a concerted effort to transform the island from tacky-second rate to tacky world-class.  Its beaches are made of imported sand complete with fake boulders and piped in renditions of 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun'.  Basically, Sentosa is almost entirely a synthetic attraction....making it a must see!!

There are a couple of ways to get to the island, this is the way we decided to go.

For something completely different, you can have a four-course meal served in the cable car complete with candles!

A skywalk allows you to walk a good part of Sentosa Island above ground.  Here's a little trivia: Sentosa Island used to be called Pulau Blakang Mati, which is Malay, and means 'island behind which lies death'.....alllll-righty then.

The beautiful and completely fake Sentosa Island beach.  Trickery I tell you! 

Right about now you're saying; is there anything else to Singapore besides cityscape and fake beaches?  Of course there is, and to prove it, we head for one of the premier attractions - the 250 acre Garden by the Bay.  Within a short walk of our hotel (what isn't a short walk in Singapore?) we spend 3 or 4 hours wandering around these award winning landscapes where they incorporate sculptures with nature.

Trails abound.  Hard to believe there's a bustling city of 6 million right next to this peaceful oasis.

Real rock sculptures as opposed to the fake ones found on Sentosa Island.

At 9 metres long and 3 metres tall and weighing about 7 tons, this huge piece of art, called Planet, seems to defy the laws of gravity as it floats on one arm in the middle of a raised field.

Melanie checking out the Baobab trees. It's covered in killer-like thorns....not Melanie....the tree.

Although millions of people visit this park every year, in most cases, we had the place to ourselves.

Perhaps the most prominent sculptures found in the Garden are the 18 tree-like structures, called Supertrees, that range in height from 25 - 50 metres.

The Supertrees are home to enclaves of unique and exotic ferns, vines, orchids and a vast collection of bromeliads.  There's even a walkway spanning several of the 50 metre Supertrees (you can see it in this picture).

My fav with any garden is the water feature - I've built three of them over the years.

A dragonfly sculpture with the iconic Marina Bay Sands Hotel.

"And the seasons, they go round and round
And the painted ponies go up and down
We're captive on the carousel of time
We can't return, we can only look
Behind, from where we came
And go round and round and round, in the circle game."

Joni Mitchell, The Circle Game

And with the philosophical words of wisdom from Joni, we bid Singapore good-bye and continue our journey to the Philippines.  See you there!!!

Europe: Cyprus 2022

"I've been waiting over 40 years to come to Cyprus, and it has not disappointed - the birthplace of Aphrodite, the Crossroads of Civilization....."

US President Joe Biden

After spending a month in Greece, Melanie, Terry & Pam Stead and moi hop on a plane and fly from the Greek island of Crete to the Mediterranean country of.......

Cyprus

Officially known as the Republic of Cyprus, it is a member of the European Union but geographically it is part of West Asia. It is tucked away into the furthest corner of the Mediterranean, seemingly hiding from the rest of its European relatives.  A small and unsuspecting island but one filled to the gunnels with beautiful views, rich culture, and historic sites.  

It's the sun-soaked stretches of sand that's Cyprus' calling card and there's a beach for everyone here, from wild and windswept to family-friendly and packed.  And if you tire of all that blue, you can strike out into the interior, where wildflower-studded meadows and valleys of densely planted vineyards sweep up to a pine-clad mountain spine offering hiking, biking and, yes, even winter skiing. 

It's wasn't all rosy for Cyprus as it does have a modern troubled past.  On July 15, 1974 the Greek military carried out a coup d'etat in Cyprus, to unite the island, and the 77% population with Greek ancestry, with Greece.  In response to the coup, five days later, the Turkish army invaded the island to protect the 18% population with Turkish ancestry.  The United Nations intervened and have been keeping the peace ever since (their longest serving mission).  Today the Republic of Cyprus has effective control of 59% of the island's south whereas the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus controls 39% of the north (the remaining is controlled by the UN and Britain).  

Today crossing the line between the South and the North allows you not only to gain some understanding of the complex and painful modern-day history, but also experience the two Cypriot communities.  Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot societies are intrinsically different yet incredibly similar, linked by a rich history where food cultures and folk customs have intermingled, but divided by belief.

The four of us are here for three weeks and we hope to explore as much of both the south and north as time will permit.  Our first stop is the Greek Cypriot western city of........

Paphos

Paphos, a city rich in history and culture, is the gem of western Cyprus.  Famous for its Roman mosaics and palaces, ancient history, fortresses and tombs, beautiful beaches, and of course as the birthplace of Aphrodite the Greek goddess of love and beauty.  All these elements and facts give Paphos a remarkable architectural and historic value, and this is mostly why the town is included in the UNESCO list of cultural and natural treasures of the world's heritage.  As an added bonus, an Irish Bar, Shamrocks, just down the road from us plays Newfoundland music.....go figure!!

We were staying in an AIRBNB that was only a 10 minute walk to the beach.  Pretty good spot for mid-November!

We walk down the harbour promenade and Melanie decides to flirt with a local.  Flussy.

Dude walking the promenade, that extends for kilometres pass the Paphos harbour.  The 13th century Byzantine fortress in the background.  

Setting sun on Paphos.  Directly in front of us is an ocean swimming area complete with steps to get in and out!

We weren't here in Paphos just to laze around in the sun and sand, although we could have easily!  With a UNESCO World Heritage site just up the road, we headed for the Nea Paphos to explore.  This ancient city was built by Nicocles, the last king of Paphos, at the end of the 4th century BC.  This important ancient Greek and Roman city, which is still under excavation, was annexed by Rome in 58BC as the Roman Empire began its expansion eastward, with Nea Paphos as its capital.  The site is huge and can easily take a couple of days to explore!!

Nea Paphos, oddly means 'new Paphos', which is to say that before New Paphos there had to be an 'Old Paphos'.......  

.....and these ancient carved-out caves were probably part of Old Paphos.  They were in the middle of a double-lane highway and we had to dodge the traffic to get to them.  

While part of the Nea Paphos UNESCO complex, it wasn't included in that enclosure, which met that there was no fee to wander around in the subterranean caves.  Above us, traffic zoomed along oblivious to the ancient caves underneath.

This 2nd century AD mosaic depicts a scene of Theseus, the mythical king of Athens, and the Minotaur - the half man half bull monster (we encounter this guy in Crete).  It is part of the residence of a Roman governor......back then they didn't have TV, so people gather around and watched the Netflix series called 'The Mosaics'!

The world's first selfies.

This mosaic encrusted street ran the length of the ancient city.  If you listen hard enough you can still hear the chariots!  

Unlike the Greek ruins we visited in Greece, these were much more intact and, bonus, we were allowed to walk among them.

Aphrodite walks among us!

The 2nd century AD Odeon amphitheatre with the Paphos lighthouse in the background.  The Odeon was built in a semicircle which allows the unamplified voice to carry to the 1200 seat amphitheatre with unbelievable clarity.

Waiting for the next show to start.  

The Paphos lighthouse, built by the British in 1880, is built immediately behind the Odeon, thus giving the lighthouse keeper an exceptional view of the show!

A view of the Agioi Anargyroi Monastery (built in 1649) through the ancient arches of the Saranta Kolones Castle that was destroyed by an earthquake in 1222. 

These arches withstood an earthquake in 1222 that destroyed the rest of the castle.  If another earthquake hits I'm getting myself under these!

The next day it was time to put a little physical effort into things, so we put our hiking shoes on and headed for Aphrodites Trail.  This 8km trail starts at the Loutra tis Afroditis or more commonly known as Aphrodites Bath.

Aphrodites Bath, where apparently the Goddess of Love and Beauty used to bath.  Now I'm looking at this little cesspool and I'm thinking ole Aphrodite must have been a tiny little thing cause there is hardly enough water here to get your feet wet, let alone have a bath!

Terry and Pam starting the 333 metre climb to the top.

Big B nearing the top.

Melanie racing ahead.

The top!

The 'Queens Tower' chapel, along the trail, is all that is standing from a medieval monastery that used to exist here.  

I'm a lost for words on this one.

Nearly there.  Our car is parked in yonder town

Back in Paphos and next on our agenda is to head for the second archaeological site found in this ancient city, the Tombs of the Kings.  The site (yes yes yes another UNESCO World Heritage site) is a large necropolis which dates back to the 4th century BC.  They are carved out of solid rock and is the burial site for aristocrats and high officials - the name comes from the magnificence of the tombs as in fact, no kings were buried here.  Trickery I tell ya!

Like its neighbour, Nea Paphos, two kilometres west of here, this site is massive and is completely open to exploring.

The bones of the dead are long gone, only the living breathing tourist remains.

"Mel don't go in there!  That's a grave!"

To put this into context: this necropolis was built 2600 years ago and North America was only discovered 527 years ago.

First they had to dig the hole out of solid rock, then they had to carve the tomb out of solid rock, all with mere medieval tools.  Impressive!  It takes most Canadian cities 10 weeks to fill a pothole.

It is believe that grave robbers took most of the valuables centuries ago.  I looked but couldn't find a single thing to steal.

This site is so large many of the excavated tombs are being reclaimed by nature.

We felt like Raiders of the Lost Ark exploring this site.

"Mel, go get help. I fell down this chute and can't get out......wait a minute, is that gold coins I see?  Mel don't DON'T go get help...."

We are trying to balance seeing history with physical effort, therefore we have one more hike in the Paphos region that we are going to do.  We pack our water bottles and head for the Avakas Gorge.  An amazing masterpiece of nature, the gorge is 8 kilometres out and back.  The trail is very diverse, with a little bit of everything; mostly rocky, slippery, muddy, wet, loose stones and uneven, some dry areas and places where you need to scramble up and around large rocks.....PERFECT!

Entering the gorge.  Let the adventure begin!

And now appearing on the Gorge's centre stage; Pamela doing her rendition of the watusi.

Starts off tame enough.  Small stream running through it, low cliffs on either side.  Easy walking. No big deal.

The cliffs soon reach a dizzyingly height of 30 metres.

At its most narrow point the gorge closes in to a mere 3 metres.

At this spot the water pours down from a stream far above.  Very little choice but get wet here!

Jaysus Murphy don't let that thing fall.

Scrambling over large slippery boulders becomes the norm.

Such fun!!!!

"Well this is odd, my GPS says I should go straight up the cliff behind me?" 

Too large to go over, too big to go around, got no choice but to go through it.

Atta girl.  Your super powers have saved us all!

The gorge widens the further up we go.  

Nearing the end.  

The gorge peters out just about here.  Terry and Pam decide to walk back via the top, while Mel and I head back down from whence we came.

With our time in Paphos coming to an end, we head north over the Troodos Mountains to the de facto country of.........

Turkish Republic of North Cyprus

In 1983 Turkish Cypriots proclaimed themselves the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus (TRNC) and formed by breaking away from Cyprus.  The TRNC is internationally recognized only by the country of Turkey, whereas the rest of the world sees it as a rogue state.  In my eyes 'if it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.'  The TRNC has all the trappings of a country; military, currency, border control, government and geographic territory, not to mention language (Turkish), religion (Islam) and culture.  To me it is a separate country and it was where we headed after leaving Paphos.

Our destination for our time in the TRNC is the port side city of......

Kyrenia

To most visitors, a holiday in the TRNC means Kyrenia, and Kyrenia means Kyrenia Harbour.  Also known as Girne, the tiny harbour is framed by the colossal hulk of a Crusader castle.  With a core population of 28,000, there are more tourist than residents.  The harbour-side is filled with the tables of restaurants and bars, ideal for sitting back and watching the world go by.  

'Old Town' Kyrenia, known as the 'Jewel of Cyprus' dates back to the 12th century.

Minarets now replace church steeples complete with the 5AM call to prayer!

People have been walking pass this door for a 1,000 years.

Kyrenia Harbour

The old stone light house at Kyrenia Harbour.  "Whatsa pointing at Melanie?"

 A long breakwater surrounds the harbour making for a perfect place to stroll with the hulking Girne Castle in the background.

The old harbour is now surrounded by restaurants and bars making it a happening place.

Enjoying a  night out with a few brewskies and shesha.

Picking out our soup ingredients.  "Yes this green one will do just fine!"

The 800 year old Girne Castle dominates the east end of the Kyrenia harbour.  It was rebuilt by the Venetians in the 16th century, however the first historical reference to the castle occurs in 1191, when King Richard I  (more commonly known as Richard the Lionheart) of England captured it on his way to the Third Crusade.  These days it is a major tourist attraction, and we being major tourist, we were obviously attracted to it!

The only entrance to the Castle but first we must get pass the Bridgekeeper who cries: "STOP!  Who approacheth the Bridge of Death must answer me these questions three ere the other side he see."

Bridgekeeper, Monty Python, The Holy Grail

Melanie was the only person to correctly answer the Bridgekeepers three questions, so she only shall pass.  The rest of us had to wait until scene 24.

A view of the Castle's old church with the Turkish and Turkish Republic of North Cyprus flags in the background.

Pamela in the long tunnel to the church.  "If you entered a tunnel, you can be sure that the tunnel has at least one exit!"

Mehmet Murat Ildan

This was once part of the castle moat, now it serves as the entrance to the Kyrenia harbour. 

French Guard: "I don't wanna talk to you no more, you empty headed animal food trough wiper!  I fart in your general direction! Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!
Sir Galahad: Is there someone else up there we can talk to?
French Guard:  No. Now go away, or I shall taunt you a second time-a!"

Monty Python, The Holy Grail

"Don't like her?  What's wrong with her? She's beautiful.  She's rich.  She's got huge......tracts of land."

King of Swamp Castle, Monty Python, The Holy Grail

Well, Terry I'm totally lost for words on this one.  How old you say you were?

Ancient coat of arms from King Richard the Lionheart's time.

The royal shitter.  I expect ole King Richard the Lionheart took a dump here!

Part of the castle now houses the Shipwreck Museum, which exhibits the remains of a Greek merchant ship from the 4th century BC, one of the oldest vessels ever to be recovered......

....included in the ships recovery were several amphora's which originally held wine and olive oil

A view of the inside of the castle courtyard.

While in the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus we had to opportunity to see some of the sites around the country, such as these.......

Giant TRNC flag on yonder distant hills.  The flag dimensions are 425 metres wide and 250 metres high!!!

This is a cement truck.....like daaaa......but look real close.  REAL CLOSE and you'll see it!  Hint:  look for the writing!!!

One of the largest mosques I've seen.

Our last great adventure in the TRNC is to head to Buffavento Castle.  Yes I know, not another castle, but this one has a twist to it.....we have to get there!!!  Buffavento, which translates as 'Defier of the Winds', is situated 960 MASL and has over 600 steps leading to the top.  It is situated between two other castles, St. Hilarion and Kantara and between these three they formed a protective axis in the Kyrenia Mountain range.  It was taken by Richard the Lionheart in 1191, however the defences for this castle were considered very strong, so it is believed that the castle defenders were starved into submission rather than experiencing any actual fighting.

Buffavento Castle.  The builders must have thought is was a good idea to build this far up, but with no means to feed themselves, all the aggressors had to do was simply cut off their food supply lines.

It's a steep and demanding climb.  A good way to work off those cheap beers and wine!!

And finally after 600+ steps: the castle!  Trekking up mountains is one thing, but climbing 600+ steps (different riser heights and widths) is quite a different matter.

To the average 10th century military recruit, this posting must have seemed like the end of the earth!

Most of the castle has fallen into ruins but you can still imagine what a hard life it must have been.....

....grant it the views were dead on!!

You can just barely see the parking lot where we parked our rental (looking at the castle it is above the left window).

Everything had to be manually brought up here, except the goats, which were able to climb up themselves.  They provided milk, food and certain form of entertainment best left unsaid.

Da bye's!  

A vaulted chamber that was probably used to store food.  Considering the amount of goat shit on the floor, it is now used by the goats to seek shelter.

"I'm the king of the castle and you're a dirty rascal!"

The spine of Cyprus, the Kyrenia Mountains.  

A view from the top; the town of Kyrenia and the many tour-package all-inclusive hotels that surround it.

We leave the TRNC and re-cross the border back into Cyprus proper.  Our destination this time is the seaside resort town of..........

Ayia Napa

Ayia Napa is Greek for "Saint Napa", the patron saint of the town, whose Venetian-era monastery is in the centre of the town, next to the square which today is bar-scene central.  With sunshine for nearly 320 days a year, Ayia Napa has become synonymous for sun, beach and partying!  Sure what better reason would you need to go!

While we were in Ayia Napa, our good friend, Betsy Bond and her mother also joined us for a quick four day visit.  I first met Betsy in Morocco and we found out that she and her husband, Terry, lived only 13km from us in Newfoundland!  It was a joy to reconnect with her here in Cyprus!!!

The Ayia Napa area is riddled with beaches, such as this one.......  

.....but regardless how pretty the beach, I'm simply not much of a beach person and I would rather spend my time exploring the natural wonders otherwise offered, such as those found here at Cape Greco!

A natural land-bridge (behind us), which we were not allowed to walk across.....so many rules taking away the fun!

A picture of Terry within the cliffside hole.  People go cliff diving here but Melanie wouldn't let me, so........I didn't.

Near Ayia Napa is the 20 hectare Sculpture Park which was created in 2014 on the rocky slopes of the Mediterranean.  The park consists of a large collection of 263 works by artists from around the world.  The park organizers did not limit the sculptors in their ideas, with the main requirement being the size of the sculpture must be more than 2 metres, and it must be made of stone or metal.

We spent about 2 hours wandering around this massive site.

I particularly like this piece, perhaps for the way it captures the lifelike image of the Greek God within the frame!

The Hounds of Hades, the multi-headed dog that guards the gates of the underworld to prevent the dead from leaving.

A bust of Medousa - she represents a dangerous threat meant to deter other dangerous threats, an image of evil to repel evil.  But whatever you do, don't look her in the eye!

Not sure what these are, perhaps a place to hang your suit and coats?

"Can someone get us a Kleenix, this guy got a friendly!"

I think she likes it!!!

We weren't done with the sculptures yet.  Just 200 metres off-shore is the Museum of Underwater Sculptures of Ayia Napa (MUSAN), an underwater forest of objects, the first of its kind in the world.  It consists of over 93 artworks some of which are in the form of trees, others which are figurative in nature.  The artworks are designed to attract marine life and are situated 8 - 10 metres below the surface (close enough to see from snorkelling, but deep enough not to get great pictures).

I had swam out the 200 metres (650 ft) offshore to where I thought the sculptures were but couldn't see anything.  Given that there were no other snorkelers or swimmers around I was starting to get a little worried and decided to head back to shore.  Just as I was turning around I see this about 8 metres down!!

The water was a little murky, the sun wasn't shining, and the water depth was between 8 - 10 metres, thus making the photographic images fuzzy; but still, what a view!

Notice the sleeping children on the bases of each sculpture!

It was a real forest of objects down there.  Over the years I have been snorkelling and diving in many places around the world and I have to say, this was one of the most fascinating places I've seen.  Not much wildlife but certainly lots to see!!

And now for something completely different.  Melanie & I, along with Betsy and her Mother, crossed back over the border to the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus so that we are able to enter the ghost city of......

Fermagusta

Called the 'ghost city' because it was abandoned in 1974, when it suddenly became a battleground of the war between Greece and Turkey.  Fermagusta, the once-glittering Mediterranean seaside resort city, has been fenced off ever since, with only UN peace-keepers wandering the streets.  Back in the day, it was considered one of the most popular resorts in the world, with high profile visitors including the likes of Brigitte Bardot, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.  The city remained in situ ever since the war until October 2020, when some streets reopened to visitors.  Weird, sad, exceptionally eerie and perhaps one of the most fascinating places I've ever been, a true most-see when visiting this part of the world.

Looks like any other modern beachside city, but these high-rises are empty of everything and everybody except the ghosts from August 1974.

I've been to many strange places over the years, but this 'ghost city', laid waste by war, is definitely one of the strangest.

Nature has reclaimed the streets and now only the rodents and UN peace-keepers wander them.

The King George Hotel, a complete ruin today, was buzzing with life in 1974 and still remains the symbol of the entire era.

People left their homes with nothing but the clothes on their backs,  everything else, a lifetime worth of things, remained behind:  46 years later most things have either rusted, or simply disintegrated and faded away, only nature has returned.  

Melanie and Betsy looking at a once bustling city street.

A artillery pocked building......

.....and a bomb flattened building.  Over 538 people died here in 1974 and approximately 140,000 people were displaced.

It is as it was.

The Cafe Cabana where Lola did the merengue and the cha-cha! 

Betsy looking to buy some perfume at the Perfumerie Elysee! Probably get it cheap now!

The World's Policing Agency: the United Nations.  The only occupied building in the city.

Appropriate! Although now the entire city is a curiosity.

After our sobering visit to Fermagusta, it was time to get back to some adventure and celebrating, and what better way to do that but to take a wine and food tour, culminating with a visit to the mountain village of.....

Pano Lefkara

Surrounded by the Troodos mountains and overlooking the sea, Pano Lefkara is a beautiful Cyprus village that is characterized by its countless cobbled-stone lanes and traditional stone cottages.  The village is famous around the world thanks to its needlecraft lace that originates there.  It was even thought to have served as the inspiration for the table cloth in Leonardo da Vinci's 'The Last Supper' (he travelled there in 15th century and brought some lace back to Italy with him).  The village is so famous for its beauty and handicrafts that it has received UNESCO status (yes another UNESCO status).

It is a wine and food tour afterall!!

What does a 1,500 year old olive tree look like....just like this.  This tree was 40 years old and producing olives when Mohammed, the founder of the Islam religion, was born.

We went to a donkey farm where we tried all things that milk is made from, except it was donkey milk.

Melanie told me to stop making an ass of myself.

It's my birthday.....again.  Seems they get closer and closer every year.  I could swear I had one only 11 or 12 months ago!!

The streets of Pano Lefkara are empty this time of the year.  Come here in the height of the tourist season and it would be a different story.

She's a wanderer!

The Church of the Holy Cross of Pano Lefkara was built in the 14th century and is famous among the Christian faithful......

.... the fame comes from the large silver-gilded Cross which contains a piece of wood from the True Cross that Jesus was crucified on.  According to legend, Saint Helena brought the piece of the True Cross with her when she visited Cyprus.  We were able to touch it but I didn't feel the power, guess I'm not faithful enough!

It sure is a beautiful village!!

Around every corner and down every alleyway is another Kodak moment!

Did you know that Saint Neophytos the Recluse was born here in Pano Lefkara in the 10th century?  No?!?  Well now you know!!

A final view of this awesome beautiful village!

Back in Ayia Napa.....

And another birthday cake.  Yes bye!  Happy Birthday to Moi.  Just to note, Melanie did not singed her eyebrows!

And with that our time in Cyprus comes to an end.  Stay tune for our next stop in the around the world odyssey!!