9 months ago I did know just two things about Cyprus: that it was really small and that it was somewhere close to Malta. Spoiler: one of my two knowledges was definitely wrong. In my defense, I almost had never heard about this country in my life. When I discovered I would have left, I started to collect information and paying more attention when I heard people or radio talking about it. In this way, I began to be more conscious about the place where I was about to live for 1 year: the language, the correct geographical position, the political situation…Still, I was not able to keep expectations.
Then I arrived, and I almost immediately fell in love, before with Lefkosia, then, as soon as I had the chance to travel a little bit, with Cyprus.
I explored Lefkosia, mainly the old city, where I had the luck to live, for the first weeks, especially before starting to work. The city is divided in two parts: the old one is defined by Venetian walls which form a circle and, despite the modern Eleftheria Square and lots of bars, restaurant and shops around the main street, Ledras, it mantains its “antiquity” in the yellow stones of many buildings, in the arches you can glimpse in some abandoned houses, in its slowness. It has a middle-eastern charm, it does’t look and feel like an European capital. The new city is more modern, with its offices, skyscrapers and large streets full of cars. I’ve always been fascinated by the differences and the contrast between them.
So, I spent my first weeks in Cyprus wandering around Lefkosia. I walked a lot: for some reason, riding a bike here terrifies me. I got lost in its alleys (I’ll admit it: sometimes still happens), I tried a lot of different restaurants and foods from different Countries, I walked on the green line, I listened the call of the muezzin, I entered in every church I saw, I discovered the open farmers’ market, I admired the graffiti on the walls, I sat at the coffee tables drinking Cypriot coffee or mandarinata and observed people passing (it’s amazing how many different nationalities this city hosts) and old men playing tavli, I stopped to listen to the greek live music meandering through the streets during the evenings…
Then, willing to explore around but afraid to drive on the “wrong” side, I took my first bus.
My first day trip was in Kakopetria, a little nice village in Nicosia district. After that, I approached the Intercity buses, going to the main Cypriot cities: Limassol, Pafos, Larnaka, Aya Napa. Buses are the only way you can move around the island, if you want to use public transportation, since in Cyprus trains are not an option. Indeed, railway communication operated, once, but it was closed in 1951, since it was unprofitable and there were no funds to mantain it.
In the northern side, you can take dolmuşlar, sort of little buses. From Lefkoşa, you can use them to arrive to Girne, Famagusta, Güzelyurt and other cities or villages. I think it is worth the experience: for the men screaming the destination of the dolmuş at the bus stops, for the ticket agent coming aboard at a certain point of the ride and selling the tickets while the dolmuş goes with the help of other passengers passing tickets and money, for the drivers stopping in the middle of the streets to ask you if you need to go somewhere and to make you get on the bus, for the seats magically appearing in the space between other seats when the dolmuş is full…
I have to admit it: I quickly got tired of buses. I mean, they are obviously really useful and quite cheap and I still use them, but you know, once you start exploring you need more. And intercities didn’t let me go wherever I wanted.
The turning point came when my flatmates and I found the courage to try to drive and we rented our first car. Moving with a private car means you can enjoy much more the island: you can reach more places, you are not bound to the bus schedule, you can take your time, you can stop along the way…I had the chance to visit amazing places: the waterfalls close to Kritou Tera, the Sea Caves (both the ones in Agia Napa and in Peyia), the king Tombs in Paphos, different villages (Lofou, Omodos, Askas…), the Lagoon Bay, Agioi Saranta, Karpas, the Salt Lake (to visit both in summer at sunset and in winter when full of flamingos), Agios Sozomenos, Avakas Gorge…Really, Cyprus, in its tininess, has a lot to offer: sea, villages, mountains, archeological sites, animals (wild donkeys in Karpas, mouflons around Troodos and Paphos, flamingos on the salt lake in Larnaka, goats, giant lizards and geckos, cats…), thousands of churches, delicious food…
It amazes me how many different sceneries you can find in such a small place: the burnt landscapes on the motorway and the forests, the tiny stone villages and the big cities, the sea of an unbelievable blue, which I did not think it could really exist, the hills carpeted in vineyards…
So, next volunteer: go! By foot, by bus, by bike (be braver than me!), by car, but just go.
