The Beer Park

When we first came to Cyprus we began a search for local playgrounds. Since many of them don't have official names, we chose our own to help us remember them. The playground today got the unfortunate name "the beer park".  That's because there is a kiosk there that sells snacks and drinks and the first time we went there some men were sitting around having a beer. Believe me, Demetris was not to happy that they sell beer by a playground, but it seems to be pretty tame. Of course, the beer park is the the one that Alex requests the most.  He likes it because it has some pieces that are different than the usual.
In the afternoon we went to the pool for the second time this season. Thanks to Grandma Electra we were able to join a very nice fitness club. It is only open to present or past employees of the Bank of Cyprus and their families. Grandma worked for this bank for forty years which makes us qualified. Demetris and I use the gym facilities and now we are able to take advantage of the outdoor pool. There is a large kiddie pool that is perfect for Alex and Sofia. Alex was brave enough today to start jumping off the side by himself. The water is about waist deep for him. Sofia sat only on the edge the first time, but today she ventured into the water and pretended to swim. The grounds of the club are very well kept and are landscaped with many types of flowering plants and trees. Even though it was about 85 degrees today and the water was warm, there were less than ten other people there. We are really lucky to have access there, and a rate lower that a standard health club.

Kiosk at the beer park.  The men on the far left are having a beer.

A standing up type of teeter totter

"I don't want to go fast!"--Sofia

You can see how empty it was today.

She moves her arms in circles to "swim"

Lefkera

Lefkera is a small town about 25 miles from Nicosia. It is famous for its handmade lace and silver. We drove through Lefkera last weekend on the way home from our mountain trip and I wanted to go back today to explore. It is a quaint area with many nicely restored village style homes. But, it became evident quite quickly that this has become a popular tourist destination and the store owners can be a bit aggressive in trying to sell their wares. As we walked away from one store we were talking to each other about going to the museum down the street. The storekeeper followed us a bit and yelled "the museum is closed". We kept going and when we arrived at the museum and found it open we realized it had been an attempt to keep us in the store. Demetris also became annoyed when a store owner began speaking to him in French, since a bus with French tourists had just arrived, and when he realized Demetris was Cypriot didn't have much more to say. Guess he realized we wouldn't be buying anything.  The museum turned out to be lovely. We were the only ones there and it was world museum day so admission was free. It was small, but replicated an old village house and brought back many memories to Demetris. We enjoyed walking down the narrow streets of the town and then took a short drive to the Church of the Holy Cross. It is known for having a piece of wood from the cross Christ was on. The wood is kept inside an elaborate silver cross.  Demetris and I were both wearing shorts so we were required to wrap a cloth around our waists to cover our legs before entering. The church dates back to 1341 A.D. A man on the church council was there and told Demetris the long history of the church and also showed us around a bit. Alex spotted a painting of St. Giorgos on one of the walls. It was an interesting church with several very old pieces inside.

A typical lace store

The large piece of pottery was used  for storing grain

Inside the museum

At the museum.  That's a water jug with spigot hanging on the wall.

Courtyard of the museum

That's a narrow street! People fold their car mirrors in to fit better.

Alex is becoming a good photographer

Typical style of balcony

The ladies in the chairs are making lace.

Church of the Holy Cross

Outside the church

Lighting a candle at the church

View of the town with the church in the middle

Day is done......

In loving memory of our dear friend Bill, who left this world too soon.

Exploring the Mountains

Took some time this afternoon to enjoy a drive in the mountains. The sky was cloudy most of the time but the cooler mountain air felt refreshing. Demetris wanted to see a radar control at the top of one mountain and we went as close as we could. On the way there we stopped along the road and discovered a memorial to the soldiers killed trying to defend Cyprus against the British army in the 1950's. Cyprus was a British colony at that time and the revolutionary guerrillas, as they are called, fought for the country's independence. An agreement was brokered between the countries, allowing Cyprus to be independent with the condition that the British will continue to have army bases here. The memorial was of a large bird statue (representing freedom) looking down a hill onto a statue of a fallen soldier.

Landing space for a helicopter near the memorial

The bird statue

The fallen soldier

View of the soldier from the bird statue

Monastery visible from the memorial

Radar control tower

Cute little church along the road

Inside of the above church

Animal House

We had been told about the Melios animal park outside of Nicosia and decided to check it out today. Our expectations were fairly low but we were pleasantly surprised at how nice it was. They have hundreds of different varieties of birds and the colors on them were spectacular. I was impressed and I'm not easily impressed by birds. They had everything from flamingos and parrots to ducks and chickens.  We even saw an ostrich lay an egg. They also had farm animals, lots of deer, foxes, hyenas, kangaroos, and even raccoons. Guess raccoons are a novelty in Cyprus. While we were there the sky got very dark and we heard lots of thunder. Eventually some large raindrops started to fall and we quickly ran into the concession area for a snack. The rain lasted for about a minute and then the sun came out again. Once it cleared up we spent some time at the playground. Actually, more like a long time.  The kids had a blast and I did my best to ignore all the safety violations. We spent most of the afternoon there and still had to convince the kids to leave. On the way home I asked everyone to name his/her favorite animal. Here's the answers:
Sofia: horse
Alex: everything
Demetris: hyena
Lori: peacocks
The price of admission was three euros (less than $5) for the whole family. Now that is a deal.

Sofia's favorite

Rain clouds headed our way

Demetris' favorite

My favorite.  Now that is impressive.

Snack time

Help!  He's too heavy!

White peacocks