Goodbye to the family

My family is back home in the US now and have finally received all of their luggage. We had a great visit with them and the time went too quickly. Thanks to all of the guest bloggers for taking the time to share their perspectives.  Here are a few more pictures from the time when they were here.

Kadi wearing a robe to be modest in the church

Sofia and Andrew making a friend

Beach bum

Grandma with her two granddaughters

Picnic in Troodos on the way to Kykkos

At the Nelion Winery

After Sofia's bath

July 18

Today is July 18th, 2012 and today's guest blog is written by Andrew Fauble. I have already done a blog on this vacation, but I guess they prefer one that doesn’t  involve my amazing escape when I first got to the island. Anyway, I will be writing about the events that took place today. We left the village at around 10:20 in the morning, only twenty minutes past our desired departure time of 10:00. We started the drive by going through several small villages just like Salamiou. The curvy mountain roads led us to our first destination, a high medieval period bridge that passed over one of the few places of running river water right now in Cyprus. It was a refreshing sight to see something like that again. We continued driving for a long time past amazing views of the mountains and continued winding roads. We traveled up, down, and all around the Troodos Mountains until we reached the much anticipated monastery. It looked like a large building from the outside and the entrance was covered with mosaics of some of the most famous people from the Bible. The inside was incredible to say the least. It was a very large complex with rooms and corridors in every direction. There was not a wall that wasn’t covered in mosaics and paintings of every possible bible story, character, or saint. A church was also located inside that was truly beautiful. Connected to it was a room that contained all sorts of bones from famous religions leaders, saints, and even John the Baptist. Unfortunately, the church was the only place pictures were not allowed, so I couldn’t capture this amazing sight. Personally the monastery was my favorite place we visited on the island. The artwork was beyond words I could use to describe it. My camera took a picture of as many of the murals and paintings as I could. Still, only a small fraction of the amount of artwork there. I took about 800 pictures on this vacation until my camera ran out of memory at just the right time not to miss anything. A short drive from the monastery was a massive statue of Makarios, the famed Archbishop who later became president of Cyprus. From there a path lined with mosaics lead us to his burial place. Two guards stay there at all times, and their ability to keep a straight face astounded me. We were back on the twisty, narrow, up and down roads until we reached a tourist city by the name of Platres. There were many shops to look at and almost everybody bought something. After leaving there and passing more spectacular views we came to a nice modern winery. I tried a view sips and almost threw it up every time. The long day left us too tired to cook food once we got home so we decided to go to the village’s local restaurant. I made friends with the cats and we all enjoyed our time there. All and all Cyprus has been a wonderful vacation that came and went much too fast. There was so much we got to do and so much that we could have done if given more time. Cyprus offers so much for the amount of space and I hope someday I will get to experience this all again.

The high up medieval bridge. Five hundred years old!

Awesome view of the mountains

That is one big statue

Beautiful pictures everywhere

Close up of the mosaics

Not a wall that didn't look like this

Amazing artwork everywhere you looked

The kids and me

The Village by Marilyn

We are now at the village of Salamiou having left our first very pleasant home away from home on Monday morning.  The altitude is about 3000 feet with the highest around 6000.  Many villages are scattered about the mountains and are all very old and quaint.  The families are from past generations, mostly farmers.  The population is about 300.  Villages usually include a school, cafe or restaurant, and always a church.  Homes are made of stone, usually with a stone wall around them and a courtyard paved of stone.  The building behind ours at one time served as a type of barn and also for tools.  Today it has been renovated into a modern home for Uncle Harris.  The home we are staying in has one small kitchen, a long living area, one long bedroom upstairs, a separate building with another bedroom and three modern bathrooms. It has been completely renovated with a matching grant from the government.  More families are doing this to preserve their old structures.  The streets are narrow, hilly, and paved with small stone.  Farmers live in town then go out to tend their vineyards or orchards of olive and almond trees.  These are located randomly along mountain sides.  We could hear the roosters crowing every morning, or as Kadi said, "The chickens going off."  I love the cafe where the old men sit on the veranda any hour of the day and evening just watching or playing backgammon.  We ate at the restaurant (Emilio's) last night with the locals and had authentic Cypriot food.  It was very busy there.  Everyone here eats dinner between 9:00-10:00 when it is cooler as air conditioning is rarely used.  It is really hot!  We thank Demetris' mother, Electra, for allowing us to stay in her childhood home.  We feel a part of the past.

Village coffee house

Pomegranate tree

Curt on the upstairs balcony

View from upstairs at the village house

The kitchen

Street of the village house

Entrance of the village house

View of the church from second floor of village house

Day 10 in Cyprus

Hello.  I’m Lori’s favorite niece Kadi, and I am being forced to be the guest blogger or else I will lose the title of favorite. Today we packed up the villa and moved to the village for the rest of our stay. It took a little while to get all of our luggage into the car but we made it to the mountains. I had to ride in the boys team car this time because Thames rental car doesn’t know how to fix a broken seat belt. They also don’t know how to find my missing phone but that’s another story. We stopped at a bakery for lunch and then went to The Rock of Aphrodite.  Even though I have been informed that Lori has already told you, legend has it that that was where the goddess of love was born. The whole beach is made up of rocks, which I might add are pretty hard to walk on. We weren’t supposed to, but we all filled our pockets with the rocks. You always hear about  Greek mythology and I thought it was cool to see where something was supposedly started. I think all of us almost died of the heat on the way back to the car. The car ride to the village was not as bad as everyone said it was. It nice to see this side of Cyprus. I know this is something that I would never be able to see and experience in any other country or place. I think it's so unique and I love hearing all the history of it from Demetris. My family and Grandma are all sharing a room tonight and I think its going to get pretty zesty but it’s the experience that matters. This has been the best trip I have ever been on and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Lori and Demetris have been the best tour guides possible and I wouldn’t want to go to a different country any other way. I can’t wait to make the best of these last days here. Goodnight from this American in Cyprus.

All my wishes will come true

Nicosia (old and new) by CF

Well it was another non rainy day in Cyprus.  The morning always seems the hottest because the sun rising in the east hits the private pool area for several hours before most of us drag ourselves out of bed after 9 or 10.  Lori usually is up early with Alex.  I have been up before her a few times but usually she is the unappreciative and unwilling champion.  When the patio door opens the hot air blasts through the door to quickly heat up the kitchen and living area.  The AC is mostly off during the day and really is only hot feeling in morning when we exit our air conditioned bedrooms.  Each room has its own AC unit unlike central air in the States.  The units are mounted on the walls and have a pipe that connects to a unit mounted next to several others on an outside wall.  The buildings in the complex are adobe like and modern.  They all have several of these AC units attached to walls and a unsightly barrel on the roof which is the way they heat their water.  Everywhere we've seen so far is the same.  Weird in the cities that there are sometimes several of these at least 100 gallon barrels stacked up on top of each other in horizontal position on top of the 10 story buildings.
We started off late this morning getting a little pool time in to wake up in the morning.  Gary the pool guy has the pool looking good after a bumpy start.  He is an English chap who drives a truck in England and comes here to this complex to take care of pools.  He is a talker and passionate about his pool caring.  I would almost call him a pool Nazi.  He doesn't like a dirty pool.  We had fun splashing around until late morning when we started getting ready to head to Nicosia.  I enjoyed taking my shower outside as I did every day we where here.  I had some clothes on and enjoyed the warm wind and space the outside area provided.  The inside showers are extremely small, 2x2 feet, and you can hardly move around.  The outside area brought back fond memories of Cape Code years ago. 
We took off for Nicosia which took just under an hour to get too.  The boys car piloted by Demetris always beat the girls team piloted by Lori because he knows the way, ha.  We first stopped at a craft shop that makes all their own pottery, linens, and trinkets.  Very neat store and they kept some of our Euros.  We next made our way to see Demetris' mothers house where he grew up and they now live.  It was a nice spacious house with three bed rooms and a very nice parlor and dining room .  The house inside would be similar to a grandma's house in the States that was a touch of the old days.  There was nice old wooden cabinets and tables with pictures of their family.  The floors throughout the house were a pretty marble as with most houses I presume.  She had pretty flowers around outside of the house and even a small bit of grass around the house.  All the houses in the neighborhood have flat roofs and thick adobe walls which keep houses amazingly cool considering it was 104 degrees outside.  The heat wasn't too much of a bother since humidity is lower.  In the Midwest the heat and humidity almost chokes you, unlike here.  The cars still are very hot to get in and out of.    Visiting with Electra, Demetris' mom, was enjoyable even though she had to be translated by Demetris most of the time.  She and Marilyn, even with the language barrier, formed a special grandmother or Yia-yia bond.  We had some snacks at her house which we desperately needed at 2 p.m.  We wished the visit could have been longer, but just didn't work that way.  As soon as we got there Alex and Sofia darted for their bedroom, Demetris old room, to dump all the toys on the floor.  Everyone needs their comfort of home.  We said our goodbyes and tried to take pictures which is a lottery when Sofia and Alex are concerned, ha.    
Back into the hot cars for a trip down to the old town of Nicosia.  There is a wall still existing in very large circle from the 1300's.  There are at least 6 gates in the wall which some reside in the Turkish side of the city.  The country is split with about 30% being Turkish, designated by a line the United Nations created after the 1974 invasion.  We walked down to the border crossing leading to the Turkish side, which was just at the end of the street where a passport would be needed to cross.   We did walk around some neat areas down in old Nicosia and found an ice cream store that served us four flavors. The streets are all blocked off now for tourist and shopping.  The place we went for ice cream is where Demetris went as a kid.  We also visited a neat museum in the heart of the city. 
In the evening after returning from the hottest city, we met with Demetris' whole family, except his mother, at a restaurant for dinner.  The time of dinner was to be at 8:30 which was a negotiated time, ha.  Cypriot's like to eat at 10-10:30 so Demetris had to find a time in the middle of our usually 6-7 time.  We had a feast of all kinds of meats which was overwhelming but delicious.  The rare chance to eat hare was great.  It was really good and not gamey.  The snails were pretty good also but no one else that made the trip with me would have one.  We were so full and kids were done, that we missed the dessert.  It was a very busy and great day and we are glad God gave us this chance to see this island rich in history.  Sincerely, Curtis Fauble

The two grandmas

At the ice cream store

Curt and Sofia

Everyone at dinner (minus Demetris taking the picture)

Observations of Cyprus by Marilyn

Many of you along with myself have been curious as to how Cyprus looks and what it is like, so in my turn at a blog I will share some views and thoughts with you.
From the window of the plane while landing we saw hills and barren, grayish ground.  However, in days to come I discovered the beauty of Cyprus. 
On Thursday we drove from Pernera, where we are staying, to Limassol about 60 miles away.  As we traveled the hills became larger and larger and everywhere were dotted with homes sitting at all levels. It was all very picturesque.  Then on the opposite side the sea appeared displaying it's beautiful blue colors; light blue, turquoise, and sapphire, true to everything you have ever heard or read about the Mediterranean.
At Limassol we visited ancient ruins which Alex described previously.  This area is situated on high giving a spectacular view of valleys, fields, and of course the sea.  It was very hot and windy there, but the curious thing is that the winds were very cooling so not as bad you might think.  I look forward to seeing the mountains when we go there next week and may write a blog about that.
Now for housing.  The pictures are typical of all Cypriot houses--two story, box shape, and white with red tile roofs.  All homes and buildings are constructed wood free due to fire hazards.  Walls are stone blocks with a smooth white or light tan coating.  Grass is rare so instead tiles are used around houses and buildings.  Landscaping includes a variety of palms and flowering bushes of many colors.  These bushes also line main highways.  Another pretty sight.
I also have observed the contrast between old and new.  Cities are beautiful with modern buildings and shapes.  Then a few blocks away are the old very narrow streets crowded with shops--some boarded up, others restored.  Driving through these narrow, winding streets at a a fast pace is quite an experience for us Americans.  Restaurants abound along the streets, all with open outdoor seating with cover to keep off the sun.  Greek food as well as American is served and Coke is the national drink. 
I will close by adding that all the gang from the youngest (that's Sofia) to the oldest (that's me) have been good travelers, getting along and helping one another, even when not having had much sleep.

An old house among the new behind our rental villa

A view of the sea from our villa window

Coca-cola boat in background

Cousins in the sand

Andrew back from snorkeling

Restaurant by the sea

Looking down in the valley

Kathy and Alex sitting in the shade of an olive tree

At the playground

Kathy and Kadi by a fig tree

Newer style buildings

Old abandoned buildings

Narrow street in Nicosia

Limassol

Today Alex is the guest blogger.  He wrote the following, took many of the pictures, and wrote the captions.  For a little background, we went to Limassol to the Kourion and then to the Kolossi Castle. 
I saw a little church.  And I loved the places.  They were fun.  I saw pictures made with tiles.  I loved the pictures.  I saw two soldiers in the pictures.  I saw people dancing and doing silly moves (practicing for a show at the amphitheater).  I had too much fun.  We went and saw a castle.  The stairs were small and curvy.  It was fun going way up to the roof because I never went up to a roof before and it was interesting.

It's a great one because it is so pretty

It's Kathy and she's looking pretty

It's cool

It's a tall statue made of marble

It's the picture on the magazine I have

It's the whole family and grandma and me were taking pictures.  On top of the roof.

Daddy is looking cool

Sofia has some blowing hair going on

I can see daddy's big ouch he got from trying to see the snake

It's a silly one

It's a good window and it's neat

Those are mad men and they're shooting each other