Archive for January, 2008

Capital of the west and positively teaming with history is Paphos. The first settlement here dates from the 4th century BC and Paphos played an important role in early Cypriot history. It was on Paphos shoreline that the mythological Goddess Aphrodite was born - a legend that spawned a massive wave of cult worship from neighboring countries that lasted several centuries.

Famagusta is one great city that is believed to have been founded in the 11^th century BC and after the influences of the many conquering nations notably the Romans the city was finally abandoned in 648 AD, following the combined catastrophe of earthquake and raids by pirates when the population moved to Famagusta.

The town was known as Arsinoe (after Arsinoe of Egypt) in antiquity, then Ammochostos (meaning “hidden in sand”) that is how it is today referred to in Greek. The same name developed into Famagusta, used in Western European languages and the Turkish name of Ammochostos (Gazi is a Turkish prefix meaning glorified).

Larnaca is the oldest living city of Cyprus and was originally known as Kition, or Kittium. Legend has it that the first settlement at the spot was founded by Noah’ s grandson Khittim. Unlike other ancient cities of Cyprus, which were abandoned by their inhabitants, Larnaca from the time of its founding 6000 years ago has existed and still exists on the same site. Being in the crossroad of civilization from the early dawn of history, Larnaca has attracted many visitors. Some came as colonizers, others as traders and others as invaders, conquerors or tourists.

Above: Larnaca Location Map

Limassol is situated between the ancient towns of Amathus and Curium. The English King Richard the Lionheart destroyed Amathus in 1191. Lemesos (Limassol) was probably built after Amathus had been ruined. However, the town of Lemesos (Limassol) was inhabited since the very old times. Graves that were found there date back to 2.000 B.C. and others date back to the 8th and 4th century B.C. These few remains that were left behind show that a small colonization must have existed which did not manage to develop and flourish.

Above: Cyprus Satellite Map

Cyprus is the third biggest island in the Mediterranean, it is approx 9,250 kilometers squared or 3571 miles squaredSince 1974, 3367 square kilometers / 2272 square miles have been under the control of the de facto Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. 2/3 (5,884 sq kilometers/2,272 sq miles) are controlled by the Internationally recognized by the Government of the Republic of Cyprus.

Located around 71 kilometers or 44 miles south of Turkey and 105 kilometers/ 65 miles west of Syria, Cyprus is around 800km, 500 miles east of the Greek Mainland.

Above: Nicosia (Lefkosia in Greek) Street Map, Republic of Cyprus

Map above includes locations of famous artifects, monuments, historical sites of the city of Nicosia (Lefkosia), From the map you can see that Nicosia (Lefkosia) is a divided city, the Northern part of the city is controlled by Turkey.

• In recent times, Cyprus is known as one of the most religious countries in Europe, with the majority of its population being members of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Cyprus. Therefore, it is interesting to note that Cyprus, as mentioned in the Bible in Acts 13, was the Apostle Paul’s first destination when he was first sent by the Holy Spirit into a missionary journey.



Above: Apainting that portrays the Apostle Paul writing his epistles

• Born in Tarsus, Silica under the name Saul (he changed his name to the Greco-Roman name “Paul” upon leaving Cyprus), the Apostle Paul together with the Apostle Barnabas went down to Seleucia before sailing to the island of Cyprus.

• On the flag of the Republic of Cyprus, aside from the two olive branches and the white background that symbolize peace, one very important feature is the copper-yellow-colored geographic depiction of this Eurasian island country.

Above: The flag of Cyprus displaying the country’s land area

• With its design originally proposed by painter Ismet Guney (Turkish Cypriot painter), the flag of Cyprus is the only flag in the world with the country’s land area displayed on it (comprising 44% of the flag); it was a result of a design competition and was first used in August 1960 (under the Zurich and London Agreements).

Above: Street map of Limassol Cyprus

Above: A spectacular sunset at the Rock of Aphrodite

When you do need to get away from work, riging phones and the strain of daily grind, then a drive to the Petra Tou Romiou may be the thing for you.