Out and About
If you really want to get to know Cyprus, rather than just soak up the sun on its beaches, you should stay in more than one place. Say youâre based at one of southern Cyprusâ extremities â Pafos or Agia Napa â it would be a good idea to spend a few nights at a more central coastal location around Limassol, or to go inland to Nicosia or the Troödos Mountains. You may also want to set aside time for the North, where the best overnight options are around Keryneia or on the Karpaz Peninsula.
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Clear waters near Agia Napa
Nicosia and Environs
Nicosia (Lefkosia in Greek, LefkoĆa in Turkish) 1 [map] is Cyprusâ only major city in the interior, occupying the site of ancient Ledra, founded in the 3rd century BC by Lefkonas, son of Ptolemy I of Egypt. When coastal Paphos and Salamis (Constantia) came under Arab attack during the 7th century AD, the population moved inland and Nicosia became the chief city. Under the Lusignans, it grew into a splendid capital marked by elegant churches and monasteries in the French Gothic style.
Almost everything of interest to tourists lies within, or just outside, the old city walls. The ramparts, built by the Venetians in preparation for the Turkish invasion of 1570, remain Nicosiaâs dominant feature. The wheel-shaped Renaissance fortification has become the modern capitalâs distinctive logo, with its eleven pointed bastions and three gateways named after the coastal cities to which they lead â Famagusta Gate to the east, Pafos Gate to the west and Keryneia (Girne) Gate to the north. Some of the bastions now shelter municipal offices, while sections of the (now dry) moat serve as public gardens and car parks.
The motorway network linking Nicosia and all the coastal resorts in South Cyprus makes for speedy transfers, but thereâs much to be said for pottering along on a slower route.
Since the Turkish invasion of 1974, Nicosia remains a divided city, roughly half in Southern Cyprus, half in the North; the âGreen Lineâ buffer zone that straddles the dividing line, with its derelict 1930s buildings, UN, Greek-Cypriot and Turkish-Cypriot checkpoints, barbed wire, sandbags and roadblocks, is an eerie reminder of this. However, the Cypriot capital is experiencing something of a rebirth. Both tourists and Cypriots can now pass with relative ease; tourists on foot typically use the Ledra/Lokmacı crossing, though you can walk through Agios Dometios or Pyla if you are being collected by a car or person the other side.
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Nicosia has a rich café culture
Many visitors spend just a day here, but an overnight stay (or more) is well worthwhile if you want to explore both halves of the fortified city properly â and experience some of the best dining opportunities on the island. Be prepared for real summer heat â Nicosia is around three or four degrees hotter than the coast, with temperatures soaring to 37°C (99°F) in July.
The Cyprus Museum
The islandâs finest collection of antiquities is housed in the Cyprus Museum A [map] (TuesâFri 8amâ6pm, Sat 9amâ5pm, Sun 10amâ1pm, first Wed of month until 8pm) on Leoforos (Avenue) Mouseiou, just west of the walled city near the Pafos Gate. The neoclassical building houses archaeological artefacts dating from the Stone Age (around 8000 BC) to the Roman era, though the most riveting displays are of Bronze Age and Archaic vintage. Talks of a new purpose-built annexe, linked to the existing building by an underpass or aerial bridge, have long been up in the air, but so far plans havenât yet got off the ground; the guards may proudly tell you that items in storage could fill four museums.
Exhibits from the early Bronze Age, in Room 2, include the so-called sanctuary model (2000 BC), in which worshippers and priests attend a bull sacrifice while a peeping Tom on the sanctuary wall watches the secret ceremony. In Room 3, an intriguing Mycenaean krater (drinking cup) imported to Enkomi in the 14th century BC has an octopus motif framing a scene of Zeus preparing warriors for battle at Troy; nearby, a beautiful green faĂŻence rhyton (ritual drinking vessel) of the 12th century BC depicts a lively bull-hunt in Kition.
Room 5 has a rich collection of sculpture, and the highlight is a trio of magnificent lions, tongues and teeth bared, plus two sphinxes, discovered in 1997 guarding tombs at Tamassos. Left of these is a double-sided limestone stele depicting Dionysos on one side, and on the other, facing the wall, an erotic scene leaving nothing to the imagination. At the far end of the hall, a sensuous marble Aphrodite has become the logo of island tourism despite having lost her arms and lower legs.
The monumental bronze of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus (c.AD 200) dominates Room 6, among other marble and bronze sculptures. Highlights of Room 7 include the âHorned Godâ from Enkomi, one hand downturned in a blessing gesture, and gold pieces from the Lambousa Treasure Hoard. Up short stairs in Room 11 is some fascinating royal tomb furniture from Salamis (8th century BC): an ivory throne, a bed, ornamentation for two funerary chariots and their horsesâ tackle.
Along Odos Lidras
The old cityâs principal thoroughfare and main pedestrianized shopping street, Lidras (Ledra Street), runs north from Plateia Eleftherias to the Ledra/Lokmacı crossing. Just off its southern end, at Ippokratous 17, stands the award-winning Leventis Municipal Museum of Nicosia B [map] (www.leventismuseum.org.cy; TuesâSun 10amâ4.30pm; free but donation appreciated), three floors of a fine 19th-century neoclassical mansion devoted to the cityâs history. Galleries are filled with privately donated archaeological collections, Lusignan pottery, metal utensils, old engravings and posters, and displays on trades or crafts. There is also a revolving programme of worthwhile temporary exhibitions.
Perhaps the most memorable exhibit in the Cyprus Museum is the âTerracotta Armyâ, consisting of over 500 votive statues and figurines dating from between 625 and 500 BC (an equal number were taken to Stockholm by the Swedish excavators). Found at Agia Irini in northwest Cyprus, the figurines are displayed as they originally stood, around the altar of an open-air sanctuary dedicated to a dual cult of war and fertility. Soldiers, war chariots, priests with bull masks, sphinxes, minotaurs and bulls were fashioned in all sizes, from life-size to just 10cm (4ins) tall, and at various levels of workmanship, according to the wealth of the donor.
Just east of the museum spreads the so-called LaĂŻki Geitonia (Traditional Pedestrian Neighbourhood), which purports to recreate old Nicosia. Various buildings in traditional style â some restored, others purpose-built â house galleries, cafĂ©s and tavernas. The latter is eminently avoidable: a tourist trap, in short. The real rescue of the long-neglected old town is taking place on other streets, through private, state and UN initiatives.
George Taylor/Apa Publications
Statue of Aphrodite
Slightly further up Lidras, the Shacolas Tower Museum & Observatory (daily summer 10amâ7pm, closes earlier OctâApril) is located on the top floor of the sixth-tallest building in Nicosia. The first five floors are occupied by an H&M; bypass these and head instead to the museum and observatory on the top floor for excellent views of the whole city. The âmuseumâ bit is rather bogus, though, consisting merely of poor reproductions of archival photos.
East of, and parallel to, Lidras is pedestrianized Onasagorou, less chain-store dominated and with interesting restaurants and cafés. It leads north to the landmark church of Panagia Faneromeni (open irregularly), dating from 1872 in its present form and the last resting place of four bishops executed in 1821. Nearby is the chunky but handsome Araplar Mosque, usually closed to the public, converted into its current guise from the former 16th-century churc...