Once upon a time, an amazing flight deal was found from the Holy Land to the beautiful Mediterranean island of Cyprus. Can you guess which intrepid traveller got themselves on that flight?
It was me. Bet you didn’t see that coming, right?
The Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus – A Tiny Dot With an Epic History
Anyway, the beautiful Mediterranean island of Cyprus is at the convergence of three regions; Africa, Asia and Europe. Its geographical position has ensured this tiny Mediterranean country has had an epic history.
What else would you expect from the birthplace of Aphrodite?
A Beautiful Mediterranean Island with a Complicated History
I honestly couldn’t do it justice if I tried, but if you’re interested, I suggest having a look here and here for more detailed information.
In short, Turkey invaded in the 1970s and essentially split the independent country of Cyprus into the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The former is a European state. The latter is only recognised by Turkey.
Then the United Nations moved in to form a buffer zone called ‘The Green Line’ which runs right through the capital city.
Crossing The Green Line on the beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
Most nationalities can walk straight through the immigration area near The Green Line with no problems. Although there is no stamp for crossing this ‘border’ and crossing it is not considered to be leaving the country, you still must show your passport.
The Green Line runs right through the capital city Nicosia.
The city is officially called Lefkosia in Greek (Λευκωσία) and Turkish (Lefkoşa) but is referred to as Nicosia in Latin script.
It is the only remaining divided city in Europe.
The difference between the South and the North is not immediately apparent.
Unless you happen to be crossing on a protest day.
The Green Line is often the site of peaceful protests asking to Unite Cyprus Now. But as you can see, the protests have quite a happy vibe about them. You could even say they’re more like a sing-a-long.
A lot of Cypriots are passionate about their island home being united.
North of The Green Line in the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
Nicosia may be the capital, but it’s far from bustling. Cyprus is an island afterall, so even the biggest city on the island probably wouldn’t even be classified as a city in other regions.
It feels laid-back and quaint, like a small town.
A lot of stores were already closed, even though the sun had not yet set.
I was feeling a bit hungry, so I found one of the few places left open and grabbed a seat.
The place was called Cafe No:3 and they had steak salad!
Amazingly Friendly Locals on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
Although the official language of Cyprus is English, I was told to not expect many people to speak English very well on the Turkish side. So imagine how amazed I was when the lady serving me at the cafe had a British accent.
Her name was Nazik and she had been a teacher in the UK for many years but was Turkish Cyprus born and bred. She was also an all round awesome person who, after enquiring as to where I was heading, decided that she would drive me to my destination when her shift was over.
We had a great chat on the way and Nazik gave me her phone number and said I could call her if I needed help with anything while I was in Turkish Cyprus. Cypriots are definitely a friendly and helpful bunch!
The Seaside Town of Kyrenia on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
After a good night’s sleep, my host in Kyrenia, Vinny, took me on a bit of a tour of the town of Kyrenia.
The town is quite small and easily walkable.
We started at a small local eatery for a delicious and super cheap breakfast.
Northern Cyprus uses Turkish Lira, making it substantially cheaper than the south where they use the Euro.
We then headed to the waterfront which is a pretty big part of the town. It lies on the northern coast of Cyprus.
I could’ve stared out to sea for hours!
Atatürk Statue
It wasn’t long before we came upon a memorial for Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
Atatürk means ‘Father of the Turks’.
He’s nestled between the Turkish flag and the Northern Cyprus flag.
This wasn’t the last Atatürk statue I would see in Northern Cyprus.
Girne Kalesi/Kyrenia Castle on the beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
We continued walking along the coast for several minutes before we got to the harbour and saw what looked like a small watchtower.
It wasn’t long until we started to see the main attraction of Kyrenia; Girne Kalesi or Kyrenia Castle.
The castle was built by the Venetians in the 16th century and has been used for police barracks, a prison and military headquarters in the past.
It is currently home to a chapel, some dungeons and a shipwreck museum.
Interesting side note, if you’ve played Assassin’s Creed: Bloodlines, you may recognise Kyrenia and its castle.
Heading Back to Nicosia on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
After talking to Vinny about the logistics of getting to the Larnaca Airport in the south of Cyprus from Kyrenia, I had made a spur-of-the-moment decision to spend my last night in Nicosia instead.
There was one small problem. Transport between the two cities had already stopped for the day.
Vinny knew someone with a car that could take me to Nicosia.
What I didn’t realise was that this friend would not turn up for many hours. It was quite dark by the time he arrived.
Then I found out halfway through the drive that he could only go to the outskirts of the city of Nicosia because of some car registration issue.
A Roundabout Meeting on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
Luckily, my host in Nicosia, Jon, was willing to meet me at a roundabout at the edge of town.
It was there that I saw another Ataturk statue but this time he was on a horse.
On the walk back to Jon’s place, we shared some stories about China. He had lived in China, as I had done, but he spoke Mandarin way better than me.
An Amazing Host on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
Jon was born in Pakistan but is truly a citizen of the world. He’s lived in more countries than I have! He still has that amazing South Asian hospitality in his blood though. After we spent half the night talking, Jon offered me his bed while he took the couch.
As if that wasn’t enough hospitality, he levelled up and made me breakfast without me even asking!
Sites of Nicosia on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
After breakfast, we took in a few sites north of The Green Line in Nicosia, starting with Girne Kapisi or Kyrenia Gate.
The gate is another 16th century Venetian creation that now houses a tourist information centre. Next up was Semiliye Camii, which was once a Christian Cathedral known as Saint Sophia Cathedral.
It was converted to a mosque in the 16th Century and is the largest surviving church in Cyprus. It’s also amazing inside!
Unfortunately, I had to leave Jon there. I mentioned earlier that most nationalities can pass easily through The Green Line. There are some restrictions. Because he was in Turkish Cyprus, Jon was there on a Turkish visa and didn’t have a European visa. That meant he couldn’t cross into the European Republic of Cyprus.
The Greener Side of Nicosia on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
Once I crossed back over The Green Line, I had some time before I needed to get on the bus back to the airport, so I decided to walk around the city for a bit.
It didn’t take long for me to find a park.
It seems they like their trees to line up in Cyprus.
Interesting Park in Nicosia on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
The park seemed to be an interesting mix of greenery, old buildings. monuments and political scrawlings.
Not at all a bad way to spend my last few hours on the beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus. It definitely beats what happened when checking in for my flight back to Israel.
Check in Drama With Israeli Airline
If you’ve been to Israel, you know that they are extra thorough with their check-in procedure. They ask you like a million and one questions and go through your passport with a fine-tooth comb. Sometime during the process, an asshat security guy had decided that my backpack and I were some kind of threat.
Yes, apparently someone who is all of 5 foot and has been cooperating is a flight risk. Who knew. Isreal has a special kind of profiling that sometimes treats females travelling by themselves like criminals.
Security guy threatened to take my laptop apart and not let me on the flight if I didn’t check my backpack, which was regulation cabin size. I had no choice but to begrudgingly part with my backpack and head for the gate.
Unecessary Search at the Gate
Asshat security guy was at the gate when I got there and confiscated my passport. He used it to make me submit to a search by his bitchy sidekick which involved me removing my underwear. Awkward.
Bitchy sidekick then confiscated three pens, a pencil, a lip balm and an eraser I had in my bag. Seems logical, right?
Amazing Aircrew That Looked After Me On My Way Back to Israel From the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
Obviously, I was in a bit of a state once I finally boarded the plane. One of the flight attendants noticed and straight away lead me to the back of the plane where there were rows of vacant seats.
After I told her what happened, she apologised profusely and told me that security does that sometimes. She also said I shouldn’t hold it against Israel as that’s not how people are in the country. But I already knew that.
She gave me a pen so I could write, brought me some water. Then she and the rest of the flight attendants spent the whole flight checking on me to see if I needed anything.
Final Words on the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
The fact that this drama unfolded in Cyprus has absolutely nothing to do with Cyprus. It was just unfortunate that I came across an asshat on a power trip. I lodged a complaint with the airline and was later compensated.
Plus, the view on the way out was quite calming.
Cyprus is an amazing place full of amazing people.
It’s full of history and beautiful buildings. The food is awesome. I really can’t fault anything about the place.
The beautiful Mediterranean island of Cyprus is definitely a place I will be going back to one day.
If you haven’t been, go book now and thank me later! ;o)
I’ve even found a Cyprus itinerary to help you make the most of your trip!
Check out the whole Mediterranean adventure –
Interesting Sites in Southern Israel
Religious Sites and Nature of Northern Israel
Historic and Natural Places to See in Northern Israel
What is it Really Like in Palestine?
The Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus
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14 Replies to “An Awesome Visit to the Beautiful Mediterranean Island of Cyprus”
This trip sounds like one hell of an experience. I didn’t realise there were so many hurdles with going to northern Cyprus, it certainly sounds like an adventure. Until the strip search at least! I’m sure you could have done without that!
Cyprus is amazing. I definitely want to head back there one day.
Cyprus is amazing.
Yeah, that whole thing was not fun.
Cyprus looks incredible. Those sea views, the beautiful buildings (and you can count me in for tasty Cypriot food!)
It is a massive shame your trip ended with such a nightmare check-in/security experience though! I am glad the flight attendants made up for it, but it is rubbish that they treated you that way just for being a solo female traveler. :(
I’m a sucker for sea views! And Mediterranean food!
It is a bit of a wierd concept, but they think that solo females can be targets for terrorist groups trying to cause trouble. Umm, yeah.. okay 🙄
Wow, Cyprus looks like an incredible place to visit. Really hope I get to go. The weather and food looks and sounds amazing. I can’t believe you got searched in that way though l, very unnecessary! I am glad you were looked after following the ordeal though!
It is incredible!
Definitely not my best travel moment, but at least it’ll probably never happen again.
What a trip and experience! Cyprus looks beautiful. I was happy to read you contacted the airline. Although it doesn’t make up for it and it definitely should have never happened – hopefully it will stop it from happening again in the future.
Cyprus is awesome.
That whole debacle was the WORST travel experience of my life. It was also completely inexcusable and the compensation was paltry, but at least it was some kind of admission of wrong-doing.
Oh gosh, I’m so sorry that dodgy customs search happened to you – that’s truly unnecessary and dreadful! Cyprus looks amazing – I knew about the divide, but didn’t know how it all worked with visas and passports. I hope one day the island can be united once again!
I’ve never had to deal with anything like that anywhere else, luckily.
Cyprus is amazing!
It’s pretty much a ‘having the right passport’ kinda deal. It’s a whole process for some African and Asian paspsorts.
I would love to visit the beautiful Mediterranean island of Cyprus! Stunning photos!
I have been to Cyprus before but I’ve only visited Paphos. I would love to visit Nicosia next time I go. It looks lovely.
I’m the opposite! I’m going back at some point to visit Paphos!