Larnaca, Cyprus.

Larnaca is claimed to be the oldest city in Cyprus, with evidence of habitation up to 6000 years ago.

Church of Saint Lazarus

According to the New Testament, Jesus raised Lazarus (Mary’s brother) from the death and after this occurrence he moved from Judea to Cyprus where he was appointed by Paul as the first bishop of Larnaca. 

The beautiful Church of Saint Lazarus is built over the tomb of Lazarus, well, his second and last tomb. The church dates back to the 9^th century and it is beautiful, with great stone walls adorned with gold framed pictures and big beautiful chandeliers. Just gorgeous.

Lazarus tomb

 

Salt Lake

Also in Larnaca, right across from the airport, you find a salt lake. During summer it is mostly salt, but during the winter, from November to March, when the waters return, you can see thousands of migrating pink flamingos on it

Because of the proximity of the lake to the airport, the consumption of salt is no longer possible, now a day it is only good for industrial use.

 

 Larnaca is located on the coast, so there are some nice beaches with clear water; however, the sand is brown.

 We eat a very lousy lunch at Gorgona Restaurant, one of the many restaurants on the beach, my granddaughter had a donner kebab that according to her “she had better”, and I had crab crockets that did not have much crab on them.  The restaurant was full, so I figure it would be good, next time we go someplace else.

Cyprus

Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean.

It is the birthplace of the Greek Goddess Aphrodite, the goddess of love, beauty, pleasure and procreation, and therefore it is a beautiful island.

An island with over 300 days of sunshine, surrounded by crystal clear waters and sandy beaches, encompassed by pine covered mountains with ancient temples and archeological sites.

The Greeks came to the island over 3000 years ago, at the end of the Trojan war, and over the centuries, Cyprus has been dominated by various rulers including the Egyptians, Assyrians, Persian, Romans, Crusaders, Venetians, Ottomans and the British.

On July 20, 1974, Turkey invaded Cyprus and since then Cyprus is the only divided country in Europe. 

 

There is a neutral zone between the two countries which are guarded by the UN and that nobody can enter. In 2003, travel restrictions were eased for the first time, allowing Cypriots on both sides to cross the UN Buffer Zone, commonly known as the "Green Line". These crossing points have immigration check points and are guarded by the British army.

The place I am staying is right by the sealed border facing the beach resort town of Varosha - in Famagusta. You can see the empty building of what at one time used to be a booming beach resort for the rich and famous. Because neither side wants to agree to anything, the town still empty, deteriorating, just a mere reminder of what it used to be.