November 30th to December 2nd, 2019
I really enjoyed my time in Cyprus and in the little studio apartment I rented. I did a lot of walking exploring some of the beaches and main historical sites around Paphos. I visited a World Heritage Site called the Tomb of Kings. Contrary to its name it wasn’t actually a burial site for Kings but for wealthy people. After everything I have seen, my bar is probably set really high for things like this. I wasn’t ultra-impressed but there was some old stone work and tombs. The nicest part about it was that it was a site very close to the water and I mostly enjoyed walking around in the nice weather looking out over the Mediterranean.
After a little while of looking at old rocks, the beach was definitely calling my name. I walked a long time on a nice coastal path and enjoyed the sunshine.
During my time here I also stopped by the Paphos Castle that sits right in the main harbor and the Archeologic Park that has some really nice preserved mosaics from the 3rd to 5th century AD.
I had the thought while I was here that no matter how incredible the works of man are (such as Petra, Machu Picchu, the Taj Mahal etc.) nothing compares to the natural wonders and the work of God. For me personally, none of the man-made things come close to the beauty and amazement I have for the world’s highest mountains, bluest glaciers, the deepest canyons, the life and the coral in the ocean, the tallest trees, and greenest valleys. These natural, beautiful and awe-inspiring things have always been the most captivating to me.
On one of the days I took a bus to the birthplace of Aphrodite’s (the Greek Goddess of love and beauty). Petra Tou Romiou is an interesting formation of huge rocks in the sea and as legend would have it, where Aphrodite emerged from. It was a really pretty spot and I watched the sunset on the beach while leaning up against a nice rock. The sky was sort of stormy so it made for a very nice sunset.
The wine here was very good and the cheapest I have seen anywhere in the world. If you went to the store the top shelf wines were only a few dollars. I got a bottle and had to laugh at myself as I couldn’t even finish it in the four nights I stayed there. The apartment I was in had a really nice pool but I never actually spent time there as I loved being on the beaches.
I spent some time laying out on the beaches and just really enjoying a quiet few days.
The last few months have been so jammed packed it was really nice to slow down for a minute. I was here during winter in their slow season so the island was pretty darn quiet. I wanted to do a boat cruise but I didn’t think they were running that frequently as no one ever got back with me to sign up for it. One night I ventured out to check what the “bar street” was all about but it was completely dead and didn’t feel like anyone was out.
I didn’t mind resting though and felt really lucky to get to spend some time on this nice island.
