Please note that everything I did on this trip was done with utmost care and attention to corona regulations. If you're going to travel, travel safe!
After spending some busy days visiting other cities around Cyprus (read about my trip to Ayia Napa here), it was back to my homebase of Larnaca. Relaxing doesn't come easily to me, but the longer I spent in Larnaca,
the more I realised that it's okay to not always be doing something.
Mid-morning the next day, I wandered my way into town for coffee.
Unfortunately the place I'd set my sights on was closed for
refurbishment, so I ended up at Coffee Culture along Finikoudes Beach
for a lush lemon cheesecake and milkshake. Back amongst the chain
restaurants in this area of Larnaca, the prices were more 'European' so
this treat was relatively expensive in terms of what I'd become
accustomed to, but a good place to spend an hour or so sitting and
reading in the pleasant shade.
It was back to the beach that afternoon before an activity that I had
been keen to try out - pottery at Emira. We were welcomed into the back
studio by Michael, who walked us both through making our own clay
creation for about 25 minutes each. We learnt how to work the wheel and
shape the clay to whatever design we wanted, then having the opportunity
to add a design if we wished. I was very pleased with my vase, which
I'd be quite happy to display in a store, looking fully professional but
also handmade. We'd be back later in the week to paint our pots once
they'd been in the kiln. €50 for a private lesson for two, including
glazing and firing of two pots - not bad.
Dinner was at Souvlaki.gr. After my coffee and cake a few hours earlier,
I wasn't too hungry so just had pita and dip for the crazy price of
€1.50! We love a good budget holiday. Then back to the Salt Lake to
dance and laugh in front of yet another beautiful sunset.
In spite of being a sun, sea and sand holiday, I'm still getting my
exercise in, and spent the next morning trekking towards Hala Sultan
Tekke, which claims to be the most important mosque in all of Cyprus.
Situated on the other side of the Salt Lake, it was nice to see the lake
from a different perspective, although it was stiflingly hot.
I'd read from the reviews online that the exterior of the building was
the main pull for visitors, and the location coupled with the domed roof
and minaret was certainly a pleasant site. As the weather means few
visitors show up in long sleeves and trousers, gowns are available for
guests wishing to head inside, so I grabbed one and spent some time
looking inside. Nearby, heaps of cats rested in the shade where they are
fed and watered by locals - nice to see that some of Cyprus' many stray
cats have a place to call home.
A lazy afternoon of beachin' ensued, followed by a return to our
favourite breakfast spot, Stoana Kato, for dinner with the same
fantastic service as before.
The next day was spent undertaking an amazing underwater
activity (check that out here) After all of that excitement, I
spent a chill afternoon at
the beach, and then headed to my new favourite place - the Salt Lake -
for yet another beautiful sunset. Dinner that evening was at Panos
Steakhouse which, as the name might suggest, did not have the biggest
selection of vegetarian dishes, but did have a pretty decent veggie
moussaka, and I was told the meat was very good. We sat along the
seafront, listening to buskers serenade us, and enjoyed the warm night
air. Nice.
My weekend was extraordinarily busy with day
trips galore (read about them here). The hot bus trips certainly merited
more dips in the sea, after which on one day we returned
to visit Michael at Emira Pottery to paint our works of art prior to
their final firing. I chose a turquoise dip, first dipping in the blue
glaze before overlapping slightly with clear glaze to create a speckled
line down the middle. I think it turned out rather nice.
Dinner was in the terrace restaurant at The Belfry, next to the church
of St Lazarus. I can't say I was that hungry, so their tapas menu seemed
ideal and I thought the trio of dips, and halloumi wrapped in filo
would be perfect. Little did I know that just one of these delicious
dishes would have been more than sufficient. A definite recommend.
After another day trip the next day, the evening was spent at Savino Rock Bar, enjoying the warm summer air and pleasant atmosphere and getting ready for the next day's adventures!
And so I came to my final day in Cyprus. Whilst at the beginning I had
wondered what I was going to do with 10 days of relaxing, I think I'd
planned my days very well. First call of action for my last day was
breakfast, and we made our way to Estrella, a cafe hidden down one of
the side streets.
I felt like being a bit indulgent so ordered cinnamon roll caramel pancakes and an iced chocolate. My three pancakes came smothered in a mountain of cinnamon cream cheese and I really struggled to make my way through only half of my meal. Totally delicious, just a lot!
There were just a few more things to do in Larnaca, so I walked about an
hour towards the outside of the city to see the aqueduct which was very
well maintained and looked great. Less well maintained was Ancient
Kition, ruins which paled in comparison to the day before, mainly
because they were just so ruined that they looked more like a pile of
rocks. If these are the only Cypriot ruins you'll see, by all means go,
but if you're seeing any others, I'd say it's not worth it. Still, I was
glad to have gone, as the site had not seen any visitors for days prior
to my visit.
Perhaps the most surprising attraction that I visited in Larnaca was the
Salt and Pepper Museum. My €3 entry (which I was pleased to hear was
donated to children's charities) let me in to the small museum home to
over 20,000 salt and pepper shakers from all over the world. There
seemed to be a salt and pepper shaker for every single occasion and from
every country. The volunteer at the museum was able to point out some
of interest, including a blue china collection from my temporary home of
the Netherlands, some centuries old shakers, the original monkey shaker
that started the whole collection, and the most expensive pair - a
rather unassuming pair which I believe had come from a British royal
palace and had been bought for the low, low price of $17,000. I could've
spent hours there, simply because there's more to see than your eyes
can even take in. Very niche, but I thought it was cool.
All that walking had left me with very tired feet so I was keen to rest
my legs before heading back to the beach. Sadly this meant that we were
too late to rent jet skis from the Finikoudes kiosk, but the owner was
happy for us to take out one of the inflatables, so we spent about 15
minutes being dragged along haphazardly behind a boat in a 'crazy UFO',
having the time of our lives. Indeed, I'm glad we did that instead of
the jet skis - I'm sure I'm more likely to jet ski again, but crazy UFO?
Who knows!
Of course I had to spend my final night in Cyprus watching the sunset
down at the Salt Lake. I think out of all of my experiences in Cyprus,
that would have to be my favourite. As luck would have it, my body clock
decided to wake me up the following morning just in time for sunrise,
which was just as beautiful. Poetic.
In summary, would I recommend visiting Cyprus? Of course. It has a great
balance of relaxing and culture, great food, and very hot weather if
that's what you're into. Having said that, would I recommend travelling
anywhere right now? I'm not sure. I truly believe that I travelled in a
safe manner given the current circumstances, however the fact that you
can't control how other people respond to the current situation would
make me hesitant to tell you now is an okay time to travel. For every
person diligently wearing their mask, sanitising everything, and keeping
their distance; there's another sitting on the bus with mask around
their chin, not washing their hands enough, and getting way too close. Stay safe.
Thank you so much for reading my Cyprus blog series and continuing to support Ciara's Country - I truly appreciate it! I love connecting with aspiring travellers from around the globe so I'd love to hear more about your travels, where you've been and where you want to go - get in touch on Twitter @CiarasCountry or drop me a message in the comments below. Happy travels!
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