The rode runs perilously close to the sea near "Old Town", with not a single barrier to prevent the terminally unco-ordinated from plunging over the edge...!!
There was still so much to see, and I was running out of time…
I had planned to get the first available ferry out of Girne in Northern Cyprus, which left on the 22nd, but the old adage of “the plans of mice and men”, has conspired to keep me here a little longer…
Not that I mind too much… I have decided to take the advice of Willi and many others, and take a more relaxed ride from now on…
Although I know I will get an email from Willi soon enough, asking me where the hell I am, and why am I not hurrying down to meet up with him…!! There’s just no pleasing him…!!
This past Monday, I handed my tank and duffel bag over to a guy in Limassol, to have new zips inserted and have a new “Map Window” put onto my tank bag… He promised the bag would be ready on Thursday, and when I called he advised me that it may be ready on “Friday or Saturday”… I am now assured that the bags will be ready on Monday…
Yeah…sailing day…!!
I was not as annoyed as I would have been a month ago, and to tell the truth, it has more to do with the fact that Cyprus has a hold on me, and doesn’t seem to want to let go…!! I could honestly spend a few more weeks here if I absolutely had to, without being too fazed about it…
And before I get a wise crack comment from Willi, let me take this opportunity to thank him for pestering me to come over and meet him here…!!
I can just see that slow smile spreading over his face when he reads this, and then he will pull that 8 inch cigar from his lips and say… “Yeah, Gypsy…, told you so…!!”
At the end of the main “Marine Parade” road, the massive walls of the old Larnaca Fort forces you to make a sharp right, then a sharp left, followed by yet another sharp left and another sharp right, to get to the other side of it… The road takes you through the oldest part of the town, where a series of narrow one way streets link the area back to the wider and busier streets of the commercial and tourist thronged centre…
In places, the road has been built through the buttresses that shore up some of the older buildings...
I got mine here...!!
There are many smaller restaurants and bars in the old part of town, most of them seemingly frequented by locals only… It is here where you will pay a “fair price” for a meal and a beer…!!
Further along the seashore, where cars parked on the side of the road are splashed by the waves driven by onshore winds, there is a newer area that is attracting tourists away from the main beaches…
It has a string of excellent restaurants and a few upmarket hotels overlooking a much wider beach that at this time of year is practically empty…
Despite being in Larnaca for almost two weeks, I had not visited the fort yet and the last time I rode towards it, on a whim, I pulled onto the sidewalk in front of it to take a gander…
The sea laps up against the lower foundations at high tide, and when the tide ebbs, it leaves a narrow two metre wide stretch of beach… Closer to the sea, you cannot get…!!
The fort was built in the 14th century when King James and his minions were in charge here, and completed in 1398… It was part of a string of forts and watchtowers built along the coast to protect Larnaca and Limassol from pesky invaders, of which there was a plentiful supply in those days, as mentioned in my previous posts… (I hope you have been paying attention, and making notes…!!)
The sea facing walls of Larnanca Fort... Global warming might cause a few headaches for the museum staff...!!
The fort was eventually captured and partially destroyed by the Ottomans when they conquered Cyprus and rebuilt by them in 1625 A.D. About 250 years later, Cyprus fell under British rule, and the fort was used as a prison and police station until 1948, when it was converted into a museum…
This engraving, dating back to 1878, depicts the inner courtyard of the Fort. Indian soldiers were among the first British troops to be staioned here...
Part of the inner courtyard as it look today... I was impressed with the neatness of the entire complex...
Looking over the battlements walls and directly onto the balcony of this little home...
From up on the battlements, I could see many of the houses in old town, which surround the fort on three sides… The fort is kept in superb condition, but there is not a whole lot to see within its walls…
Half a dozen old cannon still peek out over the sea, and trees have been planted in the inner courtyard, where a few cultural events are staged each year…
In one of the rooms, there is a deep pit, over which a gallows once stood… It has since been dismantled, and a framed photograph is all that remains to remind us of those “heady days”…!! Apparently a number of necks have been stretched here…!!
The Chiropractor's office... Many a villian came for "treatment" here...!!
Larnaca Police HQ, where today prisoners are treated with a little more subtlety...
Back at my hotel, I made contact with Lucien and Sandra, my Dutch friends stranded in Pafos and waiting for the same ferry as I had planned to leave on… I made arrangements to visit them there, and take in a few more sites that I had missed on my first trip through the area the previous week…
Entrance to the old mosque which stands near the northern wall of the Fort...
Early the next morning, an eager Big Fella and I tore down the highway, the sun at our backs and the turquoise waters of western Cyprus beckoning us forward…
©GBWT 2010
Nice post … Good to see you are more relaxed.
I agree with Mark, glad you have decided to slow down and take in your surroundings. Thanks for sharing them with all of us who are following you for our daily “pick-me-up”. Cyprus really looks like a fantastic place to visit; I wonder why the travel agents don’t market it more. Enjoy and take care. Love and miss you so much.
Mom, Dad and Charmz xx
Yeah-ha!!! You found a pub… I hope you stopped for a bevvi or two, not that I think you need a personality or anything…
You should have done this trip when I was battling with matric history, I would have passed with flying colours – thanks always for all your info and hard work, you are amazing!!!
BIG kisses
K