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"Souvla" is the national food of Cyprus. Souvla are mainly pieces of Lamb or Chicken, grilled on charcoal grill. Cypriots love their Souvla and there can always be a reason to be invited for. It is regular for every Cypriot family, that they'l have a souvla meal every Sunday. Other Cypriot traditional dishes are Gemista, Koupepia, Sheftalies, Kleftiko and mousakas. |
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Cyprus is the legendary birthplace of the goddess of beauty and love, the beautiful Aphrodite (also known as Kypris or the Cyprian). According to Hesiod's Theogony, the goddess emerged fully grown from the sea where the severed genitals of the god Uranus were cast by his son, Kronos, causing the sea to foam (Greek: Aphros). |
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If you see a driver flashing the lights in daylight, that probably means that police radar is near and you should be aware of the speed limit. Cyprus is one of the few places on earth that you will see people do that! |
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Just past the town's fishing harbor of Latchi, and 48 km (30 mi) north of Paphos, are the "Baths of Aphrodite", a natural pool where the goddess of love is said to have seduced her swains. The wild, undeveloped Akamas Peninsula is perfect for a hike or jeep excursion |
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Speed limits in Cyprus are as follows: City 30mph/50kph Open Roads 62mph/100kph. Traffic travels on the left and headlights must be used a half and hour before sunset and a half an hour before sunrise. Most fuel stations are found only in the major cities on Cyprus. |
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The "Akamas" Peninsula is in the far west of Cyprus at its most westerly point. Named after the son of Theseus, hero of the Trojan Wars and founder of the city-kingdom of Soli. The Akamas Peninsula is an area of outstanding natural beauty - deep gorges, a wild landscape, wide sandy bays. It is also an area of great biodiversity and ecological significance. Home to 530 plant species, a third of the total for Cyprus, 126 of which are endemic to Cyprus. An unspoilt wild place thanks to its inaccessibility. |
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The "Mouflon" (or "Agrino") is a species of wild sheep and as such is one of the Caprinae or "goat antelopes". It is thought to be one of the two ancestors for all modern domestic sheep breeds. It is red-brown with a dark back-stripe, light colored saddle patch and underparts. |
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The "Petra Tou Romiou" (Rock of the Greek), or the Rock Of Aphrodite (as known in English), is a scenic place, located off the old Pafos-Lemesos road. Digenis Akritas, a legendary Greek hero, threw a large rock to the Saracen ships to secure Cyprus from them. This rock today stands as the Petra Tou Romiou leading to the above translation as the Rock of the Greek. It is said that this is the place that Afrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, was born, and arose thought the white sea-shore foams. |
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The most ancient wine of Cyprus is undoubtedly the wine now known as "Commandaria", which, in the distant past, was consumed in great quantities at the spring time festivals of Aphrodite. The worlds As oldest named wine, "Commandaria", derived its name from the "Grand Commandarie", a huge estate at Colossi belonging to the Knights Hospitallers of the 12th-14th centuries. Richard the Lionheart enjoyed the wine so much that he called it the "wine of Kings" and the "King of wine". |
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The Troodos mountains are located in the centre of the island. The higher mountain is called Olympos and its top is called Hionistra. Hionistra has a height of 1952 meters (6404 feet). Pentadaktilos, the other mountain-chain in Cyprus is located in the north Cyprus. This rocky five finger mountain rises 700 meters above sea level and harbours the legend of the Byzantine hero Digenis, who defeated the invading Arabs with supernatural strength. |
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The white flag was chosen for the young Cyprus as a sign of peace among the two communities living there (Greeks and Turks). The map of the island is golden/yellow , for the sake of easier reproduction of what was originally intended to be a color of copper (symbol Cu ), a metal that got its name from the island name. Most probably, since there is no brownish-reddish-copper color in heraldry, the map was changed to golden. Green olive tree branches stand for peace, again. |
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What is a common fact between Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Cyprus ? Their OIL deposits! Yes thats right, it has been reported that Oil deposits exist in Cypriot south sea space. The Cypriot government has not yet exploited them, but is a step to be taken soon. |
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With a history of wine making going back to at least 2000 BC, it is hardly surprising that the Cypriots know more than a thing or two about viticulture. In the past, Cyprus wine was considered to be delectable that the Pharoahs of Egypt consumed it, King Solomon praised it in his poems and its fine quality did not go unnoticed by the ancient Greeks and Romans. |
