Cyprus
All posts from Cyprus
European Far East
Posted 17 Jan 2008:From one island to the next.. I took off from Britain yesterday to fly another one of the countries that joined the European Union on 1 May 2004: Cyprus. Situated closer to Lebanon, Israel and Egypt than to Greece, Cyprus is the easternmost country of the European Union. Question of the day: What`s worth knowing about this little island with not even a million inhabitants?... Read more
Exchanging money
Posted 18 Jan 2008:1 January 2002: Twelve countries physically exchange their local coins and banknotes into Euros. Slovenia follows suit in 2007, while Cyprus and Malta also adopt the Euro as their local currency on 1 Januray 2008. Within three weeks, all Cypriot Pounds seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth. But does that mean that Cypriots are all happy with their new money?... Read more
Cyprus news review
Posted 19 Jan 2008:Intending to write a story about news coverage in Cyprus, I am quite surprised to find the quote `Turks out of Cyprus!` on the front page of one of the country`s leading newspapers. Source of the quote: Cypriot tennis player Marcos Baghdatis, engaged in anti-Turkish chants with a group of supporters after he got kicked out of last year`s Australian Open. Moving images of the incident only recently submerged on YouTube, and they dominate today`s headlines in Cyprus.... Read more
Sunday observations
Posted 20 Jan 2008:No buses on Sundays and all shops are closed. Limassol is the second biggest city of Cyprus, but most streets in city centre remain completely empty until noon. Only the beach boulevard is crowded and I think I will easily find people to tell me what is going on in Cyprus on Sundays. Wrong bet: hardly anybody on the coast walk is Cypriot. Three questions for today: where are all these people from, where are the Cypriots and, the original question, how do they spend their weekends?... Read more
Occupied territories
Posted 21 Jan 2008:For the last few days, I have tried hard to avoid talking too much about the `Cypriot problem`. Today is my first day in Nicosia, the capital city of Cyprus. Proudly yet sadly, Nicosia calls itself the last remaining separated capital in Europe. The so-called Green Line, a buffer zone safeguarded by the United Nations, separates the Occupied Area in the North from its Greek Cypriot counterparts in the South. Today`s article aims to provide an insight into of Cyprus`s divided reality, seen from the Greek Cypriot side. The same story from the opposite perspective will follow tomorrow.... Read more
Turkish North
Posted 22 Jan 2008:After having a look at the Greek Cypriot side of the `Cyprus dispute`, the logical next step is to cross to the North side of the island to ask for some opinions there. So, off I go today, across the UN-patrolled Green Line that splits Nicosia and all of Cyprus in two. Welcome to the `Area under Turkish occupation since 1974` according to the Greek Cypriots ? or to the `Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus` (TRNC) as it is called on the other side of the dividing line.... Read more
Networking
Posted 23 Jan 2008:Cyprus is a very small country: not only in distances but also on a social scale. Almost everybody knows almost everybody. Social control helps Cyprus remain a very safe country, but some people would care for a little more privacy at times. Immigrants from mainland Europe usually need very little time to get fed up with the village-like social structures in Cyprus, which send news across the island quicker than a person can travel.... Read more
Package holidays
Posted 24 Jan 2008:Cyprus is a popular holiday destination that every summer welcomes more tourists than it has inhabitants. Sun, sea and night life draw herds of English, Germans and Scandinavians to the island but also tourists from Thailand, India and the Middle East. The holiday infrastructure in Cyprus is built on all-inclusive package holidays, leaving few opportunities for backpacking or discount travel. But how do Cypriots themselves pass their holidays and where?... Read more
Cypriot celebrations
Posted 25 Jan 2008:All social events in Ireland relate in some way or another to a visit to the local pub. Cyprus has more of a food tradition. Celebrating and eating could easily be considered synonyms, since any possible official event would be wasted without everlasting family meals. Today`s question to people in Larnaca: which events are celebrated in Cyprus and how are they different from one another.... Read more
Summer heat
Posted 26 Jan 2008:Many people I have met during the past few days insist that I have not come to Cyprus at the right time of year. Day temperatures may feel pleasant to Northern European visitors, but Cypriots have a hard time fighting the cold. Most houses are not isolated, which means temperatures at night reach close to zero. Both outdoors and indoors. Improvised heating units struggle to heat a few square meters of space, mostly in people`s living or sleeping rooms. Cypriots are better equipped for temperatures well over 30 degrees. I am happy to listen to their view on coping with tropical summer heat.... Read more
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