December 10, 2023: The Other Olympus
After a day in Cyprus´s divided capital of Nicosia, it was time to move on. My goal was to explore the Troodos Mountain section of the island before heading to Paphos that night.
The Troodos Mountains are the main mountain range on the island of Cyprus. They are located in the center of the island and is also known for its churches and monasteries.
From Nicosia, I drove west along the Green Line, the UN-patrolled border between independent Cyprus and the Turkish-controlled north for about an hour. Despite being so close to the front line, the tension was barely noticeable save for a single UN guard post staffed by Argentina.
Eventually the road turned south, and I started to climb into the mountains. After 75 minutes, I entered a pine forest and had climbed up so high that I could see across all the Turkish territory to the north coast of the island.
My first stop was the Kykkos Monastery, widely considered the most important monastery on the island. Kykkos is best known for an icon of the Virgin Mary that is the subject of numerous legends and could a good target for Indiana Jones.
The legend states that the icon was painted by the Apostle Luke and was the centerpiece of the personal chapel of the Byzantine emperors. In the 11th century, a nobleman cured the emperor´s daughter of a mysterious illness with the help of God. As a reward, the emperor sent the icon to Cyprus and built the monastery to house it. The icon is almost always covered in a cloth, as it is rumored to blind all those who look at her face. Every so often in times of dire need (such as a drought), the icon is uncovered while the priests look away.
Despite not being able to actually see the icon, the monastery still has a museum, impressive murals, and the stunning church (no photos allowed). The back room had at least 30 ornate gold and silver reliquaries containing bones of saints. My favorite reliquaries contained whole jaw bones including teeth! Reliquaries are the weirdest Christian traditions.
The first president of Cyprus, the Archbishop Makarios III, got his start as a priest in the Kykkos Monastery. He is buried nearby in a stunning mausoleum.
Downhill from the Monastery is the village of Kalopanagiotis, which just so happened to be having its Christmas market. The village is in a nationwide contest to be the best Christmas village in Cyprus and they were clearly taking it very seriously. The village was packed- so packed that people had to park more than a 30-minute walk from the festivities. Most of the village is located on a steep hillside above a river.
The Christmas market and main stage were located across the river surrounding the UNESCO World Heritage Site Monastery of Saint John Lampadistis. The monastery and nine others in the region received the designation for its outstanding frescos inside.
At the Christmas market, I purchased some palouze (also known in Greece as moustalevria), which is a warm pudding made from grapes.
Continuing, I stopped further up the hill at another one of the UNESCO churches. While taking photos, a middle-aged man walked in, kissed all the icons on the walls and then silently walked out. I later learned that Orthodox Christians view the icons as literal windows to the venerated.
My next stop was Mount Olympos, the highest peak on the island. This is not to be confused with Mount Olympus, the highest peak in Greece and home of the gods. Unfortunately, the actual summit of the mountain is a British military base. Access and photos are prohibited. Had my foot been better, I would have walked the Artemis trail which circulates the summit, but instead I drove to the top of the access road for the views.
Cruising down the south slopes of the mountains, I reached the Lambouri winery. Cyprus is one of the oldest wine producing regions on earth. Archaeological excavations have found winemaking equipment over 4,000 years old. This 350-year-old winery offered free tasting featuring 6 pours. Most were blends using grape varieties I have never heard of such as xynisteri, marvo and maratheftiko. The most famous and treasured Cypriot wine is a dessert wine called commandaria. The name stems from the 12th century wedding of Richard the Lionheart who declared it “the wine of kings and the king of wines”. Thus, commandaria is the world´s oldest named wine still in production.
For my final stop of the day, I drove south to the Kourion ruins. Kourion was an ancient Greek independent city-state until it was conquered by Alexander the Great and then the Romans. Most of the ruins date to the Roman period. The ruins include an amphitheater, homes, baths, an agora and a sanctuary to the god Apollo.
One interesting fact about the ruins are that they are not part of the country of Cyprus. Rather they are in Akrotiri, a British overseas territory. As a condition of granting Cyprus independence, the UK insisted that they keep two bases on the island due to their key location in the center of the eastern Mediterranean. The agreement to grand British sovereignty over the land was signed not only by the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities but also the countries of Greece and Turkey.
The sun was now setting as I headed west towards Paphos.
Final Thoughts:
Far from the coasts, the Troodos Mountains were a bastion of Cypriot culture and nature. It is quite different from coastal Cyprus. Due to my foot, I was limited in my mobility but were I not injured, I would have gone on some hikes around the mountain summit and to waterfalls. I have only good things to say.
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