Lefkara visit (Pano and Kato)

 When we first moved to Cyprus, we regularly took visitors to see the village of Lefkara - or, rather, Pano Lefkara, as it's officially called; Upper Lefkara, as we might say in English. It was a quiet village, a little way into the mountains, which specialised in what they called Lefkara lace. I wouldn't have called it lace myself, but it's certainly highly skilled, beautiful work - in tablecloths, cushion covers and more.

I wrote about some of our visits, including a few photos, in - for instance - this post, in 2006, and this one in 2007. At the time we wondered how long it would stay viable. There weren't many visitors, and every shop was full of Lefkara lace products which had taken many months to make. The prices were high - not unreasonably so for the amount of work, but much higher than we or most of our friends were prepared to pay. The shop owners were friendly, offering us refreshment, 'no obligation', and then pleading with us to buy something. We learned to resist; we were pretty sure we weren't really the first visitors of the year, or that nobody had bought anything that season. 

Sometimes Richard would take visitors while I stayed at home, to enjoy some peace and quiet. But I went again in 2009 when I was saddened to see that many of the shops had closed. And those that were still open had a higher percentage of other products - machine-made tablecloths and much more, which the shopkeepers rather despised. But they had to make a living somehow.

For some reason, we hadn't been for a while - or hadn't taken photos, anyway. Richard had been a couple of times with guests, and said that each time another shop seemed to be closed. It was almost becoming a ghost town.

But last week we decided to go by ourselves, on another day out to keep us away from our computers. We thought we'd visit Kato ('lower') Lefkara, somewhere I hadn't ever been. Richard had been a couple of times, doing some filming; he said it was very quiet with almost no shops, but we thought it would be a good place to walk, and hopefully a little cooler than places at sea level.

Parking was easy, and there were encouraging signs telling us of places of interest, including at least four chapels and a church. So we set off in what looked like the right direction for a former wine-making place, and a traditional fountain.  

We hadn't got far when we were greeted by a friendly man who was originally from Greece, but had made his home in Kato Lefkara as he liked the quiet. He was very chatty, and became our unofficial guide. He showed us the former wine-making place:

He told us about his travels, and pointed out some of the traditional buildings. His English was excellent and he admitted to speaking five languages in all. 

We did meet another visitor, a young woman from South America, who joined us on the unofficial tour. 

Not that there was a whole lot to see.

In all that time, we hadn't seen any of the other local residents, or any open shops. It really does seem like a traditional village, almost unchanged by the centuries.

Eventually we said goodbye to the friendly unofficial guide, and walked to the church.

It wasn't open, and seemed quite large for such a small population. There's a huge tree outside, which is perhaps its best-known feature:

Here's a better view of its sagging branches:

We took another route back to the car, and passed this, which seems to be the traditional fountain advertised as a tourist attraction:

Somewhat underwhelming, if so.  

We didn't find any of the chapels, but we did stop to appreciate some of the colourful plants:

We had been in Kato Lefkara for maybe forty-five minutes. It was enough. So we drove up to Pano Lefkara, wondering if there were going to be any shops left...

We were startled to see that the car park was almost completely full. We wondered if there was a festival of some kind, but there weren't any coaches - just lots and lots of cars.

We walked to what we think of as the 'main' street in Lefkara and were even more surprised to see crowds of people. It was hard to take photos without people's faces, so this really doesn't give the right feel to it. 

 The shops were full of brightly-coloured fabrics, as well as more 'touristy' products such as tee-shirts and cloth bags with Cyprus cats and a wide range of toiletries and jewellery - not the beautiful filigree silver that used to be made, but the kind of things sold in all the tourist spots.

It was quite interesting to stroll down, but neither of us was tempted even to go into any of the shops, though we did manage to point out several things we definitely wouldn't want! On the plus side, nobody came out to try and persuade us to buy things. Visitors were laden with carrier bags, so it appears that trade is now booming, even if no longer traditional. 

By this time we were ready for something to eat, so we found a restaurant that looked reasonably authentic and comfortable:

Unfortunately for me, the menu was very limited - mostly meat souvlaki, without even the option of halloumi. In the end I opted for a veggieburger, which, they assured me, was made with vegetables and not soya. It came with mini samosas, which mildly amused me as an unusual mix of cultures, as well as the inevitable chips. And while Richard's souvlaki had some salad, mine had none.

He did pass me his tsatziki, however, which made a good dip for the chips. Not that I finished that quantity! 

It wasn't unpleasant, but I'm not keen on white burger buns, and the chips were rather tasteless. I did like the samosas. And Richard very much enjoyed his lunch.

While we were eating, it started to pour with rain. We felt a few drops, then a roof rolled over the top, so at least we were dry. It was quite pleasant to sit there for a while... until people at another table started smoking. The front was still open so it was technically an outside area, but it was quite unpleasant.

However, as happens so often in Cyprus, the rain was heavy for ten or fifteen minutes, then stopped abruptly and the sun came out again. 

We set off in a different direction, and found a parallel street which was much quieter than the first, and which still had traditional shops with Lefkara lace and filigree silver. We felt quite nostalgic to see this notice outside one of the shops (which was closed - possibly for siesta time, but perhaps permanently):

The English says that it's 'one of the last famous workshops.' It offered free engraving and orders in silver. 

We were told years ago that the traditional craftspeople were all elderly, and that none of the younger generation were interested in carrying on the lace or silver-making.  So perhaps the shops in this quieter street are selling products made in former years.

But even in this street, the shop owners no longer came out to tempt us inside. There were no offers of coffee or lemonade, no appeals for custom. Perhaps they're now doing well enough that they don't need to be pushy any more. Perhaps they realised that it was counter-productive. Either way, it's another sign of the times changing.

Fifteen or more years ago, there were several women sitting outside shops, making the lace competently and rapidly. They would slow down to explain what they were doing, but then quickly returned to their work when questions stopped. 

This time we saw just one woman sitting with lace in her lap. She engaged passers-by in conversation, but we didn't see her actually doing any of the stitching. 

We stopped for coffee at a different restaurant. We were a bit shocked that they didn't have any non-dairy milk. So I had a latte with dairy milk, and Richard had a Cyprus 'medrio' (strong and sweet).  

It was a pleasant day out, and it was good to see that Pano Lefkara is evidently thriving, albeit at the expense of traditions. 

Kalavassos tenta and Choirokoitia village

 Now that we're both officially pensioners, and Richard is semi-retired, we decided we should have days out now and again. This is to ensure we stay away from our computers and get some fresh air, and also to see some parts of Cyprus that we hadn't previously explored. We compiled an initial list of places not too far from Larnaka that we would like to visit - or, in some cases, re-visit. 

Our first such outing was last Friday. Our intention was to visit a location we had seen fairly often from the highway, but had never actually been to. The 'tent' (or 'tenta') at Kalavassos. Maybe forty minutes' drive from our house. It was a nice day, if rather warmer than I like, and our car has pretty good air conditioning.

Our pronunciation of Greek is not great, but we usually manage to get the emphasis correct. So we knew we were heading for somewhere pronounced something like 'kalla-VASS-os'. Short 'a' sounds, emphasis on the third syllable.  We were mildly amused that Google Maps told us we were going to 'kuh-LAH-vuh-suss', with emphasis on the second syllable and something that sounded like 'lava' in the middle. 

This is what the 'tenta' looks like from the place where we parked:

The website told us that the entry is €2.50 per person; many sites offer half-price to senior citizens. However, the man in the little booth outside told us firmly that €2.50 was the price, so we paid up and went in. There was nobody else there, though a couple of other visitors did arrive before we left.

We were given tickets, and a leaflet:

It's not a huge site, and neither of us could be considered a history buff. But we decided to walk around slowly - it was, after all, in the shade. And we wanted to get our money's worth.

What we saw was the ruins of several small huts, which - according to the leaflet, and some of the information on the site - was excavated first in 1947, and then more throughly thirty or so years later. The date of the settlement is set as the 'Aceramic period', which I don't recall hearing of before, in the years 8200-5200 BC. Really very ancient!

However, my first random thought bore no relation to history: 'Aha! So THIS is is the origin of the secret to life, the world and the universe....'

We didn't find out why some (but not all) of the buildings have numbers, apparently at random. 

We were interested to learn that one of the walls had a painting, supposedly depicting two human figures with hands raised. This is what the official notification showed:

We found building 11, but couldn't see any evidence of the painting.

On the other hand, I saw what looked to me like a road sign image on the side of building 14...

We probably stayed for twenty minutes or so, appreciating the cool breeze, and also being glad that we were not around at this era in what looks like very cramped and uncomfortable houses. 

Our verdict: worth seeing once, and probably more interesting to people who are passionate about history. It took us 29 years to get around to visiting... and we're unlikely to go again. 

Next stop was Choirokoitia, which Google Maps didn't even attempt to say. I don't think we got it right, either. Suffice it to say that the first syllable is not said like the English word 'choir'. More like 'here', with a soft 'ch' sound at the start, as in the Scottish 'loch'.  

On the way we saw a children's playground with an old train, so we stopped and Richard got out to take some photos.

It was an old goods train, which obviously hasn't run for a long time, as Cyprus doesn't have any railways now. 

Not, of course, that it's anywhere near as old as the Kalavassos settlement...

It seems a bit dangerous to have it so close to a children's playground, as many children would be unable to resist climbing over the fence and exploring the train. But it's evidently been there for several decades; apparently the railway system in Cyprus came to an end in 1951.

After that brief digression, we drove another ten minutes or so to the Heritage site of Choirokoitia, which looked, at first glance, like a huge garden. 

There was a little information office, so we went in, and expected to have to pay another €5 for the privilege. I said we were retired, and the man behind the counter looked very suspicious. He asked to look at our passports, so we showed him our ID cards. He perused them carefully, then handed them back. We asked what we had to pay, and he told us it was free. 

We weren't going to argue. I suppose it's quite flattering that he thought we couldn't possibly be over 65...

It was noon by the time we were there, and while there was some shade, there wasn't much of a breeze and the temperature in the sun must have been about 32C. I don't do well in the heat. 

Still, we didn't have to go far to find an area that said it was reconstructed Neolithic houses. 

Richard went inside and looked at some of the information sheets. 

But I was feeling overheated, and sat down on a convenient stone in the shade.

Looking through the window hole of one of the huts showed a raised area - possibly a bed:

Somewhat rested, we found more shade and walked a bit further. Then there were some steps, which said they led to another Neolithic settlement - the actual one with ruins on which the reconstructed huts were based. 

Richard went ahead and I got slower and slower....

It was a good view, with Cyprus looking quite green for this time of year:

Unfortunately, it was clear that there were a lot more steps, not shaded at all:

Richard decided he didn't want to walk right up the hill in the sunshine, even though he deals a lot better with heat than I do. And we were both starting to get hungry.

Subsequent research suggests that the long, unshaded uphill walk might not be worth the effort, unless one is a serious fan of prehistory, or likes climbing stairs in the sun. Apparently there is another ruined settlement which is much like the Kalavassos one. 

So we left the site.

Verdict: the reconstructed huts were interesting, and it looked as if it would be quite pleasant to walk around the park/garden area. But as there were notices saying that nothing should be touched or climbed upon, and that children must be with an adult at all times, it's not somewhere I'd want to take lively children. It's probably not somewhere we're likely to want to visit again. Then again, if for some reason we were in the area on a cooler/shadier day, we might explore it a bit more, if we can, once again, get in free.

Next we drove to find a taverna which Richard had seen advertised online. It wasn't easy to find: it was hidden right behind another playground. 

But although there wasn't much on the menu, and no other customers there, the owners were very friendly (and spoke fairly good English).

It was quite attractive, too, and shady, with a pleasant breeze. 

We had no idea what portion sizes would be like but the prices were reasonable. We ordered a Greek salad to share (which turned out to be huge!), and the 'dish of the day' for Richard. It was supposedly stuffed vine leaves, though it turned out to be stuffed vegetables - he didn't find any vine leaves. I always prefer to eat vegetarian food when we're out, so I asked for halloumi - which came after the rest, and was just accompanied by some warm toasted pitta pieces.

It was a lot of food. When we'd eaten as much as we could manage, we were offered a take-away box so we filled that with the rest of the salad, half of the halloumi and most of the pitta. 

It was a good day out, despite the heat, and hopefully the precursor to more outings around the island... if we remember. 

Getting into September in Cyprus

 So, two and a half weeks have gone by. The heavy rain at the end of August - which I wrote about in my last post - didn't lead to significant cooling, although the humidity did, somewhat, reduce.

Overnight it was cool enough that I resumed early morning walks, three times per week, with my friend Sheila. I didn't want to wear socks and trainers, though, and I wasn't sure how far I could manage, so on Sept 1st we started by walking in the upgraded Salt Lake Park, including going along the bridge and observing the Salt Lake with some water, at one end, from the recent rain: 

We did then walk a little way along the trail itself and I found it wasn't too bad with sandals. We wondered how long the water would remain.

The final nine days of August

 I wondered, at the start of the month, whether I would remember to write about the details, albeit mostly rather dull, of a month in Cyprus, semi-aestivating in the air conditioning. 

And suddenly, it's the last stretch... not that September will be significantly cooler, but the days are getting shorter and by the end of September we should at least have stopped using the air conditioning. 

Sunday 23rd

As with every other Sunday, I started by watering the plants, then went for a 2km walk. I'm not keeping my phone with me every moment, as I used to do. So on days when I only walk in the mornings, I don't even register 5,000 steps. I'm more interested in what my app calls 'heart points', ensuring I reach the minimum of twenty if possible, aiming for heart health. 

We were expecting our closest local friends in the afternoon: four of them this time, which is more than usually come now. So I put a loaf of bread on (in the breadmaker), and decided to try a vegan pseudo-'cheesecake' from a recipe I found online some time ago. It suggested a complex crust using seeds, dates and nuts but I thought I'd keep it simple and use a standard cheesecake base with digestive biscuits and spread. Somewhat ultra-processed, but when it gets cooler I'm going to see if I can make digestive biscuits myself, to avoid that problem.

Third week of August in Cyprus

More than half way through August already, another week gets going...

Sunday 16th

Sunday morning I woke around six thirty. It was a tad cooler than it had been. So once again I walked to the Salt Lake park, and explored a bit more than I did last week. I won't go into detail, as I wrote an entire extra post about the upgraded Salt Lake (or Pattichio) park. But here's one photo I took, showing the nature garden, and the steps to the bridge:

By the time I got home, it was getting hot and humid. Another morning in the air conditioning, where I watched some of the church livestream. We'd decided to get a rotisserie chicken from Metro for lunch again, along with various leftovers from the previous week; I knew it would last us at least three meals. We had quite a lot of new potatoes left over, so I sliced and refried them, along with some onions. We ate about half of those. 

Pattichio (Salt Lake) Park upgrade

 Back in February, I wrote this post about ongoing construction in the Salt Lake (Pattichio) Park. It all seemed to be happening slowly and somewhat randomly. By the middle of June, when I stopped going for walks along the Salt Lake trail until the weather cools down, it hadn't progressed all that much. 

So I was amazed to see this article about the Pattichio Park come up in my Facebook feed last week. I decided to go and see what was going on - it was hard to believe that in just a couple of months the upgrade really was complete, but that's what the article said. I mentioned this in the Wednesday part of last week's general rambling update, with a couple of photos. But I didn't stray from the main path, as it was so very hot and humid.

Yesterday morning, however, the temperature was a tad cooler, and not quite so sticky. So I decided to be a bit more adventurous. I walked to the park, then wandered up the first trail I came to:

 
It led to the dog park. This is quite a nice looking area that's fenced off, with plenty of bins for dog mess, to allow dogs to run around rather than having to be on a lead/leash all the time.

Second week of August in Cyprus

Continuing on from my previous post, which covered the first eight days of August...

Sunday 9th August

When I woke, the humidity wasn't too high. My phone told me that the temperature was around 26 degrees at 6am. I read for a bit, then watered the plants on the front porch. We're theoretically allowed to use hose pipes on plants (though not for anything else). However, I feel it's less wasteful to use a watering can, so that's what I do. I have to fill four cans to give all our plants a reasonable amount of water, and they seem to be surviving, some of them blooming quite well.  

Then I walked - slowly - for a couple of kilometres around local streets. As so often, I noticed how much construction is going on in our neighbourhood. Mostly new blocks of flats. There's a housing crisis here as there aren't sufficient affordable homes - yet new ones are going up all the time. 

First week of August in Cyprus

Apparently my unexciting post with a few photos from July was appreciated by others, and of interest to some people who are not in Cyprus. So I thought I'd write a week-by-week summary of August. Assuming I remember to do so, that is. 

In that post, I spoke too soon about the lack of nasty insects. When I was getting ready for bed on the night of July 31st, I opened my closet and saw (shudder....) a roach sitting amid my tee shirts.  Thankfully Richard was close by, and he was able to get rid of it.

Saturday 1st August

August started, as so often happens, with increased humidity. I went out for a shortish walk first thing, around 6am. Although it was only around 26 degrees and I stayed mostly in the shade, I was dripping when I got home. I sat down and did a few puzzles, then - slowly - organised Richard's breakfast tray of fruit and nuts, squeezed oranges etc. I made some oat milk for his coffee and my frappé. Then I had my breakfast, hoping it would give me some energy.

It didn't.