Well, we're almost to the end of our trip!

It would be great to stay in Cyprus forever, but it is also good to go home and see my Mom and Dad again (even if they don't let me have Loukoumades for dinner)

The next day went to see an archeological site:

	Lefkosia
	Politiko - Tamassos Royal Tombs
	Politiko village, 17 km (10 miles), Southwest of Lefkosia Tel: 357 22 62 26 19 Tuesday-Friday: 09:00-15:00 Saturday-Sunday: 10:00-15:00 Monday: Closed Entrance fees: C£0,75
	Tamassos was a rich city-kingdom in ancient Cyprus renown for its copper mines. Excavations have brought to light the Royal Tombs and copper workshops associated with Aphrodite-Astarte.

Here are Maria and Anna with Maria's Cousins, Antigoni and Andreas:

Then we went to see a Monastery. It has and Icon of the Virgin Mary that was written by St. Luke himself:

	Lefkosia
	Machairas Monastery
	41 km south of Lefkosia through Deftera and Pera villages. Tel: 357 22 35 93 34 The convent is open for group visits only on Monday Tuesday and Thursday: 09:00-12:00
	Founded by two monks in 1148, when an icon of the Virgin Mary was found in a nearby cave, the monastery is set in a picturesque dip in the Machairas mountains. Following a grant by the Anastasios G. Leventis Foundation the vestry of Machairas monastery which is housed in the monastery basement, has been renovated and consists of the original cells of the monks as well as stables and storage areas which were restored specifically for this purpose. The Vestry has a room where the Monastery's old books and manuscripts are kept, galleries and rooms containing icons and other religious artefacts. No photos or video -cameras are allowed within the Monastery area.

We weren't allowed to take any pictures inside, but the Church was beautiful, and so were the Monastery grounds. Here is a picture of the outside, notice that they use terraces for gardening, too:

After that, we went out for dinner in a great little restaurant up in the mountains. We had a dinner of mezedhes - that's where they bring out a whole lot of little dishes of food for everyone to try - bread, meat, olives, dips, veggies - all sorts of yummy food. You get to eat a little bit of everything.

See these gourds hanging from the ceiling? When they get dry and yellow, like the one hanging against the wall, they will cut off the top use it for a pitcher to serve beverages (it will be hollow when it is dry)

Then, we went late at night to see the hideout of another soldier who died in the war for independence from Britain. Here is a memorial to him: 

Here is the inside of his hideout. You can't tell in this picture, but it was pretty small - about 1/4 as big as your bedroom. I think it would have been a little scary for him to be in there at night by himself when he knew people were looking for him. He must have been very brave.

The last night there, Tasos' sister had a big New Year's party for the whole family. New Year's Day is more of a family holiday in Cyprus than it is in America. And, remember, Agios Vasilios brings presents!

On New Year's Day, we went to Church. We went to a Church where Tasos' Dad was a Chanter when Tasos was a kid. Since New Year's Day is also St. Basil's Day, there was a big procession around the Church at the end of the service, to honor St. Basil.

After that, it was a long, long trip home. We were very tired, but we had a wonderful time!

Here are some facts about Cyprus

(most of the facts on this site are from the official Cyprus Tourism Site - you can look there if you want to learn more http://www.visitcyprus.org.cy/  )

Population

Demography
Population (de jure): 818.200 (End 2003)
79,1%: Greek Cypriots (646.900)
10,7%: Turkish Cypriots (87.800)
10,2%: Foreign residents (83.500)

Geography

Island Contours
Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Its 9,251 square kilometres (3,572 square miles) encompass citrus and olive groves, pine forested mountains, and some of Europe's cleanest beaches. Also the easternmost island in the Mediterranean Sea, Cyprus is approximately 105kilometres (60 miles) west of Syria, 75kilometres (47 miles) south of Turkey and 380kilometres (200 miles) north of Egypt. The nearest Greek point is the Greek island of Rhodes which is 380kilometres (200miles) to the west. The island has a mild, typically Mediterranean climate, with abundant sunshine even in winter and little rainfall. Prominent geographic features include the Troodos massif that occupies most of the southwestern part of the country, the Pentadaktylos range in the north around Kyrenia and the Messaoria Plain in between them. It is here that the capital city, Lefkosia, is located.

The elongated Karpasia Peninsula occupies the northeastern part of Cyprus, while the southeastern point terminates in Cape Gkreco. The southern coast is where the major towns of Larnaka and Lemesos are located. Pafos and the Akamas Peninsula are on the far western edge.

The latitude of Cyprus is 34° 33'-35° 34' North, and its longitude 32° 16'-34° 37' East.

Note: Prior to the Turkish invasion (July-August 1974) the two communities lived together in roughly the same proportions (4 Greek Cypriots : 1Turkish Cypriot) in all six administrative districts of the island. Since the invasion, about 57 000 Turkish Cypriots emigrated, with the result that today they constitute only 10,7% of the population compared to 18% before July 1974.

Population of Main Towns
(End 2003)
Lefkosia (Nicosia): 213.500 (part of Lefkosia in the Government controlled area)
Lemesos (Limassol): 167.800
Larnaka: 74.700
Pafos: 49.700

Religion Today Denominations Perhaps because Cyprus has seen so many empires and cultural influences ebb and flow over the centuries, the country enjoys an exceedingly high level of freedom of worship. While the majority of Cypriots are Greek Orthodox Christian (85%), other religious faiths are represented on the island as well, including Armenians, Maronites, Roman Catholics, Latins and Muslims.

Languages

Greek and Turkish are the main languages. English is widely spoken. French and German are also spoken within the tourism Industry.

I really think you'd love Cyprus if you ever get a Chance to go there! 

Your flat friend, -Stanley

Then we were back to Paphos, and went to see a Catacomb. A Catacomb is a place underground where Christians used to go to worship in secret during the times of Ancient Rome, when they could be killed if people found out they were Christians.  Most people think that Catacombs were only in Italy, but here is one in Cyprus called Agia Solomoni:

Agia Solomoni was a devout Jewish Mother before the time of Christ. She and her seven sons courageously gave their lives because they would not deny their belief in God. The books of Maccabbes in the Bible tell about her, and the Jewish Feast of Hannukah is a feast that celebrates the final victory of those who were faithful to God in those times. This is an Early Christian Church that honored her and her love for God. 

Then we went to see a Monastery

This is the Icon Screen in the front of the Church - it is a little dark in the Picture, but it was very beautiful:

This is where his Relics are:

This is where he was buried:

Here is an Icon of St. Lazarus with his two sisters, Mary and Martha:

This was a neat Icon in the Church of the Prophets Elijah and Elisha in the Old Testament:

Well time to go for now! See you soon!

The next day was Christmas!

Since Agios Vasilios comes on New Years, Christmas morning there are no presents under the tree - everyone waits another week.

Christmas is a day for Church and to spend with your family having a special Christmas Dinner.

We went to Church in the morning. It was a really big Church, but still, there were a lot of people standing because there weren't enough chairs for everyone. Everyone shares their chairs, letting other people sit when they're tired.

In Cyprus, the Churches have chairs instead of long benches or pews like in America. The chairs are all connected to each other, and they have wooden seats that fold down, so that they aren't in the way when you stand up.

Church was four hours long, but most families with kids my age came when it was part way over, so they were only there about an hour or an hour and a half.

This is the Church we went to:

After Church, we all went out to a nice restaurant for Christmas Dinner. At the restaurant, they had "Christmas Crackers" - these are from the British Culture - it's little wrapped tube, where each person pulls on one end of the tube, and it makes a loud popping sound when it breaks. The person who gets the biggest half wins. There are little toys inside, and a little paper crown. Here I am with Anna and a Christmas Cracker.

The next day, we went to the Troodos Mountains. In most of Cyprus it never snows, but in the mountains, there was snow:

We went to visit a Church of St. Mavra. She lived during the early centuries, and she had to hide from the Romans who were trying to kill Christians like her because they were Christians.

Here is the little tunnel that she hid in  - it is very small. No one knows how far it goes into the side of the mountain. People burn candles outside of it. The things inside are things people leave when they request her prayers. One person left a picture of someone.

The next day, we went to see the dam that Tasos helped to build when he was a graduate student in Engineering.

Here is the water that is being held back by the dam

Here are the Orange trees down below - where there used to be water, but now there's not because the dam stops it.

I thought that this looked like a water slide for giants (of course, it is hard to slide on rough concrete) - but Tasos told me what it is really for. If the water gets too high, and some of it needs to escape, this helps it escape gently, instead of causing a lot of damage down below.

Well, it's time to go. Hope to see you again soon!

Your flat friend, -Stanley

  The next day we went to see a very, very old Church. It had Icons painted on the walls in the 1100's - almost a thousand years ago - and the colours were still bright and clear! (Icons are a special kind of Christian Religious painting)

It was interesting, because we could see what the Icons back then were like, and how they are different from newer Icons.

Troodos
		Panagia tis Asinou Church - Nikitari (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
		Nikitari village, Tel: 357 22 85 29 22 Daily: 09:00-17:00 (summer) Daily: 09:00-16:00 (winter)
	An early 12th century church dedicated to the Virgin Mary with frescoes of the 12th century and the later periods, considered to be among the finest examples of Byzantine mural painting in the island. Visitors should ask for the priest of Nikitari village to escort them.

I thought this one was the most interesting, because usually in Icons Saints have a golden Halo, and other people don't have any Halo at all. In this one, though, Judas is betraying Jesus, and he has a Halo, but it is dark instead of gold.  

Here are some other ones you might like to see. Can you figure out what they are?

The Church was up in the mountains - here is the view from the front door:

The next day was Christmas Eve, and we went to visit a Monastery. This is one of the many Churches and Monasteries where we weren't allowed to take pictures, so this is just a picture outside

Agios Irakleidios Convent
	by Irakleidios , whom they later consecrated as Bishop of Tamassos. He was martyred and buried in the cave where he had lived and preached. The monastery, founded in 400 AD, was destroyed and rebuilt several times until Archibishop Chrysanthos renovated the church and cells in 1773. The relics of the saint are kept in a silver gilt case. The use of photo and video cameras inside the convent is prohibited.

For Christmas Eve Vespers, we went to Maria's Church. Greek Orthodox Church Services are sometimes very long (Christmas morning services were four hours!) and everybody knows that we kids can't sit still that long without little breaks. A lot of times, families with kids just come late, so that it's not so long. But, at Maria's Church, they have a kid's Chapel, where the Icon screen and everything else is just our size, and there is a loudspeaker so everyone can hear the service. We were allowed to go in there and stay with other kids whenever we felt like it, and then go back with the grown-ups when we felt like it. You can see how big it is in this picture I took of Maria in the kid's Chapel:

That's all for today! Hope you're enjoying reading about our trip!

I was still learning lots of stuff on my trip:

Did you know that the 4th most important place in the Religion of Islam is in Cyprus?

	Larnaka
	Hala Sultan Tekke - Salt Lake
	Dromolaxia, 5 km (3 miles) west of Larnaka town Daily: 07:30-19:30 (June-August) 09:00-18:00 (April-May & Sept-Oct) 09:00-17:00 (November-March) Entrance free
	Built in 1816 over the tomb of Umm Haram, allegedly a relative of Prophet Mohhamed who died on this spot in 649 during the first Arab raids. The mosque is an important place of Moslem pilgrimage ranking immediately after the shrines of Mecca, Medina and Al Aqsha in Jerusalem.

The Aunt of the Prophet Mohhamed was buried here. She died when she fell off of a horse and broke her neck.

The Great Grandmother of King Abdullah of Jordan is also buried here. She exiled to Cyprus by the British Government (Exile means that the government where you live won't let you live in your own country any more, and they make you go live in a different country - away from all your friends and family)

Since it is a Mosque, we were sure to take off our shoes when we went inside

We also went to Kavo Gkreko, a very beautiful, very rocky beach.

Kavo Gkreko

A National Forest Park at the southeastern end of the island between Agia Napa and Paralimni. The uniqueness of the area is not only due to its natural beauty but also to the fact that it offers a wide range of interests such as swimming, diving, towed parachute, fishing, rowing, cycling, riding, climbing, airsports, and hiking.
The vegetation is dominated by coastal shrubs of which the most frequent observed species is Juniperus Phoenicea and plants such as chrysanthemums, wild onions, poppies, anemones, mainly in spring time.
There are about 300 plant species in the area, 11 of which are endemic. The fauna includes species such as partridge, wood pigeon, crow, owl, as well as a large number of migratory birds, which stop on the island chiefly to rest. These include blackbirds, thrushes etc. Also observed in the area are foxes, hares and various species of bats, reptiles and butterflies. To date, 9 trails have been constructed in Kavo Gkreko - Paralimni area.

We went to see a war memorial too.

America fought a war of independence against the British in 1776 - back in the time of George Washington.

Cyprus fought a war of independence against the British in 1955 - probably about when your grandparents were little kids.

Here are 4 brave men who died in that war.

The brother of one of these men, who is now old enough to be a grandpa himself, came and talked to Tasos in Greek and told him all about his brother's sacrifice for his country. He was proud of his brother, but sad, too, because he died.

I think the stories weren't all okay for kids (because wars are violent and sad) because the story was really long in Greek, and when Tasos told it to me, it was pretty short.

Oh, and Maria got back her picture with Santa Claus!

In Greek, Santa's name is "Agios Vasilios"

I have often wondered how Santa could visit all of the kids on earth in one night - that's a lot of houses!

Well, I learned on this trip that Santa goes to Cyprus and Greece and Russia on New Years! And, Anna told me that her Mom went to Spain once, and the kids there get their presents on January 6, (Epiphany or Theophany) - So it's not as hard as I thought - he can space it out over a few days instead of doing it all in one night.

You might wonder what kind of presents the kids in Cyprus like? Well, since we were only days away from New Years, there was a lot of excitement about what Agios Vasilios might bring. The kids there like the same things as kids here (of course, older kids and younger kids like different things) - video games, dvd's, cd's, Barbie dolls, My Little Pony, stuff to play house or school with, jewelry and nice lotions or perfumes, sports stuff, clothes - just everything you can think of that kids like here, they like there, too!

Well, time to go!

See you soon!

-Stanley