MEDITERRANEAN - CYPRUS : THE RECIPE FOR ETERNAL YOUTH AND BEAUTY
by Ursula & Eldrid Retief



Here is a step-by-step recipe on the secret of eternal youth and beauty I’ve brought back from the Island of Love. The directions are easy to follow.

(Don’t scoff. Keep in mind that Cyprus is the island of Aphrodite , Goddess of Love and Beauty.)

Step One: Arrange to be in Cyprus in August at full-moon. That’s a prerequisite.

(You will probably touch down in Larnaka at the island’s main international airport. The city is on the site of the ancient city-kingdom of Kition, an important port in pre-Christian times. Lazarus, resurrected by Christ from the dead, is said to be buried there in a crypt under the main altar of the church of St. Lazarus.)

Step Two: Rent a car (which is dirt-cheap in Cyprus) and head for Pafos by way of Limassol (Lemesos to Cypriots), the country’s main port (its treasures include the Museum of Archaeology).

(At this stage you’ll no doubt be impatient to reach the spot where eternal youth and beauty is awaiting you, but do stop, on the road to Pafos, at the Kourion archaeological site, another ancient city-kingdom. The ruins stretch spectacularly over a rocky plateau that drops steeply to the coastal plain. Nearby is the Sanctuary of Apollo.

Step Three: On this magnificent coastal highway you’ll reach Petra tou Romiou, a massive chunk of stone that marks the spot where Aphrodite is said to have emerged from the sea.

Well, okay, not the exact spot.

Step Four: Strip to your bare necessities and just before midnight enter the warm waters of the cove. If, on the stroke of midnight, you happen to be in the exact spot where Aphrodite emerged, the gift of eternal youth and beauty is yours.

(No-one said the recipe was sure-fire. But that’s the legend.)

Even without the lure of eternal youth etcetra, the journey to Cyprus is worth making. As one poster proclaimed: "Once been, never forgotten".

You may want to get lost in some parts of this intriguing island, but you don’t have to. The excellent roads are well sign-posted in both Greek and English.

You will pass long stretches of beaches interrupted only by surf-beaten coves guarded by rugged cliffs; drive along avenues of eucalyptus and blossoming almond trees, through cool, silent cedar forests, past meadows and hillsides blanketed in wildflowers or vineyards; you’ll stumble across tiny villages nestling among olive and carob groves and scented orange orchards; stop to watch goats and moufflon, the indigenous shaggy mountain sheep, graze among ancient Greek temples and Byzantine castle ruins; here the skeleton of an abandoned fortress, there yet another archaeological "dig".

Cyprus’ colorful, turbulent history dates back to the Stone Age. Perched as it is on the doorstep of Asia, it’s no surprise that everyone wanted a part of this intriguing island.

Straddling Oriental and Western Civilizations has endowed Cyprus with a rich cultural legacy. In any one day you will pass a neolithic settlement, ancient tombs, a Gothic Cathedral, an Ottoman minaret, Venetian fortresses, a Roman amphitheater and mosaics, a distinctive red British phone kiosk, excavations into a Bronze-Age city, a restored Crusader castle, and early Christian monasteries.

The entire island is a living mosaic of many cultures and civilizations and one can only guess at the treasures its plains and hills still conceal.

In the harbor of Pafos colorful floor mosaics and splendid tombs tell the tales of antiquity. It’s a living history book now declared a World Cultural Heritage Site by UNESCO. It’s also a hugely popular tourist area, bristling with hotels, tavernas and restaurants.

Because it has been occupied by so many cultures, Cyprus has a fascinating cuisine and there are dozens of good Cypriot tavernas, many of them offering the island’s distinctive mezedhes (little delicacies), commonly known as meze – a succession of appetizers. First come the olives, black and green with a dressing of lemon, garlic, herbs, coriander seeds and oil. Then the different dips with a basket of fresh village bread and a bowl of salad. Then the octopus in red wine, the snails in tomato sauce and then the rest of sometimes 30 dishes. Don’t be tempted to finish every dish that arrives on the table. Take a leaf out of a Cypriot’s book and enjoy the meze "siga siga" – slowly, slowly.

Most villages have their own specialty which you will be offered, whether it is a mountain goat cheese, a regional wine, fresh cherries, or rosewater.

The Cypriot countryside is dotted with picturesque traditional villages like Lefkara, famed for its laces and silverwork. The tablecloth in Michaelangelo’s "The Last Supper" was of Lefkara design.

For those who want to experience the traditional village life, Cyprus’ innovative agrotourism program offers lodging facilities in restored houses throughout the countryside. Visitors who stay here enjoy the daily hands-on routines and traditions of village people, the simple, serene rhythms of rural life and folk customs plus the tastes of traditional Cypriot home cooking – all filtered through the sense of genuine hospitality and natural warmth of the Cypriot people.

The island is strung with superb, sandy beaches, particularly on the southeast corner at Ammochostas, a major resort with shops and discos and tavernas. Throughout the island there is a range of accommodation, from the best five-star hotels and resorts, all wonderfully equipped, most with private beaches and of course swimming pools to delightful taverna rooms.

And remember, when you get back from Cyprus younger and more beautiful – this is where you read it first.


Photo:40 Kolones (Columns) ruins, Paphos (by Helen Stylianou). Courtesy Cyprus Tourism
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