Kyperounta, Limassol, Cyprus
We decided to string together another set of sights for the
day on a meandering course through the eastern Troodos Mountains from Platres to
the capital at Nicosia, partly following a Lonely Planet guide recommended
driving route.
First was the Tsikkias Winery, a modern facility high on a
hill with wonderful views over its vineyards sprawling up and down the slopes. Along with five of their wines of three
colors, we tried a bottle of their grape ale.
Beer made from grapes – what will they think of next! I unclear on the
process of making beer from grapes. It seems like you would either end up with
something with an alcohol content similar to that of wine or something very
sweet with lots of residual sugars. A foursome
of Americans also on the outdoor deck at the winery asked Rodrigo to take their
pictures. I noticed one man had a Montana cap on and asked if they were from
Montana. Sure enough, they were from Three Forks, a small town about 20 miles
down the road from me. Hmmmm, to think I’d run into some near neighbors in a
place where there are very few other Americans.
Our next stop was the UNESCO listed church of Timios Stavros
in nearby Pelendri. We showed up during hour when it was closed for lunch, but
nonetheless a priest/monk came over when he saw us to let us in. It is beautifully
painted, similar to the three we saw the day before.
It was then uphill to the high altitude town of
Kyperounda. Not mentioned in any
guidebooks as something historic or as a tourist site, we couldn’t resist
stopping at an enormous church in town – Agios Arsenius.
This place seemed disproportionately massive
for such a small town, especially since Orthodox churches tend not to be very
large. Rodrigo was fascinated by it since its exterior reminded him of some castle
in one of the video games he plays.
Then over a mountain pass and downhill a ways past the hillside
town of Lagoudera to the isolated Panagia tou Araka monastery and its UNESCO-listed
painted church. We were the only visitors there for about an hour, during which
time a very chatty and enthusiastic monk chewed off our ears spouting off on
how the paintings all fit into Orthodox theology. I learned stories about Jesus
life and family that I had never heard before – that Joseph was Mary’s guardian
rather than husband, that Joseph was a relative of Mary’s parents Anne and Joachim,
that Joseph was much older and had five children from a previous marriage, that
the Jewish hatred that condemned Jesus in favor of Barrabas was because Jesus
would not preach against the Romans when what they wanted was a political
leader as their king.
Is this all from the same Bible I grew up with? We
managed to make our escape when the monk got distracted by some other visitors
who entered.
The eastern part of the Troodos above Nicosia is known as Mesoaria. It is still rugged and remote but drier and
less thickly forested than the higher peaks to the west. The Machairas Monastery, recommended to us as
one of the most traditional of the large monastic complexes, is in an isolated
spot at 900 meters (3,000 feet) elevation and takes some work to get to on
winding mountain roads. It is a beautiful and peaceful place, but one where you
must cover yourself in a monk’s robe to hide your hairy scary legs. I’m not
sure if long pants would have past muster or if they require visitors to wear
the robes regardless. Officially there are no pictures, but we took a few from
outside the grounds. We went to the monastery’s church and sat down for the
monks evening chanting, singing, and associated religious ceremonies. Is that vespers,
or is vespers only in the Catholic church. Anyway, I wasn’t expecting such an
authentic show.
It was then literally all downhill for about an hour to
Nicosia, the last divided capital city in Europe and our home for the next two
nights in an apartment in the new town about a mile from the old city walls.
2025-05-23