Today we decided to eat breakfast in our room again—the same Nescafé and yogurt with honey. Today the four of us (Mike, me, Mike G. and Emily) were going to take the bus to Larnaca. The name Larnaca comes from the greek word larnax which means sarcophagus (apparently there were many ancient tombs in the city). It was originally colonized by the Mycenaeans in the 13th century BC. After declining it reemerged as Kition when it was reestablished by the Phoenicians two centuries later as the place from which they exported copper. Subsequently it was taken over by the Athenians as well as the Persians. After a calm era of Christian, Roman, and early Byzantine rule, it once again suffered from Arab raids. After the Ottoman rule, the British used the city as its premier port and trade center until they left the island. Although the city has a lengthy history it has little evidence left standing and is now considered to be mostly a tourist town.

The bus trip to Larnaca took us about 50 minutes and we were let out on the Palm Tree Promenade near the carousel. We checked our map and decided to walk to St. Lazarus Church  (Agios Lazaros) which was a lovely place with a magnificent iconostasis. According to legend, during early Christian times the Pharisees tried get rid of Lazarus (they weren’t happy about him being raised from the dead) by supposedly setting him adrift in a leaky boat. It was said he landed in Larnaca and became the first Christian bishop of Cyprus. To the right of the central nave in the church is a large gilded reliquary containing his skull. According to the guide books one can touch the skull but not any longer as it was now covered in glass. Ancient lore says that St. Helena wanted to buy the body of St. Lazarus and told the people of Larnaca that she would build them a cathedral for his body. They agreed but kept the skull as they didn’t consider it part of the body. Along with the main part of the church there are crypts under the altar which we visited.

The next stop was Larnaca Fort and Medieval Museum which was right by the sea. This fort was built around 1625 by the Turks on the site of a medieval castle which had been destroyed by the Mamelukes two centuries before that. The fort was used in the 1800s as a police headquarters, prison and execution site until in 1833 it was partially destroyed by a lightning strike. Today it has a small Medieval museum along with treasure that was unearthed from the ancient city of Kition. We were excited to tour this site but sadly it was not open on weekends. We walked around the outside and then walked to the Grand Mosque. It was under renovation so it was not open either. We also stopped in a couple of souvenir shops to see what we might buy for family and friends. 

By now it was noon so Mike G. asked a man he saw sitting on a porch where a good place to have lunch might be. The man suggested we walk to Militzis Restaurant so off we went. It was a lovely place right on the sea. We shared a bottle of white wine and a delicious Village salad with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, lettuce, cabbage, and feta cheese with lemon juice squeezed on it. For dinner Mike G., Mike, and Emily each had stifado (stewed beef and potatoes) while I had gigantes (giant white beans) with tomatoes, onions, and greens. The food was delicious!

We then walked back to the bus stop in time to catch the 2 p.m. bus back to Limassol. We arrived back at our hotel about 3 p.m. and spent the rest of the afternoon resting and checking emails at the classroom building. Then about 7 p.m. Mike and I went to Mike G. and Emily’s room for a drink and to finish off the olives, chips, etc. After that we all walked to the Santa Maria Restaurant for dinner. The four of us shared a bottle of wine and each had a different meal for dinner. Mike had the mushroom omelet, I had the smoked salmon, Mike G. had moussaka, and Emily had a large Village salad. After dinner we walked back to the hotel where we began to pack as tomorrow we leave Cyprus. My question was how do we fit everything into our suitcases? Ha ha!