My childhood life in Cyprus, beautiful Cyprus!

I grew up in a tiny small fishing village called Ayia Napa, yes that is right, Ayia Napa was in the 80s a very small, untouched friendly fishing village. We had a family bar, and life was pretty amazing. If you lived in Ayia Napa in the 80s, you would not recognise Ayia Napa now, in fact when I last went there in 2018, it felt like a film set of various entertainment venues, and it seemed to have lost its originality - my opinion of course. Back then, the most famous bars were at the 'square' and the famous beach at the time ' Nissi beach' otherwise known for a name that cannot be mentioned on here, but lets just say, a name that demonstrates a freedom of everything...

I use to get up early doors with my dad, go to Grecian Bay beach with some of the other locals and dive into the sea, looking for octopus and bashing them on to the rocks until the ink would come out and later on that day we would all have a BBQ, which had such a great community feeling to it, and I also used to get up early during the week to go to school, open our fridge to get my pack lunch to find crabs and other shellfish my dad had just capture that early morning. Life was so good back then in this village. Oh how things have changed!

My dad would work so many hours to make ends meet, that I wanted to help him as much as I could at the bar, things like getting up early on Saturday and Sunday mornings before he would, and cleaning the whole bar from top to bottom whilst listening to British Forces Radio, which played chart music, it was the only station then until Napa radio came along and when it did, I am 100% sure that Sean Connery gave an interview whilst on holiday there! Ayia Napa was soon becoming the place to be! I used to love seeing my father's face, when he realised I cleaned the bar immaculately! He used to give me 50 cents as a reward so I could play 5 games of Space Invaders which was a game machine in our bar - although what he did not know or maybe he did, I used to nick another 50 cent from the tip jar so I could play more games lol (he knew, but he let me get away with it, after all I was only 10 at the time lol)

The weekends were great in Cyprus as a teenager and the stories I could tell, so many would shock anyone, but they were funny mostly, for example I once got smacked in the face by a flying owl. I was on my motorbike going home late at night, and suddenly I saw something in the sky coming towards me, and I could not make out what it was until it was that close I could see its eyes, it was an owl. It went straight for my forehead and knocked me off my bike! I could not believe I got smacked in the head by an owl and yet, when I tell this story no one quite believes me lol it is true!

My dad was quite strict, and would not let me speak to boys or go out with my friends to the main Napa square and rightly so, the going ons there were not for the eyes of a 16 year old but I was unfortunately sneaky, I used to sneak out whilst my dad was working at the bar, and when he came home he thought I was asleep as I use to use long pillows to put under my duvet to make out it was a body...and one night I went to Joys disco which no longer exists but what a disco it was! Me and my friends danced all night long having so much fun, we really thought we were awesome dancers, and well I was not at all! I once left the disco, and was wondering why the road was getting closer and closer until I realised it was my face hitting the road as I had too many tequila slammers, and I had school the next day! It is safe to say I have never drunk tequila since then nor did I go out like that again either, I certainly learnt my lesson!

Back then, Ayia Napa was safe, clean and a great family holiday destination, with many famous beaches such as the Dome, Nissi, Macronissos, Grecian Bay, Grecian Sands, Sandy Bay and the harbour was untouched, all were magical. The Ayia Napa monastery was built in the 16th century and is beautiful with a few myths involved, such as the big monster chasing the locals, and leaving its giant footprints on the massive rocks by the monastery, or the story of the monastery itself, a man was chasing his prey, and came upon an icon of the Virgin Mary in a cave, which is now the actual old Monastery, and because of this, it was called Ayia Napa because if you read it backwards (SYLLABUS WISE) in Greek in means 'Panayia' the Virgin Mary. The was a service every Sunday that me and my dad use to go to and monks lived there too, although I am sure I also saw nuns. There is also a water christening fountain where many parents using it to christen their children, as it symboled good luck...And, the monastery was called back then 'Forest lady' because in the 16th century Ayia Napa was all forest. At the back of the Monastery is the famous tree, over a 600 year old, think it is a Sycamore Tree, and is now protected as many tourist come to visit this unique tree.

One of my favourite places to eat was a van called Mr Jacket potato man, because if you have ever visited Cyprus, you will know just how amazing and tasty the potatoes are, I would say they are the best in the world! I used to come out of Babylons disco (when I was old enough and not sneaking out) and we all used to go to Mr Jacket potato man for a large jacket potato with cheese and bolognese or beans and bolognese! It was the best! Ah what I would give to have one of those again! There is a town in Cyprus called Xylofagou, which is one of the 'red soil' villages, where Cyprus's famous potatoes grow, thus there is a giant potato statue in the city centre, it has become something of a 'must see' attraction....

There is a place called the loopy leap, it is just before Cape Greco on the eastern side of the island, about 20 minutes drive from Ayia Napa and is roughly 12 meters high and is safe to jump from, the caves are stunning and the sea colour is crystal clear. Many go there to do the jump and it is a buzz 100% as I well know, and loved it but I was young and carefree, now I certainly do not recommend anyone jumping from here, but many still do.

There is also Konos Bay, which is straight after Cape Greco, you have to park your car up and walk the stairs down to this magical enclosed beach with various caves, it feels like you are in an episode of the Pirates of the Caribbean, it is magical! Just note there are a lot of steps to go down this beach so take your time but once there you will know what I mean. There is a restaurant there and plenty of water sports to be had.

Ayia Napa has plenty of restaurants for every cuisine you can think of but I loved a local kebab shop near a bar called Kahluas which is in the heart of Ayia Napa, I forgot the name of it - it did not have an official name, it was the name of the owner. The kebabs were to die for and not the kebabs you would get back home or in Greece, which is often a error made by many thinking that Greek or Turkish kebabs are the same - they are not. Cypriot kebabs are pork skewed and chargrilled, in fresh salad, with a lemon and inside a warm pitta bread, some people like to add tzatziki(greek yoghurt, mint and cucumber) and we tend to wash it all down with a fabulous ice cold beer called KEO or Mythos, both are lush! Talking about food, I love Cypriot food, there are so many dishes, for example the Moussaka famously mentioned in the film 'My big fat Greek wedding' , stifado wow what a lush dish that is, beef or pork chunks soaked in red wine, onions and various herbs and soft potatoes, and 'Koupepia'' otherwise known as 'Dolmades' which is mince meat, onions, lemon, herbs wrapped in vine leaves and left to boil in water - my dad use to add a lot of lemon juice as EVERYTHING tastes better with lemon on it in Cyprus lol. And finally 'Kleftiko' which means 'stolen' because during the Independence War with the British, the Cypriot soldiers would steal the lambs/goats from the fields, and cook the meat under the ground so the enemy forces would not be able to smell the food, so the Cypriot soldiers could eat in peace. And to this day, some still cook this dish made of potatoes, onions, tomatoes, lamb and herbs under the ground. It is delicious!

Talking of Cypriot food, one has to mention Cypriot drinks and one well known drink is the Brandy Sour made from KEO Brandy, Angostura bitter, lemon squash and soda. It is amazing and lots of my friends always ask me to bring them back Brandy Sours. We also have Commandaria, which is similar to Port or Sherry, it smells devine and I am sure they use it as part of the holy communion in Greek Orthodox Churches. It tastes so sweet and amazing but on the downside, it can also put you to sleep! You already know about the beers, KEO and MYTHOS, which are both sweet tasting and marvelous with food.

Growing up in Cyprus, I use to see the similarities between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot traditions in terms of food, and certain words such as 'Kojagari' which means 'old lady' in both languages or the similarities in food like 'loukoumades' in Greek and 'Loukma' in Turkish, (Our version of doughnuts balls dipped in syrup) and the Greek ' Keftedes' and 'Kofte; in Turkish (meatballs) honestly there are so many similarities it is a shame that there still is no peace between these two nationalities - here's hoping.

Anyway, so many other stories to tell, but I wanted to write these short childhood memories, to let people know how Ayia Napa was in the 80s and early 90s, it was so different to what it is today, and I am not keen on seeing it again now to be honest, I am much more of a Larnaca city girl - call it old age perhaps. There was a few times, where tourists would accidently climb over our garden fence naked and my dad use to go mad at them and kick them out as I was in hysterics seeing naked men being chased out of our garden! There was also a bar called 'Bambos Magic' otherwise known as the River Reggae bar at that time, it was an after club where everyone went to drink some more and walk the plank - this slimy plank above a pool where many had either fallen in drunk or had vomited in it! It was a sight, and I only went a few times and

It has closed down now.

My favourite restaurant at the time was Tonys taverna, I used to work for him during the summer for pocket money and I was good friends with his daughters, we use to have so much fun, and they cooked amazing traditional dishes and it is so great to see the restaurant is still there doing well, Tonys taverna is on Nissi Avenue and is a must visit! He is the go to for Cypriot traditional food!

These are just stories of mine, but I will always highly recommend Cyprus to anyone, albeit I would always mention go to Larnaca or other areas other than Ayia Napa. Prices vary and accomodation is plentiful. Best time to go is either May or September as it is a good temperature as the heat in Cyprus can be relentless and uncomfortable. I for one cannot wait to go home again soon! And Cyprus is Greek is KIPROS. Limassol is another city, but it is known as little Russia for obvious reasons. Nicosia is also lovely but it is enclosed with no beaches so can be quite hot in the summer. Troodos mountains are a must, especially to see Kykkos Monastery, when you go inside appropriately dressed, you will be blown away by the amazing gold icons and the smells. It was once burned down completely but the only thing that survived was the Virgin Mary Icon which is now enclosed in gold and behind glass screen to preserve. I would 100% recommend Troops mountains, go to the top where you can see the amazing views and eat 'SOUVLA' all day, this is traditional Cypriot BBQ, very large chunks of a variety of meat on skewers and chargrilled. There is one hotel on the top should you want to stay but I always say go to Platres, a famous town full of artists - local and international artists live there. One thing you should be aware id s the horrendous driving in Cyprus, please drive slowly and keep your eyes open at all times! I am not joking, the driving in Cyprus is pretty dangerous. And finally Paphos, is a gorgeous city, amazing marina and castle to visit and plenty of things to see like the Tombs of Kings and the mosaics museums. Lots and lots to see and experience in Cyprus!

Hope you enjoyed my blog of some of my life in Cyprus, and as always thanks for reading.

Toni xxx

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