Day 18 and 19: From Israel to the incredible island of Cyprus

Place: Tasmaria hotel 20:50, lobby, couch near the pool

We were picked up at 4am from the Abraham hostel in Jerusalem by our taxi and off we went to Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv. About a 40 min drive. Seemed like it was the 60 year old taxi driver’s first time to the air port as he looked lost when he got there. After some wrong turns and back tracking we eventually got to departures.

A smooth transition through the check-in area (other than the questioning as to where we have been, have we got family in Israel and did we learn Hebrew!? – next stop premier lounge for breakfast and mmmmmm good coffee. We relaxed for an hour and a half in style and watched the planes land and take off – not envious of the businessmen flying to their respective meetings. Life is beautiful!

We anticipated what lay ahead of us in Cyprus and spoke of what we are looking forward to most – food came up quite a lot!

Our boarding call was announced and it was time to make our way to the chilled island of Cyprus. During the trip we read the on-flight magazine which recommended we hire a car as the island is so small, it doesn’t really make a difference where you make your base - you can cover the island easily from wherever in a days trip. So we did – we hired a ford fusion automatic. I wasn’t sure which side of the road they drove on and prayed during the rental transaction that they wouldn’t ask me for an international drivers licence. The automatic was handy as well if it was a left hand drive so that I wouldn’t have to change gears with my right hand. Luckily all went smoothly, we were given a car and we realized when we got there that it was a right hand drive. We looked at the roads nearby to make sure the cars drove on the left hand side.

With bags packed into our little jolmobile we took off towards Larnaka city. BUT, we couldn’t get out of the parking lot. We eventually had to go down a one way to get to a boom gate so that we could get onto the highway. It was then that we realized that the Cypriots do things differently.

We arrived in the city of Larnaka and got lost about 6 times and eventually after asking a couple of Cypriots we managed to find the place. The Easy Hotel – a nice, clean and safe room for 24 euros per room per night. The shower was useless and had no water pressure but it was for 24 euros a night and we were only staying for one. 

Tea and coffee for R45 - hectic. But we are now in the euro zone

The jolmobile!

We went for supper to a restaurant that was owned by the Cypriot who gave us the right directions. A very nice guy named Tasos – he was chucked out of Famagusta by the Turks when they invaded Cyprus in 1974. We ordered Kleftiko, which is a roasted lamb cooked in a clay oven wrapped in tinfoil – the meat literally falls off the bone. But he didn’t give us very much meat and he gave us too many potatoes as if to make up for the lack of what we actually ordered. Quite a rip off. 95 rand for the dish. As a good host he came and joined us after our meal and ordered Cyprus coffee and tea for us which ended up being on the house. The Cyprus coffee made me laugh as it is exactly the same as Turkish coffee and originated in Turkey – but as the Cypriots will never admit that, they call it Cyprus coffee.

We were the only customers in his restaurant – maybe he should drop his prices. 

Not much meat for R95!?

Back to the Easy Hotel for a good dos.

Friday morning came and we had a slow start to the day. We packed up and drove down to Mackenzy beach for breakfast. Peanut butter rolls and fruit. After breakfast we strolled to the travelers center to get maps of Cyprus – so cool. They have all the maps for each area of Cyprus and all this for free. We walked away with 6 maps and a smile.

We got onto the B6 which is a main road which runs along the coast and ends in Pafos – a small coastal town just over 100kms away. The B6 meanders through small towns and climbs up to the hills just after Lemessos – a big tourist city which we planned on staying in for 1 night, but laughed off the idea when we saw it. It was just full of big hotels and shops and tourist stuff. We both decided to gap it and head for Pafos where we would look for accommodation.

We stopped in the hills after Lemessos and found a small pathway through the bush and to the edge of a cliff. We pulled out all our chow and had lunch, with the most incredible view of the Mediterranean. After soaking up as much of the view as we could, we moseyed on to Pafos. 

Shortly after lunch we stopped at Aphrodite's birthplace. A picturesque beach with some interesting rocks and lots of tourists.

Sadly our meander down the coast ended as we entered Pafos. We did exactly what we usually do when we get to a small town – get lost. After asking a Russian and a Zimbabwean Cypriot, we stumbled upon Tasmaria Hotel and apartments. This rung a bell as we had booked accom from Saturday at some hotel beginning with a ‘T”. But as it was Friday, we needed an extra night.

After speaking to the manager, he confirmed that this was the right hotel and he had room for us for the night. A great relief! Much to our amazement, we had hit the jackpot once again. R300 for the night in the most amazing place, with a kitchen so that we can cook and keep food in the fridge. A massive saving!

We were so keen to full up the fridge with fresh fruit and veg!

We had a chilled evening and looked forward to exploring Pafos the next day and meeting up with Johan(one of my old bosses from JHB days) and his wife Maro.