An Idyllic Harbour Nestled Below Five Finger Mountain (Kyrenia)

Member Name: Praskipark

Product:	Kyrenia
Date:	05/02/09 (246 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great place to chill out, soak up the sun and see some historical sights

Disadvantages: None I can think of

Having visited southern Cyprus many times and covered the area from top to bottom I was lucky enough to be invited to northern Cyprus last year. A very dear friend of mine who had lived in Portugal at the same time as me bought a house there. As soon as the invitation came by e-mail, I spent two seconds thinking about it and within 30 minutes I had scoured the net and booked a flight to Ercan airport. I remember being very excited and jumping up and down and sitting on my packed rucksack thinking of all the culinary delicacies Iwould sample and glasses of ice cold, amber beer, I would savour whilst sitting under the shade in some taverna listening to old men play dominoes, just passing the day away. I was so happy that day and ecstatic when I saw the town where she lived.

Here is my review of Kyrenia/Girne.........

The idyllic harbour set against the steeply rising Besparmak (Five Finger) mountain range makes Girne, called Kyrenia by the Greeks, into one of the most attractive resorts on the islands. In the bay, shaped like a horseshoe and dominated on the eastern side by a fine, sturdy castle, fishing boats rock gently alongside fashionable yachts whose owners, at least during the summer season, probably prefer this sleepy but attractive little town to the busy marinas of the Aegean. In days gone by, the warehouses around the harbour were used to store locally-produced carob and olive oil. Only a few have been converted into hotels and holiday apartments, while behind lie the ordinary homes of the local people. The promenade belongs to pedestrians - no cars disturb the peaceful atmosphere of souvenir shops, cafe terraces and tavernas.

History
~~~~~

My friend is a cockney now living on the south coast of England but he has a long relationship with this part of Cyprus. His sister married a Cypriot from Kyrenia who set up a car business in London and after making his fortune returned to his hometown where he lives now with the rest of his huge Cypriot family. During my vacation I met all members of his jovial family and picked up quite a few snippets of history which I recorded in my dilapidated travel book from which I will now relate to you.

It is thought that Kyrenia was first settled in the 10th century BC by Greek Achaeans, but little is known about the town until it came under the control of King Nikokreon of Salamis (312BC). Although a castle and walls were built in the 8th or 9th century, the town was attacked and plundered by Arabs and pirates on a number of occasions. In 1192 the town and the family of the last Byzantine ruler fell into the hands of the Crusaders. Four centuries later, in 1570, the town and castle were captured by the Ottomans without a struggle. At the beginning of this century many British officers, enticed by the mild climate, came to Kyrenia either as tourists or to retire. To give you an idea of the atmosphere in northern Cyprus during the unsettled 1950's I suggest you read Lawrence Durrell's Bitter Lemons. The English writer lived for several years in Bellapais which I will mention later in the review.

I will now tell you about some of the sights in Kyrenia although I found the harbour area so beautifiul I could have spent the whole holiday just sat watching the world go by. This sun baked town really is lazy and sleepy and you will struggle to tear yourself away from the tavernas and cafes but if you do find the energy to move out of the shade then here are a few suggested sights that are worth a peek.

The Castle
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If you go in the winter months then the castle is only open in the week. It was bult in the 8th century by the Byzantines and in my opinion, is the best preserved harbour fortress on the whole of the island. The base of the round tower has survived from the earliest days and marks the northwest corner of the complex. At that time the Byzantine St George's chapel was located outside the castle. The Lusignans renovated the north and east and built the horse shoe shaped Northeast tower and also the living quarters in the inner courtyrard. Although you can see the military functionalism there is still a touch of courtly elegance to admire.

In the 16th century the Venetians modified the castle still further and they are responsible for the finished design. In 1374 Genoese siege engines inflicted considerable damage to the walls and after the development of siege cannons, the fortress with its high, but rather weak walls, was too vulnerable to defend. Apart from the new Northwest Tower, there was no space for further reinforcement on the seaward side. But as a maritime power with galleys controlling the seas, the Venetian strategists mostly feared attacks from the land, so a new wall was constructed and the intervening land filled with earth and stones, thus creating a rampart 38 metres thick. An impression of the strength of these fortifications can be gained from the long, slippery passageway which leads through them down into the casements of the Southwest bastion. The strengthened fort was never put to the test, though. In 1570 and without a shot being fired, the Venetian troops - demoralised by the fall of Nicosia - surrendered to the Ottoman admiral Sadik Pasa, who still guards over the entrance from his sarcophagus in the gatehouse.

(Open Daily - 8am -1pm and 2,30 - 5pm)

The Shipwreck Museum
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Once you are in the castle courtyard if you wander over to the east side you will come across a hull of a sailing ship that sank or was scuppered by pirates sometime long ago - between 288 and 262 BC. The story says that at least four sailors went down with their ship and cargo. Their finds include the mariner's cutlery, amphoras filled with almonds and 26 millstones which I think were probably used for ballast.

One of my favourite sights and one I have a lot of photos of is the minaret of Cafer Pasa Mosque. The minaret and two date palms tower above the rusty, terracotta rooftops, making a picturesque sight when framed against the mountain backdrop.

After the harbour and castle stands the dazzling white Church of the Archangel Michael. The exterior of the church is very pretty indeed but the collection of icons inside are a little dull. The interior of the church is very plain also. The exhibits have been collected from churches in the surrounding area and have been very poorly labelled.

There are no beaches in Kyenia so if you wish to visit the coast then you have to follow the coastal road to the east.

There are two places I recommend all visitors to Kyrenia should visit. The first one is St Hilarion.

In my view St Hilarion, for its position alone must rank as one of the finest sights in northern Cyprus. This marvellous castle of battlements and towers seems to grow naturally out of the steep limestone rocks of the Besparmark mountains.

Its name probably originates from a Palestinian monk who spent his twilight years in Cyprus (c.370), but the annals of sainthood contain 15 other pious men bearing the same name. A monastery emerged from the original settlement and then the Byzantines extended it into a castle in the 10th century. From 1228-32 Hilarion played a key role in Emperor Friedrich 11's attempt to seize Cyprus, almosty in passing, while on his way to the Holy Land during the 6th Crusade. Those loyal to the emperor and the supporters of the Lusignans exchanged the roles of beseiger and beseiged several times, until the emperor's army was eventually annihilated on the pass below the castle.

Hilarion consists of three clearly defined wards one above the other on the side of the hill. The stables and the soldiers' quarters are at the lowest level; above them are the old monastery and refectory in which the Lusignans held their banquets. You can climb to the upper ward of he castle but it is badly decaying and hard work but, once there, the view over the coastal plain and out to sea will repay the effort. I found the best time to view the whole complex was early in the morning when the sun is in the right position for photography.

The Gothic Bellapais Abbey (Abbey of Peace) stands in the heart of a sleepy village of the same name. Alongside the abbey stands the 'Tree of Idleness', made famous by Lawrence Durrell in his book Bitter Lemons. It is indeed a good place to sit and rest. Augustinian monks founded a monastery here in 1205. The abbey's pointed arches and ribbed vaulting in northern French Gothic style ought to have looked out of place in this Levantine landscape but, surprisingly, it seems to blend in well with the olive groves, cypresses and date palms. The Lusignan coat-of-arms above the entrance to the dining hall serves as a reminder of Bellapais's royal benefators: when Jerusalem fell, the Augustinians were expelled from the Holy Land and Hugo 1 donated extensive estates to the order. By the time the Ottomans arrived Bellapais was both structurally and morally disintegrating. A Venetian inspector who visited the site in the mid fifteenth century complained that the monks were not reading Mass, devoting themelves instead to their concubines and their children.

The Abbey cloisters are still, in my view, an exquisite sight especially in the early evening as the sun sets. The stonework changes to a rich honey color and the verdant conical shaped cypress trees gently sway in the evening breeze while the rich azul bed of sky, high above, looms over the tranquil abbey. A perfect picture at the end of a day.

My friend is very fortunate to have a house in such a beautiful part of Cyprus, She doesn't stay there all the time but at least a few months of the
year including April which is when I will be boarding that plane to Ercan airport once again.

Summary: A perfect place to live and visit on holiday