What took me eight hours by bike in two days going to Paphos, took me two hours to get back to Larnaca on a bus straight outta the 80’s. But nothing to write home about.
While I was riding I saw a few road signs that made me think of different meanings different people put in the same words: exodus – what we consider as a migration of biblical proportions, for the Greeks is just an exit from a building or a highway.
Although I wanted to see as much as I could while in Cyprus, I haven’t met Aphrodite, the native of the island, because I skipped her sanctuary on the way to Paphos due to the heat and resulting apathy, although I passed by the beach where she was born. Nor did I met Adonis, for the same reason.
But I met numerous Russians, particularly in Limassol. In 1949, the US Secretary of Defense James Forrestal said “The Russians are coming! The Russians are coming! They’re right around!” and then he jumped out the window. The Russians are here indeed, and they intend to stay. And Cypriots love it.
Today in numbers:
11 km – distance covered, to get from the bus station to the place I’m staying
32 m – riding time
3 – portions of souvlaki I ate in the last 24 hours, due to its affordability and popularity