General Information

About Cyprus

Nestled into the eastern Mediterranean sea lies the beautiful island of Cyprus. An island of contrasts. A place of peace. A country of variety. Surrounded by a magnificent lacework of coastline and occupied by scenic forested mountains in its interior.

Cyprus offers travellers much more with its enviable mild climate, superb gastronomic pleasures and specialised activities. It offers a multi-dimensional holiday experience because visitors will come across a unique blend of overwhelming history and culture in magnificent settings amongst a genuinely hospitable people. Most importantly, at a time when holidays are 'overcasted' by safety precautions, the warm feeling of security prevails all over Cyprus.

Cyprus has a long history of pre-historic development, followed by successive periods of Classical and Hellenistic Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Frankish, Turkish and British occupation and now independence. This history of changing civilizations has left a rich heritage of archaelolgical and historic sites and a local architectural style which can be found in its many tranquil monasteries and picturesque villages.

Cyprus excels in offering ravishing high standard hotels and resorts. Apart from a rich choice of leisure facilities, most hotels cater for the business traveler, offering sophisticated and professional conference facilities.

Location

Cyprus is situated in the north-eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the third largest Mediterranean island and has an area of 9,251 square kilometres, of which 1,733 are forested.

Natural Vegetation

Not withstanding its small size, Cyprus has a variety of natural vegetation. This includes forests of hardwood, evergreen and broadleaved trees such as pinus latepensis, cedar, cypressus and oak. About 17% of the whole island is being classified as woodland. Where the forest has been destroyed, tall shrub communities of arbutus and rachne, pistacia terebinthus, olea europea, quercus coccifera and styrax officinalis may survive, but such maquis is uncommon. Over most of the island untilled ground bears a grazed covering of garigue, largely composed of low bushes of cistus, genista sphacelata calycotoime villosa, lithospermum hispidulum, phaganalon rupestre and, locally, pistacia lentiscus. Where grazing is excessive this covering is soon reduced, and an impoverished batha remains, consisting principally of thymus capitatus, sarcopoterium spinosum, and a few stunted herbs.

Birds & Animals

Cyprus has been endowed with a rich fauna including a large number of endemic birds, reptiles and animals. Because of its position, Cyprus is also a vital stop-over for thousands of migratory birds which find the island an ideal place for both feeding and refuge. Among the animals the moufflon occupies an outstanding position and is considered as one of the natural treasures of the island. The moufflon belongs to the sheep family but this species is unique in the world. This animal, which is the symbol of the Cyprus Republic and is used on its coins, has long been in danger of extinction, but today is a fully protected species.

Climate

Cyprus has an intense Mediterranean climate with the typical seasonal rhythms strongly marked in respect of temperature, rainfall and weather generally. Hot, dry summers from mid-May to mid-September and rainy, rather changeable winters from mid-November to mid-March are separated by short autumn and spring seasons of rapid change in weather conditions.

The predominantly clear skies and extensive sunshine give large seasonal and daily differences between temperatures of the sea and the interior of the island which also cause considerable local effects especially near the coast.

In summer the island is mainly under the influence of a shallow trough of low pressure extending from the great continental depression centred over southwest Asia. It is a season of high temperatures with almost cloudless skies. Rainfall is negligible but isolated thunderstorms sometimes occur giving rainfall amounting to less than 5% of the total in the average year.

In winter, Cyprus is near the track of fairly frequent small depressions which give periods of disturbed weather usually lasting for a day or so and produce most of the annual precipitation, the average amount from December to February being nearly two thirds of the year's total.

Sunshine
All parts of Cyprus enjoy a very sunny climate. In the central plain and eastern lowlands the average number of hours of bright sunshine for the whole year is 75% of the time that the sun is above the horizon. Over the whole six summer months there is an average of 11.5 hours of bright sunshine per day whilst in winter this is reduced only to 5.5 hours in the cloudiest months, December and January.

Even on the high mountains the cloudiest winter months have an average of nearly 4 hours of bright sunshine per day and in June and July the figure reaches 11 hours.

For current weather information please click here.

Population

The population of Cyprus is 793.100 of whom 80,7% are Greek Cypriots (including around 9.000 Armenians, Maronites and Latins), 87,600 (11,0%) are Turkish Cypriots and 66,000 (8,3%) foreigners residing in Cyprus.

The population does not include over 115.000 Turkish settlers illegally residing in the Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus.

Language

The language of the Greek Cypriot community is Greek and the community adheres to the Autocephalous Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus. However, English is widely spoken.

Ports of Entry

Travellers may enter the Republic of Cyprus only through the legal ports of entry - Larnaka and Pafos International Airports and the ports of Larnaka, Limassol and Pafos. The ports of Famagusta, Keryneia and Karavostasi, as well as the airports in the part of the island illegally occupied by the Turkish invasion forces have been declared by the Cyprus government as prohibited ports of entry and exit.

Brief History

Cyprus' civilisation according to archaeological evidence goes back 11.000 years to the 9th millennium BC (Early Neolithic period or Stone Age). The island acquired its Greek character after it was colonised by the Mycenaean Achaean Greeks between the 13th century and 11th century BC. In the mid-9th century BC Phoenician settlers began to arrive, concentrating mainly in the coastal city of Kition. Subsequently Cyprus came, in turn, under Assyrian, Egyptian and Persian domination (8th - 4th century BC). It became part of the Roman Empire between 30 BC and 330 AD.

However, it retained its Greek identity and, as part of the Hellenistic state of the Ptolemies (310-30 BC) and of the Greek-speaking world of Byzantium (330 AD-1191), its ethnic heritage was kept alive.

The Greek language and culture also prevailed throughout the centuries that followed even though Cyprus came under the rule of successive foreign powers - King Richard I (the Lionheart) of England and the Knights Templar (1191-1192), the Franks (Lusignans) (1192-1489), Venetians (1489-1571), Ottoman Turks (1571-1878) and British (1878-1960).

The Greek Cypriots mounted a liberation struggle against British rule from 1955 to 1959 and in 1960 Cyprus gained its independence. Greece, Turkey and Britain were to stand as guarantors of the country?s independence under the Zurich-London agreements and Britain would have two sovereign base areas.

Power would be shared between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots on a 7:3 ratio. This gave the 18% Turkish Cypriot minority - the descendants of the Ottoman Turks who occupied the island from 1571 to 1878 - 30% representation in the Government and all state institutions. In addition it was granted veto rights.

Relations between the two communities had for centuries been peaceful and amicable. But a conflict of aims after independence with the Greek Cypriot side determined to preserve the unity of the state and the Turkish Cypriot leadership, at the strong urging of Turkey, seeking partition - led to brief intercommunal clashes in 1963, 1964 and 1967 and the withdrawal in December 1963 of the Turkish Cypriots from the administration and legislature. On 15 July 1974 the ruling military junta of Greece staged a coup to overthrow the democratically elected Government of Cyprus. On 20 July Turkey, in violation of international codes of conduct established under treaties to which it is a signatory, invaded Cyprus, purportedly to restore constitutional order. Instead it seized almost 36% of the territory of Cyprus in the north - an act universally condemned as a gross infringement of international law and the UN Charter.

Traditional Cypriot Cuisine

Starters/Soups

Elies tsakistes - cracked green olives with coriander seeds, lemon and crushed garlic
Feta - salty white cheese usually crumbled on village salads
Halloumi - firm goats or ewes milk cheese, often served grilled
Hiromeri - marinated, smoked and pressed ham
Houmous - dip from soaked, crushed chick peas
Karaoli yahni - snails in tomato sauce
Kapari - pickled caper
Lountza - smoked and marinated loin of pork
Tahini - sesame seed paste, served as a dip
Taramosalata - dip made from smoked cods roe
Tzantziki/talattouri - yogurt, cucumber and mint dip
Horiatiki salata - village salad of white cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers, capers, olives, onion, feta and fresh coriander
Avgolemono soup - egg and lemon soup
Trahanas - soup from cracked wheat and yogurt

Main Dishes

Meat

Afefia - pork cooked in red wine and crushed coriander seeds
Keftedes - meat balls
Kleftiko ofto - lamb or goat wrapped in foil with herbs and baked in a sealed oven
Kolokotes - pastries stuffed with red pumpkin, raisins and pourgouri
Koupepia or dolmades - stuffed vine leaves
Loukanika - Cyprus sausages
Moussakas - a pie made from layers of minced beef, spices and vegetables with a cheese topping
Resi - wheat and lamb pilaf, served at weddings
Sheftalia - minced pork and herb rissole
Souvla - large chunks of lamb cooked on a spit
Souvlakia - kebabs
Stifado - rich beef and onion stew
Yemista - baked stuffed vegetables with rice and minced beef

Fish

Fangri - sea bream
Kalamari - squid
Marida - whitebait
Octapodi krasato - octapus in red wine

Vegetarian Dishes

Fasolia - haricot beans cooked in a casserole
Pourgouri pilafi - pilaf of cracked wheat
Ravioli - pastry stuffed with halloumi and mint

Sweets

Bourekia - small puff pastries with meat, cheese or cream cheese filling
Daktyla - almond finger pastries elioti - olive bread
Loukoumades - doughnuts in syrup

Currency

The currency of Cyprus is the Euro as from 1/1/2008.

Online Currency Converter: http://www.xe.com/ucc/