I spent most of my week in Cyprus beside, and occasionally in, the sea. None of these trips really merits a post of its own but I thought some of the pictures could go together nicely in my monthly photoset.
Picture the scene: the sky is blue and the Mediterranean is blue and clear and perfect.
Day one, we walked down the road to the sea, scrambled down the side of the cliff and to this small but lovely bit of beach with sea caves. I especially liked the way the rocks looked like they’d been formed on a giant potter’s wheel.
In the afternoon, we went to Coral Bay. We weren’t really dressed for swimming but we paddled as far as we could.
Next we went down to Pafos and had a look at the harbour and the castle. Here’s a little lady overlooking a small bay right behind the harbour.
What with the tombs and the heat and the big blue sea, my mind keeps telling me this was all in Egypt.
From the balcony of the villa, I could watch the sun set over the Mediterranean every night.
Ten minutes walk north of the villa we came across this quiet bit of beach, mostly visited by people from the private club just out of sight. But it’s not their private beach!
We were highly recommended the fish restaurant at Agios Georgios. We didn’t eat there. I highly recommend the views, the church and the ancient chapel though.
These are the real sea caves of Coral Bay, much less accessible than the ones we found down on the little beach a few days ago.
We did not pick a good day to visit Latsi, although both the proximity and signage make me think this is less a town in its own right and more the beach part of Polis.
As we drove back, the waves were fairly ferocious between Pafos and Coral Bay. Good surfing conditions, we thought, although not one of us has ever been on a surfboard.
It took four or five days to accidentally stumble upon the wreck of Edro III, a Sierra Leone-flagged cargo ship that ran aground in bad weather in December 2011 while carrying plasterboard from Limassol to Rhodes.
It rained at Ancient Kourion. We sheltered and enjoyed the view along the coast, while thinking how much more spectacular it must be in the sun.
This is Petra tou Romiou, the birthplace of Aphrodite, although for some reason the rock takes its name from another legend altogether. It’s a good-looking rock.
It’s even better from a distance, ie the lay-by at the top of the cliff road. I still think these colours look photoshopped even though I took the photo and I know they’re not – and I also know they were even more spectacular in real life.
I paddled in Limassol. I got my shorts wet by going out too far.
And finally, back to Pafos, where we discovered something that looks a bit like a swimming pool built into the side of the harbour.