Camping Cyprus

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I got back from Egypt on Thursday night around 2:30 am...2.5 hours later than planned...this was really frustrating since I had arranged for an acquaintance..actually a complete stranger I was in touch with over facebook (cyprus network) to pick me up.  I thought for sure he would have given up and gone home..but I come out of the terminal..and there he is!  His name is Stylianos and I was in touch with him weeks before arriving here...He previously studied at the University of Arizona and knew the stress of going to a completely new place..and so was delighted to help me in any way he could....

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On a side note...it made me realize the importance of hospitality and really making people feel comfortable in a new setting...since I've arrived here...I've been around people that have constantly made me feel welcome and never lost to my surroundings...and on top of that..everyone has something special they want to show me..something they feel makes Cyprus an interesting place...and they make an effort to show me!  For example, tonight, Stylianos invited me to go to dinner with his two friends and girlfriend, in his home town of Larnaca, which is a good 45 min away from NIcosia..but he's arranged for his friend to pick me up and we plan on having a nice dinner on the coast followed by coffee in town!  (loving it!)

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Anyway, back to arriving back in Nicosia...I slept at 4 am, and the following morning at 8, my roommate Merry, woke me up and in her Belgian French accent said "c'mon, pack your bag, we're going camping"...I was like WHAT!!..Im so tired from egypt there's no way i can handle camping now..but she insisted..as they had planned to cover a lot of Cyprus over the next three days...and so I obliged....

And Im so happy I did!  We squeezed 6 of us into a 5 person car, along with all of our camping gear...First stop was Aiya Napa, along east coast...We went to Cape Greco which has some nice views of the sea and good cliffs to jump off...By the time we were done with our shenanigans...it was time to set up camp...

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I am a camping rookie..so this turned out to be a huge learning experience.  The tent, fine..not that complicated..fire?  well, that's a bit more difficult but i had some good teachers.  peeing in the dark without a flashlight? Disaster!!!

That night we ended up drinking and eating around the fire, exchanging stories about our home countries and nuances of everyday life...when you're around people from so many different places...conversation never seems to end!

One thing I have noticed tho is everyone's obsession with America and Americans.  True, they hate our leader..but I haven't really noticed anyone judge me by him...they're more concerned with Grey's anatomy, south park, and Friends!  They ask things like..do you really wear those gowns when you graduate? I said yes.  Are there really different groups in school..like nerds, cool crowd, and athletes?  I said yes.  I can often see the influence of American television series on the way people act here..not everyone of course..but for example, there is this one gay guy..and I swear...he thinks he's Jack from will and Grace..I think I remember him even doing the "Just Jack" bit.  It's entertaining, but sometimes weird how much people want to emulate American society...

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Anyway, I slept horribly that night, rocky terrain and really cold, but it was pleasant waking up on the Mediterranean...We spent sometime having breakfast and taking in the scenery, and then packed up and were off to drive up to the northern tip of Cyprus, which required crossing over to the Turkish side.

After a long day of driving, and stops for groceries (everyone wanted something different) we arrived at the Golden Beach.  Sadly it was a long day of driving and the sun was going to set soon..but we were all hell bent on taking a swim...The sea felt so nice.  No seaweed or fish (usual things that deter me from swimming in the ocean)..and we watched the sunset as we cooled off in the water.

This night we actually got to camp out on the beach..so it was much more comfortable.  We set up camp, and I was instructed to dig out a big hole for where the fire would be lit, while others gathered wood, and some put up the tents...division of labor :)  By the time everything was done it was 10pm, and we cooked dinner and sat around the fire place...at midnight it was Lota's(finnish girl) birthday and we sang happy birthday..at that moment we could see a police siren coming toward us...I forgot to mention earlier..but there was a sign that said "No fire on the beach"..woops.  Some of us were freakin out..and some said.."it's the Turkish side, nothing will happen"..turned out the latter was right.  My drunk self decided to start up another round of the Happy Birthday song to pretend we didn't notice the cops..and they came and finished the song with us!!!

They proceded to ask us where we were from, and we all started shouting out our respective countries..."portugal!" "Lithuania!" "Belgium" "Poland"...I sometimes am scared to admit Im American re: the war in Iraq..so i stayed quiet ...haha :) They were actually delighted we were all there enjoying the Turkish side and said to have a good night and walked away...

The next morning...I couldn't keep quiet any longer...and finally worked up the courage to ask.."when you're camping...where do you go number 2?!?"  They all laughed and admitted to be as bloated as I was..so a few of us found our way to the nearest toilet...aah the relief! Sorry if that grossed some of you out..had to share it.

We packed up and headed back down the coast to stop in a town called Famagusta..this was another part of cyprus that was divided by the 1974 Turkish invasion of the island.  But it contains the ruins of Salamis.. where Shakespeare's Othello took place, and also great views of the sea facing Syria.

Anyway, that was the end of the weekend and we made our way back to Nicosia...I couldn't believe how gross I had become over the past two days..without a shower or hairwash..i practically had dreadlocks!!...obviously joking..but I was definitely one with nature!