kyrenia

Brace yourself for an epic photo dump.  No really...it's going to be epic.

Would you believe me if I told you that Kyrenia, the place where are these photos were taken, is just barely a half hour from where we are in Nicosia?  I forget it all the time.  Mainly because it's part of Turkish Cyprus and can be a bit of an ordeal to visit.  But this weekend, Mr. F and I ran as fast as we could before anyone realized they hadn't scheduled us for something and bonded with our Turkish neighbors.

The Kyrenia mountain range is so vastly different from the Troodos.  The latter cover the better portion of the southern Cyprus.  The Kyrenias are the the width of one mountain.  That's it.  On one side of them is Nicosia, on the other, the sea.  Just right there!  Being able to see both mountain ranges inland, it's hard to believe that just beyond the ridge lies the Mediterranean.

We went under the ruse of Christmas present shopping but were easily deterred by Kyrenia Castle, which has been guarding the harbor for nearly a thousand years.  The wind nearly beat us off the roof but it was worth the views.  Facing south, the majestic mountains stood stalwart.  Northward, the Mediterranean was churning more ferociously than I have yet to see it.  Waves crashed over the seawall while the early winter sun tried to break its way through rain clouds.

As if finding the sea so close to our home weren't surprising enough, we found remnants of Richard the Lionheart, the former conqueror of Kyrenia Castle, lurking around the grounds.  (I told you the photo dump was going to be epic!)  

We scarcely have time for things like this anymore and I'm so glad we were able to runaway and get to know this island a little bit better.  And really?  Just have a day.  One day.  Off.  Free to galavant   Saunter.  Lounge.  Wander.  So good...