Although dubbed the ‘island of love’ for being the home of the mythical goddess,Aphrodite,
Cyprus has had an extraordinarily turbulent history.It’s believed that her earliest peoples settled 9,000 years ago, quickly followed by the Phoenicians, Persians and Egyptians, all of whom recognised the island’s vital strategic position between East and West In 588 BC,Cyprus was annexed to Rome, opening the door to Christianity. However, by the time of the fourth century AD, the island was in the gripof the Eastern Byzantine Empire. Remnants of the Byzantine era are still evident today, most notably in the name ‘Five Finger Mountains’. Legend has it that a Byzantine hero leapt onto Cyprus from Turkey, leaving his fingerprints as the jagged mountainscapes. After Richard the Lionheart conquered Cyprus in 1191, the French and Venetians ruled until 1571, when the Ottomans took over. They governed the island until ceding it to Britain in 1925. In 1960, the UN declared her independent and in 1983, she was divided in two with the proclamation of the Turkish Republic of North C yprus. Culturally, the Turkish Cypriot way of life is rooted in family and hospitality. Guests are greeted into homes with sweets and Turkish coffee - a ritual reflected in the warm welcome proffered at hotels and restaurants. Turkish customs dominate elsewhere,too.Locals puff on water pipes and play ‘tavli’ - backgammon- in village coffee houses, while local events are celebrated with Anatolian-style folk dances, usually accompanied by ‘fasil’, traditional Turkish lute or fiddle music.

Finally, wherever you go here, you’ll see ‘nazar boncugu’ or evil eye beads. These blue beads originate from Anatolia and are believed to ward off evil glances. You’ll see them everywhere - decorating cars, hanging over doors and draped inside houses.