Agios Lazaros (Church of St. Lazarus) is found in the city of Larnaca (which on the Southeastern coast of Cyprus).  The church is named after Saint Lazarus, the Bishop of Kition (the old name for Larnaca) and lived in the town for 30 years.  You can find his tomb under the sanctuary.  

The  church was originally built in the 9th century while the island was part of the Byzantine Empire. It was restored for the first time in the 17th century (after the original three domes and bell tower were destroyed under Ottoman Empire), then once again in the 1970’s after a fire damaged some of the building.   The diverse history of the building can be seen in the melange of architectural styles used.  Under the three domes covering seemingly every available space on the stone walls inside the church, were painted icons, many of which were ornately framed.

Chrystyna Banks

One of the first things I did was to walk along the beach wading in the Mediterranean while sipping a coffee frappé.  The frappé is an iced drink kind of similar to a Frappuccino-though not quite as thick and much less sweet.  There are non-coffee based frappé, but the coffee based ones either use Nescafé or espresso.  Another type of coffee drink that is ubiquitous here, that I’ve never seen before elsewhere, is the freddo cappuccino.  Which is like an iced cappuccino but with thick cold foamed cream (almost as thick as whipped cream) on top.  The drink can be severed with or entirely without sugar.

It seems as though everywhere you look in Larnaca is a café. I get the impression that if you visited a different café every day in a month, you likely would not visit them all.

One of the coffee shops I visited most often is better known as a bakery, ΖΟΡΜΠΑΣ (“Zorba’s”). It does have a wide range of pastries, some familiar, others not so much but rather good all the same. (Though you could also get sandwiches, gelato, or any number of other goodies.) This was a regular place to get coffee and pastries prior to heading to the dig site, leaving a shift at the museum, or for no reason in particular.

Chrystyna Banks

The beachfront in Larnaca is known as the “Foinikoudes (Palm Tree) Promenade”-which is an apt name, as the street is lined with palm trees.  The promenade has a number of cafe’s and restaurants, many of which seem to use interior decorations to lure in prospective diners.  (This would likely be a necessity as there is a lot of head to head competition, with restaurants and cafes which might sell the same type of cuisine right next door to one another.)  This is effect is most obvious at night, when the restaurants and cafes are brightly lit and an arcade opens which features small scale rides for children along with the games.

Across the street from the promenade is the beach itself, and when I first arrived, there were decorations along the beach for the local festival “κατακλυσμός” (pronounced: kataklysmos, meaning “cataclysm”).  It is the Festival of the Flood, the city’s largest and oldest celebration which celebrates Pentecost. 

Also near the promenade, is the Larnaca Marina which has boats for hire. I however just walked the pier looking at all of the sailboats. 

Chrystyna Banks

The field trip days were almost as exciting as the dig days. There’s just something so fun about being loaded onto a bus and being driven around Europe. Getting to sit back for a while, listen to some music and enjoy the scenery. My favorite field trip was our trip to Nicosia. Upon arrival we attended the Cyprus Museum. Which was full of archeological finds from around the country. It is always a nice treat when you see artifacts on display that are like those you and your colleagues are finding at the dig. Then we were given a few hours to explore the city ourselves. Some of us brought our passports so we could enter the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. You entered just like a normal custom (minus the metal detectors). Everyone on the north side seemed nice and welcoming as they had lots of shops and restaurants for us to spend. I had lunch with two other students before heading back to the bus and home. 

Matthew Winfrey.

On our first official day off myself and five others decided to go and explore the city of Ayia Napa. An area known for its beautiful beaches, caves and coastline. We got there by taking public transportation which was two bus rides each way. I was pleasantly surprised at how affordable/comfortable the bus rides were. While in Aiya Napa we took a hike along the coast. Stopping to take pictures of the clear water and cliff edges. Eventually arriving at a beach that was known for having an abundance of sea glass. We all succeeded in finding some to take. Next, we went to town to meet another student who would join us for the rest of the day trip. We all agreed to have lunch at an Italian restaurant. Though I think we could all agree it was too hot that day for pasta and we all ordered something cold and light. Afterwards we went to the beach before taking the bus back to Larnaca. It was a long and tiring day but worth it. 

Matthew Winfrey.

Getting to yoga or the gym required quite a lot of walking. After a morning of excavating or cleaning pottery I found myself not in the mood to go. I quickly found my alternatives for exercising. Swimming and walking far distances along the water. I figured these were better anyway because I could be outside and enjoy the beauty of larnaca. I went to the mall with a few other students and bought a pair of goggles and a swim cap. After excavating I would often get a fresh juice/smoothie and then go and swim for about an hour. Usually swimming out to the buoy a few times and other just treading water for a while.  I enjoy plane spotting and discovered if I walked far enough along the coast, I would get to the airport which lines the water. Towards the end I could sit on the beach or in the water and airplanes would fly right over your head before landing. Most of the airplanes were smaller narrow body aircraft. But every evening around 7:15pm there would be a widebody Emirates 777 that landed.

To follow up on the question, “what will you miss the most about being in Cyprus?” I will miss the excavation of Vigla. This has been my second field school and easily the most inspiring. Though I should mention both field schools were drastically different. Different in their time, landscape, and methods. The trench leads as well as the professors here were open to the student’s interpretations and ideas about what was going on in each unit. For the most part we could excavate our SU’s in our style. There was also so much opportunity to learn about the various methods. From taking GPS points, reading depths of special finds, performing Munsell tests, and filling in SU forms. After my time here I fill more confident in my archeology skills. 

Matthew Winfrey.

I could not count how many times myself and others were asked, “what has been your favorite part of the trip, or what will you miss the most about being in Cyprus?” As the trip comes to its end, I have realized my favorite part of the trip was the camaraderie/companionship. Usually after being away from home for 2-3 weeks, I tend to get a little homesick. Though this trip has been an exception. This is thanks to the people I shared my time here in Cyprus with. We would often eat breakfast, second breakfast and dinner together. All laughing, sharing and learning more about each other. You could ask favors of others and almost always someone would be willing to help. Whether someone was willing to put their credit card down for dinner, or willing to run back upstairs to grab the Tabasco for dinner. We had a great team this summer in Cyprus. 

Matthew Winfrey.

Today we took a trip to Lefkara, a beautiful small village situated in the hills. This village is known for their production of lace and silver. Walking the old streets of the village brings you up and down steep hills surrounded by shops and old buildings. We got there around 9 am and had the morning to wander. Many of the shops were not open when we first arrived but this gave us an opportunity to look at the old buildings and beautiful foliage that spanned the village. Walking up and down the old cobbled streets we were able to see old abandoned buildings, filled with plants, like a door to another world. The plants even grew over the telephone wires, showing that despite the fact humans live here, it’s still their domain.

As shops began to open, we had the opportunity to explore those as well. We stopped at a pastry shop and tried some delicious tarts with sorbet. The shop owner told us about how both the sorbet and tart were made with fresh lemons by her. She also told us how she has not changed her recipe in a very long time. The tarts were a refreshing start to the morning with a fantastic flaky crust. When we complimented the tarts, she explained to us that they can be a bit dry so that’s why she serves them with the fresh sorbet.

Once we’d had our fill of the tarts, we headed off to continue shopping. We went in many shops boasting handmade silver and lace. There was beautiful jewelry that we were told was made by the shop owners. One was even willing to reshape rings in his shop so they would fit us. The shop owners were full of hospitality and determined to make the sell. One man offered discounts and lemonade he told us was made by his mother. At the last shop we visited, there were two women out front making lace. One woman proudly showed us the rectangle she was working on and told us what she had there had taken three weeks to complete. The other woman told us she was teaching the first and the first woman was quite talented. Inside the shop the man showed us jewelry. He explained how this was an old fashioned village where the men made the jewelry and the women made lace. It was amazing to be able to see the handiwork of the village and get to experience the hospitality and kindness of the people there.

~ Apollo Blue

I’m aware, I am not the first student to write a blog post on this pasta bar over the years, but I can’t overemphasize how wonderful this little restaurant is. Located just down the street from The Blazer, this pasta bar was spoken of highly by returning students. The first time I visited was after a long trip to Ayia Napa and a long hard swim out to the buoy. When I returned I felt like I needed carbs more than anything so I decided it was the best time to give this place a try. When I arrived the restaurant was empty except for the owner and a chef in the back. I was greeted with a smile and offer to pull out the chair of my choice and have the fan pointed right at me. The owner immediately struck up a conversation with me. He recognized that I was from the US and asked if I was part of the group of archaeologists he’d seen and remembered from last year. When I informed him that was the case, his face lit up. He asked me questions about the archaeology and life in the US. He told me about being from Crete and the Greek education system. We compared the places we grew up as I ate some of the best pasta I’ve ever had. I got Omerta (marked as the chefs favorite on the menu), a creamy pasta with chicken, bacon, mushrooms, garlic, and brandy. The pasta nourished my body and the company and conversation of the owner nourished my soul. The second time I went back, I got Carbonara. It was just as good and truly made my long day better after just one bite. The third time I went back, I tried their pizza, freshly added to the menu. While I ate, I chatted with the young woman working at the counter. We had an enjoyable conversation where she asked me about archaeology and Colorado and she told me about her favorite places in Cyprus. I may be there by myself but I never feel like I’m eating alone at Capodecina. This definitely won’t be my last stop there.

~ Apollo Blue