Exploring the Limassol City Centre
Museum and Cathedrals
05.01.2011 - 05.01.2011
26 °C
Today I ventured onto a bus to travel a 7 km trip into Limassol city centre by buying a day pass for 2 Euros. Initially I thought of walking the distance but the outside temperature was over 25 degrees and shaping into a beautiful day, our best day yet. The Cyprus travel guide suggested half day guided tours, which seemed exciting, but the hotel desk could not suggest any contacts and said the bus to the city went past the hotel gate every 15 minutes.
I ventured to the bus stop and asked a local the cost of a ticket - his English was better than my Greek. On the bus I spotted a fellow traveller from the hotel who turned out to be heading into the city for a day's shopping. She turned out to be an ex-teacher travelling with her husband at the conference which John is attending. She apparently is a New Zealander now living in Perth and she filled me in on the sites of Limassol and suggested I save my money on a guided tour and do it myself for a $2 dailybus ticket.
The bus trip to Limassol takes about 25 minutes from our hotel and is a beautiful ride along the shore line, with glimpses of the sea between hotels and villas. The bus is very modern and has a screen showing the next bus-stop and the time to reach the destination - just like our trains (well some of them). The main road to Limassol is tree lined and edged with gardens.
The bus stopped opposite the Creek Orthodox Cathedral and this becomes my first point of interest. The inside of the cathedral is beautiful with its chandelliers and frescoes on the walls and ceilings.
The streets are filled with wonderful little shops selling authentic Cyprus cultural items and bargins gallore, including $2 shops.
The next point of interest is the Lemesos Castle and its wonderful museum. No photos are allowed in the museum but the interior is a maze of tunnels leading into tiny alcoves then down into the bowels of the castle as well as climb to the roof with a great view of the harbour.
A qucik beer was enjoyed at a local tavern while waiting for the return bus and an encounter with a German tourist who asked me to help him read his map. Turned out to be a another teacher who spoke about how difficult it is becoming teaching children these days. Bloody teachers are whingers!
More exploring tomorrow.
Cheers
Pete
Posted by Peter_E 05.01.2011 06:52 Archived in Cyprus Tagged cathedralsandlimassolmuseums!
Sounds like a very interesting place,glad to hear you found a beer and some company.
05.01.2011 by docchris