Europe

[Visited: August 2020]

My first impression when arriving in Kakopetria from the coast, is one of a touristy place with modern buildings. This is going to be our base for a couple of days, and we resist the easy way out, and walk up the sloping street to the old part of town. We pass the boulder which was supposed to bring newly weds good luck, until it crushed a young couple. We leave much of the buzz of the main street below behind, and soon see the first traditional houses. Made of bricks, a mix of mud and straw, these houses often have a base layer of readily available stones. The more beautiful ones have wooden balconies, and I soon start to fall in love with the picturesque and romantic corners of these small, twisting streets and alleys. It is a Friday, and most of the accommodation is full, but we are very lucky and find an entire traditional house for rent. The bathroom has a big boulder sticking out from the wall, and we immediately feel at home here.
Kakopetria is my base for exploring the Troodos region: its mountains, its famous painted churches, but also its villages. It turns out that Kakopetria is the perfect base for that: more or less in the middle of all you could wish to see, with plenty of options for good food (ah, the trout!), and an idyllic village itself. Before and after explorations of the region, we walk around the town, often taking the shortcut along the river to go down into town, and climbing up the main street back into the old part of Kakopetria. Early mornings are the best time to wander around. There are the enormous pots with flowers, the wooden balconies, artefacts, the stone alleys; every turn takes you to another alley, or house, where you can stop and see how the local inhabitants have embellished their corner of the village.
Stones are the basic ingredient of building here. The streets are made of stones, much of the houses are made of stones. It is easy to see how these are derived directly from the surrounding mountain landscape, which is full of rocks. While the newer buildings generally are plastered and painted white, most of the older ones still show the original building blocks from which they were constructed. I cruise the region, visit many villages in my search for the painted churches, drive and walk many more streets and alleys. In some, like Palaiochori, I easily find the old part of town, and walk the stone steps taking me up the hills on which it is built. In others, like Agros, I walk around, see lots of newer buildings, without ever finding the old part of town. In fact, after exploring many of the other villages in the region, my conclusion is that Kakopetria is the most lovely. Saying goodbye to our house in Kakopetria is, therefore, a little sad. But curiosity pushes us towards new adventures, new discoveries.

Around the World in 80 Clicks

Personal travel impressions both in words and images from Troodos mountain villages (Cyprus). Clicking on the pictures enlarges them and enables you to send the picture as a free e-card or download it for personal use, for instance, on your weblog. Or click on the map above to visit more places close to Troodos mountain villages.
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[Visited: August 2020]

Around the World in 80 Clicks

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