Hi All,

  We leave Tuesday for home!  So now we’re actually thinking about packing and defrosting the frig and freezer and all those things it’s a pain to think about.  We’d rather go off on the motorbike!  It will be great to be back with family and friends, but it is a bit hard to leave Cyprus.  It’s a beautiful country.  It has its issues but so do all countries.  The people are friendly, the food is great and the weather just about perfect.  My next email will be from Roanoke,VA which I will try to make interesting for our new friends around the world and our new friends  from Turkey and Cyprus.

Ru

ps Sox lost a dumb game today! 

Kantara Castle near Iskele, North Cyprus

Saturday Randal and I set off for Iskele, a small town about 24 miles from the marina.  There is an icon museum located in an old church and we wanted to visit it.  Lunch was good: the museum was closed.

Spiced grilled chicken, onions, tomato, cilantro all stuffed into a fresh pita bread. Randal gets directions to the icon museum.

I don’t know what SHT stands for but I wanted to insert an I when we found the museum closed.

I don’t know if it was closed for the hour, day, week, or forever.  The lady at the bakery next door said “Closed” and then something else in Turkish….so….one day we will try again.

http://www.whatson-northcyprus.com/interest/iskele/icon.htm shows what we would have seen.

So then we decided to go on to Kantara Castle and that was great!  The steep road up was built just for our motorbike, lots of curves, great views and no traffic.  There were even really good signs all the way from Iskele. And the entrance fee was only 5 TL per person; now about $2.80. I know Randal loved the castle because as soon as we started to walk up the stone steps into the castle he asked for the camera so he could take some photos and later he asked people to take our photo in the castle.  When we visit the old churches he’s usually out on the motorbike honking the horn for me to hurry up.

10^th century Kantara Castle is the one furthest east on the Karpaz Peninsula.

http://www.allcrusades.com/MAPS/MAPS_INDEX/MAPS-C/CYPRUS_MAPS/Cyprus.html

http://www.allcrusades.com/CASTLES/CYPRUS/KANTARA/kantara_txt_1.html 

will show you photos and tell you much more than I can. 

But this passage written in 1888 captures it best…

"The superb Castle of Kantara, the Hundred Chambers, which, seeming to hang in mid-air, dominates this end of Cyprus, has been often visited and described. Buffavento stands higher, and St. Hilarion can shew more perfect ramparts and turrets, but neither recalls so strangely a forgotten age, neither seems to be so thickly peopled with its ghosts, as this lonely ruin on its pillar of rock. No painter’s wildest fancy has pictured anything so fantastic as these Cyprian Castles, and, standing at the foot of the last steep leading to the gate of Kantara, and involuntarily recalling the fairy-towers of romance, the traveller might imagine it the stronghold of a Sleeping Beauty, untouched by change or time for a thousand years! It is best seen from the north-west where the precipice is sheerest, the winding paths seem to cling most dizzily to its face, and the ruins of the interior cannot be seen ; but once within the outer gate the illusion partly vanishes in view of the broken battlements, although man and horse can still find shelter in many of the chambers." (11 Devia," p. 101.)”  Devia Cypria; notes of an archaeological journey in Cyprus in 1888 [Electronic Edition]

BY

D. G. HOGARTH, M.A.

FELLOW OF MAGDALEN COLLEGE, LATE CRAVEN FELLOW IN THE

UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD

WITH MAP AND ILLUSTRATIONS

LONDON

HENRY FROWDE, AMEN CORNER, E.C. 1889

This is the view looking up from the parking lot which Mr Hogarth, MA probably never envisioned.

Walking up to the castle entrance….who put in the steps?

The Mediterranean on both sides.

Here we are looking back towards Iskele down there somewhere: and south coast of the peninsula.

Randal points to a cove we had passed on the new North Coast road from Girne (Kryenia) to Karpaz that we’d taken a few days earlier.  We came up on the road from Iskele and went down on the road towards the new coast road towards Dipkarpaz. 

Rocky ledges and arrow openings.

It was like having the keys to the museum and you could wander anywhere you wanted.  There was a map with locations noted but the matching numbers weren’t visible and it was off by a number or they just forgot to identify what # 27 was.  We found the cistern and the prison and rooms where people slept and climbed around and had a great time.

The views were all spectacular and the weather perfect but we didn’t spot Turkey or Lebanon which is possible in winter.

    Kantara Castle   http://www.whatson-northcyprus.com/interest/iskele/kantara_castle.htm

Of the three crusader castles of Buffavento, St Hilarion and Kantara, Kantara lies furthest to the east. At 630m above sea level (2066.4 ft,) it is also the lowest of the three.  (We will visit the others one day.)

      Some would say it is the least exciting, as it is easy to reach compared with the other two. However it has by far the best views, its summit standing on a pinnacle with views all round. The name "Kantara" in Arabic means a bridge or an arch. This is an appropriate name, as the castle is located at a point which bridges the mountain range and commands views of both the north and the south coasts. On a clear day, it is possible to see across both sides of the Karpaz peninsula, and on to the distant mountains of Turkey. In winter is sometimes possible to see the snows of Lebanon, over 160km away…….

     There are several routes you can take to Kantara castle, from either the northern or southern coastal roads. It will take you about 30 minutes of good, but narrow and twisty roads to get to the Village of Kantara, where you can stop and have some refreshments after your drive. From the north, the road through Kaplica,  is by far the best, having recently been widened and upgraded (although no less twisty than the other routes!) Approaching from the south, (we did this) the road from Iskele through Topcukoy and Ardahan has likewise been upgraded. The castle itself is about 10 minutes beyond the village (of Ardahan.)

“The origins of the Kantara Castle go back to the 10^th century when it was built as a look out post.  The first reference to the castle in the records is 1191 when Richard the Lionheart captured Cyprus and Isaac Comnenos, the rebel Byzantine prince from Trapezus (Trabzon, Turkey) who had captured the island and proclaimed himself King of Cyprus, after having ruled for 7 years as a despot, sheltered in Kantara.  In the 12^th century it was remodeled by the Lusignans.    Throughout the island’s history Kantara often served as a shelter for defeated barons and kings. When the Genoese conquered Famagusta and Nicosia in 1373, Kantara remained in the hands of John of Antioch, the brother of King Peter I of Cyprus till he moved to St. Hilarion.  Later his brother King James I (1382-1398) of Cyprus refortified Kantara.  Most of the surviving parts belong to his restorations.  It continued to be used as late as 1525 when Venetians having relied on the coastal fortresses such as Krenia and Famagusta for the defense of the island neglected it as they had done with the other island castles of St. Hilarion and Buffavento.”     Information from the sheet handed out at the castle.           

Physicist, Dermatologist, Psychologist

We met these nice young men as we all wandered through the castle.  We coincidentally stopped at the same café on the way down the mountain and sat together having our drinks while they waited for their lunch.  The Physicist had studied in Athens, the Dermatologist in Russia, and the Psychologist in Bulgaria.  Not sure if they are finished with their schooling of just on a quick vacation.  They were from Nicosia in the Republic of Cyprus so their first language is Greek but luckily for us they all speak English very well.  They were taking a long weekend and driving the circumference of Cyprus so were sort of racing along, camping at night.  Wish we had met them on their way towards Karpaz; they could have camped on our boat.  We told them if they come again they can stay with us.  Meeting people is one of the best parts of traveling.

Finally got the flip flop photos…

Ru

It was my fourth trip up the hill in Sipahi to the Ay Trias Basilica: the third for the purpose of taking a photo of the sandal mosaics.  I left about 7:30 and it was a lovely morning for a walk.

Self-portrait…..with camera….

Here are the sandals….and the pomegranate tree mosaic to the left of the lower pair of sandals.

And here is the puppy that followed me home….

He was so sweet!

I was just taking my flip flop sandals photos when this puppy appeared dragging a raggedy old tattered length of twine.  It was also tied around his neck and was so tight I was afraid he’d choke if no one took it off.  But the knot was too small and there was no room to work it.  I hurriedly took one more photo deciding the puppy was more important at that moment. On my way earlier I had passed a house and said hello to a man who was just going inside.  I decided to take the puppy back there so we could cut the noose from his neck.  After that I was hoping the puppy would “just go home.”  I tried to flag down a truck to get some help but the young men in it thought I was waving and just waved back.  Then no one was at home where I’d seen the man or at the house next door where I heard a radio.  I called “hello” both places and no one answered.  So I went back up the hill and turned left at the basilica because I knew there were houses that way from a previous walk.  Thankfully there were people in a small side porch and they came out.  I think it was a woman and her father or father-in-law.  I mimed what I needed and they understood and got a scissor.  I was a bit reluctant as Muslims think dogs are unclean and I was asking to borrow a utensil that would touch the dog.  But they were very understanding and gave me “a good scissor” and I cut the twine which the man seemed to want.  They didn’t know anything about the puppy but thought it was cute when he followed me back down the road.  At one point he disappeared behind a house and I hoped he’d gone home, but then he came running after me.  Without the twine I wondered how I would get him across the main road to the marina where the staff could help deal with him, but he came when called and stayed right at my feet.  (Love at first sight for me and the puppy.)  Thankfully the guys at the entrance gate were sympathetic and took the puppy which seemed tired and certainly thirsty and hungry.  I had tried earlier to give it water from my hand but finally at the marina gave it water straight from my bottle.  Randal and I stopped at the gate later in the day on our motorbike and were told they’d found “home” and puppy.  Those are the words we understood.  A new home or its old home I don’t know.  There is no ASPCA in Yeni Erenkoy and Serife who works in the office told me that many cats are just dumped off.  Maybe I’ll check on the puppy again, but we just can’t have a dog with our travels so I did what I could do and can only hope for the best for the puppy. 

The walk up the mountain in the morning is lovely and the basilica worth several visits.  I’m sure I’ll go again. (But no more puppies!)  Here are more photos of the basilica.

There is a fence but the gate is open and the ticket booth never manned.

I love getting to go back as often as I like without having to pay.  At $10 or $15 for some of the sites in Turkey, you only go once but later realize what you hadn’t seen so want to return.  But not for that much money.  So free or even a few $$ like the Mevlana Museum in Konya is much better.  Places get to be like old friends when you can come and go.

So signs, no information, just a chance to use your imagination.

Mosaics

The sandals are at the far end….just about my size..and I have big feet, size 10 or even 11 and the pomegranates…which I almost cropped off to show the sandals!

“The narthex and nave are extensively covered with mosaics, mostly geometric patterns.  In the northern nave, however, there are some exceptions. In particular, a pomegranate tree, alongside a pair of sandals.  Pomegranates were used by the early Christian as a symbol of resurrection and everlasting life. The sandals are a little bit more of a mystery. It is possible they were a reminder of the time when Moses took off his sandals in order to meet God in the desert. It is also possible that it is a reminder of the time that John the Baptist described the coming of Christ, explaining that he was not even important enough to remove the sandals from Christ’s feet. More likely, though, is because they are close to the pomegranates, they simply represent the journey through this world to the next. Although sandals as a symbol, are found elsewhere in the Middle East, this is the only known example in Cyprus.”

http://www.whatson-northcyprus.com/interest/dipkarpaz/aya_trias.htm (Or maybe someone saw into the future and knew the popularity of flip flops!) This is a really good website and gives lots of information about the basilica and church architecture of the period.

More examples of mosaics.

There’s just something about stone…

I had 2 years of Latin and can recite the passive endings of something but that’s about it if this is even Latin though it doesn’t have Greek symbols.

“One thing we do know about the basilica, however is who paid for its building. A mosaic inscription in front of the main apse, credits a deacon by the name of Heraclios. At the western end of the nave, we can also see the names of Aetis, Euthalis and Eutychianos as benefactors.” http://www.whatson-northcyprus.com/interest/dipkarpaz/aya_trias.htm