Today was a very unique experience once again. We traveled to Limassol to visit the BSM Maritime Training Center where I learned about something I had very little knowledge about before: ships! It was very fascinating to see the different equipment they had to simulate what being a member of a crew ship would be like. I thought it was especially interesting how immersive the experience was by having the students lodge in pretty small rooms to mimic their living quarters on the ships. Seeing the engine control room showed me how intricate and complicated it really was to manage a ship and I came to the conclusion that it was probably not something I would be up to handle. I was especially intrigued by the involvement of freshwater in running the ships because that also signified that an issue with freshwater supply could hold grave consequences for the shipping companies. I had an interesting conversation with one of the managers that explained how they were looking to try to get more Cypriots into the industry and training because right now a majority of their students were from abroad. I think that this is an interesting distinction from the U.S. because you rarely hear about people going to train for Maritime travel. Here, however, people travel from far away to come train for these jobs.
We also learned a bit about the management side of the company and how shipping works. Essentially, the company, being a part of transportation, acts as a mediator between the seller or producer of the goods and the customer. It doesn’t have companies that it works with that are set in stone, rather it works with a wide range and variety of partners.
After our visit to the training center, we headed out for lunch in the beautiful Omodos village. We were served a beautiful meal consisting of pasta, vegetables, cheese, and more! Then we were given time to explore the village with its various cobblestone streets and cultural shops. We struck up a conversation with one of the shopowners who then gave us a very nice insider tour of the glassblowing equipment and techniques they had. We got to see various pieces that were in the process of being made by the students at their school and some beautiful pieces on sale from which I actually purchased one. I thought it was very nice that he was so inviting and excited to show us everything, a common trend I’ve seen with the Cyprian locals.
We ended the day with a trip to Troodos Square where we enjoyed a refreshing traditional frappe with a beautiful view of the mountains in the background.