Today was definitely the most so far, with a lot of exploration and valuable information learned. We visited the BSM training center, which was extremely complex. They train students who are just about to graduate college for specific types of ships to manage. The students that they’re training even live at the facility, as they’re supposed to dorm there. When training, students are supposed to use extremely complex simulators in order to gain a feel of what it’s like to actually be at sea. They’re very accurate, and the instructors can control many specific aspects of the simulation, including noise, weather, and even how many seagulls are in the air at one point. I’m glad they let us into the actual simulation, because it gave me a good feel of how the students actually control the ships. What I found the most interesting though is that LNG is their biggest moneymaker, but they consider transporting it to be very risky. For everything that they transport, they serve as the middleman between the buyer and the seller.

After BSM, we got lunch at a really nice restaurant and then went to Troodos Square to explore a little bit. The lunch was mezze style and they served us a ton of different foods that were really good. My favorite was the pork that came out last. Afterwards we explored the monastery, which was breathtaking. When we went to Troodos Square, we hiked on one of the nature trails and ended up at Olympus Mountain. The views were so nice and each view we got was better than the last. I’m hoping to see more of the mountain ranges as the trip progresses.