Today was a cultural visit day. First, we started by visiting the Kolossi Crusader castle. This castle was near Limassol, so we only had a short bus ride. Once there, our tour guide gave us a brief overview of the history associated with the castle. After that, we were allowed to roam around the court. I noticed that it had the Frankish emblem carved into the wall, helping people understand the time period the castle was built. As I went up the narrow spiral stair, case, I wondered how the knights could move up and down the staircase with all the armor they wore. The answer was that they had to go in one direction at a time, making sure every knight knew when to move so there were no problems during an attack. Once I reached the top of the castle, I could see its beautiful view. Upon looking over the area, I could tell why the castle was built where it was in relation to the city since, from its roof, one could see for miles and tell where an invading army would be.
After we toured the castle, we headed to the ancient city of Kourian. It was built during the time of the Roman Empire. Even though the town was only ruins, it still held a lot of valuable history that our tour guide informed us of as we toured the surrounding area. Unfortunately, only ruins remain due to earthquakes.
Our last stop for the day was the Limassol Castle. The castle was initially built before King Richard took the island. He got married in the castle. To this date, he is the only English royal ever to be wed outside of England. After the Ottomans took over Cyprus, they downsized the castle to turn it into a prison. It was used as a prison for the entirety of Ottoman rule. It only stopped when the British took over the island in 1878. Today the castle acts as a museum for people to tour and learn a little bit about the history of Cyprus.