Today was another day full of cultural visits, this time centering around the city of Paphos. Our first stop of the day was at Aphrodite’s Rock. According to legend, this rock formation in the sea is where Aphrodite was born and rose from the sea. Furthermore, according to local legend, if you swim around the rock naked three times during a full moon at midnight, you will be blessed with eternal youth and beauty. This myth was honestly hilarious to me, and it made me question why someone would choose to start it. While this rock was pretty large, it was honestly underwhelming to me. I don’t really get why it was this rock that got a bunch of myths attached to it, as it really was not that special and honestly kind of boring to look at. While it was not much to me, it was still good that we went, as many people did enjoy it.

Upon leaving Ahrodite’s Rock, we arrived at the Tomb of the Kings in Paphos. The Tomb of the Kings is not a single tomb but rather a collection of tombs inside a park that were constructed by a variety of noble families. They constructed these tombs by carving massive rocks instead of building structures. Inside these rocks, they carved columns, a water well due to religious beliefs, and multiple holes for burial. These tombs were not constructed for a single person but rather for a whole family to be buried in them together. Walkins inside of them were beautiful, as you could see the sheer amount of craftsmanship that went into constructing them. Furthermore, many of them were quite elaborate, having multiple rooms inside. What was interesting to me was that one of them had a bunch of live pigeons just sitting on the wall, which was quite funny to me as they just stood there unmoving. What was tragic about this site, however, was how little we truly knew about it. It was first excavated by the British in the early 1900s, using prison labor. As a result, they destroyed a lot of the artifacts in the tombs, which prevented carbon dating and other archaeological methods from being used. Because of this, almost all we really know about the tombs comes from a single small tomb that the British did not know about. Despite our tragic lack of knowledge about the site, it was still extremely beautiful, and I loved the opportunity to touch and walk around history. What was also very interesting to me was the economics behind the construction of these tombs. They must have been expensive, but they also certainly employed a large number of people. This has me wondering whether noblemen made them not only for prestige but also as a form of social welfare where they could give unemployed people a job.

After the Tomb of the Kings, we entered Paphos and were given two hours of free time. I spent this time with Jake, grabbing a nice lunch. What was interesting to me about my experience was the difference in restaurant culture in Cyprus. In Paphos, there were people standing around outside the restaurant trying to talk you into going in, which was definitely different from what I’m used to in America. What was also interesting was the fact that it was totally acceptable to flag down your waiter. In the US, I would say it’s generally considered fairly rude to flag down your waiter constantly, as they check in on you often. However, in Cyprus, they really will not check in on you, and instead, you need to get their attention to get anything. After spending time here, I have found that I prefer the Cyprus method, as it leads to nicer conversations as you’re not constantly interrupted by your waiter.

Upon finishing lunch, we were given a guided tour of the mosaics present in Paphos. These mosaics were utterly beautiful, intricate, and incredibly well preserved. What really struck me about them was the fact they had to be constructed incredibly quickly, so the foundation wouldn’t dry, but the workers were still able to achieve incredible precision and detail on them. Almost all the mosaics told a story, which made it incredibly useful to have a tour guide, as she was able to explain all of the stories told on them that we would not have gotten otherwise. Finally, what I found fascinating was the fact that a farmer just randomly found these plows plowing his field. This could never happen in America, and learning this story really put into perspective for me how much more material history Europe has than the United States. Overall, today was extremely fun, and I loved the opportunity to learn more about Cyprus’ history!