After site visits yesterday, we were able to see more of the country. We crossed the checkpoint to go into Turkish occupied Turkish Republic of Cyprus. It was very different than the republic of Cyprus, having been invaded by Turkey in 1974. At the checkpoint, you could see the buildings that have been robbed, torn up, and abandoned by the people that had to leave uncalled for. We were also enforced to have an escort from the Turkish Republic of Cyprus Driving through, we were not allowed to take pictures of these houses due to the Turkish Government having many signs up. We then made our way to Varosi and the ghost town that had once been a very popular tourist attraction and destination for many foreigners. Walking through the town showed how much a few months of war and separation can change a country’s economy. There were many stores and hotels that were not inhabitable anymore which was so sad for me to see due to how beautiful these hotels probably were during their prime years of the 50s and 60s.

We next went to the walled part of Famagusta, which is a nicer area of the Turkish part of Cyprus. We got to see what was left of the beautiful medieval walls left by Venicians. The walls have been around for centuries and were a gem of what different empires would build after the former left. Also what was interesting was how the walls have had different things built on top of them such as a British lighthouse. Another thing that I thought was interesting was the cathedral was actually turned into a mosque called Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque, that people to this day use and pray in. It just shows how many times Cyprus has changed hands and how the culture has completely shifted since that fateful year in 1974.

I was very curious to hear about how Varosi was and what happened to Varosi during the invasion. I got to ask our tour guide, Dimitra, what she thought of what happened. She told me that Varosi during the invasion had foreigners there and they had to be rescued by British and American vessels and then were brought to safety. Some tourists weren’t as lucky, where they either got arrested or killed by the Turks. I would consider myself to be someone who enjoys getting to learn about culture and history of the 20th century, and getting to see an abandoned tourist town was very interesting. When I asked why not use this land to make money, she mentioned how the land was uninhabitable, being that the hotels were ruins at this point, and the Turkish didn’t care enough to use it. You could see that with all the overgrown trees by these once amazing beachside hotels. I also got to talk to another one of our guides, Smaragda, about how the fighting between Greek and Turkish Cypriot extremists resulted in the invasion. She told me how the three big countries in the Cypriot independence were Turkey, Greece, and The United Kingdom. Once the UK gave independence, both sides argued to the point that members of NATO had to step in including the United States. Their reasoning for keeping Turkey happy and letting them have their non country state is because America thought that keeping Turkey happy was the key to defeating the USSR and the rise of communism in the Cold War. It was very interesting to hear about how Cyprus has adapted 50 years after the invasion. I can’t wait for tomorrow!