Digital Wanderer

We live as long as we fly

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Cyprus — 6, day 5, Pedoulas surroundings

2015-06-30

So, it all ended with us reaching Pedoulas, and even having time to hit up the local shop. In the store, my hungry eyes stumbled upon an incomprehensible edible substance labeled "dry soup". With my rich experience of eating all sorts of weird stuff like embryos and rotten sharks, I couldn't pass up such a chance, when else would an opportunity present itself.

Behold! (And even in Russian)

A transparent bag with 1 kg of yellowish trachanas (traditional dry soup) lying on a dark brown tablecloth with a pattern of beige flowers. A green label with information in Greek and English is visible on the bag.

Three portions of light milk porridge in different dishes: a red bowl with a spoon, a dark cup with a green spoon, and a metal pot with a black handle. The dishes are placed on a brown marble table and a woven striped placemat.

Turned out to be totally inedible.

However, after rummaging through the internets and reading up on how to actually cook this marvel, I had to sprinkle a little ash on my head.

Here's a good analogy for you. Imagine a foreigner decided to make sorrel soup. He bought a jar of canned sorrel from the babushkas at the market, but due to translation difficulties, only understood that he needed to add potatoes when cooking. In the end, he dumped the entire jar (half a liter, for instance) into a pot, added potatoes, and boiled it. He forgot the bay leaf, and the pepper, not to mention chopping some eggs into the finished product. I wrote that and suddenly wanted some soup myself.

We got roughly the same result, just replace the potatoes with rice. As it turned out, this very soup also needs to be boiled for two and a half hours. In short, it's not an option for tourists who don't even have room to put a camping stove in their room, it's so tiny. Fortunately, the room came with an equally small-format balcony, which is where we set up our culinary operations.

A village shop in Cyprus turned out to have a noticeably richer selection than its Latvian counterparts, but the expiration dates there are just a disaster. On the plus side, if you ask for a single apple or orange, the kind girl behind the counter says "just take it." We ended up chatting with her quite a bit over the next three days; it turned out her dad is Russian. So that's where the soulful generosity comes from.

Total baloney, actually, but I'm so steeped in Russian-speaking culture that the phrase just begs to be said. Cypriots, I imagine, are very positive and kind people themselves, even if they spend too much. When we were leaving, the president of the village (I finally found his proper title on the Pedoulas website) gave us a guidebook and a couple of bottles of water. Prices in Cyprus, by the way, are not kind at all, and almost everything is more expensive than back home in Latvia, and let me tell you straight up, you can't call our country cheap by any means, especially when measured against salaries.

The next day, as per tradition, we decided not to go hard, and lazily ride just a couple dozen km around the surroundings. Alas, this isn't the coastline, it's the very center of a mountain range, and riding a couple dozen km means descending eight hundred meters down, and then just as much back up. Sorry for the constant mentions of elevation, it's a sore subject.A mountain village on green slopes, where houses are immersed in lush vegetation, under a clear blue sky.

In the foreground — a massive dark bell with reliefs in a wooden bell tower. Behind it opens a panoramic view of a mountain village and slopes under a blue sky; on the right, a person with a backpack stands with their back to the viewer.

Full of all sorts of ancient monasteries and temples

What's more, there are plenty of those that are UNESCO World Heritage sites. To be honest, I wouldn't tell heritage from non-heritage to save my life, but I support the vibe. On the one hand, nothing cooler than the planet's natural beauties has been invented yet, take glaciers and fjords for example. On the other hand, even mountains, national parks and other natural wonders get boring, plus you want to be proud of humanity too, and of its creations.

A stone observation deck with wooden railings against the backdrop of green mountains under a clear sky. On the right is the wall of a stone building with a parked bicycle, and on the left is a blooming green bush.

A cyclist in a helmet and with a backpack rides along a winding mountain road surrounded by dense green vegetation. In the distance, on the top of a hill under a blue sky, a small structure is visible.

From Pedoulas we rolled down into Moutoullas

Street scene: in the background, boxes with fresh produce, including lemons, onions, root vegetables, and tomatoes, stand on a shelf. In the foreground, a glass table with a can of drink and packaged pastries is surrounded by wicker chairs, on one of which lies a bicycle helmet.

There we ended up in the Marathasa bakery, where we fueled up on pita with honey. Solid.

The agglomeration of villages on different levels looks cool, especially since pretty soon we arrived in the traditional village of Kalopanayiotis. Almost a Lithuanian name, though. In the bakery, besides pita and energy drinks, they also give out Wi-Fi, which is always nice.

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I routed the track to the village because there's some mysterious reservoir next to it (sort of like a pond, only bigger). As it turned out, they breed trout there, and subsequently fishermen, who pretty much sit on each other's heads once the season opens.

A panoramic view of a mountain village with houses arranged in terraces on the hillsides, with orange-red tiled roofs. Winding roads run among the buildings, and in the background, green-covered mountains rise under a blue sky.

 

A green mountain landscape with residential houses and a bridge against the backdrop of hills covered with vegetation. On the slope of the distant hill, a yellow construction crane is visible under a clear blue sky.

Reconstruction is in full swing. They actually managed to cram such a huge crane in there, huh

A long inclined elevator and stairs climb up a steep, green-covered hillside to buildings under construction visible at the top.

Too lazy to walk? One and a half euros and you're at the top

An ancient stone fountain built into a light dilapidated wall, from which a stream of water flows into a dark bowl. Above the spout, a carved Greek inscription including the date '1937' is visible, and the area around it is covered with brown stains and green moss.

Sulfur springs awaited us there.

Water streams from two blue pipes protruding from a concrete wall and connected by a horizontal pipe. Below is a wet concrete base with gravel and streaks of green moss.

Smells unforgettable

They say we have sulfur springs in Latvia too, in Ķemeri, and they stink even thicker. Should visit them sometime. We started wondering here, what else do these mountain villages survive on, which in our parts would be filled with drunks on welfare? Are there really enough arthritics and rheumatics wanting to take a dip in a sulfur spring to provide a comfortable existence? As it turned out, sweet cherries also grow well in this climate, so everything around is planted with cherry trees.

A forest stream with dark water and green-covered banks. In the foreground, a patch of light, possibly foamy or mineral, deposit on the bank clearly stands out.

Sulfur deposits are visible on the soil

A wooden pedestrian bridge with latticed railings crosses a turbulent stream surrounded by dense greenery. Sunlight breaks through the thick foliage, illuminating the water and damp forest banks.

Nearby, some babushka was washing her undies

A tall pine tree with dense green needles and many cones rises against the background of a clear blue sky and a green hill visible through the branches.

Covered in pinecones

A mountain slope thickly covered with trees and shrubs, under a clear blue sky. A winding dirt road, a small white house, and rows of beehives are visible on it.

View of a green mountain valley with a winding asphalt road below, surrounded by forested hills under a clear blue sky. In the foreground on the right, the edge of a dirt road is visible, and on the left — a branching tree.

Switched from asphalt to a dirt road

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Not amused

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Amused

A man in a helmet and cycling gear stands next to a mountain bike on a dirt trail. In the background, vegetation-covered mountains fading into a misty haze are visible.

 

A panoramic view of a mountain valley covered in lush greenery. Below, a winding section of road, a small settlement, and a reservoir with a dam surrounded by hills are visible, and in the foreground — blooming shrubs.

A mountain landscape with steep hilly slopes covered with green shrubs, grass, and sparse pines under a clear sky. A dirt trail runs along the slope of the hill on the right.

Five orange fish swimming in the green water of a pond with floating algae and branches.

Found a reservoir with fish, looks like they breed them

The rear part of a dirty black ATV with large off-road tires and a bed filled with various parts, on which the inscription 'CUBE' is visible, parked against a light wall partially covered by a blue banner with a stylized compass star.

Swapping bikes for proper machinery, especially since the brand is ours anyway

Two black mountain bikes with attached water bottles and bags are parked on a paved terrace next to a wooden bench. A black backpack lies in front of the bikes, and potted plants and a metal fence are visible in the background.

In case anyone forgot why, take a closer look at the lettering on the frame

A white Ford Transit flatbed truck is parked on the street against a backdrop of green plants. A round red logo is painted on the side door of the cab, along with an inscription in English: 'THE ROAD TO SUCCESS IS ALWAYS UNDER CONSTRUCTION S&A POWERLAND CONSTRUCTION LTD'.

The motto of human life

 

A person in a red t-shirt lies on their back on the shoulder of a narrow asphalt road next to a stone wall and a backpack. The road is surrounded by trees and green vegetation in a rural area.

Sashenka got tired and lay down

A man in a bicycle helmet, a red and black cycling jersey, and with a backpack rides a mountain bike on a rocky dirt trail against the backdrop of a forest-covered mountain slope.

True to our habit, we just can't ride on normal roads

A mountain slope covered with green trees and shrubs, with patches of exposed soil and a rocky scree.

We keep striving to turn off into the bushes

A cyclist in a helmet, a red jersey, and with a backpack pushes his mountain bike up a steep, rocky trail, looking back over his shoulder. The trail is surrounded by thick greenery and trees.

And the absolutely ideal scenario is dragging the bike over rocks

 

P.S. Useful information was gleaned from the site https://web.archive.org/web/20150624081149/https://www.cyprus-about.com/

 

 

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