Optional Trips: Last but not Least…Cyprus
CYA students recently embarked on the third and final optional trip for fall semester ’17 to Cyprus. The 3 -day trip to Cyprus was packed with learning, adventure, and sightseeing. Here’s a peek at what they got up to on their travels.
Students join a member of the European Commission Representation in Cyprus, Ms. Alexandra Attalides, for a tour of old Nicosia.
On our first day, we had the wonderful opportunity to hear an informative lecture about the history and significance of efforts to resolve the Cypriot conflict, given by Dr. Harry Tzimitras, Cyprus Office Director of the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO).
Further exploring the political environment of the Cypriot conflict, students followed Ms. Alexandra Attalides, a member of the European Commission Representation in Cyprus, as she lead us through the streets of the old town of Nicosia and through the Buffer Zone.
Green and white barrels topped with sandbags that surround the military checkpoints near the Cypriot buffer zone.
Students got to see multiple military checkpoints, fences with barbed wire, and decaying urban areas that have resulted from the conflict of northern and southern Cyprus. On our second day, Professor Papadopoulos gave us an interesting lecture and provided many mythical depictions of the pebble and tile murals of the Lower Paphos archaeological site, as well as the Tombs of the Kings.
Finally, our last day took us through the rich exhibits of the Cyprus Museum, a house-turned-museum of the old town of Nicosia, and the Hala Sultan Tekke Mosque, where we learned much about the influences of Asian, Middle Eastern and African countries on the material cultures and customs of Cyprus.
The group surrounds the preservation of a large floor mosaic made of painted tiles.
See more photos from Cyprus here…
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