Don’t Rain on my….Expedition

How we met George

Our day started as usual, but the weather later dictated our course and led us to meet some incredible Cypriots…

We left our campsite this morning in the port town of Zygi and headed east, not knowing exactly how far we would make it with dark clouds on the horizon and rain in the forecast. We made it 8km before tucking into a café for lunch and to wait out the storm, which had just begun. We met some locals, ate sandwiches, drank Cypriot coffee, played backgammon, and Anna & Vasili may or may not have fallen asleep sitting upright on the couch in the café.

Just when we thought the storm had passed, we geared up and continued walking east toward Larnaca. We made it 15 paces before the sky opened up and started dumping on us. Fortunately, George, a man we met at the café lives across the street and urgently ushered us into his dry, warm home. We were also fortunate to meet his wife Chris who prepared fresh bourekia and stocked us up with oranges and paximadia for the road.

As a young man, George fought in the Cypriot military during the conflict leading up to the Turkish occupation. He was shot twice in those days but did not share the story of how it happened. Even still, he feels an affinity for Turkish-Cypriots. As a child, George went to school and played along side Turkish Cypriots, all of them speaking both Greek and Turkish while interacting. He believes today’s Turkish-Cypriot are the same people he shares these memories with.

Ideally, George would like to see Cyprus as a unified independent nation but fears that it will not happen due to the island’s strategic location. He thinks the United States, United Kingdom and Turkey have a shared interest in the island because it is a stepping-stone to the Middle East, Africa and Europe, and keeping the island segregated makes it easier to control.

Thank you George and Chris for keeping us out of the rain, for the amazing bourekia, and for the insight on your island.