Cyprus Adventures — Carla Luna

Adventures in Cyprus

In the summer of 1986, I went on my first overseas trip—a six-week stint at an archaeological field school on the island of Cyprus. To say this trip was out of my comfort zone is putting it mildly. Prior to Cyprus, I’d only traveled along the West Coast of the US, and my only experience with archaeology was a dig in Southern California. But at age twenty, I was eager for adventure, so I took a leap into the unknown.

Map showing Cyprus and Turkey — Where’s Cyprus, you might ask? It’s not near the Greek islands, as I’d originally assumed. It’s below the southern coast of Turkey, across the Mediterranean Sea from Lebanon and Syria. In the southern half of Cyprus, which is where I worked, the official language is modern Greek, although English is also widely spoken. Because Cyprus is reputed to be the birthplace of Aphrodite, the legendary Greek goddess of love and beauty, it’s known as “the island of love.” Though it’s a popular tourist destination for Europeans, it’s a long way from the U.S.: an eight-hour flight from Chicago to London, followed by a four-hour flight from London to Larnaca (the biggest airport in Cyprus).

Carla the archaeologist on a dig in Israel — When I visited Cyprus in 1986, my experiences at the archaeological field school made such a strong impression on me that I decided to switch my course of study in college from history to archaeology. No longer content to focus solely on library research, I spent the next seven years working on archaeological projects all over the Mediterranean, including a Crusader castle in Israel (pictured), the ancient site of Humayma in the Jordanian desert, and the ruins of a Moorish monastery on the east coast of Spain.

For years, I’ve been wanting to turn these adventures into stories, which is why I decided to write a series of romantic comedies set in the world of archaeology. Naturally, the first book had to be set in Cyprus, since this was where it all began. But it was hard to recall the details since I hadn’t been to the Mediterranean in over 30 years. As I was poring over videos and travel blogs, a thought came to me—what if I went back? Once I started researching flights and hotels, I realized how affordable it would be to visit during the off-season.

Once again, I decided to take the leap. I booked a trip to Cyprus in mid-March 2022, with the plan of revisiting all the key places from my 1986 experience, many of which play an important role in the book I’m writing.

I flew into the Larnaca airport and spent the night in a hotel across from the harbor. My first glimpses of Cyprus offered me a gorgeous view of tall palm trees and the Mediterranean Sea. Though I dipped my toes in the water, I didn’t go swimming, since the weather was chilly for March (40s and 50s Fahrenheit).
For most of my trip, I was based in the harbor town of Paphos since my dig took place in that area. I stayed in a delightful historic hotel in the center of Old Town Paphos, a wonderful area with a warren of streets lined with shops, cafés, and restaurants. As a coffee-lover, I was pleased at the abundance of coffeehouses in Cyprus—a mixture of European chains (Costa Coffee and Caffe Nero) and local places serving authentic Greek coffee.

Archaeologists in a trench on a dig site in Nea Paphos, Cyprus — **House of Orpheus Dig Crew (Trench A) - 1986**

One of my first outings was to the Paphos Harbor, site of the Nea Paphos Archaeological Site, which includes the ruins of three Roman villas (the House of Orpheus, the House of Dionysus, and the House of Theseus), an ancient theater, an agora, and a covered building protecting a set of elaborate mosaics from the villas. Although I’d spent three weeks working with a dig crew at the House of Orpheus (I’m the one in the photo with the bared midriff), very little of the ruins were familiar to me, except the mosaics and the distant view of the Mediterranean. On many occasions when I’d toiled in the hot sun, I’d gazed out at that view and wished I could cool off in the water.

I also took a day trip to Kouklia, a tiny village located about twelve miles from Pahpos, where the archaeological field school was housed. Though I didn’t find the location of the school where we stayed, I did revisit the ancient Sanctuary of Aphrodite—the ruins of a temple dedicated to the Greek goddess of love and beauty. Not only did it hold some intimate memories for me, but the site plays a key role in my book!

In addition to revisiting old sites, I also did a couple of day trips, organized by ConstrucTours. The first one was a Jeep safari deep into the heart of the Akamas peninsula. Though the ride was bumpy and nerve-wracking, it gave our group access to a part of the island that’s hard to reach by bus or car. We hiked the Akamas gorge, had traditional Greek coffee in the tiny village of Pano Arodes, and saw the Baths of Aphrodite. On my second tour, I visited the Troodos Mountains area, with stops at the villages of Omodos and Lofou, and a wine-tasting at the Lambouri Winery.

Now that I’m back from my travels, I’m so glad I made the trip. Notebook in hand, I wrote down all my observations and marveled at how much the island had changed. In the 30+ years since I’ve been there, Cyprus is far more developed, especially in the harbor towns—more condos, holiday villas, high-rise buildings, and beachfront hotels. Yet other parts are still beautifully unspoiled, like the hills and villages in the Akamas Peninsula and the Troodos Mountains. During my travels, everyone I met was friendly and welcoming.

Delicious meal of prawns and calamari in Larnaca, Cyprus — What surprised me the most wasn’t just the island itself, but how different I felt from the twenty-year-old who traveled here in 1986. Even though I was visiting the same places I’d seen before, I was no longer the same person. In the decades that had gone by, I’d had the good fortune to travel to many other countries all over the world. Even so, I could still be awed by the gorgeous Mediterranean vistas, the rich history of the island, and the delicious food. Cypriot cuisine is similar to Greek food, so I indulged in a lot of wonderful dishes: Greek salads bursting with tomatoes, cucumbers and feta, pita with tzatziki, fried calamari, moussaka, souvlaki, and baklava,

Back in 1986, after my six weeks in Cyprus, I was eager to explore even more of the world. Now, in 2022, I feel the same way. This trip is just the beginning—I want to start traveling again, not just to places where I’ve worked, but to countries I never had a chance to visit. Will I be able to do it? Will the world keep changing so that travel is no longer possible? I’m not sure, but for as long as I can, I want to keep having adventures.