Hello Cyprus

"If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay home. ~James Michener"

After a 24-hour trek to get to Larnaka (Larnaca, for the non-Cypriots) and a 45-minute drive to Lefkosia (South Nicosia), we finally arrived at our apartments. There are four of us total in this one apartment, which is surprisingly large, compared to what I was expected.

The drive over was actually fun. We took in some beautiful scenery. A great deal of the landscape has the feeling of being in parts of Italy or Greece. I half expected to see a beautiful winery by the road or to be told we were in the wrong country.

Being here is still a shocking experience. It seems as though the thought hasn't quite set in yet. It's been a whirlwind of adjusting. New foods, new languages, and new money. But that's part of the adjustment. It's been exciting trying all these new foods, especially new coffees.

We've also been trying our hand at shopping and price-checking. I'm trying to stick to a budget of a sort, or at least to be very responsible as far as my money goes. It's a very different mindset from my normal travel, to realize that I have to purchase groceries, that I have to start doing laundry and going to class again, that this city is for our exploring (in between all that other stuff).

Speaking of such, we've been to visit the local "mall" several times, which can be easily seen from our building. There's also a green grocer and a bakery in walking distance. The grocery is called Green Acres and carries many food and other items. It reminds me of my hometown A&D with more fresh fruit and veggies.

The bakery, called Zorba's, is really cool. They make desserts there, in the store, and then line shelves along one wall with these. They also have a section of breads that are made in-store and other sections. I wish they offered samples, as the bread smelled so delicious.

We also toured the campus of the University of Nicosia yesterday. It's a nice school, with what seems to be a great emphasis on media and the arts. That could simply be the section we saw, however, it would be interesting to learn more about the school. Their library was interesting; it looked like McKay's, in Knoxville.

One other big adjustment will be to the timing. They tend to move about in the mornings, rest in the afternoon, like a siesta, and then get up and go out late at night. Dinner doesn't seem to start until about eight or nine. The problem that I have is that the concept of resting in the afternoon is odd for me, so I have difficulties adjusting. Therefore, I am hungry earlier and tired before 10.

Also, they have an active nightlife in certain parts of Nicosia, which I haven't really explored. We've been told that many Cypriots tend to dress up to go out. I'm not really a nightlife kind of person, but it might be interesting to sit a cafe and watch others going out in their super nice clothes. That is, if I can stay awake that late.

Speaking of staying awake. The night is getting late for me; it's almost 1 a.m. here, as Cyprus is seven hours ahead of the eastern U.S.

More to come...