An outing to Ayia Napa

We weren’t in Larnaca long when the Oldies started to get itchy feet. ‘Uh oh, I thought. That’s the end of beaches for me.’ But all was not lost, for they boarded a bus to Ayia Napa. Even I knew that this was a popular tourist resort. And tourists mean beaches!

The Wingless Wonders, of course, having no clue where exactly they were going, alighted from the bus in the old town centre. At least I could get the occasional glimpse of the sea from up there.

I have to say that I found the ancient monastery, which is currently undergoing renovation, quite fascinating.

And I was most impressed by this huge sycamore fig tree. Less so, however, when I realised that it was not only full of birds, but those ubiquitous Cypriot cats. Luckily, His Lordship is no fan of cats either and beat a hasty retreat from the feline-infested foliage.

Later, on a nearby square, I met up with some local fishermen , but unfortunately their catch was a tad too metallic for my taste.

As the Oldies finally made their way down toward the sea, I was flabbergasted by the number of huge hotels and restaurants. I was relieved that most of them were closed as it was off-season. I dread to think how crowded it must be here in the summer!

Finally, we hit the jackpot: a lovely marina, with a beautiful beach nearby. Her Ladyship, bless her, had her socks off in double quick time and started paddling along the water’s edge. His Lordship trotted along behind, trying desperately – and futilely – not to get too much sand stuck to him. Hilarious!

‘Santa Claus is coming to… Ayia Napa!’ It doesn’t sound quite right, does it? Especially in November. And I thought these life-sized reindeers, sleighs and snowmen looked rather incongruous outside the shops selling beachwear, inflatables and sunglasses.

As if I weren’t bewildered enough already, alongside all that, this was going on:

No wonder I was starting to think I was seeing things!

The Dynamic Duo later walked along the – thankfully for His Lordship – almost sand-free promenade. At Musan, they picked their way out onto the headland with its weird, spiky rock formations. It was as if an underwater reef had risen up out of the sea. Maybe it had.

Whatever was behind the creation of this geological landscape, it felt to me like walking on the moon. “One small step for a seagull…”

Later, as the Oldies made their way back into town along the main drag, I felt like I was on another planet. Planet Hollywood, perhaps, what with all the weird shops and restaurants with equally weird names such as Jungle Mania, the Moo Moo Restaurant, Bed Rock Cafe…

Dear me, that Bed Rock Cafe, complete with all the Flintstones characters and their famous car, gave me flashbacks of our trip to Dinopark in Croatia! Luckily, there wasn’t time to linger too long. My own couple of dinosaurs had a bus to catch. No Flintmobile for them this time. Yabba dabba … whew!