Nicosia, Cyprus

On the way to Israel, we stopped for a couple of days in Cyprus. The first city we visited was Nicosia/ Lefkosia. It's not the most attractive city but it's an interesting place to see, as it is divided between Northern Cyprus, a country only recognised by Turkey, and Greek-Cypriot Cyprus. 

The centre of the city is surrounded by walls in a very unusual design (see below) built by the Venetians in 1567. While they may look cool on a map, I wouldn't advise building your own fort like this cause they were overrun by the Turks in 1570.

So as we said, the most interesting bit of the city is a restricted UN no-mans land. It is even illegal to take photos, so here are some drawings that I did on MS Paint.

Of course, since we are trying to go to every country in Europe we had to have lunch in the Turkish side just in case one day it becomes a real country. This is the Selimiye Mosque bearing the flags of Turkey and Northern Cyprus.

Some clay figurines and statues at the Cyprus Archaeological Museum

On Sunday all of the Filipino and Indian carers go to the park. Here is a volleyball game in which NO ONE IS WATCHING THE BALL!!!!