Next Chapter - Family Time in Cyprus

Left to right:

Helen (13), Katie (16), son-in-law Jörn, Elisabeth (11), daughter Sheila, Kathryn, Rob, Lukas (19).

Sheila and Jörn's oldest child Chris (24) is living with their wife in our Colfax home in California and Jacob (22) was in Maine, but would return to Cyprus before our visit ended.

This picture was taken near the sea front at an area called Europe Square, about a 1/2 mile from Sheila's home. We walked there the evening after we had all arrived in Larnaca, Cyprus, April 16, 2022.

This blog entry is being written over a month after our return from Cyprus - May was a busy month that included celebration, complications and preparing to move to our summer camp host job at Lake Tahoe. It will take me awhile to bring us all up to date, but this blog installment is about the blessing and luxury of spending almost three weeks in Cyprus with our oldest daughter Sheila and her family. The longest we’d ever been there before was a week to maybe 10 days. Rob arrived in Cyprus on Friday, April 15 from San Francisco and Sheila and I arrived on Saturday, April 16 from Copenhagen after our 10 days in Sweden. Rob and I would fly back to San Francisco on Wednesday, May 4, traveling on different airlines with overnight layovers in different countries.

We were able to rent a house located just a few feet from Sheila's home. It was an ideal location because it gave us privacy, but with easy access to Sheila and family. Rob ate his Cheerios' breakfast in our house, but all of the rest of our meals were with the family, with our son-in-law Jörn's outstanding cooking. Because of our longer than usual stay we had no sense of urgency or counting down the days until we would leave. Most days we spent fitting in and around the busy family's schedule, relaxing, walking to the sea front, and playing daily board games with various configurations of players. We did go on occasional excursions to various points of interest in the surrounding area.

We have visited Cyprus several times before so had some familiarity with this island country located in the Mediterranean Sea. Sheila's family moved here over 13 years ago from Germany where Jörn had been splitting his time between working in a bank and doing missionary work. In Cyprus he is a full time missionary with YWAM (Youth With a Mission). They came on a 3 year trial basis, and have found it a wonderful location to live and raise their family. A little over three years ago they bought their current house after renting a home for many years. Jörn's missionary work began with establishing a House for Prayer and has evolved into a Prophetic Art Ministry that fits well into the artistic community of Larnaca and is a unique way of ministering to many.

The pictures below will give glimpses of our time in Cyprus.

An Orthodox Convent and plaza between the family's home and the sea front.

On my first morning in Cyprus I made sure to put my feet in the sea.

Looking east to the early morning sun.

The Easter treat Sheila and I brought from Sweden.

We shared this with the family on "western" Easter, April 17 - glad we didn't buy the bigger version - it really wasn't very tasty.

A pretty cactus near Sheila's house.

Looking into the backyard garden of Sheila's house from the roof.

We ate all our meals with the family under the red roof.

Looking up from the street at the roof of Sheila's house.

It's the one above the green tree and red patio roof with laundry hanging to dry.

The door on the left is the front door to Sheila's house.

The door on the right under the little balcony is where we stayed.

Relaxing in the family living room.

Jörn painted this tree on the bathroom door.

He says when people ask to use the restroom he can say, "Just go behind the tree."

Our first outing, other than walks to the sea front for exercise and an occasional ice cream was a "Girls' trip" to Lefkara, an ancient village known for its lace making and silver work. We had visited there our first time in Cyprus so Rob opted to stay back in Larnaca while Sheila, Katie, Helen, Elisabeth and I went exploring and shopping. Katie was the only one who bought anything - a pair of pretty silver earrings that she got for the "locals'" price. There weren't many tourists on the streets or in the shops this trip, though it was a beautiful day. It was just the beginning of tourist season, but with the pandemic tourism in Cyprus has taken a real hit, and many of their tourists come from Russia so with the war in Ukraine there are no Russian tourists now. We asked one shop keeper what percentage of sales in the past were to Russian tourists and he said it was about 80%.

An old Greek Orthodox Church in Lefkara.

Inside the old Church.

Elisabeth looking.

The girls, including Sheila, enjoying a playground in Lefkara.

The blue door of a more modern church in Lefkara.

Helen, who never holds still, was doing a handstand outside the church.

Katie in a tree outside the church.

The view from the church yard.

The last time we were in Cyprus, grandson Jacob took Rob and I for a hike up that mountain to Stavrovouni Monastery that is on top of it.

Elisabeth and Sheila looking in the windows of an old building in need of repair.

The shop where Katie bought her ear rings.

Katie outside another church.

Looking inside the church.

One of the many picturesque narrow streets in Lefkara.

Another narrow street.

Back in Larnaca at the sea front - a remembrance of Ukraine.

This building is referred to as "the castle" and is along the sea front walk.

Looking back from the castle to the hotels and beach.

Here is Lukas making won tons - a family tradition that now spans 3 generations.

When our oldest son Scott was in the second grade he came home from school a few weeks before Thanksgiving and announced that his class was having a Thanksgiving feast and everyone was to bring something that was traditional for Thanksgiving in their family. I asked what he planned to bring and he said, "won tons!" I told him that wasn't a Thanksgiving tradition, but he was insistent that he would bring won tons. I had been making many won tons over the past couple of days for a Chinese themed dinner at our church and he really liked them. We made won tons for his class and have had them every year since for appetizers at Thanksgiving, and our children and now grandchildren continue making won tons, even if it's not Thanksgiving.

Jörn has a studio only about a five minute walk from their house where he does his painting, holds classes and meetings. We walked there with him one day to see where he works and to see his beautiful art.

A lion painted by Jörn.

A painting in prayer for Ukraine.

This was our first trip to Cyprus since Sheila and Jörn bought their house. They used to live a very short distance from the Salt Lake and its beautiful nature trail where the family regularly walked. That's one thing they miss about their old location, though now they are in walking distance to most of their activities so it is more convenient. Sheila still walks to the nature trail a few times a week with her friend Sue and I joined them several times while we were visiting.

Sheila and Sue with an ancient aqueduct behind them.

Those are flamingos in the Salt Lake

The Muslim mosque of Hala Sultan which is located on the west bank of the Salt Lake.

This is among one of the most important holy places of Islam. Rob and I have visited it on a previous trip to Cyprus, but this time the closest I got was across the lake.

Another view looking across the Salt Lake to a mountain beyond where Stavrovouni Monastery is.

Each morning while in Cyprus I would get up early and usually go for a walk to the sea front if I wasn't joining Sheila and Sue to walk at the Salt Lake. On the mornings when Sheila didn't walk with Sue she joined other friends to swim in the sea - I joined them one morning, but it was just a bit too cold to my liking.

One morning I walked into the old part of Larnaca.

Here is the Church of Saint Lazarus in the old part of Cyprus.

Lazarus, who was raised from the dead by Jesus, is believed to have spent the last 30 years of his life in Cyprus where he is buried beneath this church. I walked by this Greek Orthodox Church on Orthodox Good Friday, this year the week after our western Good Friday.

Looking inside the Lazarus Church during a service.

The new is mixed with the old in Larnaca.

This brightly painted apartment building (or is it a hotel?) was a good landmark to help me find my way to and from our house. I'm afraid many of the streets and landmarks look too much alike and I did get a little disoriented on my first walk alone back from the sea front.

Sue and Richard Fairhead are close friends of Sheila and Jörn and their family, and we saw them frequently while we were in Larnaca. Richard loves to sail and to share his sailboat Liza with others. I was delighted to go sailing with Richard, Sheila and Lukas one day. Rob is not at all fond of water, so he stayed home. It was a beautiful day to sail, but the winds died down for our return trip to the harbor so we had to motor back.

Richard at the helm.

Mediterranean blue.

Our biggest outing with the whole family, that required two cars, was to the Greco-Roman Kourion Amphiteatre near Limassol, about an hour drive west of Larnaca along the coast. The amphitheater is situated in a sprawling archeological site in a beautiful location over looking the sea. It is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site, of which there are several on the island of Cyprus.

The theater where performances are held seasonally.

Looking down from the top.

Helen, Elisabeth and Katie posing on the side of the theater.

Flowers growing amongst the crumbling structure.

The cover over an excavated house that overlooks the sea.

A mosaic floor in the house.

Part of a mosaic floor in the ruins of another building.

A column amongst the ruins.

Rob amongst the ruins.

More ruins - there are actually lots and lots of ruins all over Cyprus, but this site was especially beautiful because of its location above the sea.

Flowers near the entrance to the Kourion site.

After leaving Kourion we headed to the nearby Kolossi Castle where we found a traditional Cypriot restaurant for lunch.

This little chapel was in the outdoor seating area where we ate.

Lukas in front of Kolossi Castle.

A painting inside the castle.

After our visit to the castle we headed further west to Aphrodites Rock, a beautiful beach on the Mediterranean. Only Elisabeth ventured into the water, it was just too cold for the rest of us.

Beautiful blue water, but the wind was cold.

See them on top of the rock?

There they are!

Elisabeth coming out of the sea.

Sheila and me on the beach.

Kouris Dam where we stopped to look at on the way back to Larnaca.

Jacob returned from Maine the week before we were to leave Cyprus. He wanted to spend some time with us so scheduled a surprise outing for us the day after he returned. Early Friday morning, April 29, we headed east from Larnaca with our first destination being a sculpture and cactus garden at Aiya Napa, a resort town known for its beaches. The sculptures were created by artists from various countries. We did see one sculpture from the U.S., but most were made by middle eastern, Asian, eastern European and especially Russian and Ukranian artists. It was a bit poignant to see so many sculptures created by Russians and Ukranians, the most by any of the countries represented. Following are just a few of the pictures I captured in the garden.

Entrance to the park.

"Quan Sihua" - China

"Poseidon" - Ukraine

Jacob and Rob in front of a rare metal sculpture.

This one was missing identification.

Created by a Cypriot artist.

"The Rock and Its History" - Cyprus.

This one does not show up well in the picture, but it was a unique depiction of Cypriot history done with ceramic inlays in the rock.

One of the cactus - we focused more on the sculptures this visit.

"Trojan Horse" - Iran

Jacob adding to a do it yourself rock cairn in the park.

The Plaque on this one was not very readable.

No plaque on these sails.

Another unidentified statue.

After leaving the Sculptures we found a local cafe for lunch and then headed to our next adventure where Jacob had rented a boat for two hours so we could view the beautiful Cape Greco coastline from the sea. Rob is not a fan of water, rarely swims, opts out of sailing or kayaking, but riding in a boat that is going some where was much to his liking. The water of the Mediterranean was beautiful for our excursion.

Walking out to the boat - this floating dock was my biggest challenge.

Jacob and Rob with the Cape Greco cliffs behind.

The cliffs of Cape Greco where some of our grandchildren, and our daughter Erin, have jumped off of.

The beautiful, clear water.

A shrine in the rocks.

Close up of the shrine.

A chapel on the rocks.

A lighthouse

Here is the Sculpture garden as viewed from the boat.

Every summer Sheila's family vacations for a week in the Troodos mountains less than a two hour drive west and then north from Larnaca. Sheila always finds places to hike near their location, but has wanted to hike the Atalante Trail near Troodos Square at the top of the mountains. The trail is a 14 kilometer (8.7 miles) loop (though many sources call it 12 kilometers). Sheila knew I would be happy to hike with her and we invited any of the rest of the family who wanted to join us. Rob has been to the Troodos region before and really didn't want to hike that far, nor did Jörn or Elisabeth, but Lukas, Katie and Helen were up for the adventure so early, but not as early nor as late as we had discussed, on Saturday, April 30, the five of us headed off.

Looking at the mountains as we stopped along the drive.

Helen, Sheila, Katie, me and Lukas ready to begin.

Coming down the trail.

It felt and smelled a lot like the California Sierras, and the elevation, just over 6,000 feet was very similar to Lake Tahoe.

The trail and scenery were beautiful,

but sadly there was too much dust in the air to see clearly at a distance.

A beautiful tree "skeleton."

A patch of snow by the entrance to an old mine.

A tree labeled as 800 years old, but we don't know when the sign was placed.

We don't know what this huge building below us was.

Looking up at a ski run at the top of the mountain - not enough snow to be open long or every year even.

On the way up to the end of the trail.

Driving back we stopped at this small chapel on a hill next to our route.

Katie and Helen looking at the ceiling inside the chapel.

The ceiling.

I recognized this plant as Redbud immediately.

It looked just like the Redbud that is prolific in the Sierra foothills. I looked it up on good old Google and found there are many species of this growing in various parts of the world.

These rags, but mostly masks, were tied on this tree and fence next to the Chapel.

They probably represent prayers - Sheila thought perhaps related to COVID because of the many masks - but I thought maybe there are so many masks because that is what people had available to tie.

Our next stop along the alternate way home was at a Kykkos Monastery built in the 1950s.

Beautiful mosaics at the entrance.

The bell tower above the monastery.

A mosaic inside depicting Noah's Ark and the Great Flood.

The name in Greek with dates of construction.

Not far above the monastery, and we presume on the same property, was a huge memorial to the first president of Cyprus, Archbishop Makarios III. He is buried there at the end of a long path leading up to and down from a chapel in his honor. Apparently, from the history we learned, he was a humble man and would never have wanted such a monument constructed, but he was much beloved and represents a very important part of Cypriot modern history.

Statue of Archbishop and President Makarios III that was at the beginning of the mosaic lined walk.

Beautiful mosaics lined the long walk to the chapel.

The chapel at the top.

View across the mountains from near the chapel - lots of dust in the air.

Sheila and Helen looking at the burial place of Archbishop Makarios III.

Our last few days in Cyprus included going to church with the family on Sunday, eating out at a Meze Restaurant nearby, visiting a museum of antiquity just a couple of blocks from the house, celebrating Jörn's birthday a couple of days early, walking along the sea, and of course playing lots of board games

A Labor Day parade that went by in the street just as we were leaving worship.

May 1, is Labor Day in Cyprus and a national holiday.

There were many groups of students marching and playing mostly drums.

A game being played Sunday afternoon, May 1 - does Jacob look a little tired?

A still jet-lagged Jacob not long after the game ended.

Lukas handling three barbecues for Jörn's birthday lunch on Tuesday, May 3.

Jörn being feted 4 days early.

In the U.S. we often celebrate birthdays near the actual date, but for a German, as Jörn is, it is highly unusual to vary from the actual date, but since we wouldn't be there on his birthday, May 7, Jörn conceded the rigorous keeping of the date.

Early sun at the sea front onWednesday, May 4, the day Rob and I would fly back to San Francisco.

The sun shining behind the makeshift monument to Ukraine.

There was time for one last game before heading to the airport.

Leaving Cyprus, not knowing when we will return.

Hopefully the next time travel will not be quite so complicated!

I had booked Rob and I separately because I was arriving in Cyprus from Copenhagen and he was coming directly from San Francisco so it was not possible to book us on the same flights home. Rob was flying United Airlines through Frankfurt, Germany and I was flying Qatar airlines through Doha, Qatar. We both had overnight layovers and had learned that it was possible to find a bench, or in my case a reclined chair, where we could possibly sleep in our respective airports.

About to land at Doha.

The reclined chairs available to sleep in the Doha airport.

It was a fairly comfortable place to rest for the night, though not very dark, nor very quiet.

This picture does not show the immensity of this Giant yellow bear in the center hub of the airport.

The decor was definitely different than my western self is used to, but I highly recommend Qatar Airlines for travel - more leg room in the cheapest economy seats than other airlines, wonderful staff, and good and full meals on all legs of my journey.

One of several play structures in the Doha Airport.

About to leave Doha on the morning of May 5.

Though Rob and I were coming from different countries on different airlines we arrived within a couple of hours of each other in San Francisco. For all of our life together when we have flown from and to San Francisco we have left our car in San Bruno at the house Rob grew up in, but we can no longer do that as Rob and his sister sold the house this spring - Escrow closed just days after our return from Europe - so we left our car in Colfax. Rob had of course driven me to the airport in early April because I was flying 10 days ahead of him. He took Cal Train to Richmond the day before he was to fly, stayed with our son Shawn and then Shawn took Rob to the airport in San Francisco. On our return Rob and I took BART to Richmond where Shawn picked us up and we spent the night, and then Friday morning May 6, Shawn took us back to the Bart/Amtrak station and we took the Amtrak train to Colfax where Ruth picked us up. It was not nearly as convenient as leaving the car in San Bruno, but it was not a bad way to travel home and we didn't have to worry about driving under the influence of Jet Lag, and we got to spend the evening with son Shawn and granddaughters Sophia and Naomi.

Shawn's car in front of his Richmond home where he is running for Mayor!

We would only have two nights in Colfax before flying to Arizona with daughter Ruth and granddaughter Avienda to celebrate Ruth's graduation with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering Degree from Arizona State University, but that story will be told in my next blog.