Last Updated on 29/12/2023 by kami
Getting from Larnaca to Limassol was extremely easy. There were cheap and frequent intercity buses and within one hour I was already in the other city. However getting to the ancient Kourion was slightly more complicated. There was a city bus going there but every person I asked told me the different number of the bus, the different time and the different place of the departure. When I finally found the right bus station (on the driveway of the local hospital, go figure!) and saw the bus with the number that was twice in all the suggestions I’ve heard before I tried to ask the driver if he was going to the Kourion. He was this typical Mediterranean macho type, with his chest hair seen through his unbuttoned shirt and with the cigarette in his mouth. He couldn’t speak much English but what we managed to communicate was that actually he is not going to Kourion but he can as well go there this time. I thought I didn’t understand something but he insisted for me and my friends to get it and off we went.
The bus ride first lead through the suburbs of Limassol that was mostly under construction thanks to European Union funds. Eventually we arrived to the small park with the tiny church in it and nothing else to be seen around. The driver stopped the bus and showed us it’s the end of this journey. When I asked him when the archeological site is he just waved in one direction, closed the bus door and the bus departed. We were left there, in the middle of nowhere, with not much idea where to go… Fortunately the first path we took was the correct one, soon we found ourselves on the road that reminded me so much of the road that lead to Uplistsikhe in Georgia. And then, around the corner was the entrance to the ancient complex.
What I knew about the ancient Kourion before the visit? I read only about the Greco-Roman theater with the amazing view to the Mediterranean coast. I was really surprised and happy that there is so much more to see in that complex! The ancient city was founded around 14th century BC but its best times were during the Roman Empire. After the massive earthquake in the year 365 the city has lagged and never returned to its previous condition, eventually in the 7th century it was abandoned by its citizens…
These days the ancient Kourion is a fairly big area full of ruins(well, duh!) from these old times. Besides the theater that is still in a pretty good condition, there are also parts of old houses, Roman baths, the stadium and the basilica. At the very end there is also the House of Gladiators with extremely interesting mosaics.
I expected to spend maybe one hour there but it actually took me 3 hours to walk around, explore every single piece of ruins and admire the wonderful view. I’ve never expected to enjoy the ancient site so very much. It was really interesting to see in the real life all these ancient styles that I’ve learned about in school. My mind was full of images how the life back in ancient time must have looked like there, of pictures how people spent each day there, how different it was from what we are used to right now. There were gladiators, nymphs, wenches… it all seemed like a fairytale to me! I know I could have easily spent even more time there but the time to catch the last bus from Limassol to Larnaca was slowly approaching… (and the journey back to the city was a similar adventure, we had to walk to the nearby village as the next bus was supposed to leave Kourion in 2 hours… but these few days in Cyprus has taught me not to believe any schedules)
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Thanks to this visit my new interest in ancient sites was born and I truly hope I’ll have a chance to visit more of these complexes soon. I’ve never expected them to be that very fascinating!
Have you visit any ancient sites? Do they fascinate you too?
If you think of visiting Cyprus or just want to read more about the country take a look what else I wrote about it!
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4 Comments
Stan H
30/03/2020 at 15:37Hello Kami – Thank you for this post. I have a few questions. Do you know if there are any group tours from Larnaca to Kourion? Any guide options once you get there. Also, did you go to North Cyprus (now belonging to Turkey)? Best, Stan (P.S. As regards your question, there are a lot of Roman ruins in Southern France – very impressive, too, found in Nimes, Arles and Orange. They are very interesting.
kami
05/05/2020 at 08:12Hi Stan, there are indeed tours from Larnaca to Kourion and I honestly would recommend joining one, it’s so much easier than figuring out the public transport! I was only in the northern part of Nicosia but I would love to visit more areas of Northern Cyprus, it seems like a fascinating place!
To be honest I don’t know France as well as I would like, I’m planning to travel there more in future as there are still so many great places to see!
haparoiden
15/04/2020 at 11:26There are a few stops in Limassol when you can enter the bus to Kourion, though I also had to find the right way on my own after leaving the bus. I agree that it’s a beautiful place, definitely worth visiting.
kami
05/05/2020 at 08:38I’m glad you enjoyed it too! :)