Troodos
Discover the hidden treasures of Cyprus with its traditional mountain villages, religious sites, and handicrafts.
Today the Troodos Mountains are sheltered on their slopes cozy and picturesque villages that attract tourists from different countries. There you can not only get acquainted with local craftsmen and purchase their products and products, but also enjoy picturesque views, as well as see the preserved in many villages old houses and traditional interior decoration.
In general, Cyprus is an island of pilgrimage, this is the second country after Armenia where Christianity has come. There are more than 500 temples in Cyprus in almost every village, as well as 31 functioning monasteries. In the heart of the island, Kykkos monastery is located. It is widely known among the entire Orthodox Christian world. The monastery is more than a thousand years old, and throughout this time, the walls of the monastery guard a unique icon of the Virgin Mary, painting by the Evangelist Luke. The icon is miraculous, she hears everyone who comes to her for a help. The monastery is also striking with a wealth of architectural style and interior decoration. The holy abode is in the Troodos mountain range, with the highest peak — Mount Olympus. In Cyprus, it is accepted to joke that if the Greek Olympus was a permanent habitat for the gods, then the gods came to us as a dacha, they had a well-deserved summer residence here.
Mountain villages are known for their developed agriculture and folk crafts. For example, KalopanaiOtis breeds fish, Prodromos grows apples, and Pedulas — cherries. Almost all the inhabitants of the village of Omodos make their own home wine, Mutullas makes wooden tubs, and Lefkara village is famous far beyond Cyprus because of unique silverware and «lefkaritika» laces. This village is protected by UNESCO, it retains the traditional Cypriot architecture, all the houses are white under red tile roofs. The village is famous for its needlework, women have been making laces for 600 years already. And men are engaged in the manufacture of silver jewelry in the filigree style. It is a thin silver thread from which air patterns are laid out. In the distant 1481, as the ancient legend tells, in Lefkara was the passage of Leonardo da Vinci. According to legend, he was so delighted with the skill of local embroiderers that as an souvenir he bought an embroidered veil. Later he donated the Lefkaria canvas for the altar of the Milan Cathedral, the canvas is still there. Lefkaritika is an art that is included in UNESCO’s list of intangible values.
