For my research I needed to take a trip to the archaeological site in Paphos, on the west coast of Cyprus. It seemed to make the most sense to spend the night to ensure that I had sufficient time to see the site, as there are few buses running between the two cities, so I booked a hotel near the beach. I got up early to catch the 8:30 bus to Paphos, and slept for almost the entirety of the 2 hour ride. Once in the city, I took a taxi to my hotel; it wasn’t possible to check in yet, so I left my bag and went to the nearby bus stop hoping to take the city bus to the archaeological museum. I had checked the schedule before I left and it looked like the bus was supposed to come every 40 minutes. After waiting nearly an hour (and baking in the sun), I gave up and decided to do something else (later I realized that this particular bus runs in the morning and then stops a while before resuming in the afternoon). Instead, I walked toward the sea to take some photos and then on to Paphos Castle. Paphos is a pretty typical seaside resort town, filled with sunburned British tourists and pubs offering fish and chips. All along the seaside were vendors offering fishing trips, hair braiding, helicopter rides, and boat tours. Next were the seafood restaurants and finally the souvenir stands. I managed to avoid the sales pitches and got to the castle, where I paid the small admission fee that entitled me to climb to the top. It’s not a very big castle, but there was still a nice view of the sea and harbor with rolling hills beyond.
After visiting the castle I returned to the hotel and was able to check in. The room was fine; it is an apartment hotel so there is a kitchenette, sitting area with balcony, and a separate bedroom. The balcony and bedroom window overlook the pool, which was nice since I hadn’t paid extra for a pool view. The décor is pretty shabby and the kitchenette doesn’t seem to have been updated in 40 years or so, but I can’t complain because it was the cheapest hotel on Expedia. I took a quick shower and left for the archaeological site, which was back in the direction of the castle. On the way I stopped at a supermarket and grabbed a sandwich, a bottle of water, and a Mars bar for lunch. I love Mars bars. My letter from the Department of Antiquities got me into the site for free and I spent about three hours looking at the Roman houses. Most of the walls have long since been removed for building material, but the mosaic pavements of the houses survive, and they are exquisite. Unlike the houses in Tunisia, here most of the mosaics have been left in situ, which is nice because they are on floors rather than walls and thus it is possible to see them the way they were meant to be seen. The most elaborate house is the House of Dionysos, which has several mosaic floors. They are covered by a roof and elevated walkways allow you to see them all without damaging them. The site is not very well marked, so I have a feeling I missed a few things, but I definitely saw all the houses, which was the point of my visit. I also saw the odeon and agora as well as the ruins of the 12thcentury Saranta Kolones fortress. After the heat of the archaeological site (and a bit of a sunburn), it was so nice to spend some time in the pool.
The next morning I got up early and visited the ruins of the Hrysopolitissa Basilica, which were mostly blocked off for some sort of construction work, Agia Kyriaki church, and Agia Solomoni, a strange catacomb over which people tie rags as votive offerings. It was a good visit, though I didn’t ever make it to the archaeological museum, and it was nice to visit a new city.
there & back again 
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