Famagusta

So as usual with more serious or sad blogs I am warning you that this blog is a bit serious and a bit sad. For our last day in Cyprus we went to Famagusta in northern Cyprus. Famagusta was a well-known area as a beach resort before 1974. After 1974 and Turkish troops landed in Cyprus the Greek Cypriots of Famagusta left to go to the south. The area of Famagusta where Greek Cypriots lived is now occupied by the Turkish Military and restricted from the public. The area is sounded by a high chain fence with barbwire at the top. Everything beyond the fence has become overgrown, all along the edge of the fence there are overgrown cacti and thorn bushes. Everything within the fence has not been touched since 1974 and it has all been put into a glass bubble which has allowed it to decay and become taken over. All along the fence are these big red signs with pictures of armed soldiers saying in three different languages, Turkish, Greek, and English all saying this is a “forbidden area.” Famagusta was famous for being a beach resort area before 1974 when Turkish Militia occupied the city.

As you walk along the white sandy beach you are suddenly confronted with a large chain link fence going into the clear blue water. When looking past the fence you see one hotel after another hotel with blacken holes for windows. You could see the exposed elevator shafts of the hotels. It looked like a sense from “Inceptions” as if the hotels were about to crumble into the sea. After visiting the restricted area (which I wish I had pictures of but photography is forbidden) we went to the mass graves of Turkish Cypriots.

Once the Turkish Troops landed Greek Cypriot militia started attacking Turkish civilians. A large number of women and children were separated from the males and brought the dumb and killed then thrown in the pile of trash and covered with a bull dozer. Another site where many were killed was a school house where women and children were brought and killed in cold blood. Walking through the one room school house with desks and chairs that only come up to my knees surrounded by black and white photos of all the children, women, and elderly who were killed facing you was something I cannot explain. After going to these sites we then visited the memorials where the bodies were buried. There was completely silence among the group as we went through looking at ever name and age of the people who were buried there. After that we had a very silent bus ride home.