Cyprus-Forum.com

[Agios Amvrosios]

"Wo der Himmel unter die Raeuber faellt" -"Where the heavens are plundered"
By Klaus Gallas, in Frankfurter Allgemeine Magazin. March 30, 1990

"In the Turkish occupied part of Cyprus historical sites of 9,000-year old Cyprus culture have been systematically plundered since the 1974 invasion.

...There are only a few kilometers to the cape, the sacred place of Saint Andreas. Legend has it that in one of his missions here the Apostle pointed out a spring to the ship-crew, who had run out of water. Another legend says that he caused water to come out of rocks. Since the early Christian period, Christians regarded this area as holy - the patron saint of which is Apostle Andreas. His name means 'gallant, manly". In the 15th century the Lusignans built a gothic chapel for the Saint. The present building of the monastery was built in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Before the partition of the island many Greek Orthodox Christians came here on a pilgrimage. Today, the monastery is reminiscent of scenes from a surrealistic film: the large yard of the monastery is grimly empty. Two Turkish "policemen" are waiting to check and take down the personal details of tourists, who dared visit this distant and out of the way area.

Two old women are sitting under the arches surrounded by a large family of cats. The faint sound of a hymn is heard from the church. Four women and three men, all well-advanced in age, are attending mass. The interior of the church is magnificent. Those who did not see the decoration of the church before the war, would not realize that the most valuable icons were stolen from here too. The priest reads the gospel to the scant congregation, in a firm and steady voice. As during the centuries of Ottoman rule, the Greek Orthodox priest becomes today savior and guardian of Greek civilization and tradition. But for how much longer?"