"We went there five years ago," recalls Meir Menahem of the Neot Shiran real estate agency, which is a partner in a group that has invested in northern Cyprus, "and immediately saw the advantages in that part of the island. Prices were very low - just 15 percent of prices for comparable properties in southern Cyprus. We also found that the landscape is different and far more beautiful than in the south. The Karpas mountains that curve toward the coast create a unique geographic landscape."