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[old wrinkly]

My wife and I, together with two friends are due to stay in Kato Paphos from 2 Feb to 31 Mar inclusive.

We have a number of questions regarding our visit.

Weather

We know it's still Winter but what is the weather likely to be like during our stay. What sort of temperatures can we expect both during the day and at night (ladies need to know what to pack God bless them) and how many hours of sunshine on average.

Which is the best site for checking the weather.

Internet

The property we are renting doesn't have the telphone active.

I've just bought myself a laptop and was wondering if it would be worth taking it.

My UK ISP doesn't have Wi-Fi access in Cyprus.

I understand there are some Internet Cafes in the Paphos area but don't know if I can use my laptop to connect or would be best just to use their terminals. I only really want to check/send email from time to time.


Supermarkets

Is there a map available showing the location of Supermarkets in the Kato Paphos area

Restaurants

Are there likely to be many restaurants open. What sort of prices can we expect.

Petrol

How much is petrol.

ATMs

I'm going to take some cash with me butonce that's gone I will need to get cash from an ATM using my UK switch card. Are there many ATMs in the area and are there any restrictions etc. we should be aware of.

Hope you can help.

Thanks

[Svetlana]

It is our rainy season, so you can expect occasional sub-tropical downpours; temperature 16C maximum 9C minimum; usually a few hours of sunshine each day, sometimes all day. Sweater and umbrella required but not a mac.

I know of no WiFi hotspots in Paphos, though there are several internet cafes; depends if you want to lug your laptop over!

You will have no problem finding the supermarkets.

Most restaurants will be open; you will be spoilt for choice; Paphos is the fast arriivng restaurant centre of Cyprus.

I was out on saturday night: dinner for two with soft drinks CY16 pounds, say Sterling 20 pounds, sitting by a crackling log fire! You can spend much more of course, but away form the tourist haunts, you need not.

Petrol 50c a litre, say 60p

ATMs loads.

I was out walking without a sweater/jacket yesterday aftrenoon for a couple of hours, about 16C I would guess.

Lana

[old wrinkly]

Thanks for the info Svetlana.

Looks like I might as well leave the laptop at home!

The last time my wife and I stayed in Paphos was May 1995 (we were in an apartment not far from the main road that runs along the beach near a large church), our friends have never been. When we were there they were just developing restaurants etc. along the road toward Coral Bay. No doubt now it's much changed. We were told at that time there were in excess of 1000 restaurants in Paphos.

Interested in the price of the meal you quoted although we would most likely have a beer or bottle of wine rather than a soft drink. Was that for a two course meal or just main? Incidentally, are the police hot on drink driving and what's the limit?

We will have a car so have you any suggestions for nice, but not too expensive restaurants, suitable for four old wrinklies that are in the vicinity (don't want to drive miles/kms)! Especially interested to find a nice fish restaurant or two.

Also, would your dress suggestions apply to us or do you think we need something warmer to wear during the day seeing that we are that bit older. No doubt it feels warmer in the sunshine and we might, if we are lucky, get some warmer days?

I want to go to Ayia Napia and my wife and I went to Aphrodites Grotto(?) before but it didn't make us younger!

Any suggestions for other places to visit.

[Svetlana]

You stayed near St Geroges Church (and Hotel)

Cost of meals: my companion and I had a meze and could only manage half the dishes! Had we had a bottle of wine instead of soft drinks, it would have come to around CY20 pounds.

If you go to the General Chat Section you will find a current thread on recommended restaurants.

Drink Driving is a national sport here; the alcohol levels for criminal conviction here are higher than in the rest of Europe; the penalty is less than for having a faulty tailpipe on your car. (Quick story: a girl friend was driving with a mail companion on Christmas Day; they were stationary at the lights when they were hit by a car with three drunken young men (Eastern European). My friend felt very threatened by their behavior; after 4 calls to the Police and one hour later, a cop arrived, unsteady on his feet! He wanted to date the accident report the 27th, presumably because of his own steady drinking that day. My friend was just grateful she was not attacked and that the other driver had insurance).

OK so you feel the cold; please wear a vest, shirt/blouse, hat and thick jumper; 9C = 47 degrees of your English Farenheit which is not too bad! Do check you have heating in your accommodation though!

What to see depends upon your interests: snow on the Troodos, the ancient ceramics by the Tomb of the Kings Road, the Curium; there is not a huge amount to see here.

Ayia Nappa is like a ghost town in February - no sex, drugs and Rock 'n Roll, in the winter.

If Aphrodite's Rock failed to make you feel younger, go into any taverna and drink a 1/4 bottle of Zivania; I promise you will no longer feel old -although you will no longer feel anything else either

Lana

[old wrinkly]

Thanks Lana, like meze.

Will take a look at the restaurants thread.

Ayia Napia.....what a shame and there was us thinking we could relive our youth (if only)! Seriously....it's somewhere I often heard mention so thought we'd take a look. We decided to have a car so that we can take a drive around if we feel like it and for wqhen we go to the supermarket. As I said, our friends have never been to Cyprus and wanted to see more of the island other than Paphos.

Will give your suggestion to try a 1/4 bottle of Zivania (why only 1/4 why not 1/2?) . Never heard of it I have to confess, assume it's some kind of spirit.

Fortunately the house we are renting has proper central heating i.e radiators. The agency we rented through said it was better than the combined air conditioning/heating type of units.

I have the name of house but haven't got the actual address although I will be getting that during the next couple of days to leave details with family at home.

I don't expect we will feel the cold that much, it's only 7C here during the day at the moment and 5C at night, but you know what you women are like when it comes to deciding what clothes to take on holiday!!! If I give the other half the wrong info and she takes the wrong type of clothing I'll never hear the last of it.

Can I go back to the laptop/Internet Cafes. I've not had a laptop before and Internet Cafes are not something I've ever used. If I can use the facilities of the internet cafe to connect to the web with my laptop then there may be some justification for bringing it over. If however you can only connect using their terminals then there isn't much point.

Do you know what the situation is in that respect?

Thanks

Chris

PS Just been looking for something and by chance came across the actual address we stayed at before. It was 34 Agapinoros Street-THELMA-COURT. Self catering, not up market but clean and the guy that ran it Andreas Matheou was very friendly.

[Svetlana]

When you have drunk 1/4 bottle of Zivania, you will know why you do not need 1/2 bottle! It is a clear spirit, drunk vodka style, chilled in the fridge and swallowed in one go; though not as nice as Vodka IMO. Usually made from the third pressing of the grape.

You can take your friends to Latsi, which is pretty, then head east as far as the border with the occupied zone, the route is next to the sea and very attractive.

Limassol is worth a visit, reasonable shopping and some good eating places, Nicosia I find disappointing but it is just a matter of taste. If you do go, visit Ledra Street and the border post; why not go across at one of the crossings?

Dont bother with the laptop, just go into the internet cafe and use their PCs.

Lana

[city]

As always, Lana has given the perfect answers!

I just would like to add few details that sprang to mind, not that Lana was missing anything...

Zivania, you can buy it in a supermarket but you can also get it "homemade" in some villages (usually up in the mountains) where it is much stronger. You can also use it for window-cleaning (no joke). Its actually something you would drink after your meal as a digestive.

Ayia Napa, well as Lana said, sort of empty in the winter, many hotels, restaurants, bars etc are closed. Mostly elderly guests. However if you are just curious you may well give it a go so you have at least seen it and there is a very nice paved way along the beach/coast for a lovely walk.
The absence of thousands of tourists bears the opportunity of enjoying/visiting the place in peace and calmness. Not to forget the small old monastery in the centre of Ayia Napa.
Also a nice place for a beautiful walk is around Cape Greco, further down the coastline from Ayia Napa.

[Svetlana]

Uses of Zivania: I picked up my new car a couple of months back and mentioned there was still some protective wax on it; the Dealer promptly produced a bottle of Zivania and cleaned it off!

Home made Zivania = Cypriot Rohypnol! Steer clear of it.

Lana

[old wrinkly]

All comments noted with thanks.

Have now been told that the address is Ptolemaidos Street, Exo Vrisi, Kato Paphos.

Any chance of giving some idea of where that lies in relation to Thelma Court - Agapinoros Street where my wife and I stayed before? I have been trying to find a good online map where I could pinpoint it's location to print and show our friends but no luck so far.

Just thought, have you any idea how long it takes for post from the UK to get to cyprus??

[Agios Amvrosios]

I put Zivania on Mosquito bites