Kykkos Monastery

Cyprus is overflowing with churches, monasteries, and chapels.  I visited the Kykkos Monastery in Pedoulas, Cyprus.  It was a beautiful monastery built in the 11th century, but which has burned down many times with many invasions.   The Cypriot government has rebuilt it, and it is now the wealthiest monastery on the island.  Monks live there full time, and there is gold and silver everywhere. 

View of the Med from the mountaintop

A biblical passage immortalized in mosaics- but which Bible story
has a dragon???

main monastery, with small chapel on the hillside

Limassol wine festival

Every year, there is a huge wine festival in Limassol.  Entry is 5 Euro, which includes unlimited wine tasting from a lot of Cypriot wineries.  And by tastings, I mean 1/2 glasses.  It's dangerous, although at least there is a lot of great food to help sop up the alcohol.  At the festival, you can buy a cheap plastic jug, which has unlimited free refills.  The jug wine isn't the best quality, but it's basically free.

I went with some friends, and had a great night.  We stayed by the beach, and had a lovely time the day after the festival as well.

Welcome to the festival!

This is the plastic bottle which costs 3 Euro.  You can
refill it, FOR FREE, as many times as you want during
the festival

Me, Laramie, Tanya, Chelsea

At the beach the next day for some down time

Croatia

40 is a big birthday.  I wanted a big trip to celebrate this big birthday, and a big trip we had.  15 days in Croatia, four women, three cities, 5 boat days, and lots of wine tastings.  

view of the coast from our mini-cruise ship

The Plitvice Lakes

Wine tasting at Endivo Winery with Jewel, Amanda, me, Eleni
 (after 10 shots, I was done posing with my drink)

Split alleys

at the Plitvice Lakes

The Old City of Dubrovnik

Old City- the yellow roofs are originals, the orange roofs are buildings
that were damaged or destroyed during the Siege of Dubrovnik in 1991

Summer 2017

I saw so many friends this summer, as well as a tractor parade (!) in Slovakia and joined in a healthcare rally with Indivisible, Women's March, and lots of other partners.  

where are the flags?

Jewel, Amanda, Me (eager to drin), and Eleni at the Endivo Winery in Croatia

A healthcare rally at the Daley Center- #RESIST

The A-Team at Chris and Ashley's wedding

lunch with Kerry, one of my first friends to go into the expat lifestyle

Museum of Surgical Science with Tara, Craig, and Joseph Lister

Weird modern art in NY with Jen and Beth

The AUA, in Deer Valley, at yet another meal

spring in Cyprus

10th century Lusiniginian castle

chamber concert in a 10th century medieval castle

Protaras boat day

Nicosia farmers market

Lebanon

Lebanon is a 28 minute flight from Cyprus.  Some friends and I flew there for a three day weekend, and had a great time.  I visited Ba'alback, an amazing set of ruins with the Temples of Bacchus and Zeus.  I walked all over Beirut, eating good food, visiting awesome free museums, and generally being fascinated by Lebanon.

Ummayid trading town of An'jar

palace of the leader of An'jar

at Ba'alback, in front of columns of imported marble

The Roman ruins at Ba'alback were incredibly intact and impressive

The Corniche, a lovely seaside promenade in Beirut

a beautiful Roman mosaic (notice the bullet hole in the
lower left from the civil war in the 70s)

the prettiest donerkabob ever

Brains.  The middle row is tiny brains.

Pidgeon Rock on the Corniche

everything that came with my kebabs- salt/pepper/
mustard/toothpick/gum (lots of garlic in Lebanon)

I almost bought a Hezbollah t-shirt to wear the next time I go through US Customs, but it's probably not the year to be a smartass with US Customs.  

Cypriot roadblock

The orange truck took the roundabout too quickly, and citrus spilled everywhere.  This is the most Cypriot thing ever- a bunch of oranges in a roundabout while no one honks.

Hala Sultan Tekke Mosque

"On the shore of the Salt Lake, two kilometers from the city of Larnaca, lies the Hala Sultan Tekke, a significant monument with its minaret and dome soaring amid eucalyptuses, cypresses and, mostly, palm trees, a truly unique spot. Cypriot Muslims consider it as the third most revered monument in the world, after Ka’aba in Mecca and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina.  In accordance with the Muslim tradition, especially in the Arab world, one of the prerequisites for a Muslim to be considered ready to enter Paradise is to visit the following four holy places: the Ka’aba in Mecca, the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina, the Hala Sultan Tekke in Larnaca, and the Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. "

How many cats do you count??