Long Time
I’d been trying to interview my good friend Yiannis, or Mr. John as he’s known to his friends, for ages. Finally, I bumped into him by accident, and I asked if I could join him on his tour to Famagusta? He said, “Anytime!”. I let my curiosity get the better of me, so I invited him for coffee and asked him a few more questions.
Every Corner
I couldn’t resist, so I started with, ‘So John, tell me about the old days’… As he replied, his voice became a bit more emotional. “I was born in 1959 in the general hospital, which is now a college, I’ll show you on our trip. My family were producers of Strawberries in the neighbouring red soil village of Dherynia. I grew up in the old city of Famagusta, or Varrossia as it was known. I went to school there, I’ll show you that too. I knew every road and every corner, every shop and every hotel”.
Rich & Famous
I wanted to know more; ‘So you saw Famagusta go from thriving city to ghost town’? … John said “I watched it grow into a prospourous cosmopolitan city, they called it the Monte Carlo of the eastern Mediterranean, where stars like Sofia Lauren, Elizabeth Taylor, Brigitte Bardot, Paul Newman and Richard Burton holidayed, to mention but a few of the world’s rich and famous”.
Lost Everything
John continued, “In August 1974, when Turkey invaded Cyprus, we evacuated our homes and our land expecting to go back in a few days, so we literally left everything behind, at the time, I was fifteen and a half” … I must say, I could tell that this guys’ knowledge of Famagusta and the surrounding areas are exceptional, and that I was in for an interesting trip.
Just Curious
I then asked him what made him start this Famagusta Tour? He said, “When they opened the border in 2008, I went on a couple of coach trips and was disappointed, so I thought I’d do it my way” … The conversation got deeper, so I won’t tell you too much more as I don’t want to spoil it for you when you go.
Let’s Go
The trip starts at 8 am outside McDonald’s in Protaras, narrating as he drives, John explains how the area of Protaras grew after the invasion. They call them ‘Rich Farmers and Fishermen’. Because if you owned land on the sea, you were probably a fishing family, and if your land was inland, benefiting from the rich red soil we boast in this area, you were a farmer, John explains, “as there was nothing else in this area 51 years ago”.
Village Hopping
John takes you via Dherynia village, where he stops as good as on ‘no man’s land’ to show you where his house and land were and tells the story behind ‘One Cigarette Road’… and so the story begins, covering in amazing detail the history, from before his birth to 1974 and up to the present. He continues his narration as we drove through Frenaros village to Ayios Nicholaous British Base in Vrissoulles, where we had to show our passports to cross the border into our own country, or the now known ‘Northern occupied side of Cyprus’, only officially recognised by Istanbul.
Nice Touch
At this point, we picked up our assistant guide, ‘Ahmed’, who was also born in Cyprus, but of Turkish Cypriot descent, who joins in with the narration, complementing the tour. As we headed down the old Kennedy Avenue into Famagusta, the story gets more infatuating, and John and Ahmed obviously know their stuff!
Delapitated
As we drove through Varrosia, John explained how Famagusta is now divided into three areas. The first, on our left, is the empty, abandoned homes, fenced off, dilapidated churches, houses of many different sizes, their gardens winning the war against nature, looking more like a jungle than a neighbourhood. The other side of the road, all alive and kicking, it’s weird?
5 Miles
And then we parked up by the King George Hotel and walked down to the start of the empty hotels that run along 5 Mile Beach, all the way to the UN buffer zone in Dherynia where today’s story started … and as I said, ‘I don’t want to tell you the whole story, because John and Ahmed tell it much better than me.
Overall
I thought the trip was very informative and interesting, to say the least, an eye opener into what still seems to be a tragedy that time just pushed aside as irreparable and then just forgot to solve. After a spin around the old city walls, we go into the centre, where you also get an hour and a half to walk around the city on your own or join John and Ahmed for lunch in one of their favourite restaurants in Famagusta town.
Transport & Tours
John has a few fully air-conditioned buses of varying sizes, but usually chooses the 22 Seater for the tour, generally guiding nice small groups. Naturally, he extends that service to airport transfers for big groups and can arrange private tours to Famagusta and even The Troodos Mountains, Toombes of the Kings, or wherever you want to go, by special request.
Reviews
Mr. John’s story is quite unique; his tour adds a personal touch to the history of a city that time forgot, receiving a certificate of excellence for 12 consecutive years, and if you check out his reviews on TripAdvisor you’ll understand just how passionate this guy is about his hometown … Booking is easy via his website or just give him a call … oh, and don’t forget your passport, and your camera!
Open All Year
Daily: 8 am ’til 2 pm ‘ish
Directions
You’ll find Mr. John waiting outside McDonald’s at the top of the strip in Protaras every morning … But he’ll also pick you up by prior arrangement before 8 am. If you want a chat with him before you go, you’ll find him outside Mandali Hotel and Tsokkos Protaras Hotel, turning off the main strip by Wave’s Cocktail Bar, Protaras … Click on the Google Map below …
GPS: 35°01’04.0″N 34°02’49.8″E
