Lania, Cyprus

Today's road trip started when, while cruising the internet, I read about a village that was described as "surrounded by Almond trees". I thought that would be a nice thing to see and on talking to the Wednesday walking group, heard all sorts of village recommendations. The only one I could remember was Lania which was supposed to be an "artists village". So I put the name into the GPS on my phone, this morning, and traveled the "51 minutes", taking the highway to Limassol and turning North towards Troodos.

Right at the entrance to the village was a huge parking lot with just one other car, modern toilets (open!) and signs about the wine routes. Lania is a Commanderia producing village. The 14 villages that produce this wine are all at 500-800 metres above sea level. The vines are grown in shallow soil, on steep inclines with high percentages of calcium carbonate and are therefor not as productive as the vineyards around Paphos. Lania is said to be named after the daughter of Dionysos (the God of wine)

Commanaria is an amber-coloured sweet dessert wine made in the Commandaria region of Cyprus on the foothills of the Troödos mountains. Commandaria is made from sun-dried grapes of the varieties Xynisteri and Mavro. While often a fortified wine, through its production method it often reaches high alcohol levels, around 15%, already before fortification. It represents an ancient wine style documented in Cyprus back to 800 BC and has the distinction of being the world's oldest named wine still in production, with the name Commandaria dating back to the crusades in the 12th century.From Wikipedia.

Stone wall and plants on the road going into the village.

I had to take a picture. The house was being built like a Canadian house; "stick construction" rather than the cement construction that I have seen all over Cyprus.

I walked around the village, which was pretty well deserted on a grey day in February. There were even very few cats.

This olive tree still had olives on the branches, unusual, hadn't been picked or fallen off.

It is a very attractive village, small, mostly stone houses, with courtyards and lots of plants.

The main roads are paved but many of the smaller roads are cobblestone.

Scattered around the village are large photograph banners attached to walls. A different kind of "street art". Most of them seem to depict village life in previous years.

The village lists 4 art galleries and I found all 4 of them. Unfortunately only one was open and I was alone in Michael Owens gallery, in a stone building beside his pretty stone home. Link to Michael Owen's art.

Lots of little alley ways to explore.

The stone church in the centre

Had an exterior rope to ring the bell that looked disturbingly like a noose.

This may be the olive tree I paint. Its in the running.

Just quirky

More quirky

Very quirky!

Cat and a stone reflection.

This building housed

the last remaining wine press in the village (there had been 20)

and a description of how the red grapes are laid on the roof for the sun to dry (intensifying the sweetness). They are then dropped through the roof into the vat and the corkscrew is turned to press the grapes. The juice runs into the pot below.

This building had another museum like room with terra cotta pots and smaller wine presses.

Also, the, unmanned, village library.

I had seen a couple of open, but empty, tavernas in the village but walked up to the one closest to the car, Lania Taverna.

I had the best "Village Salad" that I have had yet. Dark green lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, yellow pepper, feta cheese sprinkled with herbs, all in a light oil and vinegar dressing. I also ordered tahini, bread and olives, a glass of tap water and a glass of red wine. When I asked for the bill the waiter bought it with a piece of orange cake, "one the house". All of that was 10.50 ( about $15). The waiter said that the village would get busier in March and the artists studios would be open then. I was just a few days to early. I may come back when I next have the car and I am sure it would look even prettier on a sunny day.
I didn't go to the village surrounded by almond trees but it was pointed out on the walk yesterday that all the hill villages are surrounded by Almond trees. I also noticed in Lania that many of the Almond trees had dropped most of their blossoms, maybe the wind.