Europe, The Peace and The Sea

This day might be very loaded, because there are so many exciting places to visit in the Hague! Binnenhof, Vredespaleis, Scheveningen and even more. We live relatively not far from the city centre, thus we decided to walk on foot the whole day. At the start!

On the way to the city centre we stopped near the tall skyscrapers, which are used not only for apartments and offices. Initially, they were built specially for the state ministries.

One of the most popular attractions in the Hague is the Binnenhof. Actually, "Binnenhof" translates into English as the "Inner Court", and it is represented by the complex of buildings, which were originally built as part of the count’s castle, as private residences and guild houses. Currently it houses the meeting chambers of Parliament and the offices of the Prime Minister. It is an interesting fact, that the Hague is the administrative capital of the country and the home of the court and government, but Amsterdam is the official capital.

Also known as the City of Peace and Justice, the Hague is the home to the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration. These international institutes seat in the imposing building of Peace Palace, which is located to the North-West of the Binnehof (about 2.5 kilometres).

Other 5 kilometres, and we are on the seashore. I wonder, if people can swim here. I think, that it is not a coincidence that the sea is called The North, and it might be very cold here.

In Summer this place may offer the numerous seaside attractions such as sunbathing, festivals, watching fishing boats and seeing the sun. However, currently we can afford only strolling along the pier and making the imposing photos.

The way back we did not want to make on foot, so we decided to take the tram. A day ticket costs 6,5 euro, and it can be obtained on board.

Due to the fact that we have a day ticket we decided to visit the small town Delft, which is easily accessible by tram (only 20 minutes from the central station).

Delft is well known for the famous ceramic Delftware, as well as for its large university and for being the home of the painter Johannes Vermeer. 

Gothic churches, narrow canal-lined streets and picturesque squares are presented in Delft in a great number. Walking around the city is very enjoyable, because the centre is compact, and it is mainly closed to the cars.

Museum Prinsenhof allows to experience the rich history of Delft, and the Netherlands in general. The museum is located right at the town centre, in the unique historical building and the former court of William of Orange. So, we could not but visit this remarkable place.

The museum has a large and varied collection of paintings, earthenware, implements, and it is supported with the multimedia stuff. The highlights include unique masterpieces of Delft Blue, which eventually has become a global icon.

Extremely busy day! But I am willing to absorb even more impressions.

Cyprus, Handicraft

Today I travel with Ruslan Travel company. We are going to visit some villages in the area of Paphos. Actually, I was the first person who joined the trip, so I was able to choose the best place in the bus. By the way, it was a minibus because of the extremely narrow streets, which do not let to get to these villages easily and to cover all the places by a big transport.

The excursion was bilingual, and there were the English and Russian people on board. So, we had two guides who spoke English and Russian, but I could understand both of them, and that is why I learned the given information very well.

These days, the inhabitants speak Greek on the island. However, they have their own dialect.
The first word in Greek, which I have learned here, was 'Kalimere' or 'Good Morning'. I used this greeting all the time during our excursion when meeting local people.

The first place, which we visited during our trip, was a pottery workshop. This pottery runs by a Cypriot family. They started the business in the north of the island, but after occupation by Turkey they had to move to the South, to Paphos. They admit that there is no clay here, and they have to bring it from Italy or Germany.

While moving to another village we were told about some curios facts from the Cyprus's life. For example, electricity is extremely expensive here. So, it is widely spread to have deposit water and solar panels on the roof of the houses to cut down expenses. It was also interesting to find out that there is no point in owning a house close to the sea. Mostly because of humidity and salt, which damage the building. And this is why the European people prefer to settle in the mountains. Interestingly, the most popular names in Cyprus are Andreas, Georgos, Maria and Helena.

So, we arrived to the house of the family, who make the bamboo baskets. It is sad to know, that this is an endangered craft now.
Well, we were met by the old man and woman. The old lady demonstrated the process of creating a basket. Meanwhile, the old man treated us with candies and biscuits. Very nice.

It is ridiculous that there are so many churches on the island. In one village can be located up to 5 churches. Today we visited only one church 'Church of Saint Kirikos and Ioulitis'.

Later we went to a cheese factory. That was a small factory, where we could watch the process of producing goat's cheese, and at the end we tried the original cheese Haloumi. The characteristic feature of this cheese is that it can be grilled or fried without melting. Tasty.

After the great walking, we had a great lunch at home restaurant. The hostess was a really nice woman Maria, who was genuinely happy to meet the guests. We paid for the traditional meal only 12 euro, which included wine, coffee and desserts. And it was indisputably delicious.

After lunch we moved to another village to see how local people weave. There was also a small museum, which we could visit for free and see alive silkworms. Of course, it was possible to obtain some handmade goods, but I abstained from doing it.

Finally, we were driven to a winery, were we offered to taste a wide range of alcohol. I could not help buying a bottle of dry white wine.

The excursion was really worthy: the guides, the local people and the places, which we had visited, were just perfect. However, I was not exhausted during this long trip.

To conclude, I would mention that Cyprus is undoubtedly a wonderful place. So many people say that there is a special atmosphere here, and this is why they come back here again and again. For example, I have met a woman, who told me that she had visited Cyprus 14 times already.

I would say, that I was not mistaken with the time for travelling to Cyprus. I can assure, that April and May is the best time to travel here, because everything is in blossom: olive and almond trees, pomegranates, different kinds of flowers etc.

When I returned to the hotel, I went to the sea shore. I was sitting on the bank observing a fascinating sunset. That day the sun disappeared at 20:00.