Kyrenia (Girne)
A visit to northern Cyprus is not complete without visiting the beautiful harbour of Kyrenia.
It really is a little jewel, with its horseshoe shaped bay, bobbing boats and magnificent Crusader castle, giving the visitor lots to see and do.
The castle dwarfs the harbour and was mentioned as far back as 1191 AD when Richard the Lion Heart defeated Isaac Comnenus on his way to the Crusades, conquering Cyprus.
Situated inside the castle is The Ancient Ship Museum containing the oldest cargo ship ever found. It was raised from the sea bed in 1969, having been found less than a mile from Kyrenia harbour. It is believed to have sunk in rough seas with its cargo intact. Amongst the items recovered are wine amphoras, mill stones used for ballast and over 9000 almonds. The ship or at least part of it and lots of its cargo can be found on display in the museum.
The old warehouses along the edge of the harbour were formerly used to store carob, ready for export and throughout TRNC you can still see lots of the carob trees about. The beautiful stone warehouses have been converted into restaurants on the ground floor with accommodation above and now cost a small fortune to buy.
During the day you can stroll along the harbour, stop and have a coffee or lunch in the many restaurants. You can even take a boat trip on a wooden gullet or hire a catamaran. The boats sail daily, providing snorkelling trips with lunch to some of the loveliest beaches.
At night there are sunset and moonlight cruises with dinner for the romantic ones amongst you!. Some of the restaurants offer live music in the harbour as well as local meze, fish and meat dishes.
Leading off from the harbour you can continue to stroll along the promenade with its pavement cafes and stunning sea views. If you take one of the narrow, cobbled streets leading from the harbour you walk up in to the main shopping area.
Good buys are leather goods and jewellery and you will find plenty of places to buy these.The market is held on two days a week and has a wonderful array of fruit, vegetables, meat and fish and is well worth a visit.
There are numerous restaurants in the town serving local delicacies. The ones we have visited in Kyrenia offer excellent service and value for money.