I Am Safe: Peace of Mind in Cyprus

The other day, I took my two sons to see a Charles Dickens production in Limassol, the port city of Cyprus. Limassol, a bustling town that fills with hundreds of thousands of tourists each summer has been our home for the last decade. It was a brilliant performance and that could account for my general feeling of well being.

But I remember thinking, as I have many times in the last decade, how could life get any better than this! I did not have to book the tickets months in advance, did not have to pay an arm and a leg for them, did not have to travel hours to go for the performance and did not have to think twice about going for a late evening show with children -- unaccompanied by any adult males.
After the show, close to midnight, without any thoughts of fear or safety, we walked a mile, had a bite at a fast food joint and then, we drove through the buzzing tourist area eating our ice creams.A relaxed evening like this could epitomize almost any day of my 10 years in Cyprus. Safe streeta, safer homes, great places to hang out, world class schooling, top medical facilities, amazing weather, abundance of natural beauty and availability of almost anything you want.

Thats what Cyprus means to us. We have the feeling of being in the heart of Europe but a warmth that could never be seen in the continent.

Cyprus is not only geographically at the crossroads between east and west but culturally too and in a way offers best picks of the two. While being open minded generous, Cypriots hold on to traditional values, old fashioned family bonds, rituals and traditions that are charming and heart warming like the best of Asia. They perform all of their many rituals with gusto, and everything here is a ritual from celebrating Easter to a simple thing like drinking the morning cup of Greek coffee. In Cyprus every individual has his and her own space and while people are friendly, no one ever takes a step too far.