Geography

Cyprus is an island in the Mediterranean, a mere third of the size of Sicily or Sardinia. It is situated about 200km north-west of Israel, 380km north of Egypt and 800km east of the Greek mainland.

The population of the island is approximately 750,000. It is situated on the intersection of the western and eastern civilizations of the world. This gives easy access to both sides of the world.

Cyprus consists of a variety of landscapes: rocky coasts and sandy beaches. Parallel to one another, two mountain ranges stretch along the island. It is the Troodos mountains in the south-west, dotted with pine, cypress, and cedar trees and the other mountain chain is Kyrenia in the North, famous for the five sharp mountain peaks of Pentadaktilos. The name of this mountain if translated from Greek means “five fingered”. The northern side of the island is now occupied by the Turkish sector of the island and the southern side belongs to the Cypriot sector. Between the two ranges stretches the plain of Mesaoria, an impressive 648km of coastline made up of sandy beaches to suit any taste.

The capital of the island is called Nicosia. Other major cities include Pafos, Limassol, and Lanarka.