20 Years; 20 Places: No.11 Paphos, Cyprus

Back from a little break for the season’s kick off from my 20 Players and 20 Places list celebrating 20 Years of Blogging. No order, no ranking just those Players and Places that endure.

We had reached no. 10 for Places, and at No. 11 is Paphos in Cyprus.

My best mate’s parents bought a house in what was then the little known town of Paphos on the south-west coast of Cyprus in the 1980’s.

We went three times between the late 80’s and early 90’s. Each time in August and I don’t think I’d ever been anywhere so hot at that point in my life.

Paphos was actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site but back then it was only just becoming a tourist area, and the huge beautiful beach nearby at Coral Bay was really just a haven for locals.

I haven’t been back since 1991, but a quick Google tells me that it is now descended upon by over 1 million visitors annually.

Paphos was not only a secret paradise, but the locals were fantastic, and we made a number of friends on our visits. Three summers we went, and some of the antics and hilarious stories are best consigned to memory, although my mate has kept intact the diaries we scribed at the time.

Formative years and carefree days in the captivating and newly discovered Paphos with great mates. Good times.

Paphos. Three holidays with mates 1987, 1989, 1991.