Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Omodos is a popular destination for day trippers from the coastal resorts. And for good
reason. Despite the proliferation of souvenir shops, there are several worthwhile sights
and the backstreets have a timeless cobbled charm and are home to an excellent restaurant
and guesthouse, plus a quirky museum, and some smaller more idiosyncratic shops.
1
Sights
Timiou Stavrou (Holy Cross) Monastery
MONASTERY
(
h
9.30am-1pm & 2-7pm Thu-Tue, 9.30am-12.30pm Wed)
Fronted by the town's impressive (and massive) cobbled square, at the monastery's en-
trance stands a statue commemorating a former abbot, Dositheos, who was murdered by
Turkish troops during the Greek War of Independence in 1821. Acting as the parish
church today, the monastery was originally built around 1150 and was extended and ex-
tensively remodelled in the 19th century. Several of the outbuildings now house small mu-
seums.
These include the harrowing
National Struggle Museum
. This museum is small and
simple but the memories evoked by the black-and-white photos of the men and women
killed (some reputedly tortured) by British forces between 1955 and 1959 might linger in
your mind long after you leave.
Another outbuilding houses the
Museum for the Preservation of Lace
with delicate
examples of the
pipilies
(needlepoint lacework) for which the village is famed.
Socrates Traditional House
MUSEUM
(Linou;
h
9.30am-7pm)
F
Located in the backstreets but well signposted, this quirky museum in a traditional house
has an eclectic assortment of exhibits and furnishings including historic wine presses,
wedding attire, old photos, looms, a corn mill, typical village furniture and objects from
rural life.
5
Eating
o
Stou Kir Yianni
CYPRIOT
(
%
2542 2100; Linou 15; mains €10-17;
h
10am-10pm;
c
)
Head for the courtyard with its cool colour palette of limestone and whitewash, plus local
art on the walls and a menu that includes
fatoush
salad with pomegranate juice. There is
also
kleftiko,
vegetarian moussaka, kebabs and
karaolous me pnigouri
(snails with bulgur
