THE ORIGIN of the goddess Aphrodite is an unsettling tale. As the myth goes, Kronos castrated his father Uranus and threw his genitals into the sea. The immortal appendages were carried by the waves and in the foam that gathered around them, a girl was born. Fully-grown, she emerged from the ocean on the western shore of Cyprus.
Aphrodite became the goddess of love, beauty and sexuality – and for good reason: Ancient Cypriots went weak at the knees for her and worshipped the very ground upon which she minced. Cyprus became the cult centre of the goddess and she is sometimes referred to by the name ‘Cyprian’ for this reason.
It seems that Cyprus’ love affair with the goddess has not waned over time. Now the Cyprus Tourism Organisation is inviting visitors “to wander through layers of history and culture in the footsteps of the Great Cypriot Goddess” on a series of tours dedicated to the deity, available in both Greek and English.
The tours, leaving from a number of Cyprus cities, will take place on November 1, 9, 16 and 23 November and are free of charge.
The air-conditioned buses will travel along the Aphrodite Cultural Route to historical sites around the island and accompanying tour guides will give visitors a chance to “meet Cypriot Aphrodite”, the pamphlet promises.
Maria Skapoulli from the Cyprus Tourism Organisation hopes that the tours will give visitors a chance to see the “multiple dimensions” of the goddess. “She was not just the goddess of love,” she said, “[but also] the mother of the people and [the goddess] of fertility.”
The tours are each slightly different in length as well as the range of sites they visit.
Depending on the tour, visitors can see the spot where Aphrodite emerged at Petra tou Romiou, the spa in which she bathed on the Akamas Peninsula and the ancient ruins that once served as her temples.
The tours also include visits to various archaeological museums around the island.
According to Skapoulli, there is not one area of the island that doesn’t have some sort of connection to Aphrodite. She believes Cypriots should finally get to know this foam-born enchantress who once called Cyprus home.
n For more information, contact regional Cyprus Tourism Organisation Offices: Nicosia: 22-674264, Larnaca: 24-654322, Limassol: 25-362756, Paphos: 26-932841
