10 Interesting Cyprus Facts That You Should Know!

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cyprus_sandy_beach
Cyprus written on sandy beach

Cyprus may be a small island with a long history and a rich culture that spans  of more than 12.000 years, creating one of the oldest civilizations in the Mediterranean.

Here are ten (10) interesting facts about this stunning island:

  1. On average, Cyprus has only 40 days of rainfall each year and it is known for its sunshine, with more than 300 sunny days during the year.
  2. Cypriots are big food lovers however despite being an Island nation, they do not like fish that much. In fact, most of their traditional foods are meat-base, like souvla, kleftiko, sheftalia, koupepia, and loukanika.
  3. United States and the EU recognized halloumi as a traditional Cypriot product, so officially halloumi is only halloumi if it’s made in Cyprus.
  4. The world’s wine label named wine dating back 5000 years belongs to Cyprus and called as Commandaria.
  5. Nicosia, the capital city of Cyprus, is divided by “The green Line”, additionally known as the un buffer zone. it’s the only capital in the world that’s divided between 2 nations.
  6. Cyprus is one of only four countries (the United Kingdom, the republic of ireland and Malta) in the EU that drives on the left.
  7. According to legend, the Greek goddess of love Aphrodite was born and rose from the foam (“afros,” in Greek) near a rock off at Aphrodite’s Beach in Cyprus.  
  8. For the twelfth year in a row Cyprus has ranked first in Europe for the ratio of beaches that received the “Blue Flag”. The total number of beaches in the country with blue flag is 64
  9. Cyprus is one of the safest places in the world with a very low crime rate.
  10. The Cyprus Mouflon named as “Agrino”, a rare variety of sheep that can only be found in Cyprus.