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Karmi (Karaman) Village in North Cyprus
Curiosity is the main thing that will push you to visit this little mountain village, curiosity to see the only village in North Cyprus that has been entirely renovated by foreigners, after the new government leased the whole village to the Ministry of Tourism for development. It also boasts a small Bronze Age site and some good restaurants.
Karaman is a 20-minute drive from Girne, and the last part is up a narrow winding road that climbs to the village and stops there. You might time your visit to coincide with lunch or dinner, or even allow an extra hour or so to walk up the mountain path towards St Hilarion Castle, set just above the village.
Alsancak to Karaman
The 15km of coastline between Alsancak and Girne are now fairly developed, passing a scries of hotels, motels and holiday villages. Inland from Alsancak, a short detour will bring you to Malatya, a hill village with a fine gorge and permanent waterfall in a grotto on its eastern edge.
Some 9km west of Girne, just beside the Denizkizi Royal Hotel and the Altmkaya Restaurant, is a monument reminiscent of Fascist architecture, its doping concrete fingers stretching inland towards the mountains. It marks 'he spot referred to by the Greeks as Invasion Beach, and by the Turks as the point from which the 1974 Turkish Peace Operation was launched. Close by ls the Peace and Freedom Museum (winter 09.00-13.00, 1400-16.45; summer 09.00-14.00; £1.20/free adults/students), with an open-air display of guns and tanks, both Greek and Turkish, used in intercommutial fighting from 1955 to the present. It was hereabouts that Colonel Karaoglanoglu, after whom the village is now named, and his soldiers were killed in the early days of the fighting in 1974.
Nearby, a small sculpture on the seafront commemorates the Peace Operation, whilst a helpful sign by the roadside explains the imagery. Most visitors will pass by here without a second thought, but for some it represents something of a pilgrimage. For Turkish tourists it's a must-see, and you're quite likely to encounter coach loads of sightseers taking group photographs and laying flowers at one of the 70 headstones commemorating fallen comrades. Such visits are obviously pre-arranged, as a young Turkish soldier will then deliver a rousing speech which will be followed by a hearty round of applause and more group photography.
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The road inland to Karaman forks off at the sprawling little village of Karaoglanoglu, known as Tiger Bay by the British, and having a number of good supermarkets and restaurants. It lies just 5km west of Girne. From here the road climbs some 4km up into the mountains, passing en route the village of Edremit, home to the excellent Hideaway Connoisseur Suites.
The road ends at the picture-book village of Karaman, magnificently set beneath the outcrop of St Hilarion. Formerly a Greek village, it was badly damaged in the fighting, and after partition the Turkish Cypriot government leased the entire village to the Ministry of Tourism for development. The Ministry of Tourism in turn leased the houses to foreigners for renovation, and the whole place has consequently been rebuilt in old village style, inhabited by expatriates, most of whom have chosen to retire here. The names of some of the roads — Mulberry Way and Geranium Lane for example — and the traditional British Crow's Nest pub in the centre of the village give a clue as to the nationality of the majority of the residents, though Swiss, French, Germans, Canadians and Belgians have also chosen Karaman as their home.
One of the residents retains the key to the village church, and opens it to visitors on Sunday mornings. Inside, the 19th-century church is pretty much as it was pre-1974, although it no longer holds services. The neighbouring village of Ilgaz is now also earmarked for similar development. Chronic water shortages have resulted from the development of these villages.
The Bronze Age cemetery lies about a kilometre below Karmi.
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A signpost by a bend in the road points along a path leading to an enclosure boasting a number of tombs which have been dated 1900 - 1800вс, making them older than the Royal Tombs at Salamis. In the roofed-over Tomb 6 you can just about make out the oldest funerary relief on the island - that of a primitive fertility goddess, heavily weathered.
North Cyprus Tourist Guide: North Cyprus | General Info | Kyrenia | Kyrenia History | Kyrenia Harbour | Kyrenia Castle | Hilarion Castle | Restaurants | Bellapais | Alsancak | Kantara Castle | Beaches | Karmi Village | Lapta Village | Nature | Korineum Golf Course
: Our flagship development is an exclusive, high quality residential development in an un equalled elevated position overlooking the town of Kyrenia and minutes from Karmi Village, they have been thoughtfully designed to enable each plot to have outstanding sea and mountain views. We have chosen building materials that that give a natural appearance whilst also accentuating their mountain side position... |
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: 5 Minutes from the Venetian Harbour of Kyrenia is the Hillside village of Edremit (below Karmi Village) and its renowned Hideaway boutique hotel. Nestling on the slopes above the hotel is Melisas Place an exclusive development of 36 Mansion apartments arranged in just nine blocks of four apartments around the beautiful oasis pool and waterfall... |
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