Church of Panayia and Choirokoitia · 161 km from Kakopetriá

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Church of Panayia

   The churches of the Troodos mountains look, from outside, like barns. In the high, cool country of the island's interior, where snow can fall in winter, builders covered their churches with a second, steeply pitched timber roof of tiles to protect the older domed buildings underneath, and the result is a plain, sturdy exterior that gives no hint of the paintings within. Inside, walls and ceilings are covered with Byzantine frescoes, some from the eleventh century and later, showing saints, angels and scenes of the life of Christ in rich, deep colours. Ten of these churches are listed by UNESCO.

   Read the complete Church of Panayia write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Church of Panayia is where the day begins. Next is Church of Ayia Sotira.

2. 2. Church of Ayia Sotira

   This point lies in the northern foothills of the Troodos range, in a landscape of dry stone terraces, carob and olive trees, and villages that tilt down towards the Nicosia plain. What I can say is that the villages around it, Peléndri and Kyperoúnta among them, belong to one of the richest church regions in the eastern Mediterranean. The Troodos painted churches, ten of them on the UNESCO list, are small, steep-roofed stone buildings that hide Byzantine frescoes inside, and one of them, the Timios Stavros, stands at Peléndri.

   Read the complete Church of Ayia Sotira write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Church of Ayia Sotira comes up about 36 km into the recorded legs. Next is Choirokoitia.

3. 3. Choirokoitia

   Long before the Greeks, the Phoenicians or the Romans arrived in Cyprus, people lived on a hillside above the Maroni river in the southern part of the island, in round stone houses with flat roofs, packed close together inside a defensive wall. Choirokoitia is a Neolithic settlement dating back to around the seventh millennium BC, one of the most important prehistoric sites in the eastern Mediterranean. The inhabitants farmed, herded animals and buried their dead under the floors of their houses. Several of the round houses have been reconstructed near the entrance, giving a vivid sense of how they lived. The site received UNESCO recognition in 1998.

   Read the complete Choirokoitia write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 80 km into the recorded legs you reach Choirokoitia. Next is back through Church of Ayia Sotira.

4. 4. back through Church of Ayia Sotira

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Church of Ayia Sotira write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Church of Ayia Sotira, late in the day. Next is Church of Panayia.

5. 5. Church of Panayia

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Church of Panayia write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Back at Church of Panayia. That is the ride.