How safe is Cyprus and/or the fear of the unknown?
How many times must I hear the same question over and over — How safe is “enter any European City in this space”? The last time I was asked it was about Cyprus, but it has been ongoing since I moved to London thirteen years ago.
Even in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana — sitting, enjoying a toe-tapping Zydeco accompanied brunch, my newly-introduced dance partner’s first question, upon hearing I lived in London, was “Aren’t scared of ISIS living there?” I have to admit this question made me giggle at first, then it made me sad that for this man London=ISIS.
I am not sure if this is purely an American concern, but why does this seems to worry so many people or, should I specify, stop them from traveling. I understand that ISIS is scary and they have caused, and continue to cause, a lot of pain in this world. Still, what does that have to do with traveling to Europe?
Last time I was in the USA — an American man tried to blow up several Target stores around the country in order to have the stock price drop and a young American war veteran was found with a stockpile of arms ready to shoot up his home town.
Just lately, I was asked about Cyprus. I am married to a Greek Cypriot and have been traveling back and forth to that little island in the Mediterranean for almost 10 years. I have written about it as a tourist destination on my blog and and in the Mail on Sunday. Geez, the New York Times just did a 36 hours in Cyprus last week!
I can only speak for the Southern part but, in my opinion, it is a wonderful country with great food, great archeological ruins and wonderful beaches. The people are sophisticated, generous and worldly. Most speak English, as it was a British colony, and the inhabitants are proud to be Cypriots. Although they are a half hour flight to either Jordan, Israel or Lebanon, they feel more a part of Europe (which they are) than the Middle East. Yes, they may be slightly closer to the Syria, but so are Amman, Tel Aviv, and Beirut, and you don’t hear about every day bombings there.
As for the ISIS question and should that be a real concern — you could be attacked in Istanbul, Berlin, London, Paris, Cairo or down the street at your local Target, so don’t waste your time thinking about it. There is no way to know where they will attack next, so it’s better to not plan around something you can’t predict!
Just enjoy tanning on Med at Latchi in Cyprus and come home safe and sound!
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