# Planning a move to north Cyprus with children



## Shannapp (May 3, 2013)

Hi all, I'm new to this site and was hoping to chat with some people in the know about northern Cyprus. My husband and I are planning a move out here next year along with our two children (1 yr and 5yrs) if anybody has any useful information on best places to live, state schooling, and just general hints and tips we would be very happy to hear from you. We are visiting for two weeks in July this year and plan to do some serious looking around whilst there. We are visiting catalkoy as my father in law has a holiday home there but I hear it's a little far out and a little quiet?? Any opinions greatly appreciated 

Shanna


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## Mycroft (Sep 9, 2009)

Shannapp said:


> Hi all, I'm new to this site and was hoping to chat with some people in the know about northern Cyprus. My husband and I are planning a move out here next year along with our two children (1 yr and 5yrs) if anybody has any useful information on best places to live, state schooling, and just general hints and tips we would be very happy to hear from you. We are visiting for two weeks in July this year and plan to do some serious looking around whilst there. We are visiting catalkoy as my father in law has a holiday home there but I hear it's a little far out and a little quiet?? Any opinions greatly appreciated
> 
> Shanna


Hello,

The majority of the people who use this forum live in the Republic of Cyprus ( the south) and therefore have little knowledge of the area you are interested in moving to or the regulations etc that would be applicable. I would suggest you look on the internet for specific forums that deal with the North.

Kind regards


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## hiatusxenia (May 6, 2013)

Dear Shanna,

The last reply was very diplomatic. This is because any house which you choose to buy or rent on the Northern side is quite likely to have been taken by force from its original Greek owners. That family will have been living in the southern part as refugees in their own country since the Turkish invasion of 1974 feeling absolutely violated having had all their home, land, belongings and quite often more - ripped away from them. They quite literally had to run for their lives and try to start all over again. No furniture, no clothes, no photographs or family memorabilia. 

Cypriots are not like us - they do not move from home to home and very often stay in the same house or piece of land for generations. Quite frequently their surnames denote the village or area they come from.

So, imagine how you would feel to be in the UK and have your home, which had been built and paid for by you or your forefathers taken from you, perhaps by the Scots or the Welsh, and to be able to catch a glimpse of that someone else living in your own home and never ever be able to return to it again.


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## loubi650 (Apr 9, 2012)

Putting it this way
We are planning on moving to Cyprus with children, but further in the future . Firstly we are visiting in October after some heavy research into our family heritage. My partner's side of the family were refugees from the North in 74. We will be trying to trace where exactly their property and vast land was. 

What we will find or who we will there will be terribly emotional. We don't even know if there is a family right over it,as those descended from there passed away, too late for the first border opening.We are going back as a celebration of their passing. 

It's a total mine field with not a lot of info or help out there either.


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

loubi650 said:


> Putting it this way
> We are planning on moving to Cyprus with children, but further in the future . Firstly we are visiting in October after some heavy research into our family heritage. My partner's side of the family were refugees from the North in 74. We will be trying to trace where exactly their property and vast land was.
> 
> What we will find or who we will there will be terribly emotional. We don't even know if there is a family right over it,as those descended from there passed away, too late for the first border opening.We are going back as a celebration of their passing.
> ...


You should be able to get any information you need including title deeds and topographic details from the land registry in Nicosia if you have some basic information.


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## loubi650 (Apr 9, 2012)

By the end of this month we should know if there's any relatives left on the island, and also more info to pinpoint where exactly my late father in law and his parents lived. We are in touch with someone who grew up in the same village and also was a friend of the f.I.l until his death. 

Then it should be an easy quick trip to Nicosia for what you suggest Veronica. Very exciting stuff! And a nice personal journey.


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

Good luck in your search. If you can prove which was the family land and it turns out to have been stolen, the remaining relatives will probably be entitled to compensation.


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## loubi650 (Apr 9, 2012)

Thankyou.

In all honesty, we aren't interested in any compensation, its likely that has already been sought by anyone left over there. I know his rare surname has brought up one person in Limassol. We are likely to find out who that maybe in a fortnight. If they are relatives I have a hunch they may possibly be living where the grandparents settled in 74. 

We are more interested in the missing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, and finding out about where we used to belong.


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## gloucester_geezer (May 5, 2008)

It is good to see that people are coming back to the island and tracing what used to belong to their families before 1974 and the split. I have a friend that has lived in England for most of his life, he is in his early 60s now, and he was born and raised as a child not far from Larnaca, his family had to leave the village when the 'troubles' were on and were all relocated in the North. They are of course of Turkish Cypriot descent. Anyway, my friend has not been comfortable about going back to the South side and trying to trace the lands they lost etc. but has now done so and hopefully will be re-united with their land that was lost.
It must be something that works both ways but it also needs to be remembered that land/houses were lost on both sides of the religious divide; it is not fair only to recognise one half of the problem. 
I am not trying to take sides here at all... and would not start to put my nose into the politics of the island, but the system seems to be accepting that there were losses on both sides and addressing them equally, which in the long run can only be a good thing.


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

The problem in the North is not the Turkish Cypriots but the Turks. Cypriots on both sides were victims and have lost their homes and heritage to to the illegal occupying forces and illegal Turkish immigrants.


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## loubi650 (Apr 9, 2012)

I'm a great believer that if Turkey went home, took their troops and their illegal mainland migrants with them, leaving Greek and Turkish Cypriots to live together and sort their own island out it would he far better all round.

But Turkey won't allow that. They have jumped at the opportunity to use the bailout as an excuse to bully in when another is at its most vulnerable, wolf in sheeps clothing pushing for reunification. They aren't interested in the Turkish Cypriots welfare, only exploitation of gas and oil in this modern time. To tip the ethnicity of the island by shipping more and more Turks over certainly saddens my heart. 

Not sure how this will be solved, as most often said, you can't go back and fix what is already destroyed. Only the islanders can do that.


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