# Moving to Cyprus



## willnwend (Mar 9, 2010)

We live in France but thinking of relocating to Cyprus basically to get a warmer climate. We have visted twice and liked it but that was some time ago. We would love to hear from anyone who lives in Cyprus re the pros and cons. Appreciating that many of you will probably not want to encourage more ex-pats, we would nonetheless be very grateful for your opinions on the life in Cyprus. We are retired and have two dogs and two cats which we would want to bring with us.


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

willnwend said:


> We live in France but thinking of relocating to Cyprus basically to get a warmer climate. We have visted twice and liked it but that was some time ago. We would love to hear from anyone who lives in Cyprus re the pros and cons. Appreciating that many of you will probably not want to encourage more ex-pats, we would nonetheless be very grateful for your opinions on the life in Cyprus. We are retired and have two dogs and two cats which we would want to bring with us.


We know of at least two couples who have recently relocated from France to Cyprus and two more who are in the process of doing so.
They all say they found France to restrictive and also found the winters in France far too cold.

Pros for Cyprus are
1. the weather
2. slow relaxed pace of life
3. Most Cypriots speak English 
4. Lots to see if you enjoy exploring the countryside plus lots of historic sites

Cons.
1. Terrible driving
2. The roads are dug up everywhere at the moment
3.The locals can be infuriatingly unreliable if you want anything done.


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

Pros: decent food, relaxed lifestyle, cultural and natural highlights
Cons: the heat in summer, culture shock (related to relaxed above)

The summer heat is set to get worse - at a recent scientific symposium on biodiversity and climate change (the first of its kind in Cyprus) one of the keynote speakers summarised the findings of the latest research which suggests that summer temperatures in Cyprus are set to rise by 5 degrees over the coming years - and the change is going to be quickest in the Troodos and Paphos regions. Think of Bahrain, Qatar and Saharan Africa - with average summer temperatures topping 40 and rising to 45-50 rather than the 30s. Already vast swathes of trees are dying in the foothills apparently. The problem has crept up on Cyprus without many people noticing. Vast water usage by growing populations (of buildings, golf courses etc, rather than people) has allowed salt water to invade the natural ancient aquifer system on which the landscape depends - this change is irreversible. The cooling effects of forest cover will soon lessen and desertification will rapidly accelerate. Gloomy prospects I'm afraid(unless you really love hot, desert conditions).


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

That certainly does paint a gloomy picture.
But if temperatures are set to rise what is the reason for the much cooler and cloudier conditions we have has so far this year?
The weather to date certainly hasnt been normal for the time of year I blame that darn volcano.


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## willnwend (Mar 9, 2010)

kimonas said:


> Pros: decent food, relaxed lifestyle, cultural and natural highlights
> Cons: the heat in summer, culture shock (related to relaxed above)
> 
> The summer heat is set to get worse - at a recent scientific symposium on biodiversity and climate change (the first of its kind in Cyprus) one of the keynote speakers summarised the findings of the latest research which suggests that summer temperatures in Cyprus are set to rise by 5 degrees over the coming years - and the change is going to be quickest in the Troodos and Paphos regions. Think of Bahrain, Qatar and Saharan Africa - with average summer temperatures topping 40 and rising to 45-50 rather than the 30s. Already vast swathes of trees are dying in the foothills apparently. The problem has crept up on Cyprus without many people noticing. Vast water usage by growing populations (of buildings, golf courses etc, rather than people) has allowed salt water to invade the natural ancient aquifer system on which the landscape depends - this change is irreversible. The cooling effects of forest cover will soon lessen and desertification will rapidly accelerate. Gloomy prospects I'm afraid(unless you really love hot, desert conditions).


That's interesting and more or less what we expected. We worry about the climate, not because we might be too hot, because we can get aircon and a swimming pool but because of the dryness of the countryside. The big plus about where we live now in the Ariege region of the Midi Pyrenees, is the wonderful greenery. But there are many cons, including the legal/inheritance/capital gains tax restrictions, and, of course, the winters at 800 metres. What about us trying to find somewhere in the the Troodos?


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

willnwend said:


> That's interesting and more or less what we expected. We worry about the climate, not because we might be too hot, because we can get aircon and a swimming pool but because of the dryness of the countryside. The big plus about where we live now in the Ariege region of the Midi Pyrenees, is the wonderful greenery. But there are many cons, including the legal/inheritance/capital gains tax restrictions, and, of course, the winters at 800 metres. What about us trying to find somewhere in the the Troodos?


There are some Brits (but very few) living up in the mountains but unless you are happy to in a fairly isolated place it isn't ideal. 
There are villages which are not as far out but still out of the worst of the heat and humidity which have a slowly growing number of British residents. 
Kathikas, Polemi and other villages between Paphos and Polis and vilalges such as Souni, Lania etc between Limassol and Troodos are nice villages to live in.


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

Veronica said:


> That certainly does paint a gloomy picture.
> But if temperatures are set to rise what is the reason for the much cooler and cloudier conditions we have has so far this year?
> The weather to date certainly hasnt been normal for the time of year I blame that darn volcano.


That would be pre-glacial wobble - oxygen isotope studies of Greenland icecores suggest we are overdue for the next inevitable ice-age, which are pre-indicated by periods of intensely unsettled weather, tornadoes, and (you've guessed it) volcanic and techtonic activity. Oh dear, I do seem to be full of doom and gloom. The good news is that the impending ice age may offset some of the heat and desertification effects of global warming, but the bad news is that the switch may 'turnover' in a matter of years rather than centuries (as was once thought) - at least the ice won't get as far as southern Europe, but places in the UK where I used to live will be under several kilometers of ice cap. There's no predicting when the switchover will happen, could be anytime soon, or not for a few thousand years. The wobble has been happening for several centuries now (witness the Thames frost fairs of the 17th and 19th centuries)... better pack some woolies, just in case!


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

kimonas said:


> That would be pre-glacial wobble - oxygen isotope studies of Greenland icecores suggest we are overdue for the next inevitable ice-age, which are pre-indicated by periods of intensely unsettled weather, tornadoes, and (you've guessed it) volcanic and techtonic activity. Oh dear, I do seem to be full of doom and gloom. The good news is that the impending ice age may offset some of the heat and desertification effects of global warming, but the bad news is that the switch may 'turnover' in a matter of years rather than centuries (as was once thought) - at least the ice won't get as far as southern Europe, but places in the UK where I used to live will be under several kilometers of ice cap. There's no predicting when the switchover will happen, could be anytime soon, or not for a few thousand years. The wobble has been happening for several centuries now (witness the Thames frost fairs of the 17th and 19th centuries)... better pack some woolies, just in case!


As long as Yorkshire isnt under ice in the next 3 or 4weeks as I am going to visit my family there


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## willnwend (Mar 9, 2010)

Veronica said:


> As long as Yorkshire isnt under ice in the next 3 or 4weeks as I am going to visit my family there


Well er.. um.... wonder if I'll be dead by then. Veronica, trust you will make sure the thread keeps to the subject as I have a feeling we will have more wonderful scientifically minded people responding to this. I am still hoping for more opinions on living in Cyprus, give or take a natural climate progression. Not that I disregard the warnings of course. At my age I feel I have to live for today and not bringing anyone else with me to Cyprus except my hubby.


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

willnwend said:


> Well er.. um.... wonder if I'll be dead by then. Veronica, trust you will make sure the thread keeps to the subject as I have a feeling we will have more wonderful scientifically minded people responding to this. I am still hoping for more opinions on living in Cyprus, give or take a natural climate progression. Not that I disregard the warnings of course. At my age I feel I have to live for today and not bringing anyone else with me to Cyprus except my hubby.


As you are already expats you know what it is like to live abroad and from what I have heard from others who have moved here from France I think you will be happier here. 
I really think that you have nothing to lose.
Take a look at some of the villages in the foothills.


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## kimonas (Jul 19, 2008)

Veronica said:


> As you are already expats you know what it is like to live abroad and from what I have heard from others who have moved here from France I think you will be happier here.
> I really think that you have nothing to lose.
> Take a look at some of the villages in the foothills.


The villages around (and including) Lefkara have many newly developed properties (and rennovations) and sit within largely green countryside - there is a new wine industry spreading into the area, so the formely barren looking limestone ridges are slowly being cloaked in green and the valleys and plateaux are already a wonderful mosaic of olive, carob and almond groves. Most villages have a smattering of expats, so it's not too isolating.

I've found the most frustrating aspect of living here to be acceptance of the culture of the average (which I've written about before) - services, employers, customers, are all tolerant of average (and poor) performance - and I've lost count of the times I've heard the excuse " Well what do you expect? This is Cyprus". This is a major part of the culture shock that people either learn to live with, or suffer from whenever they need something done.


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