# Smoke ban / english spoken / Ticks



## Duracellite (Mar 20, 2016)

Hi everyone ! 

Everything is in the subject :

1) I d like to move to Cyprus but I hate smoke, so I was wondering if the smoke ban was applied in public places (or is it not, like in Rhodes ?). What percentage of bars / restaurants respect the smoke ban, approx ? 

2) I speak English and Spanish only, do locals speak English well ? Coz you know, I d like to make friends all that stuff  

3) I highly fear ticks (and Lyme), if I don't own a dog can I still find ticks at home or in the city in general ? 

That's all, thanks for your answers


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

1. The smoking ban on the whole is upheld. It is very rare to find anyone smoking indoors now.

2. Most Cypriots speak English and there are a lot of British expats so making friends should not be difficult.

3. Ticks are only a problem if you have a dog and do not put a tick collar on it. 
There are no ticks in homes or other buildings. We have a dog and cat and never find ticks in our home.


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## GSmith (Nov 9, 2015)

The smoking ban is ignored in some places in Limassol. Restaurants tend to enforce it but bars and nightclubs especially don't.

Ticks are no problem unless you have a dog.

English is widely spoken

Garry


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

GSmith said:


> The smoking ban is ignored in some places in Limassol. Restaurants tend to enforce it but bars and nightclubs especially don't.
> 
> Ticks are no problem unless you have a dog.
> 
> ...


I only go to restaurants not bars or night clubs so maybe that is why I have never had problems with people smoking


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## Duracellite (Mar 20, 2016)

GSmith said:


> The smoking ban is ignored in some places in Limassol. Restaurants tend to enforce it but bars and nightclubs especially don't.
> 
> Garry


All right thanks for the details  So far so good fro English speaking and ticks, less good for the smoke ban  Is it in the culture there to spend evenings with friends at home, in which case I could organize my eves around it ? Or are 99.9% of the people flood bars / clubs as I expect it ? 

I must admit too I've been a bit put off by what Daniel said on this thread : 
expatforum[DOT]com/articles/cost-of-living/cost-of-living-in-cyprus.html For instance, but not only, what he says about the internet connection is appalling... As I see it dates back from 2010 I guess it's no longer true, and I read different opinions on this forum about the Internet connection (I work as a webmarketer so a good one is compulsory) but they all date back from a couple of years, so I think it's worth updating it for 2016  What is the average *real *broadband access one can expect in let's say Limassol or Nicosia ? Here they say 5M : cablenet[DOT].cy/home-services-2/cable-single-play But I also read on this forum that the real one is about at least 5 times slower (so 1M ?). )

Also, I read everything and its contrary on living in the Southern / Northern part of the country, and now that things are getting a lil tense with Daesh maybe an update is necessary too : is the Northern part if the country livable for an expat / visitable, or is it a place to avoid for mere safety reasons ? 

This country really seems nice so I m trying to balance the ups and downs  
Thanks for your answers


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## Baywatch (Mar 30, 2014)

Duracellite said:


> All right thanks for the details  So far so good fro English speaking and ticks, less good for the smoke ban  Is it in the culture there to spend evenings with friends at home, in which case I could organize my eves around it ? Or are 99.9% of the people flood bars / clubs as I expect it ?
> 
> I must admit too I've been a bit put off by what Daniel said on this thread :
> expatforum[DOT]com/articles/cost-of-living/cost-of-living-in-cyprus.html For instance, but not only, what he says about the internet connection is appalling... As I see it dates back from 2010 I guess it's no longer true, and I read different opinions on this forum about the Internet connection (I work as a webmarketer so a good one is compulsory) but they all date back from a couple of years, so I think it's worth updating it for 2016  What is the average *real *broadband access one can expect in let's say Limassol or Nicosia ? Here they say 5M : cablenet[DOT].cy/home-services-2/cable-single-play But I also read on this forum that the real one is about at least 5 times slower (so 1M ?). )
> ...


It will not be a problem to get 30 mBit in Limassol so you should not worry about that.

Living in the north means living in the ockupied zone. Outside EU. And what I wrote about Internet is not valid for the north


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## GSmith (Nov 9, 2015)

Sorry Anders, few areas in Limassol will have 30meg broadband. Even if you pay for that speed, the real speed rarely reflects it.

The nurses are on strike, the ports are on strike and the electricity company (and soon Telecoms provider) are also on strike, This year is going to be an interesting one in Cyprus I'm afraid.


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## Baywatch (Mar 30, 2014)

GSmith said:


> Sorry Anders, few areas in Limassol will have 30meg broadband. Even if you pay for that speed, the real speed rarely reflects it.
> 
> The nurses are on strike, the ports are on strike and the electricity company (and soon Telecoms provider) are also on strike, This year is going to be an interesting one in Cyprus I'm afraid.


Strange, CYta gives 30 in Pissouri without a problem.

I have always said that the unions will destroy this country.

But otherwise the Cyprob negotiations must be the most interesting this year


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## Duracellite (Mar 20, 2016)

Ok thanks, the union thing is a scary ahah, so that means the country could be without Internet for a while ? 



GSmith said:


> Sorry Anders, few areas in Limassol will have 30meg broadband. Even if you pay for that speed, the real speed rarely reflects it.


On average, what is the real broadband I can expect ? For instance if you guys do a simulation ("internet speed test" on Google) what numbers do you get ? 

Thank you


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## Baywatch (Mar 30, 2014)

Duracellite said:


> Ok thanks, the union thing is a scary ahah, so that means the country could be without Internet for a while ?
> 
> 
> On average, what is the real broadband I can expect ? For instance if you guys do a simulation ("internet speed test" on Google) what numbers do you get ?
> ...


That depennds on what server you test against. A Cyprus server gives 15 mBit down and 1 mBit up on a 16 mBit line in Pissouri village. A little less testing against Germany. You can get more upspeed if you order it.

I have a wireless provider, pay for 10 down and 2 up and also get it.


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