History

08 Jun 1838

The American missionary Lorenzo Warriner Pease is giving details of his visit to Varosha referring to the hot weather, his experience trying the local food ‘’koukia’’ and his visit to the palace of the Venetian governor

The American missionary Lorenzo Warriner Pease is giving details of his visit to Varosha referring to the hot weather, his experience trying the local food ‘’koukia’’ and his visit  to the palace of the Venetian governor and the ‘’great’’ cathedral, the cathedral of St Nicholas: 

Today we remained at Varosia, where we ate coucia, not always ripe however. These are certainly very delicious. The day way excessively hot. Mr. Thompson and I went over Famagusta before noon, and called on the governor…We asked permission to go into the castle, but we were refused on the ground that permission from the Governor was necessary, although Mr. Thompson and I have had the privilege without the permission. We walked out and made some observations, but it was so hot that we did but little. We passed soon the palace of the Venetian governor which must have been truly splendid and rather extensive. There were several underground rooms, within the building which probably were cisterns. The four granite pillars and the arches in front of the palace yet stand. We next went to the great cathedral, now Mosque, which I have before described and returned on account of the heat. In the evening Mr. and Mrs. Ladd went over and we then visited the great lion hewn out of a rock whose head is about 5 feet high, although he is in a reclining position. He has been painted black and red since I saw him before.