Kolossi Castle is our next stop, it sits close to Limassol and is one of the most significant medieval architectural monuments in Cyprus. It was built in the 13th century and was owned between others by the Knights Hospitallers and Knights Templars. It is quite impressive from the outside but then we have to find how to get inside…beside the obvious entrance of course, who wants to use that?
We find a entrance to the cellar which seems to be recently renovated and from there we look and find first a well and then finally what we look for, an interior stair to the next floor.
From the first floor we can look down the official entrance and also have time to admire the large entrance hall. Everything looks brand new inside really and there is no furniture, if we wouldn’t know better it seems like it was built yesterday.
We climb to the second floor which is quite similar but has an interesting fireplace and a niche which was used as a toilet way back. The only thing that seems to be from the medieval times is a painting from the 16th century, on the first floor, which is protected by a glass panel.
And then it is up and up as we try to get to the top of the tower. It is quite exhausting but we enjoy it as there is only one other couple in the whole castle which makes for an uneventful climb, it is quite annoying when you meet other people on these narrow staircases and you have to negotiate the crossing.
It is quite windy at the top but it allows for some great views of Limassol. We go round and round waiting for the other couple to also climb so we can go down afterwards.
One of the things we noticed from the top were the ruins nearby and we soon find out they are the former sugar mill maintained by the castle owners, the whole area was in fact a sugar plantation for quite some time during the medieval times.
We walk around the castle, interestingly from the back it is slightly less maintained but still interesting. The most special feature is the coat of arms showing the different coat of arms of the owners of the castle.
One of the sights we saw from the top of the tower was a nearby church which looked also quite old so we decide to walk to it. On the way we find a mini church which is quite fun to see, no idea how it is used, maybe for mini-offerings?
The church seems abandoned and we are sure it is abandoned even though there is a timetable on the door. To our surprise it is actually open but given that it can be locked from the outside and we are just minutes from the closing time we decide to visit it only briefly. The main altar is surprisingly quite new but the whole architecture seems quite ancient.
When we look up we see the painted ceiling, that one looks more ancient versus the altar. We can see the saints but otherwise it is in need of a renovation at some point in the future. We escape without being locked in and after one last look at the castle it is time to move on to the last location of the day about half hour away.
