This annual event comes round quicker and quicker each year!! 2011 brings us Offenbach’s “Les Contes d’Hoffman”, (Tales of Hoffman), performed by the Opera of the National Theatre, Prague. The dates to remember are 2/3/4 September.

Les Contes d’Hoffmann by Jacques Offenbach premiered in Paris in 1881, a few months after the death of the composer and remains particularly popular until today. Jacques Offenbach was one of the biggest composers of popular music in 19th century Europe, one of the creators of the music kind of operetta and one of the pioneers of contemporary music comedy. For reservations and additional information please contact the offices of the Pafos Aphrodite Festival Cyprus Company in Pafos at 26822218, the all-Cyprus toll free number 8000 8005 or visit the company’s website www.pafc.com.cy to book your ticket online.Ticket prices are as following: 35 EUR, 50 EUR, 60 EUR and 80 EUR.

There will be a simultaneous translation in Greek and English via subtitles.

The first International Music Festival of young opera stars “Music Open Paphos” was held in 2010. This year we had a pleasure to enjoy this outstanding concert again on 8 – 10 July in Coral beach Hotel. The festival was headed by Alexander Morozov – Russia’s famous composer.

The concert hall was full and the spectators were charmed by the young singers, the winners of International Competitions – Andrey Savelyev (Tenor) – GranPri holder of the “Verdi in Italy” competition , Anastasia Maximova (Soprano) recognised as the best soprano of Neoclassic, Eduard Tsanga (Bass) – soloist of the Maryinsky Theater, Evgeny Juzhin (Tenor) – winner of the Russian Romance International competition. And also Yin Yanzhuang (Baritone) and Diana Chepik (Soprano) – for whom this festival was the first opportunity to show their talents.

The first day of the festival was dedicated to Maria Callas and Enrico Caruso where spectators could enjoy opera Arias of Verdi, Mozart, Puccini, Bizet, Bellini, etc.

The second day of the festival presented Music of World classic Cinema such as “Once in America”, “Titanic”, “Moulin Rouge”, “5th Element”, etc.

The third day’s gala concert presented russian classic composers – Tchikovsky, Sergei V. Rachmaninoff, Glinka, Musorsky, etc. And some works from the previous two festival days.

We are pleased to inform you that we are going to welcome our young opera stars with the third Music Open Paphos Festival next year and once again enjoy their magnificent and stunning performance.

September 4,5 and 6 – An Important Date In Cultural Calendar To celebrate the eleventh anniversary of the Pafos Aphrodite Festival the Cyprus Tourist Organisation opens its music season with an extravagant program that ’s sure to captivate all music aficionados and will lead the audience through the magical roads of lyric theatre.

That star event in the cultural program is the annual staging of varied operas at the Paphos harbour. The dramatic backdrop of the 14th century castle makes for a spectacular setting and the perfect Paphos weather ensures that the grand open-air performance is an unforgettable experience. On September 4, 5 and 6 the National Opera of Sofia will present Léo Delibes’ popular opera “Lakmé” at the medieval castle. The French composer Leó Delibés (1836-1891) composed opera “Lakmé” in 1883. Lakmė is considered one of the most exotic and sensual operas ever written.

The opera is setting is in India (mid-nineteenth century) and the plot revolves around the fanatical hatred of the Brahmin priest for the English invaders, who forbid them to practice their religion.

The love story between the British Officer and priest daughter, Lacme, sets in a chain of complications which makes it a captivating and expressive story. The dazzling numbers such as the famous coloratura showpiece known as the Bell Song and The Flower Duet is not to be missed. Please book tickets with Cyprus Tourist Organisation Aphrodite Festival.

The Cyprus Institute officially opened its local branch at a ceremony at the former District Officer’s residence in Paphos, aiming to serve scientific and archaeological research.

It will support the activities of the Science and Technology in Archaeology Research Centre (STARC) as well as marine activities for archaeology and environment, based in the Paphos harbour. Moreover, the renovated building will also host various exhibitions, scientific symposia and conferences.

The landmark premises were designed by Maltese architect William Caruana for the Department of Public Works between 1925 and 1931. Caruana combined elements of Cypriot traditional architecture with features of the Tudor revival architectural style.

The residence occupies a prominent place in the topography of Paphos. Situated on a natural hill at the eastern end of the town, it once dominated the main road connecting Paphos to Limassol. The house is surrounded by a large mature herb garden which is home to indigenous and imported herbs.

True to the objectives of the centre, the opening ceremony launched an exhibition devoted to a famous two- millennia old Antikythera mechanism, a device found in a shipwreck off the Greek coast which was capable of accurate astronomical calendar calculations.

Described as an ancient analogue computer, the mechanism calculated the exact position of the sun, the phases of the moon, predicted eclipses and determined the dates of the ancient Crown Games.

The exhibition will run from Monday until Friday from 9am until 5pm until August 15th, presented as part of the cycle events on “Science and Archaeology”.

To find the residence take the road from the “Old Town” towards the “big” Debenhams and it’s on the left, just before the big statue of the head of Archbishop Makarios.

When travelling towards Ayios Georgios and the Akamas Peninsular, have you ever noticed the small island not far off the coast of Ayios Georgios?

Well, this is called Geronisos island and there are now new theories about First Century BC visitors to the ‘Holy Island’ after a four week dig by 176 archaeologists from New York University. Apparently, ancient pilgrims to the “symbolically charged” Geronisos island might have celebrated rites of passage with a diet rich in liquids, soups and strained foods, dancing and clay gifts to Apollo, according to the latest excavations.

In early Byzantine times, a Christian basilica was built atop Geronisos, a partner to the three basilicas that sit just opposite on the mainland at Ayios Georgios tis Peyeias. Among the findings were stone tools, a large jar or pithos, a female figurine and a bead that was deliberately placed in a pit with ash during the early Chalcolithic period, around 3,800 B.C.

According to chief excavator, Professor Joan Breton Connelly, findings from around the first century B.C. suggest families may have brought their sons out to Geronisos for special rites of maturation. A circular platform unearthed in recent seasons may represent a dance floor, used for bys choral dancing – an integral part of education in Greek antiquity. Other findings suggest that a school for boys may have been part of the sanctuary operations.

Architect Richard Anderson continued his massive work of preparing a 3-D digital survey of all architectural remains on Geronisos using a total station laser theodolite.

Wind and sea erosion of the cliff edges of Geronisos makes survey and mapping of the island’s remains all the more urgent.

The Flower Festival held at the Anglican Church and the Latin Catholic Parish

This was held over three days and was a huge success. A colourful display was seen by the large volume of people who attended. The arrangements had the theme relating to ‘The Life of Moses’.A total of 21 display’s filled Ayia Kyriaki Church

The event was sponsored by ‘Fitzgerald’s’ and Daryl drew the raffle. The Flowers for this Festival where supplied by the London Garden Centre. A big ‘thank you’ for all the Arrangers for the fabulous displays. Their time and effort is priceless!

All the proceeds from the event went Local Charities.

To accompany the wonderful flower display musical recitals took place over the three days. These were given by Paphos Chorale Director David Asater, Organ Recital by Malcolm Brinson and finally an evening of Music and Verse by Anglican and Catholic Church Choirs.

Heritage Agreement between Cyprus & US Renewed

A FIVE-YEAR ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ for the protection of Cypriot culture has been renewed between Cyprus and the United States. It will continue the ban on the import of cultural items to the USA. And, the scope of the Memorandum has been extended to cover metal coins from the sixth century BC to 235 AD. This is the first time that the US has banned the import of ancient coins and the move has caused some reaction from antique dealers and collectors. The Memorandum was first signed in July 2002 and was extended in August 2006 to include Byzantine period ecclesiastical and ritual ethnological material. The Memorandum was signed by the US Under-Secretary of State for Cultural Affairs, Norman Burns, and the Cyprus Ambassador to Washington, Andreas Kakouris, at a ceremony attended by the leadership of the Greek and Cypriot community, former US ambassadors to Cyprus and executives of the Sate Department. Ambassador Kakouris said that the Memorandum of Understanding was an invaluable tool and mechanism, which significantly contributes to the protection and preservation of Cyprus’ religious and cultural image. He added that he considered coins to be the same as other archaeological artefacts. Under-Secretary Burns for his part stressed the friendly relations between the two countries and repeated the US government’s thanks for the contribution of Cyprus to the evacuation of Americans during the Lebanese crisis last year.

WHAT TO do with all those unwanted items is something that has kept car-boot sales and charity shops going for sometime now. But have you ever how nice it would be to pass your unwanted items on to someone who could use them. A bunch of enthusiastic volunteers from Limassol thought of this some five months ago when they launched a website that can be used by anyone in Cyprus. FreeBay is a non-profit making recycling scheme that encourages people to give away items they no longer use to people who could find a use for them! The interest in FreeBay has grown rapidly since it was launched and today the site has more than 35,000 hits a week. Many of the items change hands within days. The aims of FreeBay are quite simple – to allow people to get rid of items they don’t want thereby reducing the number of items that could be dumped at landfill sites. It also cuts down on new products that are made from the earth’s precious resources. FreeBay is a FREE service in which no money changes hands at all and is an easy site to use. If you find an item when browsing the site that is suitable to what you want then contact the owner and simply arrange to collect it from them free-of-charge. If you don’t find anything, you can place an advertisement on the ‘Wanted’ pages of the site to see if any one has got your required item. The one request made is that the items on the site are something anyone would be happy to receive. It is also recommended that a professional should check electrical items before using them. The five main removal companies in Cyprus have joined, which means that their customers have the opportunity to donate unwanted items rather than throw them away. The website address is – www.freebay.org.cy and you will find full details and easy instruction how to use the site when you log on.

IN A BID to boost Cyprus’s competitiveness and keep the island on the world tourist map, the Cyprus Tourist Organisation (CTO) have announced a new incentives plan to encourage investments for modernising tourism. The new incentives were announced at a one-day seminar and link to the 2003 to 2010 CTO strategic plan that set targets and strategies for tourism development. With the strategic plan a series of incentives for investments in tourism are laid out including the encouragement of initiatives by businesses with incentives for the support of special investments like small and large theme parks and managed attractions, spas and health centres, conference and exhibition halls, theme museums, workshops and activities (which would include the practical involvement of visitors), sports centres and other investments that enrich local tourism. The plan also promotes the encouragement of investments that would contribute to the modernisation and upgrading of current hotels and tourist complexes. The plan will be shaped in October with the CTO reviewing the first applications in March next year and hopefully the first funding will be made at the end of 2008. • THERE WAS a significant increase in income from tourism in May this year despite the fact that tourism levels were down. A survey conducted by the Statistical Division of the Finance Ministry on travellers showed that income amounts were £119.8 million compared to £111.9 million in the same month last year Travellers spending from January to May this year has been 13.4% higher than in the same period of 2006. The survey also showed that tourists prefer to stay in five-star hotels when in Cyprus.

A NOVEL idea to put a stop to cigarette-butt litter left on Paphos beaches has been hit on by Paphos Municipality’s Beaches Committee and was put into operation this Sunday (August 5). Specially created ashtrays were passed out to bathers who were smoking. The ashtrays are made of reusable compressed paper in the shape of a cone. The cone is partly filled with sand and then stuck in the beach. When the smoker leaves he lifts out the cone, the clean sand escapes and then the cigarette-butts can be thrown away into a dustbin. The ashtray can be kept for further use.

TEN DONKEYS, who were left homeless after their owner was killed, have been settled in the Paphiakos Animal Sanctuary. The donkeys – all aged between 12 and 18 months – were bought to the sanctuary by relatives of the owner. They will now join the other 73 donkeys that live in the sanctuary. The donkeys consume some 10,000 bales of hay per anum, along with tons of barley, nuts and carobs. The sanctuary also has to bear the cost of a farrier, while their health has to be checked, teeth inspected, and worming every three months. Money for the care of the donkeys is provided by the charity’s donated funds as no government help is given. To help the upkeep of the donkeys contact – Paphiakos Animal Welfare on 26 946461 or check their website – www.cyprusanimalwelfare.org-