Famagusta then and now
VAROSHA, CYPRUS -THE LOST BUILDINGS AND TALL TALES
Readers mail….
From Mr Oz Orman…..
I have never visited Varosha (Maraş) since its partial opening in October 2020. The last time I was on the island was before the Covid Pandemic and I have instead relied upon the power of online videos and friends to gauge and share stories of a settlement described as a ‘Ghost Town’ and an ‘Abandoned City’. My five senses haven’t really been tested by the climate, architecture and so-called claustrophobic nature that encompass this part of Famagusta (Gazimağusa).
However, I have in fact been lucky enough to venture into the area previously (before 2020), with the aid of my kimlik card and my retired policeman officer cousin. Back then, the entire area was known as Kapali Maraş (Closed Maraş/Varosha). It still baffles me today, how we managed to bluff our way through the security cordon at the entrance to a place devoid of human habitation over many a decade. Maybe the Turkish soldier on duty that Sunday afternoon decided he needed to speed things along as a queue of traffic had built up at his manned check-point and it was a hot August day.
My cousin waved his Policeman’s ID badge, along with my kimlik card and that of my mother’s to the military officer, who stared at us forlornly and waved us through without any hassle. As my cousin pointed out, no photography and this was a time when iPhones didn’t exist, so any sneaky videoing wasn’t even on my curious radar.
The short visit and that is all it was saw my cousin manoeuvre his vehicle around designated roads. I remember being transfixed and my hands and face pressed against the glass window of the car, looking in wonder at the decaying buildings, and the semi-arid jungle of fauna and foliage that wrapped themselves around the perishing structures. Although I didn’t know the names of the streets, some buildings became easily recognisable such as Café Edelweiss, which I had only seen through photographs. My interest in Kapali Maraş was cemented that day as I got to see things and places close at hand and in person.
My cousin wanted to take me as far as the Golden Sands Hotel, but we couldn’t get past the second check-point as we were not military personnel and this area was off limits. Behind the barriers lay the only occupied hotels, namely the Sandy Beach and Golden Plage, which housed holidaying Turkish military members and their families. The Golden Sands had intrigued me, especially when my cousin said he’d been given a tour with other dignitaries back in the day when stationed in Famagusta. He recalled how crockery and cutlery had been left on the tables and now sat under a layer of dust. Although disappointed about not seeing the Golden Sands Hotel at close quarters, we headed out of Kapali Maraş before any questions were asked about why we were there.
On my return to England, I decided I wanted to find out about this place, where wildlife roamed freely and was once frequented by the then-Hollywood elite. My curiosity about Varosha and passion for research had been stirred.
Over the past two years, I completed my research on the Golden Sands Hotel and produced two videos, which are now readily available on YouTube. Some quarters liked to sensationalise Kapali Maraş/Varosha and what the place was actually like during its heyday. The Golden Sands Hotel was one of the victims of this so-called mythology. Lazy journalism proclaimed British Royal family ownership and that the hotel complex, which featured in an episode of Steptoe and Son in 1973, was in fact, a 7-star hotel. However, such hotel grading didn’t exist back in the 1970’s. Although, a unique touristic development for its time, the Golden Sands was probably the best hotel on the island made up of three structures. The main 7 storey hotel (currently protected by the Turkish army), the ‘Pavilion Rooms’, which were a series of smaller buildings for holidaymakers, and ‘The Forum’, a leisure complex, which housed an additional swimming pool and other water sport and games facilities for hotel guests and the local community.
Although much has been made about the British-owned Golden Sands and its status, you can’t actually visit it as it is outside the current designated open area of the town. However, one British-linked institution is accessible within reason. On the junction of Evagorou and Democratia Avenues, lies the remnants of a Barclays Bank still wearing in part it’s old 1970s corporate logos and designs.
To find out about this building, which is protected by a Turkish security station and a UN observation post opposite. I contacted the Barclays Bank archives in Manchester, England. Luckily for me, they were happy to oblige as I only enquired about the history of the building and how Barclays had operated on the island after the events of 1974. It was interesting to discover how the Barclays Bank in Kapali Maraş/Varosha closed on the 10th of August 1974, a couple of days before Turkish tanks rolled into Famagusta. The aftermath saw customers clambering to get information about their accounts and savings. During this difficult time, Nicosia’s Atatürk Square branch manager, Mr Mustafa Sami Kiamil had to liaise between various factions to secure the release of paperwork and funds from the Kapali Maraş/Varosha branch. It was a very confusing time, which ten years earlier had seen the disappearance of the bank’s assistant manager. A Turkish Cypriot gentleman, known as Ertuğrul Veli. Mr Veli initially became one of the Cyprus missing until his body along with that of other Turkish Cypriots was discovered in Protaras, south of Famagusta. The Barclays employee had been a victim of the initial stages of the Cyprus Problem and according to investigators had been kidnapped by a Greek Cypriot Policeman based in Famagusta.
According to varying sources, the contents of the bank are secure and it is rumoured that the bank’s safe and currency (which includes thousands of old Cyprus pounds along with foreign banknotes) are counted and checked regularly by Turkish security personnel along with UN Soldiers. Whether this is true or not is anyone’s guess as there are tamper seals currently on the bank’s main door, which would have to be changed frequently. This in my opinion would be quite time-consuming for all concerned, especially considering that Barclays do not operate on the island anymore. They were eventually taken over by the Hellenic Bank in the south. Therefore rendering most of the possessions in the actual building as impractical. The Barclays archives commented that a majority of funds, holdings, and accounts were actually transferred to other branches after its closure in August 1974.
At a time, when Barclays are closing branches all across the UK and pushing people to switch to online banking with fancy apps. The branch in Varosha is a testimony of the bank’s legacy on the island and an iconic piece of history. Other buildings however didn’t fare so well and didn’t necessarily have the luxury of round-the-clock protection and were pillaged and plundered by different military forces over time. This is the price of war and to the victor go the spoils.
My research brought other buildings to my attention and I have done my best to discover their past. It intrigues me that some people are able to navigate around the security patrols and CCTV in the area and access undesignated sectors of Varosha. Online videos have been posted of urban explorers making their way into abandoned houses and structures without a care in the world. Either they are very brave or naïve and not because of warnings about the building’s structural integrity, but that of vermin and snakes nesting uninterrupted for nearly 50 years. Stories about cat-sized rats loitering in the shadows is not a risk I would be willing to take, but it does make for the intrigue, mysticism and fascination of the whole Kapali Maraş/Varosha spectacle.
I am no engineer, but any chance of bringing the buildings back into use is questionable. TRNC President, Ersin Tatar spoke that nearly half of the buildings would need to be demolished due to a lack of safety, maintenance, and supervision going back nearly 50 years. He questioned the then Greek architects and designers who chose to build hotels and apartments so close to the seashore. Tatar commented that these touristic establishments should’ve been located 100 metres away from the sea in order to protect their foundations. Also having the buildings so close meant that at a certain time of day, Famagusta Beach would be in shadow, which annoyed sunbathers and businesses. The only hotel of note to be located away from the cooling seas of the Mediterranean was the Golden Sands, which was built in such a way that shadows were never an issue for its guests. Its designers were British architects, who had learnt lessons from the already established hotels and apartments on Famagusta Beach. These could only be described as the visual pollution of the 1970’s.
A Dutch engineer once stated that mould that has accumulated in the structures is the biggest health issue if residents were ever to return to their properties. This isn’t a case of splashing on some mould-resident paint and sprucing the buildings up again with a fresh lick of paint. Decades of inactivity has also seen numerous cracks appear as vegetation has established itself within people’s homes and flats. There isn’t a quick-fix solution and it would probably take 10 years to bring Kapali Maraş/Varosha back to any sense of daily normality.
Speculation has also been rife about certain hotels in Kapali Maraş/Varosha being bought by Turkish businessmen, who have claimed that they are taking online bookings and that guests will be arriving in the next couple of years. This in my opinion is the latest round of ‘Fake News’, which is solely used to up the ante between both communities, as well as within certain circles within the North’s political structure.
This brings me to my next point about why this area which was predominantly Greek Cypriot and close to the Green Line was never exchanged for the easing of embargoes on the Turkish Cypriots and the opening of direct flights into and out of Ercan Airport. Records show that Kapali Maraş/Varosha was offered as part of differing peace settlement packages numerous times but was rejected for a number of reasons.
Ex-Greek Cypriot leader, Spyros Kyprianou (born and bred in Limassol) is on record stating that before any negotiations could take place between the two sides post-1974. Varosha had to be returned without question (this has been verified by documents from the National Archives in London). However, even members of Kyprianou’s own cabinet as well as the United Nations knew that this was a non-starter. Had the Turkish Cypriots agreed, they knew that the Greek Cypriots would continue to ask for more concessions. Rauf Denktash was not willing to take that risk but also knew that Kyprianou had issues within his own community, namely the refugees and who would return.
Further research claimed that Kapali Maraş/Varosha’s limbo state has been allowed to flourish, so as to not damage other tourism hotspots around the island. Before 1974, half of the Cypriot economy was located in Famagusta. Bringing it back to its golden days would destroy holiday locations in places such as Paphos, Ayia Napa, and Limassol. It appears that all roads seem to lead to Cyprus’s second-biggest city. It is alleged that the so-called Limassol elite control the destiny of the so-called ‘Ghost Town’, which includes former political leaders south of the border.
However, these assertions might seem bizarre considering a large number of Greek Cypriot refugees from Famagusta settled in the Limassol district. Why would they want to sabotage returning to their hometown? It also appears that when the Annan Plan for a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus Problem was put on the table. A majority of Famagusta refugees rejected the plan, which would’ve seen Kapali Maraş/Varosha’s return to the Greek Cypriots. The failure to accept the plan meant that some refugees from Varosha began arguing amongst themselves and resentment grew. Since then the propaganda machine has gone into overdrive with claims about who actually owns the land in the Kapali Maraş/Varosha vicinity.
It is all a bit messy and a little bit fishy, but this is Cyprus. As one UN official once stated regarding the long-running impasse between both communities and the failure to find a comprehensive solution. ‘The Turks can’t forget and the Greeks can’t remember.’ Probably the best quote ever to describe the ongoing Cyprus Problem issue. In the meantime, Kapali Maraş/Varosha awaits its fate, and no doubt more stories about its buildings will emerge.
To see more videos of Famagusta/Varosha by Oz Orman and MPFC productions please click on the links below:
Golden Sands Hotel, Varosha, will it ever reopen?
The Untouched Hotel (The Golden Sands) Part 2
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/chrismycypZ
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