Famagusta August 15, 1974. The horrible crime is over. The clocks stopped. The calendar page never turned. 41 stone years frozen like the heart of all those who were expelled.
The memories wander around the alleys of the city, trying to keep alive the memory of the queen, who was violently turned into a ghost town.
41 years later, unpublished photos come to light from the enclosed city of Famagusta. images of abandonment and desolation, but also images that show its absolute appropriation by the occupying army.
Starting point is the church of Agios Ioannis. One of the few churches that miraculously escaped looting and destruction. Today, it functions as an Image Museum for the families and relatives of Turkish Officers. A tourist monument, with constant guarding, the entrance of which is allowed with a special permit.
A little further the Stadium of the Gymnastic Association of Evagoras. His poor condition testifies to the barbaric passage of the conqueror, who in his journey sowed destruction and mourning.
Approaching the roundabout of Agia Triada, the eye is fixed on the cafe-restaurant ENDELVAIS. How many people would drink their coffee exchanging calm conversations of a carefree daily life?
The walk continues and our road leads to Kennedy Avenue. Debris and ruins.
A little below the coastal front of the city. There, where Famagusta is not only inhabited, but is also a tourist resort for the occupying army ..
Arriving at the restaurant Alassia, the endless blue of the sea and the golden sand show their presence imposingly.
On the left the house of the Marangos family and on the right the Apollo apartment building, where children of Turkish Officers who study in the Universities of the occupied territories live.
A little further on, the former Sandy Beach Hotel, now called Ordway and the Golden Blash Hotel, which have been operating as a complex since 1974. This is where the families of Turkish officers go on holiday when they come to the island for a vacation. Restaurants, cafes and organized beach are some of the services that both hotels provide to their guests.
On the seafront and the English Sand Hotel. The only one who did not accept the looting of the invader. Locked since then and intact, it keeps the past well inside.
Skull place and Hippocrates Street, remnants and desolation, chaos. Abandoned buildings and damaged shops. Rust and stone. Trace of life nowhere…
Next stop is the parish of Stavros. The streets are empty. The houses are in ruins. Bouvamara everywhere. Vegetation covers even the cement.
The parish church dominates silently. The bell has been invincible for decades.
Next to the cemetery of the area. The inscription indicates the Christianity of the place. Inside effect images. Obscene tombs, cut crosses, looted monuments.
Abandonment also prevails in the center of the fenced city of Varos.
Trademark buildings of the city today break the silence, making a deafening noise with their presence.
The well-known Famagusta Photo Gallery of Vassilios, but also the cinemas of Heraion and Hadjihampi were once full of life. The same goes for the grocery store in Famagusta.
In the center of the city and the Lyceum of Greek Women of Famagusta with its columns and intricate architecture, froze in time, in contrast to the aqueduct of the city, which operates normally, providing water to the occupying army and the United Nations.
Banks are also dead. Some damaged and some untouched, are guarded on a 24-hour basis, while the rest inside are periodically inspected by a private company.
This is the current image of the Queen.
The material was handed over by a member of the family of the blessed Christakis Assiotis, who was captured in Adana, Turkey and had escaped from an executive detachment in Deryneia. The presentation, at the request of the family, was made in memory of those who passed away with the misfortune of returning.
Source: SIGMA