Machairas National Forest Park in Cyprus

Some new friends from church invited us to a picnic near one of the forested parks about thirty minutes outside of Nicosia. We ventured off to Machairas Park on a beautiful clear blue and cool Saturday morning.

Sunday Afternoon Picnic

They brought an amazing contraption called a foukou grill. You can catch more information from the source link below the photo.

It’s the most spectacular looking grill.  It does the following:

1. Rotate 360 degrees several large pieces of meat.
2. Grill several skewered pieces of meat at a time.
3. BBQ meat like you would any meat on a flat surface.

I don’t know if there is anything this grill cannot do. I wished they would make something like this back home.

The kids enjoyed meeting new friends, as well exploring the great outdoors.

We brought marinated bulgogi, and our friends liked it very much, along with some short grain sticky rice and “geem” (salted and sesame oil roasted seaweed).  They brought succulent chicken, pork kebabs and even some garlic and onion marinated liver.

The middle school kids made a small fire with pinecones and leaves surrounding it in circle of rocks. It looked like what good boy scouts would do in the woods. Then they roasted marshmallows as dessert.

Linus thought it was a lollipop, so he began to lick it.

All in all, our new Egyptian and Egyptian-American friends showed us how to appreciate some amazing grilled foods in the company of new relationships.

Green Monday

Another group of expat friends invited us out to Machairas Park again on Green Monday. Also know as Clean Monday, it’s the first day of Lent before Easter. We found many Cypriots and their families out and about on holiday – laughing, singing, and playing.

And despite the low feeling of the economy and banks closing down at odd hours, people were full of good attitudes and joyful hearts.

We didn’t have the luxury of using a foukou grill like last time, since our other expat friends had invested in one.

But we managed to cook the marinated chicken drumsticks and squid.

Meanwhile the kids played on the playground and flew a kite or two.

By the end of the day we noticed street vendors selling all sorts of trinkets and toys on Green Monday.

For More Information

Address: Ιερά Μονή Μαχαιρά Επαρχίας Λευκωσίας, Τ.Θ.25272, Levkosia (Nicosia) 1308, Cyprus
Phone: +357 22 359334
Website: Cyprus Agrotourism