Cyprus College of Art (journal extract)

I would like to share some parts of my travel journal that I kept as I went for a residency at Cyprus college of Art, Lemba. I wasn't able to blog whilst I was there.


26/08/16

The place is not how I imagined at all, in fact im not sure what I expected.
Accomodation is basic as was promised, but my rooms simplicity is actually comforting and its a forgiving shelter from the intense sun. The rooms are scattered across various levels of rough steps and under shady leaves of trees, a hammock (which i am currently lying in) is strung up between two branches and overlooks the kitchen block and then the valley below.
Around the living space there are chairs with an assortment of cushions, old armchairs and tables that are used as little meeting hubs where we can sit and eat aswell as chat into the night.
You can laze around all day, there is no sense of urgency here and time becomes non existent, the sun moving around the sky is the only reminder of time passing.
Tiny stray kittens have made their home here and welcome food and affection from us, I relate to their timid nature as I am just as much a stray here as they are.

After wandering into the kitchen which houses all sorts of oils, spices and mismatched mugs, im eating (again) local bread with hummus and cherry tomatoes which will make up the majority of my diet for the next few weeks aswell as coffee, pasta and peach slices.
The humidity makes it hard to eat full, big meals so snacking is my last resort.

My first full day here has been spent wandering around Lempa (the village im staying in) and aclimbatizing myself to the almost unbearable heat. Reading and water are helping me through the day aswell as chatting with the other artists and photographing the college.
Around 3pm we walked down through the valley which is a mix of scorched dust and lushious green foliage with purple flowers and pomegranates. We reached the sea, and by that time I was ready to dive into the glistening waves, I've never experienced water that is as clear and warm as that and I lost all sense of time as I floated on my back in the aquamarine water which had a strong saltiness to it.