Kouklia Memorial
We recently blogged about a little shrine by the motorway. It turns out that it was placed there in memory of two soldiers who lost their lives in a helicopter accident. I was confused myself, because I knew there was a helicopter crash memorial, but it was a little further away from Paphos, near Kouklia. An internet search revealed that there had been two crashes. So in the interest of fairness, I thought we should take a look at the other shrine. It isn't visible from the motorway, but if you take the trouble to find it, you will not be disappointed, as it is a lovely memorial...
To Get There
To visit the memorial, you should take the B6 out of Paphos towards Limassol. So head east at the Debenham's roundabout. Just before you hit Kouklia, you will see this sign on your left. Turn here and drive up the road. There are a couple of side roads along the way,but stick to the main road and you will soon be at the memorial. If you are still unsure where it is, look at this map.
View From The Memorial
The B6 is that way. Note that the track shown at the front of the picture is NOT your route. You can get here safely in any vehicle.
Memorial Gates
Indeed, when we arrived we saw a man leaving the memorial via a motorbike, He actually drove it through that little pedestrian gate you can see to the right of the main gate. Some Cypriots really hate walking any distance!
Memorial Sign
This is a sign near the gate. I am ashamed to say that I can only read the last line: Kouklia, 10 July 2002
The Memorial
This is how the BBC reported the crash:
A helicopter crash in south-western Cyprus has killed the commanders of both the Greek Cypriot national guard and the island's air force. The aircraft carrying guard commander General Evangelos Florakis and air force chief Vassilis Dervenagas went down near Paphos. It remains unclear what caused the helicopter, a Bell 206, to crash, but Defence Minister Socratis Hasikos said he had already ordered an investigation.
Three other people on board - two crew members and an unidentified passenger - also died.