Hi there! Welcome to my place, the Island of Love indeed, the cradle of Aphrodite. Get to know some of its secrets. And it's got plenty to show you! I'm a person fit to take you around, show and tell you much about it. I am an experienced, knowledgeable, devoted guide who 's also traveled a lot around Europe and the rest of the world. My love for Cyprus, however, is a real passion. Come along and explore with me its thousands of years long customs and traditions, its typical 'meze' dishes and wines, secluded corners and a lot more.
I am in the tourist guiding business since I have got my tourist guide's licence back in 1985 from the 'school of guides' , run by the CTO (Cyprus Tourist Organisation). I had just finished my 5 years long studies in French Literature in Lyon, France(1979-1984) where I graduated with a master(maitrise). So, since 1985 I 've been working for the biggest tourist agencies of Cyprus either as a salaried employee (1986 to 1992) or as a freelance guide for English, French and then German-speaking tourists as well, cooperating with the ' giants' of the tourist industry of that time . . . Of course, like most of us, we used to do the job in the very popular way of the time: large tourist groups numbering sometimes 50 to 55' guests', packed up like sardines in huge coaches (buses).
We used to take them around the villages, museums, archaeological sites, monasteries painted churches. That was a pretty hard, yet interesting job to do. Despite the 'hardship', so to say, I gained great experiences in both the job itself as well as getting to know people, learning new cultures, making new friendships and of course gaining more patience, as you had to deal with many people's requests at a time. In 1997, I was posted as a french teacher in a public school. Should I leave the job of guiding, which I loved that much for something else? I had no big choice, I needed a steady income, as I had already 2 children to raise and a house building bank loan to pay off.
However, I carried on doing guiding on weekends, school holidays, afternoon shore excursions, luxury hotel private tours and so on. . . I also got some extra qualifications, in the meantime: jeep safari professional driving license, a 4th-year degree in Spanish. Very soon Ι'm getting my early retirement from school and I'm returning to the job dynamically.
So, here I am. You are most welcome to get to know my country, where legends blend harmoniously with real history and archaeology. Or simply relax, lay back and enjoy the scenery, while listening to my stories and explanations, indulge in the warm weather and the friendliness of the Cypriots, worldwide known for their 'Filoxenia'=hospitality. Looking forward to seeing and guiding you
Friendly
Michalis
Maitrise(master) in french language, Lyon 2 University, France(1984)
CTO Tourist Guiding Licence(1985)
Emergency First Aid At Work(St John Association & Brigade)
Yearly Tourist Guides Seminars
Professional Teaching Seminars
I am not permitted to guide in Russian and Spanish languages - only Greek, English, French and German .