The camels did not appear until late in the evening, as they had
descended the steep pass from the table-land of Arodes with much
difficulty, and liani's "antique" had again fallen, repeatedly, and
necessitated a division of his load, which already had been reduced to
that of a donkey.
When the sun rose on the following morning I walked into Ktima by a good
path, that led through the rocks along the base of the cliff until it
ascended gradually to the town. Although the cyclamens were past their
bloom, their variegated leaves ornamented the white stones as they
emerged like bouquets from the crevices of fallen rock. There was little
of interest in the town, which hardly repaid a walk: it left the same
depressing feeling that I had so often experienced in our journey
through Cyprus: "The past had been great, and the present was nothing."
The little insignificant harbour exhibited a few small craft of about
twenty tons. There was a small fort and a British flag; there were also
the ruins of ancient Paphos; but there was nothing to denote progress or
commercial activity. In the afternoon Captain Wauchope was kind enough
to accompany us over the ruins. As I have before explained, there is
nothing of interest upon the surface of ancient cities throughout
Cyprus. Anything worth having has been appropriated many ages since by
those who understood its value, and beyond a few fallen columns and
blocks of squared stone there is literally nothing to attract attention.
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