Peering across the border...

The sun is warm, the sky is blue (as is the sea). Yes, Ros and I are on holiday, here in Cyprus.

This is my first trip to Cyprus, and it isn't a country that, in the past, I would have given a lot of thought to. It's a bit near, a bit Mediterranean, and lacks that sense of adventure that once marked my travelling. However, Ros was convinced that I would enjoy it so, here we are.

And, as usual, she's right. The warmth of the sun, and the gentle pace of life turns out to be to my liking after all.

We're staying near Polis, in the northwest of the island, and our outing today took us to Kato Pyrgos before swinging inland to see the moufflon at Stavros tis Psokas. The journey is made more complex by the division of the island between the Republic of Cyprus and those areas controlled by Turkish forces. Nowhere is this division more bizarre than on the coast between Pomos and Kato Pyrgos, where the village of Kokkina (Erenkoy in Turkish) is a tiny pocket, hemmed in by Cypriot forces on the heights on all three landward sides, monitored by a small United Nations base. As a result, the drive to Kato Pyrgos is lengthened by about 15 kilometres up into the hills and back down the other side.

We were looking for a recommended restaurant but gave up when the road ran out at a gate marked 'You are entering Turkish territory'. It looked like an ordinary road, without any warning that you might be on your way to one of the last surviving European geopolitical hotspots - the Attila Line. It's still guarded by armed troops, although there are now five authorised crossing points.

We gave up and retreated back into town where we found a restaurant serving fresh fish and healthy salad before setting off into the hills.

The road weaved its way inland, with hairpin bends and sensational views, although I was glad of Ros's driving skills, given the potential hazards and the frequent small landslips we encountered. Eventually, we reached Stavros, where we grabbed coffee before visiting the moufflon enclosure.

The moufflon is the national animal of Cyprus and it's a bit like a mountain sheep. At one point in the 1930's, there were just 15 left, but preservation measures have retrieved matters so that over ten thousand now roam the hills - not that you'd have much chance of seeing one, as they're very shy. The enclosure at Stavros isn't very big, but they were still hard to spot. They are brown in colour and blend in to the scrubby hillsides that they inhabit.

We then headed back to the villa, with some off-road adventure as we made our way past the Argaka Dam and through some rather pretty forest before home and an early evening snack...