The celebrations for the three-day Carnival in Nicosia have begun, after the pause of the previous three years imposed by the coronavirus pandemic. of Nicosia and Aglantzia who got into a festive mood on the occasion of Tsiknopepti.
Both in the walled city of Nicosia and in Aglantzia, many shopkeepers brought their tables and foukudas outside, grilling meats to the accompaniment of alcohol and music. The situation was similar in the 3rd Primary School of Aglantzia, which was visited by KYPE. Many people strolled along the sidewalks of Ledra and Onasagoro, to the sound of a student choir singing cheerful songs.
In his statements to KYPE, Konstantinos Yorkatzis, Mayor of Nicosia, said that “this day is offered mainly for two reasons. First to celebrate customs and traditions and at the same time to have a good time with friends and family”. noon and afternoon in the amazing restaurants and bars”.
Asked about how he sees the traffic on the sidewalks of Nicosia, Mr. Yorkatzis said “extremely positive”.
For his part, Andreas Constantinou, Mayor of Aglantzia, pointed out that “two years of abstaining from the Carnival due to the pandemic is a long time”, adding that “people need to go out, which is why this year too the big parade was organized the previous 11 years”.
Furthermore, the Mayor of Aglantzia expressed the certainty that “the carnival of Aglantzia has nothing to envy from the well-known carnival of Limassol”. “For the first time, our carnival goers exceed 5,000, forming many groups,” he noted, adding that “the Aglantzia carnival has established itself in the consciousness of the people of Nicosia as the biggest carnival that takes place in the capital”.
Speaking about the activities of the Municipality of Aglantzias for the three days, Mr. Konstantinou mentioned that today the Municipality is celebrating Tsiknopettis at Skali Aglantzias, on Friday in the same place it is organizing a stand-up comedy event, on Saturday it will have a masked party, while on Sunday the Carnival celebration culminates with the grand parade at 11:30. “The Aglantzia Municipality services are preparing for a very big event. We are sure that it will be quite successful”, he added.
Asked about this year's Aglantzia carnival theme, the Mayor told KYPE that for the first time the Municipal Council decided not to have a king or queen in this year's parade. “We invited friends with mobility problems, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other specialities to join us and send the message to our children that we are all equal, we do not discriminate and we give equal opportunities to everyone,” he added.
< p>Aggeliki Savva, President of the Association of Pedestrian Shopkeepers of Nicosia, told KYPE that “with great pleasure we undertook the organization of this beautiful event that marks the beginning of the three days” in collaboration with ETAP, the Municipality of Nicosia, Rhea Ioannidou and Cultural Folklore Club of Nicosia.
In addition, he mentioned that the events on the sidewalks of Ledra and Onasagoro last from Tsiknopempti until Saturday and invited people to attend and bring their children, adding that there will be a rich program with dances on the sidewalks. He expressed the hope that this event will be the beginning of events that will continue throughout the year.
Asked about the response of the people, Mrs. Savva said that it is scarce, which is due to “both the events of the last few days and the difficult situation that our compatriots are going through”. “We didn't put this event out too much, we didn't advertise it too much, the line was very thin between fun and the difficulties our fellow human beings are going through,” he explained.
Konstantinos Malaktos, manager of a restaurant on Ledras, told KYPE that “today is special for us, because we celebrate Tsiknopempi”, adding that the traffic is much more than on other days.
In essence, as he explained, the increase in world attendance peaks today. “Traffic on the pedestrian street of Ledras is increased these days and I believe it will continue in the coming days,” he concluded.
