counting Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Brigitte Bardot amongst its guests.

Light-bulbs still flicker in shop windows displaying dusty seventies fashions and car showrooms sit vacant, full of now-vintage 1974 models, sitting on flat-tyres, rusting.

On July 20th, 1974 the glamorous lifestyle of Varosha was brought to a screeching halt by the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. As the Turkish and Greek Cypriot armies advanced to meet in combat on Famagusta streets, the citizens of Varosha fled, leaving their possessions behind, fearing a massacre. For the last 40 years, the city has remained vacant, fenced-off and under the control of the Turkish military.

Varosha today is a no-man’s-land, fallen far from its golden perch amongst the Hollywood jet-set. Those who have risked their lives to sneak a rare glimpse behind the barbedrunning the perimeter of the once-illustrious town and find myself staring into an abandoned villa or hotel reception, dust piling up on abandoned furniture, the windows blown in, shutters hanging off.

For the last forty years, this ghost town has fallen into disrepair whilst fruitless negotiations have moved back and forth between the two sides. The Turkish Cypriot presidential spokesman Osman Ertug recently described Varosha as a playing card in negotiations with the Greeks. As a result of this inertia, the European Commission is said to be driving negotiations between the two sides to attempt to broker a deal for the restoration of the city.





Restoring the Past

Many local Turkish residents believe Cyprus’ current economic breakdown will become a vital bargaining chip in the restoration of Varosha. The Cypriot government