About Cyprus
Pera Pedi
Pera Pedi is located in the south of the Troodos mountain range, about 35 kilometers northwest of Limassol and at an altitude of 770 meters. It is built upon wide, leveled ground, which is surrounded by mountains whose altitude ranges between 850 and 1000 meters. The Krios (cold) river, a tributary of the river Kouris, crosses the village.

Pera Pedi receives an average annual rainfall of about 800 millimeters; wine-making varieties vines, apples, pears, and other plants are cultivated in the region. It is one of the first villages that cultivated apples and became known all over Cyprus as an exclusively apple-producing village.

The village, in its age-long history, has gone through many fluctuations of its population. In 1881 the its inhabitants run up to 182, increasing to 249 in 1901, to 347 in 1921, and to 422 in 1946. Then the village, like other villages of the region, was struck by the urban pull and as a result the inhabitants were reduced to 281 in 1960, to 217 in 1973, and to 130 in 1982. Of course today the population numbers are very encouraging because, with the excellent improvement of the road network and also through providing many incentives, around 250 residences have been erected, pushing the numbers high up -especially during the summer season -and resulting in a continuous course of growth and progress for the village during recent years.

The name of the village is due to the fact that it is built on leveled ground ("pedion" is the second component of "oropedion", which means plateau) although it is located on a mountainous area. Therefore it is a settlement that is located "pera Pedion" ("pera" or "antipera", meaning across). The name of the village (Pedion - Pedi) reveals the antiquity of the place-name, which must be chronically placed in the Byzantine years. It is believed that the settlement existed even before the Frank domination era. Estienne de Lusignan (16th century) knew of its existence and mentions it as the place where Saint Mavri and her husband Timotheos came from.

One of the most impressive buildings in the village is -undoubtedly -the wine factory, originally built by the British, which is upon an artificially leveled area on the foothills of "Pirkovouno". The calcareous rock from the hill across was used for its construction. Today the factory belongs to the KEO firm and annually receives around three million kilos of dark grape from the greater surrounding area.

Another impressive structure in the village is the traditional water mill that was in operation until the 1940's and has been declared as an Ancient Sight. Today it is a property of the Community Council of Pera Pedi, having been renovated and restored.

In the historic church of Agios Nikolaos (St. Nicholas) , built in 1796, two portable icons are kept, that of the Virgin Mary of the 16th century and that of St. John the Evangelist which dates back to 1550. Also, a wooden chest, containing the remains of St. Spiridonas, St. Neofytos, And St. Philip, is preserved.

The pleasant and healthy climate of the village were closely related with the presence here of the only Physiotherapy Center in Cyprus, the founder of which was the extinct teacher Savvas Savvides (1907-1990). Savvas Savvides dedicated himself to physiotherapy since 1936 and managed to make prevalent the world-saving physiotherapeutic lights, not only in our country but also abroad, and grant to everyone their precious health without medicine and only through the beneficial physiotherapeutic methods.

The last few years a liqueur producing and bottling plant operates in the village, supplying mainly the hotel industry of Cyprus.

The creation of the -then -named Improvement Board of Pera Pedi in 1951 (today the Community Council of Pera Pedi) has helped quite a lot in the progress and growth of the village through the execution of many development projects in all sectors.

Pera Pedi is one of the most beautiful villages of Cyprus, literally "drowned" in green. It preserves to a great degree the elements of traditional highland architecture. In the main square ("Stathmos", Station) every visitor can enjoy the freshness of the village. The ideal environment is always accompanied by the sweet singing of the nightingales that never leave Pera Pedi.



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