Angela Lansbury on the balcony of a bedroom at Rodon Hotel, Cyprus. Photo by Trevor Sharot
We stayed at the Rodon hotel in the Troodos mountains in the centre of Cyprus for a walking, and hiking holiday. The name Rodon means rose in Greek.
The Rodon Hotel and my rosy view of it
We were a group of 16 (Java Lava in exile) in about 12 rooms so we had to stay in a large hotel and the Rodon Hotel is the largest in the area. Oddly, it is given only three stars, although we thought it deserved four. The hotel has a large free parking area in front.
Swimming Pool
At the back, in theory two outdoor swimming pools - the lower one being the best, curvy and cool but warm once you start swimming. (The upper pool was small, square, had a few leaves on it, and the adjoining small indoor pool was being renovated.) I also noticed a small gym.
Bedrooms
The balcony overlooked the mountains, trees and car park.
Our first bedroom was short of power point sockets, needed by two people. They gave us an extension board.
However, we transferred to a larger suite, which cost more, about 20 Euros more.
Toiletries
The toiletries provided were just two kinds, shower gel and shampoo, plus a shower cap. We bought a bottle of hair conditioner in the supermarket just around the s-bend mountain road, within walking distance. The suite did not have more kinds of toiletries than the plain bedrooms.
Towelling backless bathroom slippers were hidden in a drawer under the safe.
Beautiful Buffet
The buffet was great, a huge choice. The meats consisted of three or four choices such as chicken in sweet and sour sauce, two more meats such as beef or lamb and pork, meatballs, and what the serving person said was a Cypriot speciality - ground beef (I call it mincemeat) in tomato sauce.
Breads included seeded rolls, white or brown bread, one with seeds on the edge, or plain. (At breakfast time a toaster.)
Vegetables and Salads
Assorted hot vegetables included potatoes and rice or pasta.
Two to four salads. We had three or four dips for starters, such as hummous, tahini, yogurt.
Drinks. A cold water machine. A coffee machine.
Delicious Desserts
Best of all were the desserts. Two kinds of mini mousse such as chocolate or vanilla. A jelly or two, green or red. Three or four kinds of Cypriot Greek sweet desserts such as baklava, or cake with coconut topping.
Drinks
Waiter service for drinks you wanted to order and pay for, such as Prosecco. All over Cyprus, no problem if a large group all wanted to order different drinks or food. In hotels, they took each person's or couple's or family\s room number. They put your bill for that order in a drinking glass. You signed for it. You paid on checking out of the hotel.
At lunch places, they gave each diner in turn a number. So when the food arrived, you got what you ordered. When you paid, they knew that number one ordered this and that, and checked it with you.
Fruit
Plus orange oranges, green or red apples, yellow bananas. Cut fruit was half moon shapes of red watermelon with a green rind. Also a yellow or green sliced melon. It would be easy to over-eat.
Breakfast
At breakfast we had boiled eggs, fried eggs, or scrambled egg, ham or processed meat, bacon, sausages and mini frankfurters, flat triangles of cheese. Fruits. Yogurt and cereals and nuts and sultanas and dates. Mini croissants, not flaky but with pleasantly chewy centres. Good enough. Yellow cake dotted with dried fruit in green and red colours. Miniature marble cake in plain and chocolate.
Rose Shopping and Waterfall Walking
I shall describe the rose factory which is in walking distance, and the walk to the waterfall in other posts.
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