Prastio Avdimou
Prastio Avdimou is a village of the district of Limassol in Cyprus and is located 35 kilometers east of Limassol, 101 km west of Larnaca, 111 km southwest of Nicosia and 44 km southeast of Paphos.
Situated at an altitude of 400 meters in a unique natural landscape, Prastio Avdimou of the about 250 inhabitants is an area of narrow streets, stone houses with tiled roofs, wooden doors and blossoming courtyards with pergolas. Here the residents cultivate forage plants, cereals, vines, olive and carob trees, but what gave the village its reputation are the recipes of traditional dishes with goat milk as the main ingredient. One of the most famous villages for the quality of its milk products, with cheese production as its trademark, residents have built small local workshops that produce yogurt, tarhana (a tiny, pebble-shaped grain product), halloumi (type of cheese) and anari. For this reason in Prastio Avdimou is also organized one of the many feast- festivals of Cyprus, the festival of Traditional goat cheese Halloumi.
The village has had the same name since Byzantine times. The community has been referenced also by Leontios Machairas, who says that the Mamelukes came here in 1426, although it is not unlikely that he meant another seaside location south of Avdimou where the invaders landed. Therefore, the area of Avdimou would have more than one Prastio Avdimou during that era.
Moreover, the name of the village refers to the Byzantine period, although there are two prevailing versions. Some researchers argue that the name Prastio derives from the French medieval word Prasti meaning field, which shows that it was a toponym of farms belonging to some feuds, while a second version says that the word is Greek and comes from the Byzantine period and from the word proastion, meaning suburb (pro meaning before and asti meaning city, therefore: before the city, settlement near the city). Due to the proximity of the village Avdimou it is known as Prastio Avdimou.
During the Turkish occupation the village belonged administratively to katilliki (administrative district during the Ottoman era) Avdimou and belonged to the same village during the Frankish rule. In the more modern history of the village, it was a mixed settlement with Greek and Turkish Cypriot residents. After the Turkish invasion of 1974, the Turkish Cypriots left the area in order to reside in the occupied by the Turks areas of northern Cyprus.
Some of the village attractions for the visitor include the Archangel Michael park with the wooden benches, the Gerovrysis park with stone seats and Ottoman baths. The stone church of Agios Ioannis (Saint John) the Theologian with the wooden carved iconostasis, is a Gothic building of the 19th century and is located in the heart of the village.
The chapel of the Panagia (Virgin Mary) Diakinousa in Prastio Avdimou owes its name to a legend, according to which the people saw the Virgin Mary outside the church to diakinite, meaning wandering in Greek. The three-aisled church was built in the 18th century on the ruins of an older church of the 14th century. Parts of the medieval church, such as the two small chapels were built into the newest church, while in one of the chapels there is a quite damaged fresco of the enthroned Virgin Mary with Christ.
According to another tradition, during the time when the plague was killing the villagers, the Virgin Mary protected the area after stepping hard on a large stone and leaving on it the imprint of her foot. This was named as Pathkia of the Virgin Mary and the name remains until today.