By Tracy Roth-Rotsas

The authentic Italian pizza is quite a simple affair. It’s light on toppings on a baked base and without cheese smothering the toppings as most Western franchises would have us believe it should be. In Cyprus, it’s an extremely popular choice, however few restaurants can compete with Pizzeria Al Borgo, tucked away in the village of Pyrgos, when it comes to flavour, quality, value and authenticity!

Al Borgo is only a small place with few tables. In fact, the open kitchen where the owner energetically kneads the dough and has his prepared toppings is almost larger than the dining area. Freshly-made is the only way this restaurant serves anything and it exudes a wonderful homely atmosphere complete with mouth-watering aromas!

Al Borgo is completely unpretentious, even though most nights tables require a reservation!

The waitress brings us the menu which hosts the largest choice of pizzas I’ve ever seen – in Cyprus, at least! We order a glass of red house wine and some water and ask about the size of pizzas. There is big (28cms) and then there is bigger (33cm) though there is only one euro difference in the price. We decide to go for the former, and if still hungry can always order more later. It turns out to be the right choice!

Apart from the traditional pizzas such as Margherita, Siciliana, Hawaiian, and the Special, there are 37 different types of pizzas. Some pizza choices incorporate local ingredients on top of the obligatory tomato and mozzarella, such as the Greca ( + feta, and tomato slices), Mediterranea (+ sundried tomatoes, feta, olives, onion, spicy pepper, and oregano), Cipriota (+ halloumi, lounza, and olives) and Autunno (+ olives marinated in garlic, coriander and lemon, bacon and halloumi).

Other options focus on the those with a spicy palate: Diavolo (+ pepperoni, red hot chilli pepper), Delizia (+ garlic, parsley, red hot chilli pepper, parmigiano), Vesuviana (+ green pepper, and tabasco) and Sally’s Usual (+ bolognaise sauce, ham, onions, green hot chilli pepper). Equally, lovers of seafood, rich cheeses, smoked meats, and even garden vegetables, are well-catered to.

Of course, if none of those suit your taste, there is a comprehensive list of 30 ingredients from which to make your own!

I go for the Guiseppa (tomato, mozzarella + green peppers, pepperoni, parmigiano) and my friend, the Biancoverde (tomato, mozzarella + Parmigiano Regiano, ricotta, rocket).

It’s beyond cosy inside: we chat and listen to the soft background music of old-time greats among a low buzz of chatter. There is no wi-fi so it is refreshing to see people talking to each other instead of looking down at their phones!

About 15 minutes later, our pizzas arrive, piping hot, crispy, charred on the edges, with the base billowing out with random air-pockets. In traditional Italian style, the cheese is underneath the toppings, so you see everything you ordered right in front of you! My pizza is covered in pepperoni – which I love – and my friend’s is an example of pure indulgence with a garden-bed of rocket sitting atop her trio of baked cheeses!

There are two types of pizza-eaters: those without cutlery and those with. We are one of each and attack our dishes accordingly without struggle. The crust is moreish, begging us to wolf it down in seconds: we fight the urge. But it is the toppings that win us over. Rich, juicy flavours, slight crispness at the tips of the pepperoni slices, and a softness you can sink into, which I accredit to the generous layer of mozzarella on the base. It is, without a doubt, one of the most satisfying moments in my dining history!

I lament not ordering the baked mushrooms (Funghi Al Forno) or Lasagne (which get particularly glowing reviews online) but acknowledge I wouldn’t have been able to fit them in anyway.

From the small selection of homemade desserts is Tiramisu, my friend’s favourite. It’s a large portion with subtle flavours and deliciously light.

The bill is reasonably low, but it is cash only, so I am grateful there is an ATM just around the corner.

Admittedly, Pizzeria Al Borgo is a little hard to get to… but then again, don’t all the best places require a little bit of effort for the reward?

VITAL STATISTICS

SPECIALTY Pizza

WHERE Pizzeria Al Borgo, Grigori Afxentiou 2, Pyrgos, Limassol

WHEN 5.30–10.30pm daily

CONTACT 96 609718, FB: Al Borgo Pizzeria (@alborgopyrgos)

HOW MUSHC appetisers €7-10; pizzas €7-14. Takeaway & delivery available also

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The decomposed body of a man was found on Wednesday evening in an abandoned building in Limassol.

It is believed the man was homeless, reports said.

The body was found after a passerby alerted authorities over the smell coming from a building located neat Heroes Square in Limassol.

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Police and the labour ministry carried out checks to crack down on illegal employment in Larnaca, Limassol ad Paphos on Wednesday, leading to several arrests.

In Larnaca, seven nightclubs employing a total of 28 people were investigated.

In one of the establishments a 22-year-old third-country national who was working without a permit was arrested.

Her 42-year-old employer is under investigation for illegal employment, while he was also booked for the use of loudspeakers, selling alcohol without a licence and allowing people to smoke on the premises.

Another three of the nightclubs were not licensed to sell alcohol and two of them had no permit to use loudspeakers, while another two had no licence to operate.

Seven persons were working without a permit and they and their three employers were charged.

In Limassol and Paphos over 80 people were investigated.

In Paphos, these included 21 employers, 10 third-country nationals, 22 EU citizens and 23 Cypriots.

Six of the third-country nationals were found to be working illegally and were arrested. As they were legal residents they were charged in writing and released. Their five employers were also charged for employing them.

Another third-country national who was an illegal immigrant was detained.

In Limassol, nine nationals from non-EU countries were working without a permit, six of whom were charged and released while three illegal immigrants were detained.

One of them is believed to be involved in a case of forging a document to enter the country.

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A magnitude 3.8 earthquake was felt off the coast of Limassol and Larnaca Friday afternoon the department of geological surveys said.

The earthquake was recorded at 13.46pm.

Its epicentre was 30 kilometres east of Limassol and 15 km south of Zygi with a focal depth of 15 km.

The earthquake was felt by residents on the south coast of Limassol and Larnaca.

Geological Survey Department said its seismological centre was monitoring the situation.

Relevant information may be found at http://www.moa.gov.cy/gsd and http: // 135.34: 8080 and @CY_earthquakes Twitter account.

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Limassol police on Tuesday arrested a 25-year-old man on suspicion of assaulting and injuring a police officer with a pair of scissors, and with drug possession.

The incident took place at around 9pm near a hotel at Limassol city centre when two officers tried to stop and search two individuals who had raised suspicion.

When they approached the men, one of them assaulted the officers and injured one in the right hand with a pair of scissors and punched the second one.

The suspect managed to flee the scene, leaving behind however, a black satchel, the scissors, and two plastic bags containing 10.2 grammes of cannabis.

Inside the satchel, officers found three more plastic bags, one with 2.5 grammes of cannabis, and two containing 4.1 grammes of crystal meth. Officers also found €75 in cash.

Police arrested and questioned the second man who gave them the name of the suspect. On Tuesday, police raided a flat in Germasoyia where they found and arrested the 25-year-old suspect who is a third country national.

The injured officer was treated for a cut to his right palm at a private clinic.

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A 26-year-old third-country national was remanded in custody for eight days on Tuesday in connection with assaulting and robbing two compatriots in Limassol on Monday afternoon.

Police said the man is suspected of assaulting a 60-year-old storekeeper and his daughter, 35, on Ayios Andreas Street at around 3.30pm.

The suspect allegedly stole the woman’s phone, worth €300 and her bag, which was inside the 60-year-old’s car, police said.

Before fleeing the scene, the suspect smashed the glass on the front door.

A bystander managed to take back the woman’s bag from the suspect, who managed to escape.

The 60-year-old and his daughter were treated in hospital for lacerations and then discharged.

Police tracked down the suspect who was arrested at 12.30am on Tuesday.

He is being investigated in connection with robbery, assault and inflicting actual bodily harm, and causing property damage.

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Police on Friday were investigating a bomb blast that damaged a car owned by a 42-year-old man in Limassol.

The improvised devise exploded at 9.40pm on Thursday while the car was parked in the garage of the owner’s residence.

The explosion caused extensive damage to the rear of the vehicle the windows of the house.

The car owner insists he has no disputes with anyone and he has no suspects in mind.

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Police arrested 17 people for working illegally in Limassol on Tuesday while fines totaling €192,000 were issued by labour inspectors in separate cases.

The arrests followed a coordinated operation conducted by the immigration service in collaboration with police and labour department inspectors.

According to police, 350 individuals of various nationalities were searched at two sites in Limassol and 17 arrests were made, 13 of which involved the illegal employment of foreign nationals.

Three people were arrested on suspicion of drafting and circulating forged documents and one was detained for obstruction.

The suspects were taken to police stations in the Limassol district pending further investigations.

Six other people were charged for the illegal employment of foreign nationals.

Labour inspectors have fined 14 employers €192,000 for undeclared work involving 55 individuals.

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Russian frigate Admiral Essen arrived in Limassol on Thursday and is scheduled to leave the port on Saturday afternoon.

The Russian warship, based with the Black Sea Fleet at Sevastopol, is in Cyprus for refueling, Russian news agency Tass reported on Friday.

“As part of the Russian navy’s operational mission in the wider area of the eastern Mediterranean the ship will replenish supplies and refuel, while the crew will have a break and visit the historic sights in their free time,” the news agency said.

Admiral Essen, one of a number of multi-role light frigates specially designed and destined for the Black Sea, belongs to the Admiral Grigorovich category.

Ships in this category have a displacement of about 4,000 tons, a speed of 30 knots and can continuously operate for 30 days.

Admiral Essen is armed with Kalibr missiles, a Shtil-1 missile defense system, a 100mm A-190 machine gun, a defence gun, an RBU-6000 rocket launcher and torpedoes and can carry a Ka-2731 helicopter.

In May and September 2017, in the course of the Russian military campaign in Syria, Admiral Essen reportedly hit targets in Syria by launching Kalibr cruise missiles.

In August 2018, the Black Sea Fleet said the war ship, along with similar Admiral Grigorovich frigates, was making a ″planned passage from Sevastopol to the Mediterranean Sea″ to join the Russian navy’s Mediterranean task force.

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Limassol will be turned into a friendly, green and smart city for citizens and businesses, mayor Nicos Nicolaides said on Tuesday presenting a report for 2017-2019 highlighting completed projects, ongoing projects and various actions regarding social policy, culture and sports by the municipality.

Limassol continues to grow at an ever-increasing rate, he said, noting that “by our choice, development is directed to the whole of the municipality, is universal, is directed to all social strata and all districts of the city, but also to the wider urban area of Limassol.”

Referring to completed construction works, Nicolaides mentioned the project connecting the coastal avenue with Franklin Roosevelt avenue.

Regarding culture, he mentioned the completion of projects such as the Limassol municipal arts centre and the municipal university library, the renovation of public squares, but also the upgrading of the fountain at the Ayios Nicolaos roundabout.

Ongoing projects include co-financed projects, such as the redevelopment of Anayenisis Square and Misiaouli and Kavazoglou streets, the restoration of municipal housing, the creation of a ‘green walk’ in the area of Ayios Antonios, the expansion of the Garilli linear park, the new adult engagement centre and the entrepreneurship and innovation centre.

On projects in neighbourhoods, he said that the major renovation work of the historic centre of Ayia Fyla is starting, while in the Ayia Fyla sporting area, the first ‘environmental neighbourhood’ is in the process of being implemented.

In the 30-page report, Nicolaides also referred to the municipality’s plans for refurbishing city landmarks such as Heroes square and the public gardens, and the creation of a Limassol carnival museum.

The municipality will this year also launch construction work for projects to prevent flooding, which are expected to resolve problems which have plagued the city for decades.

He touched on issues of the homeless and affordable housing, mentioning the establishment of a support and reintegration centre.

The important distinction of Limassol as ‘European sports city 2020’ was another topic of his presentation.

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A man who had climbed on the roof of an unfinished building in Limassol on Monday evening and threatened to jump surrendered to police a few hours later.

He was taken to hospital as a precaution.

Police negotiators and the fire service scrambled to the scene after they were notified of a man on the roof who was threatening to jump.

Reports said the man, a foreign national, has demanded to see the president.

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The state health services organisation (Okypy) has suspended the operation of Limassol hospital’s pulmonary unit because of lack of staff, it emerged on Tuesday.

Okypy was forced to send patients to other wards after lung specialists resigned one after the other and it was unable to recruit replacements.

While Okypy insists the suspension is temporary, state doctors threatened to take measures claiming Okypy’s inaction pushed nine specialists to resign in just a few months.

Okypy said no specialists were interested in working there, nor were any doctors from other districts were prepared to move temporarily.

But Okypy spokesman Charalambos Charilaou told media on Tuesday that the clinic did not close down and that there has only been a change in its way of operation.

Only two pulmonologists are now working at the Limassol hospital, he said, while a third is expected to start working there within the week.

He also said that the latest arrangements would not affect patients since the three pulmonologists will be working during normal hours. General physicians will be examining patients during the evening hours while patients will be admitted in hospital if necessary, as before.

In a statement, state doctors’ union Pasyki said the closure of the clinic was unprecedented.

“These developments had been predicted by Pasyki and the authorities had been repeatedly warned but they chose to ignore the warnings,” the union said.

Pasyki head Soteris Koumas told media that the doctors resigned due to the work conditions.

He also expressed bewilderment over Okypy’s announcement that the clinic did not shut down but changed its way of operation.

Since patients will be served by the general practice (GP) department, he said, it was obvious that the pulmonary clinic is no longer in operation.

He added that that the GP department had reached full capacity while it too is understaffed.

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The carnival season was due to be brought to a close on Sunday evening with a party in Limassol starting at 9pm at the old port.

This followed the main parade which passed through the centre of the town from 1pm.

Thousands took part and thousands watched as floats and dancing groups passed along the length of Makarios Avenue.

King of the Carnival was Lemesios, the Maharaja of the City who was accompanied by the rest of the ‘royal’ family and the town’s majorettes.

A total of 110 groups and floats took part in the parade.

Smaller parades were also held on Sunday afternoon in Larnaca and Paphos.

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Environment Commissioner Klelia Vasiliou is to discuss with Limassol’s mayor Nicos Nicolaides possible changes for a more sustainable carnival following complaints over the amount of rush strewn on the streets after the parade at the weekend.

Vasiliou said in a Facebook post that she had spoken to the mayor on the phone and talked about establishing more eco-friendly events in the future.

The two agreed to meet on March 10.

“Limassol needs to become better every year with all the ways we can…,” she posted.

Vasiliou confirmed she had received complaints at the end of carnival season from all towns but mainly concerning Limassol.

Sustainability for similar and smaller events will be promoted, said Vasiliou’s post.

Pictures posted by non-profit group Friends of the Earth (FoE) after the carnival showed a large number of beer and spray cans, plastic bottles, and snack wrappers left behind by parade-goers.

Other photos published by Greek Cypriot media at the weekend showed that tables and chairs at a Limassol restaurant has been smashed.

According to FoE, no additional bins or recycling bins are added to the parade route, and as a result the rubbish ends up on the ground to be collected by the municipal cleaning crews and taken to landfills.

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President Nicos Anastasiades on Saturday laid the foundation stone for the west Limassol wastewater treatment plant in Kato Polemidia, which is expected to solve the sewerage ploblems currently faced in that area.

The plant, expected to be up and running by the middle of 2021, will help save over 13 million cubic metres of water annually through the recycling of the water, a quantity bigger than that of the Yermasoyia reservoir, he said.

“It is very important for irrigation purposes, for (water) saving reasons. It will effectively tackle problems affecting the wider western Limassol by directly addressing the needs of the area, including neighbouring municipalities and communities,” Anastasiades said.

He added that the Sewerage Board of Limassol – Amathus had first pointed out the necessity of this project 50 years ago “and is being implemented today, thanks to the cooperation and coordination of all stakeholders and the government’s determination”.

“It will contribute to the decongestion of the main sewer line and the existing sewage treatment plant in Moni,” he said.

The €47m project, he said, is part of the government’s environmental policy and the broader planning it adopts for maximising and utilising renewable resources, sustainable development and protection of the aquatic environment and achieving the objectives of the EU’s Urban Waste Water Treatment directive.

The plant enables the utilisation of the biogas it will be producing for the production of electricity. It also reduces the risk of pollluting the environment and groundwater resources, while protecting public health, Anastasiades said.

He added that, in order to maximise the use of recycled water, the government has drawn up a programme for major important infrastructure projects to the tune of over €100m.

Earlier in the week, the EU Court of Justice ruled against Cyprus over its failure to ensure that all urban areas of more than 2,000 inhabitants have adequate collection and treatment systems for wastewater, as required under EU rules.

The court ruled that, even though “some progress has been made”, Cyprus has failed to collect and treat wastewater in 31 urban areas with a population ranging from 2,000 to 15,000 people and, under EU law, should have had adequate wastewater treatment systems in place by December 31, 2012.

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A cruise ship docked in Limassol port for refueling on Saturday, after requesting permission from the port authority.

The ship part of Celebrity Constellation Cruises, came from India and was not carrying any tourists, with only 904 crew on board.  Authorities said the ship requested docking for refueling, amidst the new protocols announced for entering Cyprus due to the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19).

After the request was granted, the ship was brought to the port.  The cruise ship was to leave in a few hours to continue its trip.

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Police arrested a man on Saturday and seized two kilos of cocaine in Limassol which was sent via courier from Greece.

Following a tip off, drug squad officers put the courier office under surveillance and waited for the cocaine to be picked up.

At around lunchtime, the suspect arrived at the office to pick up the package and was arrested.

Police said they were seeking a second suspect in connection with the case. It is believed that the case is connected to a packet containing 10 kilos of cannabis that arrived via courier on Friday.

Both packages appear to have the same sender in Greece.

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A Limassol private hospital is offering free Covid-19 testing to front-line workers in the city.

The team of molecular biologists from the Mediterranean Hospital announced on Thursday they would start performing Real-Time PCR lab test.

The tests will be carried out “with state-of-the-art certified equipment and complying with all necessary safety rules” the hospital said in a written announcement.

Free testing will be provided to district administrators, municipality workers, police officers and fire fighters.

The public can take the test for €60. Priority will be given to front-line workers.

The offer is funded by individuals and companies in the field of Informatics of the Russian Community of Limassol, the hospital said in a statement.

For more information and appointments contact 25 200100 or 96910105.

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Limassol municipality announced on Tuesday that it had placed feeders and water troughs at the Akti Olympion beach for the hundreds of hungry pigeons that frequent the area.

The birds have been short of food since the restrictions on movement have prevented people from going to beaches.

The decision to feed the pigeons was taken after numerous suggestions were made to Mayor Nicos Nicolaides during a recent tour of the city’s coastal area.

“The pandemic has not only affected humans but also animals, many of which have been deprived of the care they receive from people who had to restrict their movement due to the situation,” Nicolaides said.

He recalled that the municipality had also made arrangements to feed the city’s stray cats every day.

“As of today, we will also be taking care of the pigeons at Akti Olympion,” he said in a statement.

He added that he immediately gave instructions for the placement of feeders and drinking troughs in the area, and supervised the works.

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Restaurant and bar owners on Wednesday protested by placing 100 empty chairs outside the Limassol district administration, asking for help with the serious problems the shutdown of their businesses due to the coronavirus has caused.

The protest by members of the Pancyprian Association of Entertainment Centres (Pasika) was part of a European protest entitled Empty Chairs.

The main demand is substantial financial support from the government for each business, head of Pasika Kypros Kyprianou said.

He pointed out that 60 to 80 per cent of all restaurants and bars will not be able to open when the green light is given by the government since the proposed restrictive measures will mean they will not be able to cover operating costs.

“We call for easy and accessible lending to small businesses, a drastic reduction in rents and any decisions to be taken regarding the next steps to relax the measures to be taken with a dialogue with the association,” he added.

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