Limassol buses information

Finally, Limassol is joining a list of pretty much every city on this planet that has a system of public transportation!  Lots of new buses, new routes, new tickets, new passengers – all that is exciting.  I’ve been waiting for this and now I’m happy to see how it grows and improves.  From a myth of bus system, it turned into a real bus network.  It’s true that not everything is covered yet, and that most people still prefer to drive their own cars, but I see light in the end of the tunnel.  I’m full of hope.  And I say – just give it time.  And we’ll have an alternative to personal cars and expensive taxis.

I have tried the new bus system myself.  Together with my son Maxim we took a test ride to grandma’s and back.  The funny bit was when were heading back home, we had a choice of either going back by bus or getting a lift by my brother.  When presented with these options, Maxim chose a bus.  And I don’t see why not.  The buses are new and comfortable.  We already paid for a daily ticket.  There is practically no waiting time.  And it’s all exciting and new.

The only issue I noticed with the new system is that nobody knows which routes are there, where buses stop, and how often they go.  Except for route 30, which goes along the seaside from La Meridian Hotel to the New Port of Limassol and back.  Gladly, there is a website now that solves the problem with detailed information on all routes, bus stops, timetables, ticket prices, and more – LimassolBuses.com . Not only the website is in both Greek and English, but it’s a nice showcase of how WordPress can be used for a non-blog.

FxPro Cyprus Rally 2010

This year FxPro Cyprus Rally is not the part of the World Rally Championship (WRC).  Instead, it’s a stage of some Intercontinental Rally Championship (IRC).  Not only that, but also it’s the last stage of IRC, by which both the winning driver and the winning manufacturer have already been decided.  Needless to say, there wasn’t much to see, so I decided to skip the even altogether this year.  And I almost did.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oS17SePRFoM]

Yesterday though I went to spend some time with son at Yermasogia dam, which became somewhat traditional for us, before going to Pehnidotopos kids entertainment center.  While driving to the dam we were passed by a few rally cars, which gave me a suspicion that the rally stage was somewhere up the road.  That was surprising, because I thought the event finished on Saturday.

It turned out the suspicion was right.  There was some stage of the rally up the road and it had its finish line exactly on the dam itself.  Left with no choice, Maxim and I went to watch.  We were late, of course, but still managed to catch a few cars on the asphalt road.

Most Cyprus Rally stages are on gravel and I was wondering how much fun is it to watch the cars driving on asphalt.  Surfaces with less traction – gravel, snow and ice – provide a full range of spectator entertainment.  Asphalt, of course, is faster, but is it as much fun?  The answer is no.  While the cars still drift and skid, the pass you by much faster, and there is no aftermath, such as dust and flying stones.  Boring.  Even though the scenery is beautiful.

Having no camera with me, I shot a few short videos using my mobile phone.  You can see them at my YouTube channel.

Free Software Conference 2010 in Limassol, Cyprus

Here is an announcement from my friends at UbuntuCy.org forum, who are organizing yet another event to promote Free and Open Source Software.

The Ubuntu Linux Cyprus Local Community in cooperation with the Information Systems and Technology Service of Cyprus University of Technology and the New Technologies Club of CUT, invite you to the Free Software Conference which will be held at the Andreas Themistokleous Building (Old Cadastre) of CUT on the 6th of October. The agenda follows:

Presentations (Pefkios Georgiades Amphitheater) :
6:00 – 6:30 pm: Introduction to Free Software (in Greek)
6:30 – 7:00 pm: Linux Clusters (in Greek)
7:00 – 7:30 pm: Free software: past, present, and the future (in English)
7:30 – 7:45 pm: Projection of the Creative Commons epic short film “Sintel”

Workshops (KXE1 Computer Lab):
8:00 – 8:30 pm: Presentation of the Ubuntu 10.04 Desktop
8:30 – 9:00 pm: Academic Applications for Math, Physics, Chemistry, Engineering.

An installation workshop will be running in parallel with the above, where can practice on how to install Ubuntu and its applications.

There will be free Ubuntu CDs with Free Software for everyone! You can also bring you laptop to test them.

Just so that you don’t get confused – this is tomorrow, October 6th, 2010.  It’s going to be in Limassol, on campus of Cyprus University of Technology.  And in case you’ll be running late, make sure you get there before 7 o’clock.  Yes, I’m going to deliver a speech in English on the subject of past, present, and future of the Free and Open Source Software.  Maybe we can talk more and catch a beer afterwards. Don’t miss it!  Here is a leaflet for you if you need something printed.

Sabaton in TePee rock bar, Limassol

Swedish power-metal band Sabaton is performing at TePee rock bar, Limassol, Cyprus on Saturday, August 28th, 2010.  Doors open at 20:00 and tickets are 25 EUR, which is not too much for a foreign Grammy-nominated band, but is a bit too much for the horrible sound they have in TeePee.  Hopefully they will have someone competent at least try to configure the system.

As per Wikipedia:

The band’s main lyrical theme is that of historical wars. This can be heard on the albums Primo Victoria and Attero Dominatus where all of the songs, except the final tracks, take inspiration from a historical battle or war, such as the song “Counterstrike”, which refers to the Six-Day War. Lyrical content drawn from World War II is most prevalent, and includes songs about Nazi Germany and the Holocaust, resistance movements in occupied Poland and Norway, the Battle of Berlin, the Winter War in Finland, and battles on the land, sea, and air. As of their later albums, the band has started to incorporate some elements of progressive metal.

Also check their YouTube channel for some videos.

Via Cyprus Events.