Making Palouzes & Koulourouthkia with Efsima

"Learn a craft and set it aside, and if you go hungry, grab it" says this proverb that carries the wisdom of folk tradition. It urges us to learn a craft, develop skills, and gain a resource in life even if we do not need it immediately. If at some point things do not go as we had planned, a craft may give us the solution and get us out of a difficult situation.

The residents of the villages along the "Heartland of Legends" route were mainly farmers or shepherds, but they also knew a craft. They had to be creative and multitalented to supplement their income in hard times. A craft was always useful!

Men and women learned to make useful and beautiful objects. Crafts such as basketry, icon painting, silversmithing and goldsmithing, wood carving, pottery and ceramics, mosaic, embroidery, winemaking, the preparation of the famous koumandaria and many others provided rural residents with additional income. All these crafts are today part of Cyprus's Intangible Cultural Heritage, and the Deputy Ministry of Tourism has developed a plan that gives visitors and locals the opportunity to take part in hands-on workshops.

Craft and food-and-wine workshops take place in many villages along the "Heartland of Legends" route. Feel the clay slip between your fingers to shape clay objects, learn how to use a chisel to carve your own wooden piece, take a needle and thread to create Lefkaritiko embroidery, sit at a loom to make Fythkiotika fabrics, and finally feel the joy of creating with your own hands.

All workshops are free and take place from May to November 2026, open to visitors on Wednesdays, weekends and public holidays. Booking is required to participate, so please contact the organizer directly in advance. Workshops also take place in the Christmas villages during the festive season.

The artisans of the "Heartland of Legends" are waiting to share with you authentic traditional flavors, forgotten customs and activities that keep alive the spirit of our land.