social life

social life about  daily life for students like shopping sports..

Although Northern Cyprus is absolutely not a ‘shopping Mecca ', there are certain items you may be tempted by. Negotiating or ‘haggling' is obviously not something that most shopkeepers would want to engage in. Once your offer is refused, that is the final word. The owner will not come running after you like in Turkey !

The two main shopping areas are Girne and Nicosia. As a word of precaution, look around carefully as the quality varies enormously from shop to shop and so can prices. Jewellery is a good buy. Each piece is weighed before a price is given. You might like to buy one of the local Cypriot charms “ the glass blue eye” which protects the wearer from the “evil eye”.

Shopping in Gazimagusa

Gazimagusa has been referred to as an 'outdoor museum'. The contemporary day shops rub shoulders with Lusignan and Venetian architecture.

As a new pedestrian area has recently been made in front of Lala Mustafa Pasa mosque, with benches to sit and watch the world go by. Just in front of the mosque is the main road with the usual selection of traditional shops. If you cannot find the shop that you are looking for inside the old city, then you will probably find it along the Salamis Road. Good quality brand name clothes from Turkey can be found in the various shops along the Salamis Road.

Shopping for Food

The EMU campus has a very wide range of eating facilities, that cater to different tastes and budgets. Numerous restaurants, food shops and more are available in Gazimagusa . There are also upper scale hotels which offer fine, yet more expensive dining options.

The major supermarkets are Lemar , Astro and Sok (Pronounced Shok) market which offer the convenience of one-stop shopping. All taxi drivers know how to get there and it is also easy to flag down a taxi in front of one of these stores when you finish. These supermarkets stock a wide range of goods both local and imported.

“Bakkals”are mini supermarkets that stock a good range of commodities but prices tend to be slightly more expensive than the larger supermarkets. Nevertheless, Cypriots tend to buy things such as bread, milk, eggs and newspapers from the neighborhood “ bakkal ”.

Every Friday, in the Gazimagusa bus station, you will find the “ Cuma Bazaar”where local producers sell their fresh produce and some goods. The price of fruit and vegetables tends to be slightly cheaper here than in the shops(30% cheaper). The prices are further reduced close to closing time.