The orange orchards

RAF Akrotiri
Akrotiri, Cyprus
January 1981

The only thing I can remember from the first day we arrived in Cyprus were the orange orchards. They made a lasting impression in my mind.

We had in all likelihood landed in a grey passenger jet at RAF Akrotiri. From there the long drive to Dhekelia. Was it a coach or a minibus? Probably a minibus. Faint memories. Gut feelings.

I looked through the bus window, excited to be in such an exotic environment for the first time in my life.

I saw flashes of orange. We were passing by orange orchards. That alone gave signal that we were in a semitropical environment now.

I had never seen oranges growing in the wild.

It was an alien world out there, and we were far away from home, from Earth's solar system. I was travelling in a small spaceship through an alien landscape.

But it was winter - January to be precise. Could oranges have been growing then? Was I mistaken?

Comments

Popular Posts