Limassol
Located on the shores of Akrotiri Bay near the center of the southern underbelly of Cyprus, Limassol, with a population of 101,000 (175,000 metro area), is the island's 2nd most populous city. Limassol has spread out a lot during its recent history, but it has retained its original medieval core. Its focal point is Limassol Castle, 200 meters from the Marina.
To the west of the city on the Akrotiri Peninsula is the 254 square kilometer (98 sq. mile) British Overseas Territory of Akrotiri. It has both a British Army garrison and an RAF base. It is home to about 8,000 Cypriots and 8,000 British military personnel and their families. (There are 14 such BOTs in the world. They are ruled by the UK, but are not part of it. Gibraltar, the British Virgin Islands and the Falkland Islands are other BOTs.)
Limassol has its own Archaeological Museum, an excellent Theatrical Museum and a Museum of Traditional Art. Also there is a public park which has a small zoo and a large amphitheatre. In this park, the celebrations for the Wine festival take place every September. The festival is an attraction for many tourists and locals from all towns. In one of the most beautiful and well known buildings is the Municipality Library which has been turned into a library for the Technological University of Cyprus.
There are also other archaeological areas such as the Medieval Castle of Colossi, Curium, Iero of Apollona Ilati, the ancient city of Amathounda as well as the historical monasteries such as the Monastery of Agiou Georgiou Alamanou. A complex of water habitats is located at the Acrotiri Aliki of Limassol which is protected by the British Bases as a special protection zone.
