Last summer I went to Cyprus to visit some family for the first time. I am half Cypriot, but have been brought up by my English mother and English stepfather in a fully English family since the age of 2. I went to Nicosia to more fully explore the capital of the country that my father came from.
There are two sides to Nicosia. The old town is at the centre, and is fully pedestrianised. Here is where the bulk of the night life is to be found. There is a wide selection of pleasant restaurants tucked away in little alleys, in addition to a number of bars and nightclubs.
Further out from the center, the town becomes mouch more modern in style. The "coolest" area is near the Kiss FM radio station, around which a selection of bars and fashionable clothes shops provide the habitat for the young upwardly mobile, fashionable local young things.
The thing that struck me most about this city is that it is quite obviously split in two. Since the civil war over twenty five years ago, the city has been divided down the middle. Three seperate military lines exist that separate the two sides of the city and the island. There is a Greek army line, then a UN line, and finally a Turkish army line. The consequence of this is that you can only explore the Turkish half of Nicosia on a one day pass, and you have to return before nightfall. The only way to go from holidaying in the Greek half of the island to the Turkish half is via plane, the nearest neutral airports being in the north african area. Near to the line, in the old town, there are numerous sandbagged and fortified sentry positions that are still currently manned by Cypriot soldiers, both full time and young men on national service.
Because of the strong military presence in the area, the old town also has a large number of strip bars. In the evenings it is not unusual to bump into a group of inebriated European squddies on their way to one or other of these establishments. However, this all remains quite low key, and I didn't encounter any agressiveness or seediness in my entire stay.
I would recommend Nicosia to anyone who wants to investigate more into the cypriot way of life than simply sunning themselves on a beach for a week. If you are in Paphos or Larnaca it is sufficiently close to make it worthwhile for a day visit.
As far as the younger tourist goes. Again, it is interesting both for the more genuine Medeterranian experience, and to anyone that wishes to explore the consequences of a European civil war that predates the recent Yugoslavian conflicts. The more purely hedonistic amongst you would be probably better advised to seek out Ayia Napa for a clubbing holiday, or Paphos for a slightly more laid back, more family orientated beach holiday.