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[Name Withheld Upon Request], Nicosia, Cyprus, Summer 2001
In the summer of 2001, I was living in Nicosia, Cyprus, where I was
conducting research for my thesis. I was living at a research institute,
which was housed in a large late-19th-century building that had, at one
time, been a private home that was built by British colonialists.
When I first arrived in Nicosia there were many people staying at the
institute, so I was given the only room that was left -- a very small
bedroom that, apart from it being ridiculously small, almost a closet -- was
fine. In my second week I was given a larger room -- room #3 -- on the
opposite side of the building. Though the room was more spacious and
brighter than the first room, it wasn't very pleasant, but I wasn't able to
really put my finger on why. From the first minute I just really didn't want
to spend any time in there.
Cyprus in July is hot -- incredibly hot -- and my bedroom didn't have air
conditioning, so I never really slept all that well while I was there. A few
nights into staying in room 3, as I lay awake in my bed, the covers kicked
off because of the heat, I suddenly had the distinct feeling that someone
was in the room with me. I was wide awake -- absolutely 100 percent awake --
but my eyes were closed, and I was so sure that someone was standing at the
foot of my bed, looking at me, that I was paralyzed with fear and couldn't
have opened my eyes if I wanted to. I know there was someone -- or something
there. The feeling was undeniably real and continued for hours. I didn't
sleep a wink that night.
Remarkably, I stayed in that room for another six weeks. All the other rooms
at the institute were full, and I couldn't change, and I had to continue my
research. All the guests had keys to our individual rooms and were
encouraged to keep them locked at all times that we were not there. On
several occasions, as I was approaching my room or unlocking my door, I
could hear, through the locked door, something moving about inside the room.
It distinctly sounded like a person moving light objects around on the desk
or dresser, and I sometimes heard the bed creek as though someone had just
sat down on it or just gotten up. I knew those sounds well, as the bed made
the same creaking sound every time I sat down or got up.
I refused to let myself believe that there was something supernatural going
on, so I actually had the nerve to open my door each time I experienced this
phenomenon, but each time I entered the room, nothing was in disarray --
everything appeared to be as I left it. However, often, day or night, I got
the feeling that someone was either in the room with me or that someone had
just been there before I entered.
I found the entire experience to be really disconcerting because it was so
consistent, and I felt the palpable presence day or night. But it was the
nighttime visits I found most troubling. They didn't occur every night --
maybe six or seven times in the six weeks I stayed in that room. It just
felt too real...
About a month into my stay, I visited some American friends of mine who were
working down on the coast. We were good friends, so after a little while I
felt comfortable enough to bring up what was going on back in my room in
Nicosia. I had barely mentioned anything at all when one of my friends, who
had stayed at the institute before said, "Wait, are you staying in room 3?"
I was really surprised and told him that yes, I was. My friend revealed that
he too had stayed in room 3 and had experienced the same phenomenon of
feeling like someone was in the room and that he was being watched. He also
added that he had had his foot grabbed while he lay in bed and that he moved
out of that room the next day. Like me, he had no problems staying in
another room.
I've never had another experience quite like this.
