Saturday, February 14/2009

Meet with Leo Leontios in reception to make arrangements for a long weekend ini Cairo. Next weekend if there is availability. He brings with him two small boys, a son and a nephew, who have been promised a treat if they're good, which they certainly are.

Lovely sunny morning for market. They now know our "usual" - two black Cyprus coffees - at the cafe. Two elderly men sit next to us in their usual full sun spot. Well equipped electronically with mobiles and, (one of them) a watch that reads the time aloud.

Six eggs. It's rare in this part of the world to buy a dozen as some would probably not be used while they were at their freshest. As the woman puts our eggs in a small bag, a tiny white feather floats off. A good sign. Then tomatoes (still with garden earth clinging), a cauliflower, a bag of oranges and some broccoli. Also a stop at the little deli for two litres of Spanish wine and a bottle of Cypriot.

Come across a short story of John Updike's saved for a rainy day from a UK Sunday supplement. Saved before Updike's death, but we read it now. His descriptions as spot on as Alice Munro's but with a nice masculine imagery.