Wednesday, March 3/2010

We have new neighbours in the building opposite, seen only, of course, when they are out on the balcony. The previous tenants had two cute little girls who appeared on weekends, sometimes permitted to use the laptop, which spent most of its time outside next to the ashtray. The new people have no children in evidence and fill the balcony with amazing amounts of wash. So far I haven't subscribed to J's suggestion that the woman takes in laundry, largely because I can't imagine there being any profit in it in modern times, but I'm beginning to think he may be right. It's hard to imagine how one small household could generate three or four lines of wash a day, day after day.

We walk out to M&M's in the afternoon. It's windy, but a warm wind and a lovely walk along the seafront. The waves are high enough that we get a little of the splash. There are plans for a new walkway out along Makenzy (spelling correct by local custom) and it will certainly make life safer for pedestrians, as for most of the way there is no sidewalk and walkers are caught between speeding cars and the crumbling edge of the roadway. Lovely and sunny on their balcony drinking g&t and looking at the shifting colours of the sea.

Then with Maggi over to the Flamingo Hotel, which is displaying the work of local artists, including Jane Curtis, whom we saw at Saturday's coffee. She has a number of paintings on the Cypriot theme, including a small water colour of a coffee spot in a typical Cypriot village which we all like . there is also a batik artist, identified only as Breda, with intriguing pictures, J's favourite being one called Lefkara.

Jacob Zuma, South African president, is visiting the UK, staying at Buckingham Palace with the newest of his three wives - leaving one to wonder what the facilities are at the palace for accommodating heads of state choosing to travel with more than one wife.