Sam and Paddy suggest we stay another day, with more time to visit. So we head off with Sam to look at Curium Beach - just below an old Roman settlement - and do some errands. The beach has interesting stones and shells and an exhilarating wind, which has led some parakiters to bring out their colourful sails like giant kites. we speak to a young Portuguese man just before he heads into the surf, the wind catching him and taking him what seems like a half mile down the breakers before he tacks back and builds up speed again.
Home to find that Paddy has not only fiished washing the crystal - having postponed all my offers of help - but taken down the Christmas tree and put away the decorations. The season is over. Chat, and nap, and dinner of prime leftovers. Then a game of Scrabble. Paddy, who has been working most of the time since dawn yesterday, is off to bed, but we linger and talk to Sam for a couple of hours. He has a lovely quiet style, a good memory and a wide range of interests. And, that greatest of charms, opinions and interests that overlap significantly with our own.
After collecting the bread, Sam asks if we would like to see Kolossi Castle. It's a couple of miles away in the next village, an early 13th century square Crusader castle with walls that must be close to ten feet thick. The first thing that we notice is what looks like decorative stone work at the top of the tower. Not merely decorative, it seems, but the spot where boiling oil could be poured down on the heads of invaders. Inside it's simple but very nicely proportioned, with stone arches and fireplaces and window seats, and stone floors that must have been cool in summer and frigid in winter. J wonders about water supply and Sam points to a stone aquaduct outside. Beautiful views across the fields and villages and out to the sea from the top.
Home to find that Paddy has not only fiished washing the crystal - having postponed all my offers of help - but taken down the Christmas tree and put away the decorations. The season is over. Chat, and nap, and dinner of prime leftovers. Then a game of Scrabble. Paddy, who has been working most of the time since dawn yesterday, is off to bed, but we linger and talk to Sam for a couple of hours. He has a lovely quiet style, a good memory and a wide range of interests. And, that greatest of charms, opinions and interests that overlap significantly with our own.
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