Monday, March 2/2026

 Buddleia on the terrace coming into flower. It’s a pretty colour and does attract butterflies. But have to confess to no great love for it. Related to the lilac but with a scent less powerful and less beautiful. But mainly annoying because the flowers at one end of each spike are visibly dying as those at the other end struggle out. Never anything you’d want to bring inside to enjoy.

But it is a sign of spring. March came in like a lamb yesterday in terms of weather - a warm sunny day for enjoying a read on the terrace with a drink. 

More like a lion in political terms as a projectile, apparently not armed, hit a hanger on the UK Akrotiri base on the southern tip of Cyprus at midnight Sunday and two others headed that direction were intercepted. The UK maintained two sovereign base areas in the country when Cyprus was granted independence by Britain in 1960. As recently as Friday the British government had confirmed that it had withheld permission for the US to use RAF Akrotiri to launch strikes against Iran. But a weekend is a long time in politics. By Sunday Prime Minister Starmer had announced that he had approved a US request to use British bases for the defensive purpose of destroying Iranian missiles “at source in their storage depots or the launches which are used to fire the missiles”. He has, of course, pleased no one. There was already some popular unhappiness among Cypriots about Britain’s allowing US presence on the sovereign bases at all, let alone making them a target, while Trump, never one to waste emotions on gratitude, said British permission had come “too late”.

But today warm and sunny. Vodka tonics overlooking the Mediterranean.

Sunday, March 1/2026

 Hadn’t thought of this poem by Canadian poet AJM Smith in years. Decades more probably. It’s called News of the Phoenix and was published in 1943 - and no, that’s not when I last saw it. But what brought it to mind, of course, was the nature of the reporting of the Iran war. The attacks and deaths that are reported and revised and denied as we evaluate the sources. And no doubt as the sources re-evaluate their own positions. Clearly Prime Minister Starmer would desperately like to be on the same side as Israel and the US, but also on the same side as history. As Lord Peter Ricketts, former head of the UK Foreign Office, warned: “If you’re going to attack a country you have to show it is in self-defence and that there is some kind of imminent threat. You can’t make that case here”.

So the British bases in the Republic of Cyprus have seen increased activity but it is referred to by both the UK and Cyprus as precautionary. On the other hand the UK Defence Secretary’s claim that two missiles fired “in the direction” of Cyprus were intercepted has been flatly denied by President Christodoulides, a politician not normally known for understating threats. 

Meanwhile reasonably consistent rumours have it that Netanyahu’s plane was not given permission to land in Cyprus and settled for Germany instead (presumably en route to New York). Noting that he was required to avoid French and Spanish airspace.

And the title of Patrick Cockburn’s biography of his father, guérilla journalist Claud Cockburn, which we read a year ago, comes to mind. “Believe Nothing Until it is Officially Denied.”

Saturday, February 28/2026

The neighbourhood. Cyprus is the island top left. Haziness presumably meant to portray cloud and not confused identity, though that could apply too. It’s part of Europe by adoption but Middle East by birth.

Not necessarily any more dangerous than any other country. People joke about Iran being foolish enough to put their country in the midst of so many US bases. But truly there are American bases all over the world, well over eight hundred. Quite enough to allow them to forget that declarations of war are supposed to be approved by Congress and the UN and self defence is supposed to be in response to an attack and not the cause of one.

Friday, February 26/2026

 

Weatherman (weather person?) delivers cool and windy weather as promised but also full sun. Sun more than satisfactory as heat source most days. So at 10:30 this morning outside temperature 13 degrees, temperature in the salon on the north side of the flat 16 degrees, temperature in the south facing room (shady side of the room) 21 degrees, and temperature in the same south facing room (sunny side) 40 degrees. Always reminds us of the old Aesop fable where the sun wins the competition with the wind, proving itself the stronger. 

And in line with the fable (the competition was to see who could make the traveller remove his coat) we find ourselves unzipping our windbreakers before we reach the Blue Song. There are whitecaps but it isn’t cold. The bartender isn’t willing to dispense draft, though. Says not in winter. Do point out that it’s nearly spring. Well, it’s three weeks to the equinox. And apparently meteorologists go with March 1 as the first day of spring, since the equinox is so shifty about its appearance. In any case, he isn’t playing, so two bottles of Efes it is. 

Small group but interesting. Well John usually is interesting, having hired himself out as an engineer all over the world. Turns out he was working in Iran in 1979 and caught a bus out just before the shah was overthrown. One memory among many.

And in the bizarre news department, a Turkish actress and companion (think the article said accomplice but it will have been a translation) came to Girne and went to a house belonging to a British owner who was not in residence, accompanied by a locksmith. The locksmith not only let them in but changed the lock, whereupon the couple settled in. They were discovered three days later by a man hired by the owner to keep an eye on the property, who informed the police. The actress said in court that she was curious about the lifestyle of her daughter who lived in the neighbourhood. This seems not to have impressed the judge and the pair have been sent for mental health evaluation. To be continued, no doubt.

Tonight’s sunset promised a lovely day tomorrow.

Thursday, February 26/2026

Hooded crow. The type of crow found in Cyprus, and for that matter much of Europe and into Asia. Not keen on coming close to humans and even when they rest on a nearby tree or wall they seem to stay only for a few seconds. No point in putting out food. The crows would be wary and we would only be attracting a wide range of cats, feral and otherwise, as well, quite possibly, as rodents. It is legal to hunt them in hunting season and there is also a late spring hunt for culling purposes, so they have good reason to be wary.

Courtesy Matt Starling, Birdlife Cyprus

Not easy to get a photo. Pic    above taken of a bird that stayed for a few minutes in a tree in the orchard across the road. Obviously would need a telephoto lens to do better. They do apparently make them for iPad minis but haven’t done any research re quality and cost. 

Have no idea what was used for second pic, Matt Starling’s photo, but probably a decent camera. 

Wednesday, February 25/2026

Zoe down the road to the east of us posts that there’s lightning out at sea. Haven’t gone to look as we’re in the south side of the flat but we can certainly hear the thunder and it’s definitely raining. Didn’t rain in the daytime but was extremely windy. In fact several reports of water spouts, which are essentially sea based tornadoes. 

For some reason this winter seems to have been much windier than we’ve experienced in previous years. Do remember that we studied weather when I was in grade ten. Don’t remember anything I learned other than the names of the different shapes of clouds. So google and learn, or relearn a bit more re atmospheric pressure and the rotation of the earth. None of which seems to answer a more existential question - why, and why now, and why here. 

Leading perhaps to an existential answer. Why not? And to considerable gratitude for not living in the northeastern US, some bits of which got over three feet of snow in one dump this week.

Tuesday, February 24/2026

Courtesy Cyprus Mail

Windy today. Seems that’s frequently the case lately. Weather app lists the fine particulate matter as being “fair”. As usual that will refer to dust from the Sahara. Obviously not ideal for humans, and probably some animals as well, but there’s another drawback apparently.

A new Cypriot study has found that atmospheric dust has a deleterious effect on solar energy production as dust blocking light to solar panels can drop electricity production by more than twenty percent. Easier to measure than prevent.