Friday, April 10/2026

 

Sad beginning to the day. Ralph posts that Horst Gutowski died yesterday. Had known that he hadn’t been well but don’t think anyone was expecting his death. A remarkable man - kind, generous, energetic and a friend to everyone. He will be widely missed.

Amongst his many talents, Horst was the brewmaster extraordinaire of the glögg at the annual pre-Christmas gathering. Much nicer than mulled wine, it was made with schnapps instead of wine and included raisins and walnuts in the bottom of the cup. More complex than wine and stayed steaming hot rather than subsiding into sweet tepidness like mulled wine.

We’re having a discussion round the table at the Blue Song - actually about Ladas being shipped to Poland - when a man comes over and apologises for overhearing but says he is Polish and has some contributions to make to the discussion. J talks further to him later. His name is Jan and he’s a permanent resident here.

Thursday, April 9/2026

It rained in the night so we awake to see the mountain and clouds reflected in the water on the terrace tiles. Can see that the ideal way to photograph this would be lying prone on the wet tiles but my commitment to photography is insufficient. 

Sunny all day, though, and the sheets dry in no time. 

Reaching the point of looking into the fridge and realising that everything there has to be consumed - or otherwise disposed of - in the foreseeable future. Fortunately excess butter and cheese translate fairly satisfactorily into rock cakes and cheese biscuits. Celery?

Wednesday, April 8/2026

Looking down at the Mediterranean from the salon. Cypress tree left of centre is our wind sock. It leans permanently a little to the east because the prevailing wind is westerly but when the wind is strong, like today, it hits about 22 degrees or more from vertical.

Go to check tomorrow’s weather - continuing sunny - and note with surprise that London, at six in the evening, is still registering 25 degrees. Quite amazing in early April.

The public employees’ strike continues here. No more negotiations so a standoff so far. Sounds a little like the Middle East war, although less bizarre. 

Tuesday, April 7/2026

 

Now this is more like it. Sunny on the terrace. Good breeze for drying clothes. Temperature perfect for pouring a gin on ice.

Though somewhat less than perfect in the political sphere. Protests continue here regarding the suspension of cost of living payments for public workers. Health care workers are not withdrawing their services for now. Some others are, including teachers. The first sign of which was the cheerful sound of children playing in the neighbourhood today. Not everyone unhappy it seems. 

And then of course there’s Trump threatening to destroy a civilisation by tomorrow….

Monday, April 6/2026

Lucky to be invited to Easter Monday dinner at Beverley and John’s house. Beverley has made a super Asian meal, much better than any we have actually eaten in China, though that was a long time ago. 

Lovely pace to their meals. Start with a Thai lime and chicken soup. And then egg rolls with mushrooms in the filling. Followed by Mongolian beef,  curried chicken, pork with apricot, Asian vegetables and noodles. Beautifully distinct flavours.  Would have been more than complete, but John has made his classic crepes for dessert - and we find room! Best, of course, is the company, which would have been good if we’d been eating sandwiches.

Pat kindly gives us a ride home, though she actually lives in the opposite direction. She leaves this week to go back to Scotland for the summer.

Sunday, April 5/2026

Easter cigar. Overlooking the Mediterranean. Neighbours’ grapevine beginning to sport leaves.

Sunny morning. Afternoon showers, but we have freshly baked rock cakes and an F1 film to watch. Then J roasts a chicken with vegetables and we open a bottle of Bordeaux. No egg hunt, but we had stashed away two of our favourite Maximus chocolate bars for dessert. 

Saturday, April 4/2026

 Bottlebrush shrubs line the sidewalk going down the hill to the little supermarket. They’re not new but have suddenly burst into exuberant flower, encouraged no doubt by the frequent rains. And they are planted not beside but in the cement, typical of both North and South and presumably making life difficult for those in wheelchairs or manoeuvring baby prams.  Cheerful though.

Dust is still with us but not nearly as heavy as yesterday. Seems to be heading east, though to be replaced, the forecast says, by showers.

And there is a news report of a man being arrested for stealing three beers. Well, theft is theft, and it’s good to know the police take their responsibilities seriously. But it gets better. The theft occurred last October, when the suspect entered a house through the front door and left with three beers (report fails to specify whether in bottles or tins and inquiring minds want to know). He might reasonably have supposed by April that he had got away with it, but not so. The man was arrested at the airport on Friday as he returned from a trip abroad. So did the police (plural?) make a trip out to the airport in order to make this arrest or were they already there in the course of their more mundane duties? Be interesting to see the sentencing.

Friday, April 3/2026

Courtesy in-cyprus.philenews.com

 Once more, it’s difficult to take a photograph of what isn’t there. In this case the mountain behind our flat. Although a news reporter seems to have done not too badly with a street scene. For the second time we wake to find that the mountain and the sea have both disappeared. This time the culprit is not fog but dust. Saharan dust not unusual here, but meteorological director is quoted as saying “It would not be an exaggeration to say that episodes this strong are recorded once every ten years.

Courtesy Gill Caunt, TRNC 

A fellow North Cypriot had better luck, a better camera or both. Possibly also took the photo at a time of lighter dust cloud than my attempt.

Should have been our regular Friday afternoon gathering but not a good time for the walk down when municipalities are cancelling outside work.

But am a little less than half way through Annie Proulx’s The Shipping News, which I borrowed from the online library, meaning it will vanish when its time is up. An excellent read on an indoor afternoon.

In the interests of which I check the iPad’s charge level and say oh shit. Siri, programmed to answer in a Jeeves style butler’s voice, says primly that he is unable to respond.