The inexorable march of Summer in Cyprus continues, albeit slowly...

It's ten days since I wrote about the start of summer 2012 in Cyprus. Since then, we've had a few more smoothies and several frappés. I've continued wearing shorts, as well as my new sandals. Last Wednesday I put away our thin duvet, so we're just sleeping under a duvet cover now.

The cats, of course, can't do anything much to keep cool. They're moulting (shedding) all over the place - I keep finding clumps of fur. Tessie doesn't mind being quite inelegant at times in the warmer weather:

When it gets warmer still, she'll lie on the floor rather than a sofa.

We still haven't switched on the air conditioning - although the temperature has risen to about 30C or more in the daytime outside, it's not yet particularly humid, and our house never gets as hot as outdoors. We're using the ceiling fans quite a bit, and for the first time have started using an upright fan in the bedroom, which keeps the room cool enough at night. At least for now.  When the humidity starts, we'll be using the air conditioning.

At the weekend I went to see the end-of-year performance of 'The Enormous Crocodile' by the children's group at Antidote, which two of our young friends were in, with Lukas in the title role:

On Monday were privileged, once again, to be counted as part of our friends' extended family when Elisabeth celebrated her second birthday. We sat outside for a while and Helen hid in a box...

Then very much enjoyed a meal with our friends, and Elisabeth's cake:

I got to celebrate twice, because the following morning Elisabeth had a small party for a few of her little friends, and also one or two older ones like me: 

Meanwhile we've had friends from Egypt staying in our guest flat. In the evening they treated us to Souvlaki, and then we went for a short walk along part of the Salt Lake Park trail. The Salt Lake is still very full after the wet winter and spring we had in Cyprus this year, but the plants are already beginning to turn brown:

We probably only walked a couple of kilometres in all; the evening was pleasant, not too hot at all, and we took it slowly.  I was glad to see the park again - I don't think I've been there since I broke a couple of toes at the end of April. The sun doesn't start setting until about 8.00 at this time of year:

We didn't walk far because one of our friends is pregnant, the other doesn't much like walking, and Richard was meeting someone else at 9.00.  But although I'd like to have gone further, I was glad we didn't because by the time we left the Salt Lake trail my toes were beginning to ache a bit... they're getting better all the time, but I begin to wonder if they will ever be completely right.