Pissouri, Cyprus - McDonald's is good for something.

When George and I used to travel, especially after we retired, he would look for McDonald's. It was a fast food chain that he could find pretty well anywhere we went and it always had a toilet. That was a priority for him as public toilets were not always in evidence and many cafes and restaurants don't like you just going in to use the loo, so you have to buy something and we would end up in the silly situation of buying a coffee, to use the bathroom, which guaranteed we would need to find another bathroom soon.
Today I took the bus into Paphos and decided to walk to the car hire place. I knew it was down near the harbour, next to a McDonald's. From up on the hill I could easily see those "golden arches" over top of the surrounding buildings, so I wound my way down, making decisions at intersections based on where I thought the McDonald's was. This was the walking equivalent of the reason why I often argue with the GPS, I think I can "wing it" and am overly confident of my sense of direction.

While I didn't end up on any roads with grass growing in the middle, I did pass through a neighbourhood with a mix of old and new.

This little place looked like it belonged out in a valley surrounded by grape vines and almond trees, not by parking lots and apartment buildings.

Down on the coastal plain it was harder to keep the "golden arches" in sight

There they are. Car rental just down a side street.

Drove to Papantoniou's for some groceries, home to eat and change shoes and met Jimmy and Rob (owner of #5, who is here for a couple of months now) in the parking lot to pick up Pippa and then go for a walk.

Sunny, about 24 degrees with a strong but warm wind.

This post marks the edge of the Akrotiri British Sovereign Territory. Everywhere that we walked beyond this post belongs to the UK.

Cyprus became a British protectorate in 1912; by 1922, it was a crown colony. It gained independence in 1960, on the proviso that Britain maintained its military territories. Today, the two UK Sovereign Base Areas (SBAs) occupy nearly three per cent of Cyprus. The Akrotiri base, at the island’s southern tip, is the largest, at more than 250 square kilometres. from newint.org

I wanted to look at the three labyrinths again. One is completed (cobble stones), one is half done (up right stones marking the path filled in with flagstones) and this is the third, just roughed in.

We were doing this walk in the opposite direction to the last time we did it. This time, along the coast first to Malenda Bay and then we would walk back, inland. No puppies this time at the restaurant. Rob said that this bay is a lovely shallow place to swim in the summer.

Tiny little berry-like flowers on a bush.

We seem to have worked out the right route for this loop and Jimmy or Rob can use it when it is their turn to lead one of the walking groups.

Reading this right now. Written by a woman whose husband came to work in Cyprus and they rented an old house in a small village in the foothills of the Troodos.