CATS
There are cats everywhere on Paros. In the beautiful mountain town of Kostas at siesta time we saw a dozen cats but no people. There seem to be as many cats as people in Naousa.
But except for Susie holding a cat I never saw any sign that anyone cared about cats. Of course, cats are pretty self sufficient and don’t spend much time looking for loving.
But these cats seem to be comfortable in whatever place they are lying as if they belonged there.
In India there are dogs everywhere. They are often mangy with shiny pink spots and usually emancipated and with the famous hang dog look, scavengers, belonging to no one and not even causing fear when they bark although at night their howling spreads from neighborhood to neighborhood like a wave, waking you up until the wave passes.
They lie in the warm street even with traffic rumbling past within inches or when they see a truck coming languidly rise and move out of the way, just in time, some hidden communication of body language protecting them.
There were also a few well fed, well loved dogs prancing on leashes, lording it over the other dogs when taken for a walk by their owners, their noses in the air.
In Istanbul there are cats everywhere. But there people are proud of their cats with feeding and water bowls on every corner. But these Paros cats seem to be on their own.
Wolfgang says that cats keep the rats and mice away and they probably do although everything is kept so clean in Paros that rats would have slim pickings in any case. I‘ve seen rats in India slinking around, but not one on Paros.
I think I will have to ask Efi what is going on.
BILLYBABA’S WANDERING 