Dead Kittens

I was walking home from the postoffice this afternoon and enjoying the sunshine and a slightly cooler nip in the air, and then I saw this dead kittne on the pavement. There was a time when I would have sat down on the kerb and cried at the sight of this little thing, but fortunately I've developed a tougher skin over the years. But it's still sad to see the half-starved horses being beaten on the streets, and to find dead little cats on the pavement. It's just one other element of life here that makes the days a bit tougher.

Of course, there is also a great deal of animal pain and suffering in British and American societies, but it is kept hidden from public view in large factory farms and abattoirs. This is why I'm a vegetarian... But public and open animal cruelty is generally regarded as unacceptable and something that would generate disapproval. Are British and US societies hypocritical with regard to their treatment of animals? Of course. But I still appreciate the fact that beating a dog or an emaciated horse is not regarded as acceptable behaviour.

Maybe the apartment is pretty, but the outside? Ugly as hell

My apartment is lovely on the inside, but that doesn't mean that the walls in the corridor outside aren't dirty and crumbling, and that the lift doesn't look like it's about to snap off its wire! Every single lift in the buildings here (apart from the posh hotels) are nasty looking death-traps with doors that only half close and a faint smell of piss. The stairwells aren't much better, though I usually opt for these above the lifts (at least I can get off the stairs in a powercut!). In addition, every 'courtyard' in the centre of the buildings basically doubles up as a rubbish tip/ cat paradise. These photographs were taken from the 'courtyard' in the offices of AMERA, the refugee non-profit where I am doing some work. The building itself has a beautiful marble staircase and is located in the prestigious embassy district in Garden City. The British Embassy is directly opposite. But, as usual, there is a rubbish dump right in the middle of the building (and this is an exact replica of the 'courtyard' in my apartment complex). The keen-sighted blog readers can try to spot all the cats!

Maybe this place should be called Caitro? Cats, cats, cats

I've never seen so many cats in one city-- usually because where there are large populations of stray animals, most of those strays are dogs so that the cat population is kept under control -- or at least more hidden from view. Here, the felines rule. And they aren't just little skinny cats. They are true street cats: part cat, part tiger, with massive heads and thick necks. They are everywhere.... lurking under the parked cars, sitting in the middle of the pavement, up in every little nook and cranny of a building.
Given the central role that these cats play in my daily life, I decided that I should include regular random shots of cats on the street. So here is my first photo of a couple of cats on the wall directly opposite the office where I work.