Whenever I am out and about and it's safe to look up I carry out a reconnaissance of what people have on their balconies for whole lives are lived on them, much as the British use their back yards or gardens. Air conditioning apparatus abound, as you would expect but you also see old fridges and washing machines, toys, vegetable racks, shoes, bicycles and rubbish bags which will later be taken down to the communal bins. Some people have built little glass -covered utility rooms and others have sun lounges reminiscent of British conservatories on their balconies. Others have patiently grown pretty gardens enclosed by trellises, especially those who live on first floors where the terrace extends further outwards, or those who live on top floors. And of course you see lovely, trailing plants all year round.
Today I reconnoitered the balconies opposite and for the first time it occurred to me that my portable clothes drier , about which I wrote here, has higher sections at either end so that you can place one of those ends over the shorter, lower part of the balcony wall. How you do live and learn when you move to another country - and yes, it has taken me nearly two years to work this out!
8 comments:
You've just reminded me, Welsh, to fix up my clothes line...mine is strung between a tree and a post but the wire broke at its tie on the tree so is looking a little sad and saggy at the moment. I keep meaning to buy some new nylon rope when I go shopping but keep forgetting!
Regarding my links...if you're using Internet Explorer they may appear at the bottom of my posting page as that is what is happening on a friend's screen and he uses IE. I use Mozilla Firefox mainly and the links show at the top right of my screen, under "my profile". When I went into IE they show at the bottom of my posts, so that might be the case with you.
I don't think I could live my life on a balcony, I really love having a garden.
It isn't a clothes line, Lee. It's a solar clothes dryer. Get with the envirotimes.
I lived in Naples for six years, Welsh... lemme tell you that my introduction to Italian was at least as trying as yours.
I never had an accident there, and even once made the 7th lane on a two lane road... THAT'S when I realized I had been in Italy too long.
I could live on a balcony....would not mean so much hard work for me in the summer...mind you then i might need a tumble dryer for my washing.....no pleasing some of us...lol
Lee, I will try again re links. Not tonight as I have a broken finger and am feeling sorry for myself! [Amazing how much you use little finger in typing, btw.] Don, nice to meet you. That must have been scarey in Naples! Revisiting your blog soon - it makes me smile. Ellee, Sally, I enjoyed my garden for many years but it just got too much for me - workwise and expenditure-wise and basically, I'm not an outdoor person at all! A few herbs on a balcony are fine and usually, clothes dry so quickly here that you can get several washloads done in a day.
Even junk somehow looks more stylish on a Mediterranean balcony than in a British back yard.
Damned foreigners. Why do they always seem to do things with more elan than we do?
We have a clothes line in the back yard, when weather allows. Most of the time, it is hung on the lines in the basement. Must be nice to have the nice weather. Our winter has been a mild one this year.
Hi, Rick. It does seem that way sometimes! Hi, Steve. Nice to have you back. When it's sunny washing dries within the hour here but when it's humid it takes all day!
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