A typical day in Larnaca... with your dog

At the beautiful Carrefour field, Larnaca

This will almost certainly be my least popular post ever. I realise it's quite 'niche'. But, as we have recently moved to a new home in a new neighbourhood of Larnaca, I thought I'd indulge in a little bit of nostalgia. It's also an honest post, because while we try to go and explore the island as often as possible, there are inevitably many days where we pound the streets of our neighbourhood, looking for places for Sage to play and, well, to poo.

This spot, opposite the big Carrefour (by the roundabout that leads to the harbour at Larnaca), has proved to be very useful! It's not beautiful, I admit it. Right now it is also completely choked with rubbish and dogs' mess that so many people don't collect. On the positive side, very few people walk through this field, so I've had relatively few complaints when I let Sage run around after a ball or two. It's a big empty space, without cars, which is all Sage asks for really.

And finally, I don't want to oversell it, but having been walking there almost every day for nearly a year, it's actually been quite nice to see the changes in wildlife that the seasons bring, even to this scrap of wasteland. In early spring, for example, the whole field filled up with bright yellow marguerite daisies. When these vanished, small oases of wild grasses appeared, and grew to amazing heights in just a few weeks. This was all cut back and the field became a dustbowl during the summer, but I see that weeds and wildflowers are beginning to make a reappearance with the autumn. Was that too poetic? Perhaps.

I usually spend my time there daydreaming about being able to buy a similar plot of land, and turning it into a dog park, with shade and trees and water and bins and fences and and and.........

Another good walk is the 15 minutes or so down to Finikoudes beach, and along the promenade. I avoided this area during the summer, but now there are fewer people we've started to go back there. It's a more interesting walk for me, to see some life and lights, and a longer walk (on the lead) for Sage.

Poo bags of Larnaca

Walking with Sage in the centre of Larnaca is not very pleasant - just too many cars, people with young children who are often afraid of big dogs, too much tempting rubbish on the pavements. I haven't found a green space in town where dogs are permitted.

I find this strange, as the municipality has made the effort to provide bins, complete with purpose-made bags, for collecting dogs' mess, positioned outside the parks.

Park just behind the bags/bin with 'no dogs' sign

A small area of parkland designated for dogs would prevent people taking their dogs into the other areas, keeping them cleaner for the dog-less.

Apart from this, we've tried out a few small cafe-bars, the ones which have plenty of room outdoors to sit with your dog, and I'll keep adding to this list, especially with any wintery dog-friendly cafes and/or tavernas: http://travelcypruswithyourdog.blogspot.com/2013/06/drinking-in-larnaca-with-your-dog.html.

Hopefully, we'll find some nice new places to do our daily walks, closer to our new home...