Monday Washing Lines – Koufonisia

Welcome to my latest theme. Monday Washing Lines.

This one I spotted on the Greek Island of Koufonisia, I think it was the uniformity of the branding of the socks that really caught my eye and the nagging thought “who wears socks in the Greek Islands?”

In the apartment next to us there was a young French couple. They were like a couple of characters from a French movie – silent, quiet, moody and almost completely non-communicative as each did their own thing, he drinking endless cups of coffee and smoking his way through a packet of cigarettes, blowing smoke rings and contemplating the resulting shapes and she permanently connected to the internet through her laptop or staring blankly at her mobile phone.

Everyday there was a washing line full of clean clothes with what I for one thought included an abnormal amount of socks! I am not against washing on holiday, I quite like the smell of Tide, but it seems such a waste of time to be carrying out chores normally associated with home.

There was enough material here for a complete Luc Besson trilogy, here was the first – ‘Les Vacance de la Introvertis’ to be followed up I suggest with ‘La Maison de la Introvertis’ and finally ‘Les Jardin de la Introvertis’. It’s sure to be a winner!

Can you work out the embedded message in the colour order of the pegs?

Answer tomorrow.

Monday Washing Lines – Lisbon in Portugal

 

Welcome to my latest theme. Monday Washing Lines.

In Lisbon we stayed in an apartment and outside the bathroom window was one of those washing lines with a pulley system and the washing hangs out over the street. I have always wanted one of those so washed some clothes just for the sake of it and used it.

We had selected a studio apartment for our four night stay and it turned out to be most satisfactory. The Travel and Tales rooms were situated in a domestic block of apartments so we were going to spend our time in Lisbon rubbing shoulders with real locals with real washing lines and we were happy about that.

We were allocated the Fernando Pessoa apartment who according to Wikipedia turns out to be… “a Portuguese poet, writer, literary critic, translator, publisher and philosopher, described as one of the most significant literary figures of the 20th century and one of the greatest poets in the Portuguese language”.

I apologise immediately for my ignorance in this matter but I have to confess that I had never before heard of him.

It is a Challenge. Do feel free to join in…

Monday Washing Lines – Naples in Italy

 

Welcome to my latest theme. Monday Washing Lines.

Naples is a traditional Italian living and working class city with shabby narrow streets, care worn but brightly colour-washed buildings that have ancient coats of paint which have blotched and blurred by successive harsh summers and the result is a glorious wash like water colours leaking in the rain, everything running, flaking and fusing.

The streets between the houses are deep gullies made vibrant by washing lines carelessly strung outside windows and across the pavements like tattered bunting as though in anticipation of an important carnival, dripping and swaying above little shops, street food vendors and small bars.

It is a Challenge. Do feel free to join in…

Portugal, Porto Washing Lines

Only Mad Dogs and Washing Lines Go Out in the Midday Sun…

The clothes now wave that hang upon

the tired old line that stretches from

a leaning pole to a rusted hook

left here now for folk to look.

 

Every garment pegged and spaced

each shirt and sheet carefully placed

along the line the socks will run

until they dry in the scorching sun.

 

Portugal, a Clothes Line