So near and yet.......

Interesting to note from View from Fes latest missive that a Lonely Planet survey put Morocco and Brazil in the top destinations, which is nice. Its been relatively quiet here tourist wise after the New Year of course when all Brits are panicking over their Xmas excesses and also have to find extra shekels for those newly risen bank charges plus Gordo Browns new airport stealth tax.

Old faces are trickling back in as new faces leave with their memories of Medina life. Its always good to see the old faces as they see the progress a lot more than I do on a day to day basis. As always trying to get a logical work plan together for the workmen is constantly frustrating as you can never get them in the same place at the same time. The plastering team were doing stupendous work and then announced theey were off for a week to Tangiers, why, your guess is as good as mine. The builder has put in two baths and is awaiting the plumber who turns up after the builder leaves and the next day neither of them show, oh well.

Meanwhile the stalwarts in the operation are Mernissi who diligently cleans all the zellige throughout the house behind the plastering team and the Da Capo ladies who will strip anything that doesnt move it seems. They are busy getting all the blue paint from the apartment windows revealing the gorgeous cedar underneath. The carpenter has made frames for all those missing windows or new windows throughout the house and is also hard at it. The taciturn lone electrician is steadily putting the trip switches in the junction boxes and there is a threat of imminent electricity throughout the building in the very near future.

I suppose i shouldnt complain should I as lots of people have a lot more problematic time but one can only deal with ones own situation on its own terms and when you can see the finishing post your natural impulse is to surge for the line. Its at this stage actually when you should slow down and take stock and dont rush because a bad finishing detail could come back to haunt you very quickly.