1. We live on a tree lined street just two blocks from the Black Sea on a street named for the renowned Crimean seascape painter: Ivan Aivazovsky. Our street sign above is in Russian

2. This is the walking entrance at the front of our cat-filled courtyard. There are about 12 flats around the perimeter of the central common. Our kitchen window’s on the far wall opposite this entrance

3. Steam heat travels through the insulated pipe below the window where a local cat perches. When spring arrives flowers will fill these areas.

4. This is our kitchen window and our garden area. About a dozen friendly cats take turns sunning on our bench. Our neighbors have a lush grape arbor each summer