The well cared for stray cat

I don't know if he's really a stray or not, but I always see him outside, and he's well cared for by the residents of my neighborhood - he is welcomed by the neighborhood restaurants, and I've seen him entering open windows of the cafe across the street. One time he was even lounging on one of the antique chairs on display at the antique store on the first floor of my building. I have finally captured him on camera... Although I had to be patient to wait for him to finish some of his grooming - he was in the same pose as Puss-in-Boots from Shrek 2 when Princess Fiona mistook him for Shrek, if you remember what I mean. Just realized they even have the same coloring! Haha.

One of the things I like best about Italy... sometimes in the smaller communities or where there's a larger percentage of elderly people, you will find the elderly Italians hobbling around on their walkers and little aluminum trays of food and water for the cats. Sometimes you can even find a more able-bodied old woman or man bending over and talking to a cat cowering under a car, placing food right between the cars! Other times you might be walking and catch a whiff of tuna or canned cat food, and look up to see the trays strategically placed on stone walls where only cats can reach. This is especially the case in Genoa! I forget which other Italian city I saw this happening - I don't see it very often here in Turin.

When I was in Rome before flying to the USA, James knew how much I love cats and took me to this old hospital in Trastevere (one of the cooler parts of Rome famous for its restaurants) where there were cats roaming all over the central courtyard! I even managed to get a few to come up to me and let me pet them. :-) One of them has already been dubbed, "Bandit" by me and James for the coloring that looks like a mask on his face. So cute!

Can you tell I'm dying to have my own cat someday? ... sigh ... someday ...