CUCHARACHA

I entered this restaurant for one reason and one reason only: they had the balls to call themselves COCKROACH.

I was taking a walk. It must have been early afternoon. I had gone to get a ticket for Swan Lake but there was no performance tonight. So, I strolled along Nevsky Prospekt and made a right at a river. I took some photos of grafitti, and saw this restaurant.

Now, I know about cockroaches. I was well acquainted with them as a youngster growing up in Kingston. I know about mice and I know about rats. Life would be better without them.

When I entered the restaurant, I wasn't even hungry, so I selected a fairly light meal and a margarita with strawberries.

I was served by a delightful and pretty young woman from Colombia. She speaks English and Russian, which she has been studying since she came to St. Petersburg about a year ago.

I would have liked to chat with her about her country but one has to be careful chatting with people while they work. If management needs an excuse that surely gives them one. I would have liked to ask her about el presidente Uribe, a US lackey. One has to be careful when drawing conclusions about people, because I went to Spain really hating Generalisimo Franco only to hear from one of my hosts what a wonderful guy he was.

I would have liked to take her photo also but again, at work, I considered it inappropriate.

Her name is Leidy. I think it is wonderful, at that tender age, to leave home and to see the world.

Patrick Barry Barr