The Park Round the Walls and the Mouse

Part of the town wall restoration project seems to be to create a park all the way round the outside of which the sculpture park and the fountain court were just the beginning. This year they have been working a lot on our side, the wall running north from Bab Taghout and it looks as though it is going to be good. There is new pavement and fancy railings separating it from the park area. There are a number of bed which thus far have only a few palm trees planted, two football pitches and two playgrounds for small children with swings and seesaws etc and a basket ball pitch these all being protected by wire netting to keep children in and balls of the road. It's going to be good.

The downside for us is that this was previously waste land like the other side of the road,

 but it did have a very useful large rubbish skip were beloved could take his empty wine and beer bottles ( the neighbours worry the binmen may think them false muslims). The other thing I don't understand is that I haven't seen anyone working on the actual walls this autumn and winter but they are not wholly finished. One guy was digging holes for trees right up near the base of the walls and of course the whole park is preventing further access to heavy machinery but  this area is clearly one where the walls need work.

 They remain red rather than yellow because they aren't new but they need doing  because they still have the cracks from the 1960 earthquake and some parts are broken down.

The cynic in me wonders though if this isn't just to sell the town for touristic development. The latest news is that a consortium of US and Saudi businesses have signed a $1.3 billion contract with the town council to build a theme park, 3 hotels, a golf course, and a medical facility and spa specialising in women's appearance and fitness matter.The theme park will cover 650 acres and be operated by a "internationally well-known american company".