A welcome refuge

It's best to temper your expectations when getting to know stray cats.  When cats are used to foraging for food and having to watch their backs all the time, it's understandable that they won't let you pet them the way house cats would.  Still, it's a relief to see them and for them to know that they have a safe space in which they can eat and drink:

The feline, whom my family and I called Stray Cat, visiting in 2004.