Spain warts and all!!

Hello to everyone and for my friends in the UK I am so glad to see that the awful flooding seems to be abating although the disruption and work will go on for some time. I was fascinated watching how the Dutch deal with the situation and you can’t help thinking it isn’t rocket science and we just need to appoint a team of Dutch experts to advise the government!!!

Life here in Spain continues on and Chris now has a flight booked to return on Thursday 6^th March.  It is a good job I like my own company as I have spent all of the time on my own.  We got back from our trip to find that there had been some change to the satellite which provides our UK Freeview and we had only about a dozen channels, and no BBC, Channel 4 etc . Life doesn’t seem right without the BBC news!!  The people who we use were so busy it was last Saturday before we had the dish adjusted. Thankfully they arrived in time for me to watch the England v Ireland rugby game, and what a game. I was on the edge of my seat for most of the match and so pleased with the result.

At least living in a village means there are people around and a daily routine and of course everyone knows I am on my own which results in regular conversation about when Chris will be back.  I still go down to the bar most days as it has wi-fi and it saves a 22k round trip to Pliego.

On Saturday, the weather was lovely, and I walked up into the Parque Sierra Espuna. It is one of the good things about the house, it is on the edge of the park and you can walk from the house. I walked about two hours and the views were stupendous, a lovely clear bright day and some lovely little colourful birds dotting around the pine trees. 

On Sunday I put my bike on the back of Ruby and set off to Cehegin, about 35k away, I parked up beside the via verde and cycled 22k to Bullas and back. Then I got changed in the van and went into the old town as it was the monthly artisan market, there was a group of men in pink trousers, wearing bright shirts, wigs and coloured glasses singing in the square. The songs were so fast I didn’t understand much but it added to the atmosphere. I then stopped at a little tapas bar and had a glass of wine and a lovely prawn, smoked salmon and artichoke tapa. I drove back and had lunch in the bar, the rabbit and snail paella was lovely as always.

I started painting yesterday, prepared the bars and did the first coat on one window and am hoping to make some more progress today. I have to wait till about 12 to start as it takes till then for the sun to get to the back of the house and although the weather is nice it is chilly out of the sun.

Although life here is very chilled and relaxing I still get the odd occasions of frustration with the Spanish. One of my bugbears is the supermarket!! In Mula there is a branch of Mercadona, not quite on the scale of the UK hypermarket but a decent size. Yesterday two women, who were clearly shopping together, had unloaded their stuff onto the belt-not even half a trolley full-and it took about ten minutes. First was the laughing and joking with the guy on the checkout then the utter surprise that they needed money to pay for it, minutes searching for a purse, meanwhile none of the food had been packed into bags. When it was my turn he apologised, maybe my face showed my frustration, and I explained in the UK the concept of the supermarket is very different it is a place you go and the checkouts are really fast , none of this chatter!! I just shrugged and said , yeh but this is Spain.

Now on one level I have plenty of time and should just relax but it is an example of a trait that I find difficult from time to time. The Spanish have no real concept of other people around them, at times it manifests itself as a type of arrogance, sometimes as rudeness . There is not much use of please and thank you and I get odd looks when I bump into people and say excuse me!! If you watch Spanish people in bars and restaurants they bark at the staff and are very impatient!! At least they have an etiquette about queuing, unlike the French, which involves asking “quien es ultimo”, who is last and then you know who to follow and as the next person comes into the bank, pharmacy (two places that always have BIG queues) you say “soy ultima”!!

I also find it fascinating that the butcher’s shops all have chairs for the queue, but if you watch the proceedings then you are grateful for the chair. First you choose the type of meat needed for the dish you are cooking, and then work out how much you need, how you want it cut and wait while the butcher prepares it. There are no window displays, usually some large pieces of meat in the fridge in the shop and then the bulk of the meat is in the back. A much more interesting way to get your meat than at the supermarket!!

Back to Casas Nuevas-with photos!!

Tuesday 18th February 2104

Wild camping in Olvera

Part of my birthday tapas trail

Couldn't resist taking this guy complete with leiderhosen and braces in sunny Spain!!

Blossom and a bit of last year's crop

10k of almond blossom 

Hello again, another week another change. When I last wrote we were near Malaga. We stayed there till Thursday and enjoyed cycling along the coast, although the headwind was pretty strong. We used the local buses to Torres del Mar and I had a long overdue haircut, I was starting to look like a shaggy dog. On Sunday we got the bus to Torres del Mar and had a real treat, a Chinese meal, which maybe sound odd to some of you but “foreign food” is not very prevalent in Spain and it made a nice change.

We got the bus into Malaga, what a light and airy old town, fabulous wide streets and we had an interesting trip to the Picasso Museum, which I enjoyed. Well laid out and interspersed with 12 other artists. We had a very simple but tasty menu del dia for 7 Euros 50 cents. While we were in Malaga on Wednesday Chris got a call from his son to say his ex wife had been re-admitted to hospital and we knew we needed to go straight back to the house in Casas Nuevas. Sadly she died on the evening of Thursday 13th February.

Chris went home on Sunday and is with Adam now, I have spoken to him today and the funeral is next Friday 28th (the crematorium in Carlisle is closed for a week). This was not unexpected and we have been very flexible with our travel plans to ensure he could get home fairly quickly. It is part of the reason we postponed the China trip too.

We drove back to the house on Thursday and they say every cloud has a silver lining and that was certainly the case, the almond blossom is absolutely magnificent and we would have missed it had we not returned. I have stayed at the house as Chris was happy to go home on his own, I think he will be back around 3rd or 4th March and then we can have a bit of time before we head back to the UK with Ruby-who needs an MOT in April.

On Friday we were having a glass of wine in the bar when Fernando mentioned there was a special Valentine’s dinner being held on Saturday at 9pm. We assumed it would be fully booked but no there were spaces –although they were expecting about 70 people. The bar can hold maybe 30 but they were also using the dining room of the other bar in the village, which has not really been open since the untimely death of the young owner in a car accident.

We booked our places and set off about 8.45 to have a drink first, the place looked lovely with red and white table settings etc . However, in true Spanish style, two things struck me, there were not lots of tables for cosy romantic twosomes , tables were set for 20 people and in the main bar the football, La Liga was on!!! Our place was in the upper bar so off we trotted and had a lovely evening, we were the only twosome and all of the other tables were big family groups, with children as well.

It was the usual vibrant and loud night and the food was fresh and simply and beautifully cooked. There were seven starters, three plates ready on the table one with cheese, one with jamon and salami and local almonds and one with smoked salmon. Then we got garlicky baby squid, followed by pulpo al horno (baked octopus), then tiny clams, then a plate of prawn based nibbles and finally a plate of luscious fried prawns. We had a bottle of white and a bottle of red wine. The choice for main course we had been told was meat or fish and when Chris said meat he was then offered chicken, pork or lamb and the same when I said fish-I opted for Hake. By this time we were struggling but I managed half of my chocolate pudding and we even got heart shaped biscuits with the coffee. We declined a glass of fizz and staggered home feeling very well fed, and me with my red carnarion, and the total bill was 50 Euros which at the current exchange rate is £42.. Considering the size of this village it is amazing that they can gather 70 folk together and without any advertising, we would never have known if Fernando had not mentioned it.

As a postscript, on Sunday morning I remembered to put my carnation in water, only to realise on Monday that it was not real!!



I am quite happy here in the village, there are plenty of people around if I need anything, and I have Ruby for transport. Although I could have done with Chris yesterday afternoon when I had to remove the remains of a large bird that one of the local cats was devouring on one of the bedroom window ledges. It had been a bit damp and dull, but is due to improve tomorrow. I am hoping to paint the window grills at the rear of the house , they looked terrible and now that the new windows are in they look even worse. It is a long slow job but worth the effort in the end.

Spain and Portugal road trip.......The best laid plans of mice and men!!

Hello to you all,

In mid January we had a lovely couple of days at the house with Alan and Linda, Chris and Alan went to school together. Although they had been in touch by e mail they had not seen each other for about 30 years, you can imagine how much catching up there was to do!!It was also fascinating for me to hear about Chris' antics when he was young. We got out and about a bit and the weather was lovely, nice enough for a tapas lunch in the sun at our village bar. 

We then spent a couple of days sorting the house but we have major problems with the chimney, it is oozing black gunge, we need to find someone to complete replace it.

We set off in Ruby on 25th January and I had roughed out a plan in Spain and Portugal, mixing walking, cycling etc with a few city trips. We spent 4 nights at Los Escullos, Cabo de Gata, Almeria. We caught up with Ken and Marion, who we first met 2 years ago. It was good to see them and we shared a few vinos on our last night. On Sunday I looked at the map and thought north to Rodalquilar looked good and then lunch in Las Isletas. It was a beautiful day, clear blue sky, fabulous sea and then we saw the sign for a 10% hill........Chris made it to the top, nearly dying in the process. Me, I had to get off and push. The downhill was just as scary. We found a bar for coffee, Restaurante Cristol, run by ZZ top!! It was a Harley D spot and Cristol was Mr cool, no chat just coffee and tostado. He was even playing old American Blues!! We then went to Las Isletas and chose a restaurant for lunch, fabulous location right on the Med in the sun but mediocre and very expensive food  51 euros and the service was dreadful!!

Next day we walked to Pozo de Los Frailes, over the fields filled with lovely yellow flowers.The next day we  cycled to San Jose and I got my bike fixed, apparently the gears were all out of alignment!! The lad who fixed it was a cyclist and his bike cost him 8,000 euros-twice the cost of Ruby. San Jose was definitely in winter mode and just when we thought we would have to eat in a tourist spot we saw"The Cafe of the Third age" perfect for two old farts on tour. Salad followed by fried fish and Spanish rice pudding, wine and coffee for 16 euros. 

We set off the next day for the bit of the trip I had planned for my birthday, camping in Olvera, in the mountains between Malaga and Seville. The plan was to do the 37k Via Verde de la Sierra from Puerto Serrano , stay the night in a hotel and cycle back to the van. First problem, the campsite was shut but we found an "aire" a place you can park up overnight, this one was at the start of the via verde and had power and water and a bar in the old station. Without a safe place to leave the van we changed our plans and decided to cycle about half way have lunch at Coripe station and cycle back.

Serendipity Day.......When we got up in the morning there was a ground frost but it was clear and bright, so we set off. In the shadows it was -1 or 2. Enough to make Chris feel like his fingers were going to drop off!! When we got to Coripe about 11.30 we decided to continue to the end in the hope we could get a bus or taxi back and then pick the bikes up in the van.A swift beer at the end of the 37k was very welcome and by the end of the day I had cycled 42k a PB!!  

After driving around Puerto Serrano  three times we found the bus station back where we had first seen it-in the police station yard!! A driver was there and he told us the published timetable was rubbish and at 3.20 there was a direct bus back to Olvera and if we were lucky we might get the bikes on?? Our luck was in, at 3.30 in came the bus and we put our bikes in the luggage holds under the bus. 

In Olvera we booked into a hotel Sierra y Cal, a lovely hotel which is run by a small Spanish company and with space to park the van outside. Luxury a room with a bathroom!! , complete with bath-just what you need after cycling. We had dinner in the hotel, my oxtail was yummy and the G&T felt well deserved.Our stay with dinner, drinks and breakfast was £82, which is less than we paid for our New years Eve B&B in Corbridge.

The next day it was pouring with rain and cold so we changed plan again and headed off for Cadiz. We stayed about 30 mins from Cadiz at El Puerto de Santa Maria. We had a lovely day in Cadiz , including posh tapas in Cafe Royalty. 2nd February was my birthday and we cycled about 30 minutes to the marina and had breakfast in the sun. Then a brief rest back at the van and we went out for lunch, starting with wine and tapa in a taberna and then seafood in Romeriji, a famous local seafood cafe. Then finally when we were lost in the back streets we came upon the local rugby club abd had a few wines and tapas as I watched Ireland v Scotland. Finished up at the campsite for chocolate cake and 2 very good brandies.Perfect day. 

Monday we set off for Portugal, for Tavira, for cycling through the saltpans,walking, visiting historic Tavira. Our first stop was at the police camping ground , which I quickly rejected when I saw how manky the toilets were. We ended up on a site in Cabanas and settle down for the beginning of our Portugal adventure. By this time we were ahead of schedule but there was a possibility of a helpx, so we wanted to be in Portugal. 

When we got up the next morning it was grey and rainy and we went to Tavira on the bus, lovely place but not much fun in the rain.  Next day, was grey as well and we went to Faro and had a lovely day in the old town and a nice menu del dia. I looked at the forecast and decided that enough was enough, in a small van it is no fun if you have damp clothes etc so the next day we headed back to Spain. I had made a fundamental error with my planning, usually if we are planning we check out the average weather conditions. With my plan by we got to Porto we would have been in the wettest coldest month!!

So now we are on the Costa de Sol, on a nice little site called Camping Valle Niza Playa, just over the road from the beach. We are east of Malaga and the coastline is lovely we went on our bikes to Torre del Mar and sat in the beautiful sunshine drinking coffee. We've cycled again today and I got my bike sorted, the chain guard had come off and everytime I cycled I got oily legs. We are just back from a trip to a little place I thought would be good for lunch tomorrow-it juts out towards the beach-but it was an Italian and not quite what we were looking for. The upside was we had fabulous pizza, the place is run by Italians, lovely crispy thin crust. Tomorrow we may just eat at the campite. We have no real plans as such, our next stop may be near Nerja. We are here till at least Wednesday as I have made an appointment to get my hair cut on Tuesday in Torre. But who knows, at any point Chris may have to go back to the UK to be with his son Adam, so we are just going with the flow??

For those of you that are suffering with the extremes of the weather , I do hope it improves soon. 
Till next time 
Take care
Norma xx