MONDAY/TUESDAY/WEDNESDAY 28TH/29TH/30TH MARCH 2011.
After the weekend celebrations Monday was a clear up day; I was put in charge of clearing up the confetti bomb as Brenda had a washing and ironing day before we set off to Guadalmina on Tuesday Lunchtime. On the Manilva Council Web Page I found the results of the International Seven a side on Sunday, Spain won after them beating England, Paraguay and Bolivia in the final! In the evening we had Cold Roast Beef with all the leftover vegetables and potatoes for supper.
Tuesday morning we made contact with Lyn over in Melbourne ,who had just arrived home from the hospital with Jack, he is feeling a lot better and Lyn says that he is getting back to his normal cheeky self – good news !
We then packed the Smart Car and headed over to Guadalmina Alta at lunchtime; the weather forecast is good with clear blue skies and warm sunshine, in fact today it is 24 degs and rising ! I dropped the folks off at the bus station in Marbella as they caught the shuttle to Malaga Airport. The villa is in fine form as you can see in the pictures below and we might even venture into the pool later in the week but I will have to skinny dip as I forgot to pack my shorts !
This morning we got up early and shot across to Estepona on a few messages, Brenda needed some cream from the good shop in the centre of town, we also found a watchmakers who could fix her watch, the winder has fallen off and finally we got lost in the old part of town until we found the picture framers as we had a couple of prints to get seen to;Estepona is our favorite spot on the coast and we love going into the town for all the shops and the old part is great to walk around; on the way back we picked up some essential shopping and are now settling down to have a snack lunch out on the terrace.Today,Wednesday is a quiet day at the villa with only the hairdresser in for Joan, tomorrow we have the gardener,cleaner,chirpropdist and home help due !
Thought for the Day;
Integrity is the essence of everything succesfull.
.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
MANILVA THE LAST SUPPER.
SUNDAY 27TH MARCH 2011
We were up bright and breezy to get the Sunday roast on the go; it was a beautiful sunny morning and the sky was clear blue as we took in the morning air on the roof terrace. I could not get around to the sports ground to watch the International Seven a Side but must comment on the European Qualifier on Friday when Spain played Czechoslovakia – Spain were just amazing, the football was out of this world from the world champions! They totally out played/passed the Czech’s and showed that even when behind they had the confidence to win – it was sublime!! Meanwhile England beat Wales with a new formation and played a little better. As we finished getting ready Mano and Anna called just after we had spoken to Joyce over in Mijas and made arrangements to go and see her on Friday April 1st! and caught up with the news/gossip. In Calle Mar outside Bar Rojas the council had set up a bouncy castle and face painters for the children ( It is the elections in May ) as you can see in the picture below. Every Sunday Brenda rings her sister, Jenny for a long chat, so she told us that Jack over in Melbourne was in hospital and not very well; Lyn was staying at the hospital all the time and so that is why we have not been able to make contact on Skype video since we came back on line; we then sent some Facebook messages to all the family and Annette in Kuala Lumpur has just said the Jack is a lot better and is coming out on Tuesday – good news as it is their second wedding anniversary today ! Health, Wealth and Happiness to you both from Sunny Manilva!!.
THE LAST SUPPER.
We had a “Helluva ” Sunday Roast for our last supper with the Marshall’s; the full “ Gang ”were on show except Anna Mari, Carlos’s wife who was working. I cold carved the Roast Rib of Scottish Beef as it was very rare and tasted sublime; Brenda had her usual vegetable selection,Cauilflower and Broccoli Mornay with a rich Cheese sauce that I made with a Mature Cheddar, Glazed Carrot Batons, Baby Button Sprouts with Smoked Bacon bits, Cabbage with Acelgas from our neighbours Campo, Garden Peas, New Potatoes and of course the Famous Goose Fat Roasted Potatoes along with large Yorkshire Puddings and finger licking Gravy ! To start we had some nibbles, Local Chorizo sliced very thin, Cured Ham and Manchego Cheese served with a very chilled “ Anna De Cordniu Brut Rose Cava ” Mano brought along a special bottle of Rioja that he had been saving for a special occasion, “ Faustino V Reserva 2005” which was very drinkable! We also knocked off some bottles of “ Campo Viejo 2007 ” and “ Marques de Caceres Blanco ” made from the Viuna Grape. For our sweet we had Strawberries and whipped Cream with “ Dubois Semiseco ” We ended the night on “ Caipirinha’s ” as I exploded a Confetti Bomb to say Bon Voyage to Brian and Lilli on the new life in Finland. The pictures below show the whole gang except Andy who joined us later after he had finished work at the family Bar and Restaurant down in Sabinillas.
Thought for the Day;
It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.
.
We were up bright and breezy to get the Sunday roast on the go; it was a beautiful sunny morning and the sky was clear blue as we took in the morning air on the roof terrace. I could not get around to the sports ground to watch the International Seven a Side but must comment on the European Qualifier on Friday when Spain played Czechoslovakia – Spain were just amazing, the football was out of this world from the world champions! They totally out played/passed the Czech’s and showed that even when behind they had the confidence to win – it was sublime!! Meanwhile England beat Wales with a new formation and played a little better. As we finished getting ready Mano and Anna called just after we had spoken to Joyce over in Mijas and made arrangements to go and see her on Friday April 1st! and caught up with the news/gossip. In Calle Mar outside Bar Rojas the council had set up a bouncy castle and face painters for the children ( It is the elections in May ) as you can see in the picture below. Every Sunday Brenda rings her sister, Jenny for a long chat, so she told us that Jack over in Melbourne was in hospital and not very well; Lyn was staying at the hospital all the time and so that is why we have not been able to make contact on Skype video since we came back on line; we then sent some Facebook messages to all the family and Annette in Kuala Lumpur has just said the Jack is a lot better and is coming out on Tuesday – good news as it is their second wedding anniversary today ! Health, Wealth and Happiness to you both from Sunny Manilva!!.
THE LAST SUPPER.
We had a “Helluva ” Sunday Roast for our last supper with the Marshall’s; the full “ Gang ”were on show except Anna Mari, Carlos’s wife who was working. I cold carved the Roast Rib of Scottish Beef as it was very rare and tasted sublime; Brenda had her usual vegetable selection,Cauilflower and Broccoli Mornay with a rich Cheese sauce that I made with a Mature Cheddar, Glazed Carrot Batons, Baby Button Sprouts with Smoked Bacon bits, Cabbage with Acelgas from our neighbours Campo, Garden Peas, New Potatoes and of course the Famous Goose Fat Roasted Potatoes along with large Yorkshire Puddings and finger licking Gravy ! To start we had some nibbles, Local Chorizo sliced very thin, Cured Ham and Manchego Cheese served with a very chilled “ Anna De Cordniu Brut Rose Cava ” Mano brought along a special bottle of Rioja that he had been saving for a special occasion, “ Faustino V Reserva 2005” which was very drinkable! We also knocked off some bottles of “ Campo Viejo 2007 ” and “ Marques de Caceres Blanco ” made from the Viuna Grape. For our sweet we had Strawberries and whipped Cream with “ Dubois Semiseco ” We ended the night on “ Caipirinha’s ” as I exploded a Confetti Bomb to say Bon Voyage to Brian and Lilli on the new life in Finland. The pictures below show the whole gang except Andy who joined us later after he had finished work at the family Bar and Restaurant down in Sabinillas.
Thought for the Day;
It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows.
.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
MANILVA START OF THE WEEKEND.
FRIDAY/SATURDAY 25TH/26TH MARCH 2011.
The weather forecast for the weekend and the start of next week is good with more hot sun and the temperature going up to 23degs;first thing on Friday morning we shot down to Sabinillas to do the weekend shopping including calling into the new large shop of the English butchers in Puerto de la Duquesa for Goose Fat and some bits for the “ Last Supper ” on Sunday. When we got home and unpacked the car we then made some calls on the Skype Video,Mano is now on line so we made contact with him for a test call; we the noticed that Zoë over in Manchester was online so we caught her and had a long chat to catch up with all the news, Graham who is on the boat down in the south of France below Cannes could be home for good shortly as the boat is up for sale and the plan is for him to retire when it is sold; we then tried to catch Jack and Lyn in Melbourne but with no luck but will try again over the weekend. We are also going to ring Joyce who is over in Mijas for two weeks looking after her best friends penthouse apartment and two cats so as we can arrange to go and see her at the end of next week when we are over in Guadalmina ! In the evening we had a fish and chip supper, Brenda had Pan Fried Salmon in foaming Lime Butter and I had Deep Fried Crab Claws, both served with Square Chips, Garden Peas and Tartare Sauce.
This morning after Breakfast I walked around to the sports ground to watch some football while Brenda was washing her hair, she came along later with Cheta and watched the Basket Ball inside the sports hall;Manilva in the black strip were playing Estepona in the red strip, the lost four – nil on the full pitch, eleven a side and Estepona played very well and Manilva did not get a look in! In the Basket Ball it was also the Junior Girls League and Manilva in the red colors were just loosing as we left; the new climbing wall looks very impressive and is hosting the local championships later in the year; the pictures above show all the action as well as the wall.Tomorrow,Sunday,there is an International Seven a side tournament down in the football stadium with mainly South American teams including Brasil,Paraguay,Bolivia together with Bulgaria and Marruecos, but one of the first round matches is Spain v England ! So I will try and catch it after getting the “ Last Supper ”ready ! Tonight we are having Minute Steak with Mushrooms,sauté Onions and proper chips for dinner and will then settle down to watch a film on the TV.
Thought for the Day;
We do not write because we want to, we write because we have to.
.
The weather forecast for the weekend and the start of next week is good with more hot sun and the temperature going up to 23degs;first thing on Friday morning we shot down to Sabinillas to do the weekend shopping including calling into the new large shop of the English butchers in Puerto de la Duquesa for Goose Fat and some bits for the “ Last Supper ” on Sunday. When we got home and unpacked the car we then made some calls on the Skype Video,Mano is now on line so we made contact with him for a test call; we the noticed that Zoë over in Manchester was online so we caught her and had a long chat to catch up with all the news, Graham who is on the boat down in the south of France below Cannes could be home for good shortly as the boat is up for sale and the plan is for him to retire when it is sold; we then tried to catch Jack and Lyn in Melbourne but with no luck but will try again over the weekend. We are also going to ring Joyce who is over in Mijas for two weeks looking after her best friends penthouse apartment and two cats so as we can arrange to go and see her at the end of next week when we are over in Guadalmina ! In the evening we had a fish and chip supper, Brenda had Pan Fried Salmon in foaming Lime Butter and I had Deep Fried Crab Claws, both served with Square Chips, Garden Peas and Tartare Sauce.
This morning after Breakfast I walked around to the sports ground to watch some football while Brenda was washing her hair, she came along later with Cheta and watched the Basket Ball inside the sports hall;Manilva in the black strip were playing Estepona in the red strip, the lost four – nil on the full pitch, eleven a side and Estepona played very well and Manilva did not get a look in! In the Basket Ball it was also the Junior Girls League and Manilva in the red colors were just loosing as we left; the new climbing wall looks very impressive and is hosting the local championships later in the year; the pictures above show all the action as well as the wall.Tomorrow,Sunday,there is an International Seven a side tournament down in the football stadium with mainly South American teams including Brasil,Paraguay,Bolivia together with Bulgaria and Marruecos, but one of the first round matches is Spain v England ! So I will try and catch it after getting the “ Last Supper ”ready ! Tonight we are having Minute Steak with Mushrooms,sauté Onions and proper chips for dinner and will then settle down to watch a film on the TV.
Thought for the Day;
We do not write because we want to, we write because we have to.
.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
MANILVA TODAY.
THURSDAY 24TH MARCH 2011.
Yesterday was one “ Helluva ” day in more ways then one; I was still in bed suffering from mild sun stroke after burning my head on Monday during a long walk when the breeze caught me out ! I had tried once again to chase the new IT people with no luck,Mano had been on the phone several times also and all we have got are broken promises ! They are now in fault on the contract after 21 days and this morning when Mano and Anna called in to catch up with all the news and gossip they had just had a call to say that an engineer was on the way to theirs ! Brian had taken our main PC away at the start of the changeover so as he could up date various things on it and most importantly set it up so as we can watch Saturday Morning Kitchen – Live ! He called in on Wednesday afternoon to see if he could do anything to help but after two hours he had no joy; then Andy came along and spent another two hours with him going over everything. Brian has done a smashing job on the PC and has set up all sorts of automatic checks and de – frags ! as well as lots of on line stuff. Andy then got on the phone and pretended to be me and in perfect Spanish tried to get some answers, after several attempts he finally got an answer; we have not been connected and are still using the Telefonica phone line,not as they had indicated to us back on Saturday March 5th ! So Brian and Andy then re set the Telefonica IT line up and got back on the WWW in minutes – for now !! They have said now that we will be connected by the end of the week – watch this space.
Next week we are away over in Guadalmina for five days from Tuesday looking after the villa for Clive and Carolyn so we will be able to be on line there. This coming weekend we have planned the “ Last Supper ” on Sunday with Brain and Lilli,Mano and Anna are joining us together with Carlos and Andy( Both work permitting ) for Roast Rib of Beef with all the trimmings;Lilli finishes work this Friday and Mano also finishes next Thursday. Brian’s contract ended a few weeks ago, so it is the last chance for the gang to be together as the following weekend, the first in April is when the set off to Finland.
On Monday in the village the local council went mad painting White crossings everywhere, Blue parking Boxes and Yellow no parking lines all over the place ! They are still at it as I am typing this blog !! The locals are just sat around outside all the bars watching and wondering; The Blue lines have been used down in Sabinillas for a few months now, you are only allowed to park for one hour down there but here in the village the system of parking on the pavements has always worked OK so we will have to wait and see what are the rules for the boxes, meanwhile the local elections are coming up in May so the picture boards have gone up all over the village of Antonia, the mayor who is standing for re election. The pictures below give you just a small sample of the line mania that has taken over the village there is more to follow; the man on the left in the last picture is the brother of Mano’s best friend Juan and is in charge of all the roads,
Thought for the Day;
I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be.
.
.
Yesterday was one “ Helluva ” day in more ways then one; I was still in bed suffering from mild sun stroke after burning my head on Monday during a long walk when the breeze caught me out ! I had tried once again to chase the new IT people with no luck,Mano had been on the phone several times also and all we have got are broken promises ! They are now in fault on the contract after 21 days and this morning when Mano and Anna called in to catch up with all the news and gossip they had just had a call to say that an engineer was on the way to theirs ! Brian had taken our main PC away at the start of the changeover so as he could up date various things on it and most importantly set it up so as we can watch Saturday Morning Kitchen – Live ! He called in on Wednesday afternoon to see if he could do anything to help but after two hours he had no joy; then Andy came along and spent another two hours with him going over everything. Brian has done a smashing job on the PC and has set up all sorts of automatic checks and de – frags ! as well as lots of on line stuff. Andy then got on the phone and pretended to be me and in perfect Spanish tried to get some answers, after several attempts he finally got an answer; we have not been connected and are still using the Telefonica phone line,not as they had indicated to us back on Saturday March 5th ! So Brian and Andy then re set the Telefonica IT line up and got back on the WWW in minutes – for now !! They have said now that we will be connected by the end of the week – watch this space.
Next week we are away over in Guadalmina for five days from Tuesday looking after the villa for Clive and Carolyn so we will be able to be on line there. This coming weekend we have planned the “ Last Supper ” on Sunday with Brain and Lilli,Mano and Anna are joining us together with Carlos and Andy( Both work permitting ) for Roast Rib of Beef with all the trimmings;Lilli finishes work this Friday and Mano also finishes next Thursday. Brian’s contract ended a few weeks ago, so it is the last chance for the gang to be together as the following weekend, the first in April is when the set off to Finland.
On Monday in the village the local council went mad painting White crossings everywhere, Blue parking Boxes and Yellow no parking lines all over the place ! They are still at it as I am typing this blog !! The locals are just sat around outside all the bars watching and wondering; The Blue lines have been used down in Sabinillas for a few months now, you are only allowed to park for one hour down there but here in the village the system of parking on the pavements has always worked OK so we will have to wait and see what are the rules for the boxes, meanwhile the local elections are coming up in May so the picture boards have gone up all over the village of Antonia, the mayor who is standing for re election. The pictures below give you just a small sample of the line mania that has taken over the village there is more to follow; the man on the left in the last picture is the brother of Mano’s best friend Juan and is in charge of all the roads,
Thought for the Day;
I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I intended to be.
.
.
MANILVA OVER THE LAST THREE WEEKS.
THURSDAY 24TH MARCH 2011.
Below is a short Diary showing the day by day points from which I normally write the blog !
Mon 7/3/11 Mano and Anna called in,Cold Chicken for supper.
Tues 8/3/11 At home. Cold and windy. Pork Cutlets for dinner.
Wed 9/3/11 Chicken and Mushroom pie with Brian and Lilli. Marques de Caceras Rijoa Blanco ( Seco )
Thurs 10/3/11 Rain. At home.
Fri 11/3/11 Shopping. Drowned in Rain ! Fried Hake for supper.
Sat 12/3/11 Rain. No Dog. Steak supper.
Sun 13/3/11 Damp. Roast Chicken with Brian,Lilli and Andy – Picture.
Mon14/3/11 Rain Mano and Anna called in.Still no IT ! Cold Chicken for supper.
Tues 15/3/11 Sun ! Walked Cheta. Mano no luck with IT. Football then Spanish Film.
Wed 16/3/11 Sun – Hot. Curry Night ! Exodus film with Paul Newman.
Thurs 17/3/11 Sun. Walked Cheta,Bar Rojas.Mayor bought drink ! Chicken Stir Fry with rice.
Fri 18/3/11 Sun. Shopping. Cheta. Bar Rojas. Fish Chips and Peas for supper.
Sat 19/3/11 Sun. Football Manilva juniors lost 10-Nil ! to Costa Unida CF Pictures. Steak Supper.
Sun 20/3/11 Sun. Roast Halal Lamb Tough as old Boots ? !! No guests.
Mon 21/3/11 Very Hot and Sunny.Walked Cheta.Still no IT Mano having problems as well. Burnt my Head !
Tues 22/3/11 In Bed with mild sun stroke ! Could not go to opening of Wine School.
Wed 23/3 11 Still no IT 21 days ! Brian/Andy helped.Updated my Large PC( Brian ) Back on Old System !
Thought for the Day;
Age is an issue of mind over matter,if you don’t mind it doesn’t matter.
.
Below is a short Diary showing the day by day points from which I normally write the blog !
Mon 7/3/11 Mano and Anna called in,Cold Chicken for supper.
Tues 8/3/11 At home. Cold and windy. Pork Cutlets for dinner.
Wed 9/3/11 Chicken and Mushroom pie with Brian and Lilli. Marques de Caceras Rijoa Blanco ( Seco )
Thurs 10/3/11 Rain. At home.
Fri 11/3/11 Shopping. Drowned in Rain ! Fried Hake for supper.
Sat 12/3/11 Rain. No Dog. Steak supper.
Sun 13/3/11 Damp. Roast Chicken with Brian,Lilli and Andy – Picture.
Mon14/3/11 Rain Mano and Anna called in.Still no IT ! Cold Chicken for supper.
Tues 15/3/11 Sun ! Walked Cheta. Mano no luck with IT. Football then Spanish Film.
Wed 16/3/11 Sun – Hot. Curry Night ! Exodus film with Paul Newman.
Thurs 17/3/11 Sun. Walked Cheta,Bar Rojas.Mayor bought drink ! Chicken Stir Fry with rice.
Fri 18/3/11 Sun. Shopping. Cheta. Bar Rojas. Fish Chips and Peas for supper.
Sat 19/3/11 Sun. Football Manilva juniors lost 10-Nil ! to Costa Unida CF Pictures. Steak Supper.
Sun 20/3/11 Sun. Roast Halal Lamb Tough as old Boots ? !! No guests.
Mon 21/3/11 Very Hot and Sunny.Walked Cheta.Still no IT Mano having problems as well. Burnt my Head !
Tues 22/3/11 In Bed with mild sun stroke ! Could not go to opening of Wine School.
Wed 23/3 11 Still no IT 21 days ! Brian/Andy helped.Updated my Large PC( Brian ) Back on Old System !
Thought for the Day;
Age is an issue of mind over matter,if you don’t mind it doesn’t matter.
.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
MANILVA NEWS FLASH .
WEDNESDAY 23 RD MARCH 2011.
We are back on-line, temporary, after our new IT/Phone system refused to connect after 21 days! – due to a “ Spanish Technical Fault ” Watch this space for a news update ASAP !!
.
We are back on-line, temporary, after our new IT/Phone system refused to connect after 21 days! – due to a “ Spanish Technical Fault ” Watch this space for a news update ASAP !!
.
Monday, March 07, 2011
MANILVA OVER THE WEEKEND.
THURSDAY/SUNDAY 3RD/6TH MARCH 2011.
As the weather has got a little colder and cloudy down here on the Costa del Sol we are still very lucky as the rest of Spain is having severe rain and snow storms, yesterday in Algeciras and up the coast to Cadiz and Huelva they had very bad floods ! On Thursday we stayed in and caught up with things around the house and in the evening we had English Pork Sausages with Baked Beans, fried Egg and Chips for supper – comfort food!
Friday morning was our shopping day down at the supermarkets in Sabinillas and then back in the village we called in to the butchers for some steak for Saturday and then the local Friday market by the sports ground for our fresh vegetables; in the evening we had small Pan Fried Soles with Peas and my version of “ Patatas Bravas ” cubed cooked potatoes finished in a sharp, rich Tomato sauce. We then watched a film on TV with Denzil Washington and Clive Owen after we had followed the Spanish Film of the week on TVE, it was a very moving love story with an award winning actress in the main role - afterwards she was in the studio and was interviewed by a famous film presenter who each week introduces and discusses with the artist,director,writer the film of the week.
Mano called in on Saturday morning after dropping Anna at the hairdressers in Sabinillas,he came with the local IT expert Nikita ( Russian ) from the internet shop around the corner in Calle Mar who collected my Dell printer to up grade the ink cartridges.Mano has now firmed up his new job and the contracts are in the post which is very good news; at the same time he changed our phone and internet provider from Telefonica the national company like BT to a new company Jazztel with a better and more powerful system which is also a lot faster and cheaper, we will save over 50/60 euros a month and the calls to England are also a lot less and the internal calls in Spain cost nothing !The first two months are free and the new router is in the post so watch out for the calls as well as the Skype Video ! For dinner we had steak and chips with all the trimmings and then watched the European Athletics from Paris.
On Sunday morning we got the Sunday Roast on the way. Loin of Pork with Caramelized Apple slices, Cabbage with Alcelgas,Baby Sprouts with Smoked Bacon snippets, Crushed Carrots and Turnips,Cauiflower Mornay,Garden Peas, Roast Potatoes and a side dish of Patatas Bravas together with a thick finger licking gravy and Chestnut stuffing ! Brian and Lilli joined us for dinner and brought along a Magnum of Campo Viejo Rioja,Reserva 2006! For dessert we had local fresh Strawberris with Ogen Melon. We are really going to miss them, not just for the wine! As there is now only four weeks until they leave for Finland they are now planning to drive to a port in Northern Germany and then go on a ferry that takes 27 hours to Helsinki. In the afternoon I watched the Liverpool v Manchester Utd.match on the PC, the satellite connection at the time picked up on the Dutch TV coverage which as it happened was very good as the Dutchman Dirt Kuyt scored a hat- trick and the commentators went mad in double Dutch!! Next weekend it is the start of Carnival week in the village so watch out for the pictures,below is the picture of last nights dinner.
Thought for the Day;
Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside.
.
As the weather has got a little colder and cloudy down here on the Costa del Sol we are still very lucky as the rest of Spain is having severe rain and snow storms, yesterday in Algeciras and up the coast to Cadiz and Huelva they had very bad floods ! On Thursday we stayed in and caught up with things around the house and in the evening we had English Pork Sausages with Baked Beans, fried Egg and Chips for supper – comfort food!
Friday morning was our shopping day down at the supermarkets in Sabinillas and then back in the village we called in to the butchers for some steak for Saturday and then the local Friday market by the sports ground for our fresh vegetables; in the evening we had small Pan Fried Soles with Peas and my version of “ Patatas Bravas ” cubed cooked potatoes finished in a sharp, rich Tomato sauce. We then watched a film on TV with Denzil Washington and Clive Owen after we had followed the Spanish Film of the week on TVE, it was a very moving love story with an award winning actress in the main role - afterwards she was in the studio and was interviewed by a famous film presenter who each week introduces and discusses with the artist,director,writer the film of the week.
Mano called in on Saturday morning after dropping Anna at the hairdressers in Sabinillas,he came with the local IT expert Nikita ( Russian ) from the internet shop around the corner in Calle Mar who collected my Dell printer to up grade the ink cartridges.Mano has now firmed up his new job and the contracts are in the post which is very good news; at the same time he changed our phone and internet provider from Telefonica the national company like BT to a new company Jazztel with a better and more powerful system which is also a lot faster and cheaper, we will save over 50/60 euros a month and the calls to England are also a lot less and the internal calls in Spain cost nothing !The first two months are free and the new router is in the post so watch out for the calls as well as the Skype Video ! For dinner we had steak and chips with all the trimmings and then watched the European Athletics from Paris.
On Sunday morning we got the Sunday Roast on the way. Loin of Pork with Caramelized Apple slices, Cabbage with Alcelgas,Baby Sprouts with Smoked Bacon snippets, Crushed Carrots and Turnips,Cauiflower Mornay,Garden Peas, Roast Potatoes and a side dish of Patatas Bravas together with a thick finger licking gravy and Chestnut stuffing ! Brian and Lilli joined us for dinner and brought along a Magnum of Campo Viejo Rioja,Reserva 2006! For dessert we had local fresh Strawberris with Ogen Melon. We are really going to miss them, not just for the wine! As there is now only four weeks until they leave for Finland they are now planning to drive to a port in Northern Germany and then go on a ferry that takes 27 hours to Helsinki. In the afternoon I watched the Liverpool v Manchester Utd.match on the PC, the satellite connection at the time picked up on the Dutch TV coverage which as it happened was very good as the Dutchman Dirt Kuyt scored a hat- trick and the commentators went mad in double Dutch!! Next weekend it is the start of Carnival week in the village so watch out for the pictures,below is the picture of last nights dinner.
Thought for the Day;
Part of the secret of success in life is to eat what you like and let the food fight it out inside.
.
Sunday, March 06, 2011
Thursday, March 03, 2011
MANILVA THIS WEEK.
MONDAY/TUESDAY/WEDNESDAY 28TH FEBRUARY/1ST/2ND/MARCH. 2011.
Well after the weekend in Manilva and our exuberant dance moves in front of the village we decided to take things easy on Monday and keep a low profile; the weather is still clear blue sky and sunny but a little cooler as there is a icy blast which has followed Lilli back from Finland all over the country. Mano and Anna called in to catch up with all the news about Sunday as well as some gossip, Brenda has now gone into her spring cleaning mode and has started to wash curtains, clean windows, deep clean the guest rooms and generally get the house ready for our first guests at the end of April ! Tim and Thea we can’t wait !! In the evening for supper we had individual Chicken and Mushroom pies which I made last week and deep freezed and then we watched a film on TV.
TUESDAY 1ST MARCH 2011 SAINT DAVIDS ( DEWI SANT ) DAY.
Happy “ Dewi Sant ” to all our friends over in North Wales; in the morning we took Cheta for a walk around the village and as we spoke to people they all commented on our performance on Sunday ! We picked up Pork Chops from our butcher in the village and had them for dinner along with some beautiful fresh Acelgas that our next door neighbours passed in, they had been at their “ Campo ” over the weekend. We also spoke to Lilli after her holiday over in Finland, they are living in the Aparthotel for a few weeks until their move home; the car is fine and the steering lock came off first time but Lilli did say that it does stick but she has the knack – brute force !
On Wednesday morning Brenda had her weekly appointment with our doctor to check her ankle, it is getting better and she is now finished the medication and has to just exercise and take things easy, at the same time we called into the chemists and checked our blood pressure on the machine and then passed on the print outs to the doctor who records them on the files and advises accordingly,I’am still on the tablets but Brenda just has to check it out every month. When we came back I made a Hot Chicken Curry for supper, Brian and Lilli were joining us to hear all their news from Finland; In the afternoon Mano and Anna called in with the great news that we have been waiting for, he has got a new job that he has been chasing over the last couple of weeks after several interviews; he is starting in a months time as the manager of a Private Boutique Hotel over in Sotogrande,it is owned by a Belgium businessman, it is rented out by the week to private companies and families as well as the family using it, it has nine bedrooms en suit and of course all sorts of facilities including a boat in Sotogrande marina, cars to pick up the customers and a chef to look after all their needs as well as cleaners and gardeners! It is a full time contracted job with regular hours and days off – a dream for him and we are very happy to see him being able to get back to a normal life after the night job at the Aparthotel.
Brian and Lilli joined us later in the evening, they brought two bottles of a very nice Palomino Chardonnay “ Gadir ” from the house of Osborne ( 1772 ) which is local,Vino de la Tierra de Cadiz as it says on the bottle ! The Osborne Black Bull that you see all over Spain on hills by the side of the motorways are still made in Cadiz, there are now only 90 left and are National Monuments. It went very well with the curry and we then had Strawberries with cream and ice cream and a bottle of another local wine,Antonoio Barbadillo ( 1893 ) Palomino Fina from outside Jerez ! It is Brenda’s favorite drinking wine and is very reasonable priced – the Marshall’s left feeling no pain.
Thought for the Day;
A large income is the best recipe for happiness I’ve ever heard of.
.
Well after the weekend in Manilva and our exuberant dance moves in front of the village we decided to take things easy on Monday and keep a low profile; the weather is still clear blue sky and sunny but a little cooler as there is a icy blast which has followed Lilli back from Finland all over the country. Mano and Anna called in to catch up with all the news about Sunday as well as some gossip, Brenda has now gone into her spring cleaning mode and has started to wash curtains, clean windows, deep clean the guest rooms and generally get the house ready for our first guests at the end of April ! Tim and Thea we can’t wait !! In the evening for supper we had individual Chicken and Mushroom pies which I made last week and deep freezed and then we watched a film on TV.
TUESDAY 1ST MARCH 2011 SAINT DAVIDS ( DEWI SANT ) DAY.
Happy “ Dewi Sant ” to all our friends over in North Wales; in the morning we took Cheta for a walk around the village and as we spoke to people they all commented on our performance on Sunday ! We picked up Pork Chops from our butcher in the village and had them for dinner along with some beautiful fresh Acelgas that our next door neighbours passed in, they had been at their “ Campo ” over the weekend. We also spoke to Lilli after her holiday over in Finland, they are living in the Aparthotel for a few weeks until their move home; the car is fine and the steering lock came off first time but Lilli did say that it does stick but she has the knack – brute force !
On Wednesday morning Brenda had her weekly appointment with our doctor to check her ankle, it is getting better and she is now finished the medication and has to just exercise and take things easy, at the same time we called into the chemists and checked our blood pressure on the machine and then passed on the print outs to the doctor who records them on the files and advises accordingly,I’am still on the tablets but Brenda just has to check it out every month. When we came back I made a Hot Chicken Curry for supper, Brian and Lilli were joining us to hear all their news from Finland; In the afternoon Mano and Anna called in with the great news that we have been waiting for, he has got a new job that he has been chasing over the last couple of weeks after several interviews; he is starting in a months time as the manager of a Private Boutique Hotel over in Sotogrande,it is owned by a Belgium businessman, it is rented out by the week to private companies and families as well as the family using it, it has nine bedrooms en suit and of course all sorts of facilities including a boat in Sotogrande marina, cars to pick up the customers and a chef to look after all their needs as well as cleaners and gardeners! It is a full time contracted job with regular hours and days off – a dream for him and we are very happy to see him being able to get back to a normal life after the night job at the Aparthotel.
Brian and Lilli joined us later in the evening, they brought two bottles of a very nice Palomino Chardonnay “ Gadir ” from the house of Osborne ( 1772 ) which is local,Vino de la Tierra de Cadiz as it says on the bottle ! The Osborne Black Bull that you see all over Spain on hills by the side of the motorways are still made in Cadiz, there are now only 90 left and are National Monuments. It went very well with the curry and we then had Strawberries with cream and ice cream and a bottle of another local wine,Antonoio Barbadillo ( 1893 ) Palomino Fina from outside Jerez ! It is Brenda’s favorite drinking wine and is very reasonable priced – the Marshall’s left feeling no pain.
Thought for the Day;
A large income is the best recipe for happiness I’ve ever heard of.
.
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