Friday, August 31, 2012
Thursday, August 30, 2012
MANILVA START OF A " HELLUVA " WEEK..
TUESDAY/WEDNESDAY 28th/29th AUGUST 2012.
BRIAN AND LILLI HERE IN SUNNY MANILVA DAY 2/3;
On Tuesday morning we had the full on Spanish continental breakfast; Fresh Orange Juice, Ogen Melon slices, local Nectarines, local baby Figs, cold sliced Chorizo, mixed cured Hams, local Breads with Honey, Coffee and Tea! Brian and Lilli then caught the bus down to Sabinillas and went for their first swim in the sea and a cold beer or two on the promenade; they then did a little shopping and stocked us up with some more essentials. In the evening they had been invited to a friend’s house for dinner as it was his birthday so we went up to Bar Rojas for a late supper and they came along later to join us for a nightcap.
We went up to Bar Rojas for breakfast on Wednesday morning as you can see in the picture below; we had the traditional local bread toasted and severed with Virgin Olive Oil and a freshly made Tomato Concasse along with coffee con leche and glasses of Gazpacho to set us up for the day ahead – we had a little lie in to prepare us also; by the then sun was past the yard arm so we had our first cool drinks of the day, the girls were on the Gin and Tonic’s, Brian on the bottles of ‘ Cruz Campo ’and I had my first of many ‘ Cuba Libra’s ’Meanwhile the council workmen had nearly finished the wine press and are now putting in the fine spray water system under the canopy ! Andy came along and joined us before he went into work and then Carlos popped up as it was his day off so off we went; three hours later after having Lumy’s famous Homemade Burgers with Bacon,Lettuce,Tomato,Cheese,fried Onions and topped with a fried egg and her Batatas Fritos we were already feeling no pain ! Lille went off for a swim in the Hotel pool and Brian went down to Bodegas Augustin to meet some of his mates – the ‘Meeting ’lasted another four hours!! We went for a siesta and Lilli came back later after stopping at Bodega Augustin where she met Mano and Anna.
We had planned to go down to Puerto Duquesa to the restaurant where Andy works for dinner “The Pergala” and we did eventually get there as you can see in the pictures below; we had a very nice evening enjoying one another’s company and the food was OK, my Medium Rare Fillet Steak with Fresh Chips was the star of the show, the girls Sea Bass was all right but Brian’s Wild Boar was slightly lacking! You get a free glass of Cava as you walk in and the House Nibble was a very nice Cheese Puff, I chose the ‘Torres Vina Sol ’- two bottles on ice and later you get a free shot of ‘Lemoncellio ’ All ok but we would not go there again and would not recommend it ! We then caught a taxi back up to the village and watched the end of the second half of the second leg of the ‘ Super Cup ’ in Madrid, Real Madrid v Barcelona – it ended up 2-1 to Madrid so it was 4-4 on the night so Madrid won on the away goal rule ! Manolo from Bar Rojas was happy and let me know it !! Later after finishing work Andy joined us and then him and Brian went back to his house for a ‘ Bonding Session ’ on the beer’s and homemade cigs ! We retired after one “ Helluva ” day.
PS; In the Vuelta it was a time trial over a hilly course; Froome closed the gap on the leader Rodriguez but lost second place in the overall standings after only finishing third in behind Contador on the 11th stage, so Alberto Contador is now second and only one second behind the leader and Froome is 16 second back !
Thought for the Day;
I’ve got a theory that if you give 100 percent all of the time, somehow things will work out in the end.
…
BRIAN AND LILLI HERE IN SUNNY MANILVA DAY 2/3;
On Tuesday morning we had the full on Spanish continental breakfast; Fresh Orange Juice, Ogen Melon slices, local Nectarines, local baby Figs, cold sliced Chorizo, mixed cured Hams, local Breads with Honey, Coffee and Tea! Brian and Lilli then caught the bus down to Sabinillas and went for their first swim in the sea and a cold beer or two on the promenade; they then did a little shopping and stocked us up with some more essentials. In the evening they had been invited to a friend’s house for dinner as it was his birthday so we went up to Bar Rojas for a late supper and they came along later to join us for a nightcap.
We went up to Bar Rojas for breakfast on Wednesday morning as you can see in the picture below; we had the traditional local bread toasted and severed with Virgin Olive Oil and a freshly made Tomato Concasse along with coffee con leche and glasses of Gazpacho to set us up for the day ahead – we had a little lie in to prepare us also; by the then sun was past the yard arm so we had our first cool drinks of the day, the girls were on the Gin and Tonic’s, Brian on the bottles of ‘ Cruz Campo ’and I had my first of many ‘ Cuba Libra’s ’Meanwhile the council workmen had nearly finished the wine press and are now putting in the fine spray water system under the canopy ! Andy came along and joined us before he went into work and then Carlos popped up as it was his day off so off we went; three hours later after having Lumy’s famous Homemade Burgers with Bacon,Lettuce,Tomato,Cheese,fried Onions and topped with a fried egg and her Batatas Fritos we were already feeling no pain ! Lille went off for a swim in the Hotel pool and Brian went down to Bodegas Augustin to meet some of his mates – the ‘Meeting ’lasted another four hours!! We went for a siesta and Lilli came back later after stopping at Bodega Augustin where she met Mano and Anna.
We had planned to go down to Puerto Duquesa to the restaurant where Andy works for dinner “The Pergala” and we did eventually get there as you can see in the pictures below; we had a very nice evening enjoying one another’s company and the food was OK, my Medium Rare Fillet Steak with Fresh Chips was the star of the show, the girls Sea Bass was all right but Brian’s Wild Boar was slightly lacking! You get a free glass of Cava as you walk in and the House Nibble was a very nice Cheese Puff, I chose the ‘Torres Vina Sol ’- two bottles on ice and later you get a free shot of ‘Lemoncellio ’ All ok but we would not go there again and would not recommend it ! We then caught a taxi back up to the village and watched the end of the second half of the second leg of the ‘ Super Cup ’ in Madrid, Real Madrid v Barcelona – it ended up 2-1 to Madrid so it was 4-4 on the night so Madrid won on the away goal rule ! Manolo from Bar Rojas was happy and let me know it !! Later after finishing work Andy joined us and then him and Brian went back to his house for a ‘ Bonding Session ’ on the beer’s and homemade cigs ! We retired after one “ Helluva ” day.
PS; In the Vuelta it was a time trial over a hilly course; Froome closed the gap on the leader Rodriguez but lost second place in the overall standings after only finishing third in behind Contador on the 11th stage, so Alberto Contador is now second and only one second behind the leader and Froome is 16 second back !
Thought for the Day;
I’ve got a theory that if you give 100 percent all of the time, somehow things will work out in the end.
…
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
MANILVA DAY 1
SUNDAY/MONDAY 26th/27th AUGUST 2012.
Well Sunday was another hot one here in sunny Manilva; we pottered about and then went up to Bar Rojas for their Paella and a cool drink. In the afternoon I watched the ‘Vuelta ’as it came down into Barcelona, the spectacular helicopter shots of the city show how it has changed over the years – I was there last nearly sixty years ago ! No change in the top four standings and it is a rest day on Monday. Later I was going to watch the Liverpool v Manchester City match but could not get my football channel to come online so I had to make do with BBC Teletext ! Brian is going to put me in touch with another system so as I can follow the English football, when he arrives. The pictures below show Jack and Lyn out in the food street markets of Kuala Lumpur and above is another picture of them attacking a Lobster ! The ‘ Ayers Rock ’ picture of the rain storm hitting it was sent by one of the family over in Australia; ‘ Uluro ’is an Aboriginal sacred site and is one of the oldest rock formations in the world.
MONDAY 27th AUGUST 2012. BRAIN AND LILLI ARRIVE – DAY 1
In the morning I took the pictures of the council work men building the Wine Press for the weekend as you can see below; in the afternoon we shot across to Marbella to pick up Brian and Lilli from the bus station after their flight from Tampere in Finland – all on time and we were soon back in sunny Manilva as you can see in the pictures below of the ‘ Red Carpet ’welcome – one “ Helluva ” carpet ! They are going to be here for a little longer than expected as they are not going back until the 10/12th of September ! We started in the house on ‘ Kir Royal ’made with Cava of course and we had prepared a little Finish/Spanish/English selection of Tapas; three sorts of local cured Ham, Semi Curado Cheese,local Chorizo, Local Baby Figs, Fried Green Peppers with my Tomato salsa, local button Mushrooms cooked in oil and butter and then sprinkled with a lot of Tabasco- Brian likes it hot, pan fried crisp English Pork Sausages cut into pieces and coated while still hot with lots of Lea and Perrins !!
Brian and I then went out on a bar crawl back down towards ‘ Nacho’s Bar ’ as Bar Rojas is closed on a Monday, the girls were freshening up and caught up with us later; by then we had met lots of the locals who know them, then Brian and Lilli’s friends came along and joined us. Dave and Debbie also came along Calle Mar so we introduced them to the ‘ Marshall’s ’ and we soon had a party going! Later we walked down to ‘ Bodega Augustin ’for some supper where Monica looked after us very well, by then Big Bri has succumbed to all the excitement and was ready to retire early ! One of their friends Jesus helped Lilli to take him back up to our house in his car and they dropped him on the settee for a little sleep – he was still there at 5-30 this morning ! Lilli came back down and we had our supper,Dave and Debbie then came along and joined us and the wine was flowing again to end a “ Helluva ”first day in sunny Manilva !!
Thought for the Day;
There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you have altered.
…
.
Well Sunday was another hot one here in sunny Manilva; we pottered about and then went up to Bar Rojas for their Paella and a cool drink. In the afternoon I watched the ‘Vuelta ’as it came down into Barcelona, the spectacular helicopter shots of the city show how it has changed over the years – I was there last nearly sixty years ago ! No change in the top four standings and it is a rest day on Monday. Later I was going to watch the Liverpool v Manchester City match but could not get my football channel to come online so I had to make do with BBC Teletext ! Brian is going to put me in touch with another system so as I can follow the English football, when he arrives. The pictures below show Jack and Lyn out in the food street markets of Kuala Lumpur and above is another picture of them attacking a Lobster ! The ‘ Ayers Rock ’ picture of the rain storm hitting it was sent by one of the family over in Australia; ‘ Uluro ’is an Aboriginal sacred site and is one of the oldest rock formations in the world.
MONDAY 27th AUGUST 2012. BRAIN AND LILLI ARRIVE – DAY 1
In the morning I took the pictures of the council work men building the Wine Press for the weekend as you can see below; in the afternoon we shot across to Marbella to pick up Brian and Lilli from the bus station after their flight from Tampere in Finland – all on time and we were soon back in sunny Manilva as you can see in the pictures below of the ‘ Red Carpet ’welcome – one “ Helluva ” carpet ! They are going to be here for a little longer than expected as they are not going back until the 10/12th of September ! We started in the house on ‘ Kir Royal ’made with Cava of course and we had prepared a little Finish/Spanish/English selection of Tapas; three sorts of local cured Ham, Semi Curado Cheese,local Chorizo, Local Baby Figs, Fried Green Peppers with my Tomato salsa, local button Mushrooms cooked in oil and butter and then sprinkled with a lot of Tabasco- Brian likes it hot, pan fried crisp English Pork Sausages cut into pieces and coated while still hot with lots of Lea and Perrins !!
Brian and I then went out on a bar crawl back down towards ‘ Nacho’s Bar ’ as Bar Rojas is closed on a Monday, the girls were freshening up and caught up with us later; by then we had met lots of the locals who know them, then Brian and Lilli’s friends came along and joined us. Dave and Debbie also came along Calle Mar so we introduced them to the ‘ Marshall’s ’ and we soon had a party going! Later we walked down to ‘ Bodega Augustin ’for some supper where Monica looked after us very well, by then Big Bri has succumbed to all the excitement and was ready to retire early ! One of their friends Jesus helped Lilli to take him back up to our house in his car and they dropped him on the settee for a little sleep – he was still there at 5-30 this morning ! Lilli came back down and we had our supper,Dave and Debbie then came along and joined us and the wine was flowing again to end a “ Helluva ”first day in sunny Manilva !!
Thought for the Day;
There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you have altered.
…
.
Monday, August 27, 2012
COUNTDOWN TO FUN AND ' MAYHEM 'STARTS THIS AFTERNOON.
MONDAY 27 TH AUGUST 2012.
Day Zero ! The time has arrived ! Watch this space for the arrival pictures later and then the " RED CARPET " ceremony of the official handing over of the " Embassy " keys to the ' Royal Couple ' !!
...
Sunday, August 26, 2012
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY.
SUNDAY 26 TH AUGUST 2012.
Life may take you where you least expect it, but always have faith that you are exactly
where you are supposed to be.
...
COUNTDOWN TO FUN AND ' MAYHEM '
SUNDAY 26 TH AUGUST 2012.
Day 1 and counting down; 24 hours left to the arrival of the ' Royal ' couple from Finland tomorrow afternoon. The " Embassy " and staff are ready but I ask myself is Manilva ?! The ' Chief of Police ' Paco has put the local force on " Red Alert " for all the bars in Sunny Manilva and Sabinillas ! You have been warned !!
One final point; for the couple's Musical In-House entertainment we have up on the roof terrace Spanish Pop/Rock stations,on the ' Chill-Out level we have 50s/90s Blues music and in the main lounge there is Rock and Roll along with Creedance Clearwater Revival ! On all three floors the couple's own musical tastes can be selected'played as wanted !!
...
...
Saturday, August 25, 2012
MANILVA START OF THE WEEKEND
THURSDAY/FRIDAY/SATURDAY 23rd/24th /25th AUGUST 2012.
On Thursday morning we dropped Di off at the airport in Gibraltar as you can see in the picture below; we are looking forward to your next visit – keep in touch! When we got home Andy called in to help me install the new ‘ Epson SX230 ’ copier – one small problem was that the lead was too short, I managed to get one in the village from the IT café from Nikita,sadly he was closing the shop down and he is planning to go back to Russia in the new year with his wife and baby daughter – we will miss him. Anyway everything is working fine and I have just printed my first glossy colour picture of Lilli to put in a picture frame in their bedroom! In the evening after supper we watched this weeks ‘ Clint Classic ! ’ – “ The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ”
Friday was shopping morning down in Sabinillas, as usual, we are creatures of habit ! When we got back to the house Brenda went into one of her wash/clean/mop/Hoover/polish – everything in her sight modes ! I meanwhile was playing with my new ‘Toy ’- the Epson SX230 copier ! In the early evening Mano and Anna called in to catch up with all the news; Mano was on his way to Gibraltar airport to pick up some of Anna’s family from Manchester who are here just for a week, four of then are staying at a very nice hotel in Estepona and Debbie and Dave are at Manilva Green Aparthotel.Later we went up to Bar Rojas for supper, it was a little cooler sat under the Sonbrajo as the ‘ Lavente ’breeze was blowing along Calle Mar.
This morning we made contact on the Skype video with Kuala Lumpur; Jack and Lyn are over on holiday for ten days with Jeff and Annette so we were able to have a nice chat and catch up with them, some pictures have just appeared on Facebook of them at the Royal Palace earlier in the day !See the pictures above of them out on the town in the ' Jalan Alor ' street market. Then Anna called in with Dave and Debbie, they have been here before and had one of the famous Sunday roasts, this time we can’t fit them in before Brian and Lilli arrive on Monday, this evening they are playing golf with Mano and Carlos at the ‘ Casers Golf Club ’so they might also catch Vidal who is playing there this evening and tomorrow afternoon they are going down with the whole Guerrero clan to ‘ Gary’s Bar ’on the seafront in Sabinillas to watch the Liverpool v Manchester City match ! This afternoon I am watching the ‘ Vuelta D’Espana as it is a 174km m mountain stage from Lleida to the Principality of Andorra finishing at 'Collada De La Gallina ' In the evening for supper we had 'Steak a la Plancha ' with Baked Potato and Tomato salad and then 'Channel Hopped '
PS; Valverde won with Rodriguez second and Contador third - all with the same time ! Froome was fourth 15 seconds behind - which means that Rodriguez retains the Red jersey,Froome is now 33seconds behind him with Contador third 40 seconds and Valverde 4th on 50 seconds !! The top four all fighting on stage 8 - unbelievable !!
PPS; Sunday's stage is a downhill run from the Pyrenees to the Mediterranean at Barcelona,Spain's second largest city.
PPPS; LIVERPOOL V MANCHESTER CITY 2-2 !!
Thought for the Day;
Family is the most effective form of government.
…
On Thursday morning we dropped Di off at the airport in Gibraltar as you can see in the picture below; we are looking forward to your next visit – keep in touch! When we got home Andy called in to help me install the new ‘ Epson SX230 ’ copier – one small problem was that the lead was too short, I managed to get one in the village from the IT café from Nikita,sadly he was closing the shop down and he is planning to go back to Russia in the new year with his wife and baby daughter – we will miss him. Anyway everything is working fine and I have just printed my first glossy colour picture of Lilli to put in a picture frame in their bedroom! In the evening after supper we watched this weeks ‘ Clint Classic ! ’ – “ The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ”
Friday was shopping morning down in Sabinillas, as usual, we are creatures of habit ! When we got back to the house Brenda went into one of her wash/clean/mop/Hoover/polish – everything in her sight modes ! I meanwhile was playing with my new ‘Toy ’- the Epson SX230 copier ! In the early evening Mano and Anna called in to catch up with all the news; Mano was on his way to Gibraltar airport to pick up some of Anna’s family from Manchester who are here just for a week, four of then are staying at a very nice hotel in Estepona and Debbie and Dave are at Manilva Green Aparthotel.Later we went up to Bar Rojas for supper, it was a little cooler sat under the Sonbrajo as the ‘ Lavente ’breeze was blowing along Calle Mar.
This morning we made contact on the Skype video with Kuala Lumpur; Jack and Lyn are over on holiday for ten days with Jeff and Annette so we were able to have a nice chat and catch up with them, some pictures have just appeared on Facebook of them at the Royal Palace earlier in the day !See the pictures above of them out on the town in the ' Jalan Alor ' street market. Then Anna called in with Dave and Debbie, they have been here before and had one of the famous Sunday roasts, this time we can’t fit them in before Brian and Lilli arrive on Monday, this evening they are playing golf with Mano and Carlos at the ‘ Casers Golf Club ’so they might also catch Vidal who is playing there this evening and tomorrow afternoon they are going down with the whole Guerrero clan to ‘ Gary’s Bar ’on the seafront in Sabinillas to watch the Liverpool v Manchester City match ! This afternoon I am watching the ‘ Vuelta D’Espana as it is a 174km m mountain stage from Lleida to the Principality of Andorra finishing at 'Collada De La Gallina ' In the evening for supper we had 'Steak a la Plancha ' with Baked Potato and Tomato salad and then 'Channel Hopped '
PS; Valverde won with Rodriguez second and Contador third - all with the same time ! Froome was fourth 15 seconds behind - which means that Rodriguez retains the Red jersey,Froome is now 33seconds behind him with Contador third 40 seconds and Valverde 4th on 50 seconds !! The top four all fighting on stage 8 - unbelievable !!
PPS; Sunday's stage is a downhill run from the Pyrenees to the Mediterranean at Barcelona,Spain's second largest city.
PPPS; LIVERPOOL V MANCHESTER CITY 2-2 !!
Thought for the Day;
Family is the most effective form of government.
…
COUNTDOWN TO FUN.
SATURDAY 25 TH AUGUST 2012.
Day 2 and counting down;the staff are ready,the bar is ready,the kitchens are ready,the 'Embassy ' is ready,the WWW/IT systems have been checked and updated by our resident ' IT ' consultant ( Andy ) and a new Epson SX230 copier has been installed.This is so the ' Royal ' family can keep in touch with their business interests back in Pori,Finland and at the same time follow the football over in England as the whole family are avid 'Blues ' ( Everton ! ) fanatics !!
PS; Everton have just beaten Aston Villa 1-3 so the ' Royal ' couple should be in an even better frame of mind for their state visit from MONDAY !!
...
Friday, August 24, 2012
NEWSFLASH FROM ENGLAND;
FRIDAY 24 TH AUGUST 2012.
" THE NEW MOON PUB COMPANY " HAVE JUST ANNOUNCED THE NAME OF THEIR THIRD SITE ;
' THE HANGING GATE ' AT GORSTAGE NEAR WEAVERHAM !!!
...
COUNTDOWN TO FUN.
FRIDAY 24 TH AUGUST 2012.
Day 3 and counting down; The Beer's Wines and Spirits have just been dropped off and as requested by the ' Royal ' family a bottle of ' Sagatiba Pura Cachaca ' for their favourite cocktail - " Caipirinha's " !! At the same time all the fresh fruit and vegetables arrived along with nets of local Oranges - as requested for fresh Orange juice in the morning's along with a net of Limes.The local butcher's has also been and delivered whole Chickens,Pork Cutlets and Loin,diced Beef,Chicken Wings, Turkey Breast,Lamb Cutlets and Meatballs ! Fresh from the fish market we have Gambas,Langustines,Sardines,Mussels and assorted sea-food; a selection of local ' Tapas 'Nuts,Semi-Curado Cheese and other ' Goodies ' are in the store cupboard !
Meanhwhile in the ' Embassy ' the housekeeping staff have been busy making up the ' Royal Bed ' - freshly ironed English Linen - they have left a welcome message with a ' Warning ' The " Spanish Bed Frames " need to be treated with respect as they are not used to much ' Action ' !!
Here in the village the work is ongoing by the Mayor and council as you can see in the pictures below - the Canopy will keep the ' Royal Couple ' a little cooler in the shade when they are walking about; the Chauffeur is cleaning and washing the ' Royal ' limousine over the weekend ready to pick up the family after arriving from Finland on Monday !!
...
...
Thursday, August 23, 2012
COUNTDOWN TO FUN ;
THURSDAY 23 RD AUGUST 2012.
Day 4 and counting down; the 'Royal ' family over in Pori in Finland is starting to get excited about the ' State ' visit - as we are ! The weather forecast is looking good for the period,just a little cooler but lots of sun,which is not a bad thing as yesterday it reached 43/51 degs !! Remember the only thing that the ' Embassy ' can't control or arrange is the weather - everything else is ready as per the ' Families ' instructions !!
...
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
MANILVA/ESTEPONA START OF THE WEEK.
MONDAY/TUESDAY/WEDNESDAY 20th/ 21st/22nd/ AUGUST 2012.
The forecast for the week is hot and sunny – we are now at the ‘ Sweat and Sticky ’stage when it just runs out of you day and night – during the night time we sleep ( a little ) on towels and during the day we walk around in the house with just our swimming ‘ Cossie’s ’on ! Monday was no exception as we had an at home day catching up with the washing, drying and ironing! Meanwhile I was in the office on the WWW !! After catching up with the news and e-mails I updated the blog and caught up on Facebook; the “ Vuelta D’Espana ”is into top form straight away in the mountains of the wine region of North West Spain – I have a very good PC.page to get all the details of the tour, stage maps,information,results,team news etc. and I watch the live coverage on TVE1/TDP on the big screen – Chris Froome is second in the overall standings in the Tour after four stages, he has been battling with Alberto Contador up the final accents with the other top riders at the same time – yesterday the Australian rider Simon Clarke won the stage from Tony Martin – the leader is Joaquim Rodriguez of Spain by one second, then Froome and five second further back Contador !! Today’s stage is a 16 lap circuit stage around ‘ Logrono ’ the capitol of the Rioja wine region with a sprint finish – watch this space.
For supper we had Pork Cutlets with Lyonnaise potatoes and then watched the late film, a supernatural thriller “ Fallen ” from 1999 starring Denzel Washington, John Goodman and Donald Sutherland, you have to watch it and take in all the story lines as the truth enfolds !
On Tuesday morning we went across to Estepona with our new friend Di to show her around and do some ‘ Retail Therapy ’- ‘ Shopping ’ at the same time ! First we called into our bank and met our new manager, then we went along the front to “ Carrefour ” the Hypermarket to have a look around – I found an Epson printer on offer so treated myself to it, we then called into the ‘ Hippy shop’ for some burning oils and then came back along the front and parked in the underground car park. First stop for me was at my regular ‘ Barber’s ’shop with Manuel ,he is an old fashioned barber, he still uses a cut throat razor ! He cooled me down with his hairdryer on full blast cool mode and even shampooed my hair with ice cold water – all very refreshing ! Meanwhile Brenda ‘ Escaped ’to the shops with Di and bought some essential makeup before we met up and went up the main shopping street with the sales on ! I found a new shirt in ‘ Baileys ’the up market men’s shop with 40% off and Brenda found a new Bikini in a very nice Lingerie shop – 30% off !! Brenda had earlier dropped off her watch for repair at a regular shop that we use. As we were walking through to the Plaza des Flores – Flower Square for lunch we spotted a light shade and fitting shop and found a glass shade for our hanging lamp in our bedroom – result ! Lunch was rather nice as we sat under the shade outside our favorite little restaurant, Di had a large Grilled Sole with a Tomato salad, Brenda had the Fried small Baby Sole (5/6 ) which are coated in a light ‘Tempura ’batter- you eat most of the fish just like soft shell Crab and I had a ‘ Butter flied ’ Breast of Chicken al la Plancha with Patatas Fritos !! The girls were on the ‘ Tinto D’Verano’s and I had a soft drink ( Driving ) ! On the way back we came back through Casares,were the picture below was taken and the dropped down the back road to sunny Manilva to end a very nice day out with Di – she is going on a bus trip to Granada on Wednesday so Brenda organized a taxi to pick her up in the morning to take her down to Sabinillas. On Thursday morning we are going to drop her off at the airport in Gibraltar.
Today, Wednesday it has been another hot one, even too hot for me to go out on the roof terrace, in the morning I made a large pan of ‘ Scouse ’so that I don’t have to cook this evening, with my secret mother’s recipe ! Tonight we again taking things easy and will watch the news later.
Thought for the Day;
The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone to blame it on.
..
.
The forecast for the week is hot and sunny – we are now at the ‘ Sweat and Sticky ’stage when it just runs out of you day and night – during the night time we sleep ( a little ) on towels and during the day we walk around in the house with just our swimming ‘ Cossie’s ’on ! Monday was no exception as we had an at home day catching up with the washing, drying and ironing! Meanwhile I was in the office on the WWW !! After catching up with the news and e-mails I updated the blog and caught up on Facebook; the “ Vuelta D’Espana ”is into top form straight away in the mountains of the wine region of North West Spain – I have a very good PC.page to get all the details of the tour, stage maps,information,results,team news etc. and I watch the live coverage on TVE1/TDP on the big screen – Chris Froome is second in the overall standings in the Tour after four stages, he has been battling with Alberto Contador up the final accents with the other top riders at the same time – yesterday the Australian rider Simon Clarke won the stage from Tony Martin – the leader is Joaquim Rodriguez of Spain by one second, then Froome and five second further back Contador !! Today’s stage is a 16 lap circuit stage around ‘ Logrono ’ the capitol of the Rioja wine region with a sprint finish – watch this space.
For supper we had Pork Cutlets with Lyonnaise potatoes and then watched the late film, a supernatural thriller “ Fallen ” from 1999 starring Denzel Washington, John Goodman and Donald Sutherland, you have to watch it and take in all the story lines as the truth enfolds !
On Tuesday morning we went across to Estepona with our new friend Di to show her around and do some ‘ Retail Therapy ’- ‘ Shopping ’ at the same time ! First we called into our bank and met our new manager, then we went along the front to “ Carrefour ” the Hypermarket to have a look around – I found an Epson printer on offer so treated myself to it, we then called into the ‘ Hippy shop’ for some burning oils and then came back along the front and parked in the underground car park. First stop for me was at my regular ‘ Barber’s ’shop with Manuel ,he is an old fashioned barber, he still uses a cut throat razor ! He cooled me down with his hairdryer on full blast cool mode and even shampooed my hair with ice cold water – all very refreshing ! Meanwhile Brenda ‘ Escaped ’to the shops with Di and bought some essential makeup before we met up and went up the main shopping street with the sales on ! I found a new shirt in ‘ Baileys ’the up market men’s shop with 40% off and Brenda found a new Bikini in a very nice Lingerie shop – 30% off !! Brenda had earlier dropped off her watch for repair at a regular shop that we use. As we were walking through to the Plaza des Flores – Flower Square for lunch we spotted a light shade and fitting shop and found a glass shade for our hanging lamp in our bedroom – result ! Lunch was rather nice as we sat under the shade outside our favorite little restaurant, Di had a large Grilled Sole with a Tomato salad, Brenda had the Fried small Baby Sole (5/6 ) which are coated in a light ‘Tempura ’batter- you eat most of the fish just like soft shell Crab and I had a ‘ Butter flied ’ Breast of Chicken al la Plancha with Patatas Fritos !! The girls were on the ‘ Tinto D’Verano’s and I had a soft drink ( Driving ) ! On the way back we came back through Casares,were the picture below was taken and the dropped down the back road to sunny Manilva to end a very nice day out with Di – she is going on a bus trip to Granada on Wednesday so Brenda organized a taxi to pick her up in the morning to take her down to Sabinillas. On Thursday morning we are going to drop her off at the airport in Gibraltar.
Today, Wednesday it has been another hot one, even too hot for me to go out on the roof terrace, in the morning I made a large pan of ‘ Scouse ’so that I don’t have to cook this evening, with my secret mother’s recipe ! Tonight we again taking things easy and will watch the news later.
Thought for the Day;
The man who smiles when things go wrong has thought of someone to blame it on.
..
.
COUNTDOWN TO FUN.
WEDNESDAY 22 ND AUGUST 2012.
Day 5 and counting down; back to work today, all staff busy in all departments of the Finish " Embassy " here in sunny Manilva ! Staff supper this evening is ' SCOUSE ' as an incentive for the workers !
PS; The picture above shows the ' Private Beach ' is ready - current temperature is 39 degs and rising !
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Tuesday, August 21, 2012
COUNTDOWN TO FUN ;
TUESDAY 21 ST AUGUST 2012.
Day 6 and counting down; today was a management and staff day off ! Retail shopping and lunch out - back to the grind tomorrow, Washing,Ironing,Mopping,Polishing,Bed-Making,Shopping,Glass Cleaning,Cooking and checking all the small details -ie.Toilet Paper !!
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Monday, August 20, 2012
MANILVA OVER THE WEEKEND.
SUNDAY 19th/ AUGUST 2012.
It was another hot one on Sunday as we got up ; the ‘ Levante ’wind has dropped so it is now very close and sticky all the time. After pottering about the house we freshened ourselves and went up to Bar Rojas for the Paella, Di,are new found friend joined us ,she had been for supper last night at Bar Rojas and had one of our recommendations ‘ Gallo Frito with Patatas Frits ’ – she is becoming a regular ! Tomorrow she is going on the bus to Marbella and on Tuesday we are taking her to Estepona shopping and then some lunch, then on Wednesday she has booked on a coach trip to see Granada before she goes back to England on Thursday from Gibraltar.
In the afternoon I followed the ‘ Vuelta ’ on TVE1 – Britain’s Ben Swift lost out on the print finish in Viana,he was third – Jonathan Castroviejo retained the ‘ Red Jersey ’as the overall leader as they head into a mountain stage on Monday that starts in the ‘ Faustino V ’vine fields ! Meanwhile in the football Real Madrid could only manage a 1-1 draw against Valencia at home but Barcelona won 5-1 v Real Sociedad at home with the help of a certain ' Mr Messi ! ' Over in England Manchester City picked up where they left off with a heart-stopping comeback victory 3-2 over Southampton on Sunday afternoon -I watched it live on my Football Channel on the large PC.The big game on Monday night is Everton v Manchester Utd !
PS; Everton beat Utd. 1-0 with an outstanding performance to deservedly claim victory ! Marouane Fellini scored with a header !!
In the evening after our ‘ Cocktail Hour ’up on the roof terrace we had supper; flattened Breast of Turkey pan fried in Lemon Butter with Basmati rice and fried Green Peppers which came from our neighbours vegetable garden in the morning with the famous ‘ Tomato Salsa ’on the side !
The late film was “ The Contender ” from 2000 – with Jeff Bridges as the president of USA with Joan Allen as the ‘ Contender ’for the VP job; she is a women with sexy secrets from her youth- it also stars Gary Oldman, Christian Slater and Sam Elliot – it shows American politics at its dirtiest !
Thought for the Day;
Though ambition in itself is a vice, it often is also the parent of virtue.
..
.
It was another hot one on Sunday as we got up ; the ‘ Levante ’wind has dropped so it is now very close and sticky all the time. After pottering about the house we freshened ourselves and went up to Bar Rojas for the Paella, Di,are new found friend joined us ,she had been for supper last night at Bar Rojas and had one of our recommendations ‘ Gallo Frito with Patatas Frits ’ – she is becoming a regular ! Tomorrow she is going on the bus to Marbella and on Tuesday we are taking her to Estepona shopping and then some lunch, then on Wednesday she has booked on a coach trip to see Granada before she goes back to England on Thursday from Gibraltar.
In the afternoon I followed the ‘ Vuelta ’ on TVE1 – Britain’s Ben Swift lost out on the print finish in Viana,he was third – Jonathan Castroviejo retained the ‘ Red Jersey ’as the overall leader as they head into a mountain stage on Monday that starts in the ‘ Faustino V ’vine fields ! Meanwhile in the football Real Madrid could only manage a 1-1 draw against Valencia at home but Barcelona won 5-1 v Real Sociedad at home with the help of a certain ' Mr Messi ! ' Over in England Manchester City picked up where they left off with a heart-stopping comeback victory 3-2 over Southampton on Sunday afternoon -I watched it live on my Football Channel on the large PC.The big game on Monday night is Everton v Manchester Utd !
PS; Everton beat Utd. 1-0 with an outstanding performance to deservedly claim victory ! Marouane Fellini scored with a header !!
In the evening after our ‘ Cocktail Hour ’up on the roof terrace we had supper; flattened Breast of Turkey pan fried in Lemon Butter with Basmati rice and fried Green Peppers which came from our neighbours vegetable garden in the morning with the famous ‘ Tomato Salsa ’on the side !
The late film was “ The Contender ” from 2000 – with Jeff Bridges as the president of USA with Joan Allen as the ‘ Contender ’for the VP job; she is a women with sexy secrets from her youth- it also stars Gary Oldman, Christian Slater and Sam Elliot – it shows American politics at its dirtiest !
Thought for the Day;
Though ambition in itself is a vice, it often is also the parent of virtue.
..
.
COUNTDOWN TO FUN.
MONDAY 20 TH AUGUST 2012.
Day 7 - one week and counting down;today the gardening staff are working on the floral display ( Front Window ledge ) and fresh flower arrangements - a little ' Royal Blue ' is possible as it is the favourite colour of the ' Finnish/Royal Family/Everton ' Supporter's Club !!
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Sunday, August 19, 2012
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