A VERY HOT AND SUNNY MANILVA ON WEDNESDAY;

WEDNESDAY 23^rd/JULY 2014.

I was up with the birds this morning as ‘Reina’ was being dropped off, she is back with us on Friday morning and possible Saturday as well then next week its going to be Tuesday and possible Thursday morning before she stays with us over the weekend of Daniela’s wedding; meanwhile ‘Scruffy’ is arriving on Friday afternoon for a sleep-over until Monday morning – oh and yes ‘Chispa’ is crashing in and out all the time and is at the moment playing around my feet with her new found friend for the first time!

At this rate we will need a secretary to keep the diary up to date and take the bookings in “Doggy World Heaven!”

Today is going to be a hot one as the ‘Lavante Breeze’ has gone and the forecast is showing it staying hot for the rest of the week; so this week we are going for the shopping tomorrow instead of Friday and Brenda has booked in for next Wednesday to go down to her hairdressers in Sabinillas as its free at the moment! We are out with Den & Josie tomorrow night for a ‘Tapas’ supper down on the beach front in Sabinillas so no doubt we will get a full update on their ‘Art & Cultural’ trip to Malaga.

Then it’s a busy weekend in sunny Manilva with the ‘Brass Band’ music concert on Friday evening before the “ Verbena De Santa Ana ” festival and celebrations all day on Saturday; Sunday is free at the moment!

One interesting fact about Jack & Lyn’s adventure going around Australia is that they passed eight different ‘Sea’s & Oceans’ on their travels starting with the Bass Strait then onto the Tasman Sea, Pacific Ocean, Coral Sea, Gulf of Carpentaria, Timor Sea, Indian Ocean and finally the Great Australian Bight – now not a lot of people know that!

Now I’ am going into reminiscing ‘Mode’ about my times with my Dad cycling; as you can see above there are pictures of the “ Pontcysyllte Aquaduct” outside Llangollen which takes the canal across the valley, it’s the highest and longest Aquaduct in the UK and was built by Thomas Telford back in the early 1800s; we cycled across it when I was nine after my first ride over and then down the ‘Horseshoe Pass’ where I first learned how to descend fast on my bike! It’s1007ft long,126ft high and 11ft wide. Happy Days.

Back to the ‘Tour De France’ now and stage 17 today, the shortest stage, which is in the ‘Pyrenees’ from ‘Saint-Gaudens’ to ‘Saint-Lray d’Adet’over 125kms. There are three serious climbs at one time crossing over into Spain and then finishing back on the French side up the ‘Pont De Bales’ over 11kms at 1/7!with lots of descending which is an art in its self! Yesterday's stage was won by the Australian rider Micheal Rogers when he was the bravest and fastest descender from the brake away group!

Tonight’s supper is ‘Grilled Pork Chops’ with Glazed Apple slices,Cabbage,mashed Carrots & Turnips and sliced Green Beans as Brenda thinks she is not getting enough vegetables in her new menu regime! I’ am also making some ‘Breton-style’ Potatoes with diced cooked potatoes tossed with diced Green & Red Peppers and Shallots.See the picture above. Then we will watch the Final of the Spanish ‘Master Chef’- Vicky won as I was not entered this time!!

Just before supper our friend Antonio, the painter and handyman arrived to put up the new shutters as you can see in the pictures above;they look very smart and colour fits in very well - on another day I will take a picture when they are down !!

Last night late I watched some archive clips from the “ Blues Cazorla Blues Festival ” with ‘Charley Musslewhite' playing the ‘Electronic Blues Harmonica’ – Robert Cray making his ‘Fender’ guitar ‘Sing!’ and ‘Javina Magness belting out the ‘Blues’ like she was born into it! Which she was!!

Thoughts for the Day; See above.

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