AT THE MOMENT A DRY & SUNNY MANILVA ON WEDNESDAY WITH THE WET-STUFF TO COME LATER!

WEDNESDAY 18^th/ MARCH 2020.   “ STATE OF ALARM DAY 4 “

We are now into the routine of getting up when we wake up, so it’s not a lie in any more, just normal, after freshening up I masked (basic) & gloved up and went down to the ‘ Suma’ supermarket to check it out, before the rain starts again, it’s well stocked with everything, including Water & Toilet Rolls, so I bought some more essentials to keep us going as well as ( Bacardi & Wines!!)

When I returned Brenda then masked & gloved up and went along to our local  Chemists in ‘Calle Mar’ to see if the ‘ Hand Sanitizer’ had arrived, it hadn’t – so we are going to ring them – they now have a glass-screen in front of the counter!

She then went down to our local shop at the bottom of our street to pick up some more stock/fresh essentials, so as we only need a minimal shop from ‘ Mercadona’! ( Possibly)  Watch this space.

 It was then time for a quick, well earned, toast and tea, before getting the day on the go.

Just as we were getting ready to go to bed last night we had a heavy ‘ cloud-burst’ which only lasted a few minutes, it then has not started again, so far, but no doubt we are in for more of the ‘ Wet-Stuff’ later as well as ‘ gale-force’ winds, still reaching 17/18 degs+ - at the moment the sun has broken though, overnight down to 13/14 degs+ - basically it’s forecast to stay like this for the rest of the week and over the weekend, with the wind dropping to a stiff breeze, next week we are in for a wet, windy and cold time, lasting all week again! Watch this space.

“ CORONAVIRUS UPDATE – COVID 19 “

We are now into a daily routine, which in fact is not much different to our normal, except for not having the dogs with us, so we are missing going for walks around the village ( only one person up to 50 metres!) and of course having a nice cool drink sat outside in the sunshine!

We are balancing out stocks of everything and have cut down on the size of the portions, a little, as well as planning ahead, on next week’s menus will have ‘Turkey’ as we have 2/3 Legs/Thighs, in the bottom of the deep freezer, so a ‘ Curry or Pie’ will be on the menu!

Our friends locally ( Leah & Brian) are keeping in touch, Leah is now off work until the end of the month so can pick things up for us- when needed, as we are now able to find things in the local shops ( good!)  I will not be going down to ‘ Mercadona’ at the moment, as its still ‘MAD’!

We had a nice ‘E-Mail from our dear friends Kelvin & Gaye, over in Denbigh, North Wales, asking after our ‘health’ etc, they had booked to go to Budapest  ( cancelled) at the end of the month and also are booked to come down to the hotel on ‘Sotogrande Marina’ in September, watch this space!

PS; We have just had a nice call on the ‘ Skype’ video from our dear friends Tim & Thea, up in magical Mojacar, with all their news and updating us about their life in general, they are both well (Red Wine!)  as they try to move?! At their ‘ Mercadona’ they have no problems and everything is well stocked except for ‘ Pasta’!

                                                                              “ STAY SAFE & SOUND EVERYBODY “

For our supper this evening we are having  ‘ Stir-Fried Beef & Mixed Peppers’ – cooked to order in a very hot ‘ Wok’ – thinly sliced Onion, Shallots, Mushrooms, with Red, Green & Yellow Peppers and Baby Whole Green Beans, all tossed in very hot Vegetable Oil, with a little Garlic & Lea & Perrins with Tabasco, the strips of ‘ Beef’ marinated in Balsamic Vinegar, then stir-fried ! Broccoli Florets on the side with ‘Rissolees ‘ Potatoes.

We are as usual under the ‘ Lock-Down’ – staying inside, relaxing and taking things very easy – being ‘Patient ‘

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A CLEARING AND NOW SUNNY MANILVA ON SUNDAY.

SUNDAY 15^th/ FEBRUARY 2020. 

We had a nice long lie in this morning before ‘ Chico’ told us it was time to take him out, he sleeps all night on his duvet at the foot of the bed, after freshening up Brenda took him around the bottom of the village to his usual spots, when she returned we had our regular toast & tea.

Today has started a little grey & overcast, with just a slight breeze, the sun is slowly breaking through, so by lunchtime it will back to warm & sunny, with a clear blue sky later, reaching 20 degs+ - overnight down to 11/12degs, next week is starting, after Monday, a little cooler and windy as the tail-end of ‘ Strom Dennis’ comes in, bringing with it a little of the ‘Wet-Stuff’ on Tuesday/Wednesday, then clearing and staying dry and sunny with a few patchy clouds at times, hovering in the high ‘ teens’ – the following week is looking a lot more dry & settled, watch this space.

Just a very quick update on the football results from yesterday; over here in ‘La Liga’ Barcelona won 2-1 – meanwhile back in the UK – Liverpool won 0-1 and are now 25 POINTS clear at the top of the ‘Premiere League’!

For our supper this evening we are having ‘ Pan-Seared Medallions of Pork Fillet ‘ – cooked on a very hot griddle-plate, garnished with seared Button Mushrooms and accompanied with a rich & creamy ‘Green Peppercorn’ salsa, with glazed whole Baby Carrots en Branch & whole Baby ‘French’ Green Beans, served with a dish of my classic ‘ Breton’ style Potatoes, diced boiled potatoes tossed in foaming Parsley butter with diced Onions & Shallots, Red, Green & Yellow Peppers. 

The ‘ Medallions’ are cut from the center of the Pork Fillet, the rest is cut into ‘Escalopes’ and flattened to become ‘ Schnitzels’ tomorrow evening.

Yesterday evening after supper we found a good film to watch ‘ Jason Bourne’ – from 2016 -  starring Matt Damon – in the fifth and final installment of the ‘ Bourne’ film series.

PS; A nice surprise this morning as I was typing/posting today's Blog; " Castle Radio FM 89.2 & Online on the WWW' is back on ' Air' - live and un-announced ! The 'Pete Black Retro Roadshow' came on!

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A ' CRISP' & SUNNY MANILVA ON ' THIRSTY' THURSDAY.

THURSDAY 16^th/ JANUARY 2020.

We had a nice, long, lie in this morning, in fact we overslept!  Brenda didn’t have a good night’s sleep and so we stayed wrapped up under the duvet!!  After freshening up as I was on the breakfast rota I had my favourite ‘ Toasted Crispy Smoked Bacon Butty’ – smothered in ‘ HP’ Brown sauce, just brown toast for Brenda as she is not feeling at her best, with mugs of hot/strong tea to set us up for the day ahead.

Yesterday afternoon we had a call from Lucy, ‘ Chico’s’ mum, it’s her 40^th birthday in February so she is going to the ‘USA’ with her husband, for two weeks, they are dropping off their baby son, Albert, with her parents, over in the ‘UK’ - when they return, he going into the ‘Great Ormond Street Hospital’ for a eye operation, so it will be another week or two before they come home, so ‘ Chico’ is going to be with us in ‘Doggy World Heaven’ for 3/4 weeks, from around the 15^th, he’s a lovely, friendly dog and easy to look after and great company!

The sun was out first thing this morning after a brilliant sunrise over the Mediterranean, the sky has now cleared and is cloudless and bright blue, there is only a very slight breeze so by lunchtime it will reach 18 degs+ -still overnight dropping down to 8/9 degs, tomorrow and over the weekend it’s now staying the same, warm & sunny, only going a little cooler as the breeze stiffens.

Next week, from Monday, when the next wet, windy & cold ‘ Atlantic’ front now comes in, it’s going cooler, down to the mid ‘teens’ with moderate to heavy ‘RAIN’ at times, with patchy clouds and sunny periods, but not as cold as forecast! Watch this space.

At lunchtime we went for a walk along ' Calle Mar' to the local Bank for some cash from the machine, on the way back we stopped outside a new entrance ,which was being plastered, in-between 'Cafe Plaza' and the new 'Barbers'shop, we had heard a rumour that it was going to be a new Bar, the rumour is true, it has a large bar & kitchen, with wood flooring, the walls and ceiling have all the wiring, but there is still a lot to finish, sadly with no view over the mountains, unlike ' Cafe Plaza's'!

We spoke to the owner and asked for the name of the Bar?! No name yet was his reply!  'Cafe Plaza' must be fuming as it's right next door to them, watch this space, later this year!




PS; On the way back we stopped at 'Bar Castillo' and sat outside the hot sunshine for a nice cool drink, while we took in the sights & sounds of sunny Manilva, as the World passed us by! 

For our supper this evening we are having the rest of the ‘ Beef & Vegetable Stew with Crusty Dumplings’ with the left-over vegetables & potatoes, on Friday it will be a ‘ Fish’ supper, depending on the local market selection in ‘Mercadona’ – Saturday is our usual ‘ Steak Night’ and then on Sunday it’s our first ‘ Roast’ of the new year – ‘ Roast Chicken’ with all the trimmings! 

Last night after supper we settled down to watch the second part of this week’s ‘ Silent Witness’ which was very gripping, with a surprise ending, tonight we will catch the next episode of ‘Death in Paradise’ with Ardal O’Hanion, in the main role, as the ‘Detective Inspector’ on the fictional Caribbean island of ‘ Saint Marie’

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A VERY ' CLOSE' AND SUNNY MANILVA ON THURSDAY.

THURSDAY 18^th/ JULY 2019.

We had another nice long lie in this morning, after another very hot night, after freshening up as I was on the breakfast rota we had my now famous ‘ Toasted Crispy Smoked Bacon Butties’ – open on brown for Brenda, smothered with ‘ HP’ Brown sauce, with mugs of strong/hot tea, to sort us out for the day ahead, we are staying inside, keeping as cool as possible, with all the fans on, drinking lots of cold water!

‘Scruffy’ will be back with us in ‘ Doggy World Heaven’ this afternoon, for a few hours, then tomorrow also, ‘ Chispa’ had been in this morning, as usual for her breakfast! Next week as well as ‘ Scruffy’ every afternoon, little ‘ Miss Bella’ hopefully will be with us on Monday/Tuesday morning for the day, watch this space.

Today we are in for another ‘ Hot-One’ – the sun was out early, there is just a slight breeze, the clouds have cleared and the sky is blue, by lunchtime it’s due to reach 30 degs+ - tomorrow and over the weekend it’s dropping a little as the breeze picks up, down to the high 20s, then next week it’s going to be a ‘ scorcher’ from Tuesday up to 33 degs+ . the rest of the week hovering in the low 30s, watch this space.

Over in Canada, Sandra & Bill went across to Connecticut, to New London, to see friends and go out on the boat,  then moved on later, with their trailer to ‘Fisherman’s Cove’ Kincardine, as you can see below.

Meanwhile in the ‘ Tour de France ‘ it’s ‘ Stage 12’ from Toulouse to Bagnere De Bigorre over 210 kms, with two big climbs in the Pyrenees before a fast downhill finish.

See the route map below;

This evening, as we have given the ‘ Staff’ the night off, we are going along to ‘ Bar Castillo’ for a nice cool drink, or two, with a light ‘ Tapas’ supper, sat outside in hopefully the cooler evening air, watching the World go by, taking in the sights, sounds & aroma’s of sunny Manilva.

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A VERY HOT & SUNNY MANILVA ON THURSDAY.

THURSDAY 4^th/ JULY 2019.   “ INDEPENDENCE DAY “

We had a nice lie in this morning, after another ‘ hot-night’ – after freshening up we had a quick toast & tea, before getting the day on the go, this afternoon ‘ Scruffy’ is back with us for few hours, as Adrian has his first radiotherapy at 6-OO pm at the Hospital.

Brenda then popped along to our Chemists in ‘Calle Mar’ for new prescription for me, a very expensive ( not in the system) antibiotic cream for my Celullitis, on my right leg,( see below) - at the same time she picked up another sachet for her problem with her ‘ waterworks’!

Yesterday afternoon we shot off across to the ‘Costa Del Sol Hospital’ for my appointment at the ‘ Dermatology Department, the coast road ( A7 –N340 ) - at this time of the year, at the height of the holiday season, it’s particularly dangerous, very busy, very fast, with surprise queues!

We had to wait an hour for my emergency appointment, the young lady ‘Consultant’ then gave me the full ‘work-over’ after reading all my notes, she has prescribed a new antibiotic cream to help clear my ‘ Celullitis’ on my right leg, to be used before going to bed, the ‘ Herpes Zoster’ infection/virus on my left arm/shoulder was a very severe form, not Shingles, that is resistant to the antibiotics, it’s now started to clear and she told us to use a normal moisturiser, for the pain relief, she prescribed ‘ Paracetamol’ – it worked, I had my first night’s sleep, for five days, my arm is still very tender and it’s going to take a while. She has also told me to go and see our Doctor, Natalia, after all the blood tests, as she need to adjust my prescriptions, as all this has upset my various medications.  I’m feeling a lot better, but still not back to normal, watch this space.  “RESULT “

On the way back we decided to carry on, past Sabinillas and go to ‘ Marlows Fish n’Chip Shop’ for a early supper, Brenda had the ‘Early Bird Special’ – a small Haddock & Chips with Mushy Peas, with a large glass of Rose wine, I had the ‘ Medium’ Haddock & Chips, with a ‘Fanta Orange’ – as usual everything was excellent, the Haddock was flaky and moist, the batter crisp, the Mushy Peas very tasty and the Chips just right!

When we came home we settled down to watch a very good documentary on the ‘Ritz Hotel’ in London, before catching later the second Semi Final of the ‘FIFA Women s World Cup’ – boring, between Holland & Sweden, Holland won.

Yesterday afternoon when we were out & about is was extremely hot, as the breeze had dropped, this morning the sun was out early and the sky is clearing, with a few patchy clouds, by lunchtime it’s due to reach 27 degs+ tomorrow up to 30 degs+ and then by Sunday 32 degs+! Next week is also going to be very hot & sunny, no surprise there, hovering in the low 30s, only down to 20 degs overnight, with a few patchy clouds at times and a light breeze, watch this space.

This evening we have given the ‘ staff’ the night off, they are going along to ‘ Bar Castillo’ for a light ‘Tapas’ supper, sat outside in the shade, with a cool drink, taking in the sights & sounds in sunny Manilva, as the World’ passes by, tomorrow morning I’m not going out on my travels down to Sabinillas for the weekly shopping, we picked up a few essentials  from ‘Super Sol’ on the way home last night, so we have a long weekend to help with both our recuperations!

On Saturday evening we have just arranged a ‘Skype’ video call with Sandra & Bill, over in Everett, Ontario, Canada, as they have a busy weekend, the following week they are going away to ‘Long Island, New York’ for a flying visit and then ‘ glamping ‘ for the rest of the week, as the hot weather has finally reached them! ‘Enjoy’

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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