A VERY HUMID & OVERCAST SUNNY MANILVA ON SATURDAY.

SATURDAY 15^th/ JULY 2017.

We managed a little lie in this morning, ‘ Chico’ has slept all night, he’s very good, he gives Brenda a little lick/nudge when he’s ready to go out, she took him around the park, when they came back we had breakfast, Brenda’s famous ‘ Poached ‘ Campo’ Eggs on Toast with hot/strong tea, Brown toast for Brenda and ‘ Chico’!

See ‘ Chico’ below after his breakfast.

Overnight it seems that we had a little rain?! This morning it’s grey & overcast, not forecast, there is still mist ( fog?!) around and no sign of the sun breaking through, at the moment, it was late afternoon, yesterday, before it just about cleared, it’s still very hot & humid, we had another sticky night, tomorrow we are in for more of the same, next week is picking up, cloudy at the start and then back to the hot sunshine in the mid 30s, watch this space.

See the picture below of the ‘ Disney Magic ‘ berthed at Liverpool on Friday and then leaving up the River Mersey.

‘Victor’ our Dentist, was very good yesterday, he fitted us both in without notice and sorted Brenda’s problem out and gave me a good check up & clean, all at no charge, he is from Argentina, his brother is the Dentist in Casares, the next white village above sunny Manilva, a few years ago Victor opened the first restaurant in the village, he then moved it to the ‘Manilva Green Aparthotel’  - we were regular customers, he is also a  International ‘BBQ’ Judge’!

Over the weekend down in ‘ Castillo de la Duquesa ‘it’s the annual ‘Feria’ concluding on Sunday with the  ‘ Virgen Del Carmen’ ( the Patron saint of Fishermen) Festival, then at the end of the month here in sunny Manilva we have the  ‘Feria’ and the processions & festival of ‘ Verbana De Santa Ana ‘ ( the Patron saint of the village !)

Speaking of food this evening we are having ‘ Grilled Fillet Steaks ‘ cooked on a very hot griddle plate ‘ Med-Rare’ and left to rest, as Brenda is now back on solid foods, with seared Asparagus Spears & Button Mushrooms, finely sliced Green Beans and of course twice-cooked ‘ Frits’ On Sunday its now going to be ‘ Pan-Seared Escalopes of Turkey Breast ‘ with a savoury Rice and a creamy Mushroom sauce on the side.

This afternoon we are making contact with our new dear friends over in Canada, Sandra & Bill, on the Skype video, we talk on Facebook messenger during the week and arrange a time to fit in with their busy lives, they are six hours behind, so we are calling at 4-00 pm here, 10-00 am there, we will have a good catch up with all their news after their trip to ‘ Long Island ‘ last weekend. The countdown is on-going to their arrival down here on the ‘ Costa Del Sol’ and sunny Manilva at the end of September!

Then we will be watching the Final of the ‘ Ladies Tennis ‘ from Wimbledon as Venus Williams player the Spanish lady Garbine Muguruza, at the same time I will be following the ‘ Tour De France ‘ Stage 14 from Blagnac to Rodez over 181 kms, a hilly stage, there was no change in the overall standings yesterday ‘ Chris Froome ‘ is waiting for the rate moment to attack. 

See below the route and maps; 

Later we will catch up with the qualifying for the ‘ British Grand Prix ‘ from Silverstone. Watch this space.

This evening after supper we will find a movie to watch on the ‘ Kodi’ Film channel before taking ‘ Chico’ out for his last walk of the day, last night we sat outside on a bench in  ‘ Calle Mar ‘ taking in the sights, sounds & aromas of the village, all the bars were doing great business as the locals with their family’s come out to eat & drink in the cooler night air after 10- 00 pm!

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A CRISP & CALM SUNNY MANILVA ON SATURDAY;

SATURDAY 28^th/ NOVEMBER 2015.

A nice lie in this morning as the village is quiet and there are no workmen on the site; I then got up and put the gas bottle out ready for the delivery man to call with the new one, he carries it through to our back store, the price which is controlled by the government is also down! Its another fine day here in sunny Manilva with no breeze so it will warm up by lunchtime, tomorrow is also fine and next week is now looking settled with sun and clear blue skies, we can’t complain for the beginning of December!! ( 22 degs! ) 

For breakfast we had ‘Campo’ Fried Eggs with crispy Smoked Bacon with lots of buttered toast and a mug of steaming tea.

This afternoon ‘Reina’ is being dropped off for a sleep over with us here in ‘Doggy World Heaven, she’s back next week on Tuesday & Thursday as normal then ‘Barny’ is back with us for a long weekend break. 'Scruffy' has just been booked in for a sleep over on the Saturday night also!

Yesterday at lunchtime we bought our Xmas Lottery ticket for the ‘El Gordo – The Big One ‘ from the local Tebac, it costs 23 euros a ticket (with tax) and is the next too biggest lottery draw in the World – fingers crossed and watch this space! On the 22^nd of December we could be ‘Millionaire’s’!!

It’s a big sports weekend and now that we have English TV as well we are spoilt for choice; this afternoon its the qualifying for the last Grand Prix of the season from Abu Dhabi, then the ‘Davies Cup’ Tennis is on as England play Belgium in the final, actually its Andy Murray against the rest of the world as he wins all his games and so England are in the final for the first time! 

Later I will be watching the Horse Racing from Newbury on Channel 4 as its the ‘Hennessy Gold Cup’ In the football over in the ‘Premiere League’  Manchester City welcome Southampton and Everton travel down to Bournemouth, then tomorrow Liverpool are at home to Swansea; meanwhile over here Barcelona are at home to Real Sociedad and then tomorrow Real Madrid travel to lowly Eiber. All the football is live on the ‘First Row Sports’ channel which I can also now watch on the new system!

Last night after supper we channel hopped on English TV and watched our now usual Friday night selection, this evening we will catch ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ as it had only 4 weeks to go to the final.

For our supper we are having ‘Entrecote Steak’ cooked on a very hot griddle plate ‘Med-Rare’ with sautéed Baby Mushrooms, finely sliced Green Beans and of course some twice-cooked ‘Frits’ – then we will settle down to find a good film to watch.

Thoughts for the Day; See above.

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OVERCAST GREY AND DAMP IN SUNNY MANILVA ON SATURDAY;

SATURDAY 1^st/ FEBRUARY 2014.

I had a little lie in this morning as Brenda was up to collect a new gas bottle (Hot water!) from the delivery man who comes along on Saturday and Wednesday mornings at around 9-00am; I was then treated to Poached Eggs on toast to set me up for the day ahead! The weather today is overcast and grey and damp later but then its picking up for a few days into next week which is good as we are out and about.

The weather is also effecting my TV watching this morning as I can’t get a download contact to watch BBC TVs ‘Saturday Morning Kitchen’ as normal upstairs in the office on the smaller PC! No satellite connection is available – which is a bit of a let down as I was looking forward to today’s special edition for the “Chinese New Year” with Ken Hom!

On Monday evening Brenda has an appointment with the ‘Eye Consultant’ for a check up at the hospital past Marbella;on Tuesday morning I’ am going over to La Linea,with Andy again to hopefully finalize the transfer of my driving license to Spanish at the Traffic Department and then on Wednesday lunchtime I have a one with the ‘Dermatology Consultant’ back at the hospital for a check up ( Blood) - so we are going to call into Estepona on the way for a couple of essentials and get a new battery for Brenda’s watch from the jewelers that we use. Then on Friday its Sabinillas for the regular shopping before we go to the ‘Inauguration Service’ down at the Church on Saturday evening after all the repairs and re-furbishment.

So after typing the Blog I will get ready tonight’s supper which is ‘Steak a la Plancha’ with sautéed Baby Mushrooms and Finely Sliced Green Beans and of course twice-cooked chips! On the side we are having a sauceboat of ‘Bourguigonne’ sauce! Chispa has just come crashing in full of the joys of spring with the wind in her tail, she is running around mad. skidding on the Marble floores,jumping in the air and generally causing mayhem!

This afternoon it’s a big sports day which I will hopefully be able to watch on the larger PC,weather and satellite connections permitting! Over in England in the ‘Premiere League’ Everton welcome Aston Villa then on Sunday Liverpool travel to West Brom before the big one on Monday evening when Manchester City host Chelsea! Over here in ‘La Liga’ today it’s Barcelona v Valencia and Real Madrid at Athletic Bilbao.

A good win for Everton to come from behind and win 2-1.Oh dear,a rare home defeat for Barcelona 2-3!

Today see’s the start of the “ Six Nations ” International Rugby Union with Wales Taking on Italy then England visit Paris to play France.

Down in Cardiff Wales beat Italy 23 15 ! Oh 'B---er ! England have just lost to France 26-24 after France scored a converted try in the final two minutes - a 'Helluva' game !!

After supper this evening we will watch the sports news updates and high lights before settling down to watch a film.

Thought for the Day; See above.

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SUNNY AND A VERY HOT MANILVA THIS WEEKEND

FRIDAY 23^rd/ AUGUST 2013.

We started this morning down at the local market by the sports complex; Brenda picked up some fresh flowers and I spotted a pair of Brown Leather slip-ons as for around the house as my slippers have given up the ghost! We then shot down to Sabinillas for our regular shopping, I called into the bank and Brenda went to the local wholesale/retail vegetables shop and then we went along to ‘Mercadona’ before picking up the papers from the English book shop. After un-packing back at the house I went down to our butchers for our regular ‘Steak a la Plancha’

This weekend down in Sabinillas its all happening; last night in the ‘ El Parque Del Duque’ there was a ‘Tango Festival’ then tonight there is live music concert by a local group at one of the main beach front bars followed by a ‘Blue Trail’ beach walk under the full moon; all along the sea front promenade there is a ‘Medieval Market taking place until the end of the month. Then tomorrow morning there is a ‘Raft Race’ in the Duquesa marina, then on Sunday it’s the turn of Sabinillas’s saints day “ El Verbana De San Luis” ! Meanwhile up in sunny Manilva – nothing !! See the pictures above.

SPORTS WEEKEND UPDATE;

This weekend is another big sports weekend taking place all over here, Europe and in the UK; Football in ‘La Liga and the ‘Premier League’ -  ‘Motor GP’ in the Czech Republic at Brno and the ‘Belgian Grand Prix’ at the legendary ‘Spa Francorchamps’ circuit, meanwhile the 5^th ‘Ashes Test’ match is taking place at the ‘Oval’ in London.

And finally the “ La Vuelta 13 ” – ‘The Tour of Spain’ starts tomorrow with a Time-Trial from Vilanova de Arosa to Sanxenxo over 27kms. Next weekend it’s coming down from Jerez to Estepona past/under Sabinillas and finishes in Madrid on Sunday 15th September !

Tonight for supper we are having Fillets of Pink Trout cooked ‘A La Meuniere’ with ‘Patatas Bravas’ and Garden Peas before we catch a film later.We watched " A Perfect Murder " from 1998 starring Michael Douglas,Gwyneth Paltrow,Viggo Mortensen and David Suchet in a re-make of the classic Alfred Hitchcock film " Dial M for Murder "

Later I watched on the 'Paramount Film Channel' a film that I was reading about in one of this mornings papers! " Harry Brown " from 2009 - it stars Michael Caine as a vigilante ex-Royal Marine living out his life after his wife dies and his best friend is murdered in a inner-city rough estate,the film makes the 70s 'Death Wish' films of Michael Winner look like a walk in the park! Caine shows his dark side in this violent,shocking and horrific story - watch it at your peril ! 

PS; Iain Glen is in the film and it remained me of the time back in the Hotel Seventy Degrees when he stayed at the hotel with Phil Daniels,Tilly Vosbourgh and Joanne Walley (Kilmer) back in the late 70s when they were just starting and they were in a realistic BBC film being made in sunny Rhyl!That's a story for another day!!

PPS; Brenda's new Smart Mobile phone has just arrived by courier ! It's a LG - E 400 'Life's Good' Watch this space !!

Thought for the Day; See above.

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MANILVA AT THE END OF THE WEEK

THURSDAY 4^th/ FRIDAY 5^th/ April 2013.

As forecast over night the rains came – it was the wettest March on record, but we have in sunny Manilva missed most of it! First thing in the morning we headed out in different directions, Brenda went down to the dentists to start her treatment and I went up to the surgery for my appointment with the nurse for my blood samples/urine samples to be sent off ready for my three appointments at the hospital over in Marbella at the start of May; I was also able to arrange for Brenda’s X-ray on her legs at the local hospital over in Estepona on Monday morning, this morning I received a phone call from the medical centre in Estepona to go for my regular eye test – on Monday morning – two birds with one stone! The Spanish medical system working at its best!!

In the afternoon I was able to watch the racing from Aintree on the PC with the excellent live coverage from Racing UK – it is a very professional service with a good commentators. The racing was superb and the sun was out but a cold wind was blowing in off the Irish Sea – Aintree at its best.

For supper we had Chicken Curry and Basmati Rice ( Last weeks from the deep-freeze) which was easy for Brenda to eat, then it was time to catch the football; on Spanish TVE5 they had the  Chelsea v Rubin Kazan( Russian) game – Chelsea won 3-1 with the ‘Masked’ Torres scoring 2 ! Upstairs in the office I followed the other games, Benfica beat Newcastle 3-1 and Tottenham drew with FC Basel 2-2 – all first legs, so all to play for.

This morning we braved the rain storm and headed out for the shopping down in Sabinillas;I called at the bank and we picked up the papers and then came back up to the house to unload, I walked down to the butchers for our Saturday steak( Brenda’s cut into small pieces ) and Brenda went down to the local market for some fresh flowers, by then the rain had stopped! The forecast over the weekend is looking a lot better with the sun back and going warmer into next week;Anna has just called and picked up the papers,Mano has gone back to work at the villa over in Sotogrande after the winter break.

This afternoon I will be watching the racing again from Aintree and also the start of the ‘MotorGP’ season from the Losail circuit in Qatar under the floodlights; I have just managed to get the CH4 coverage for the racing - I don't know how ! The race of the day was the 'Melling Chase' which the new wonder horse 'Sprinter Sacre' won - his 9th out of 9 wins! 

This evening for supper I’ am going to poach a Fillet of Salmon for Brenda as the dental work is still ongoing; it’s the classic film night on two/three of the channels so we will choose one to catch later.

Thoughts for the Day;

Two things define you. Your patience when you have nothing and your attitude when you have everything. 

He who plants the lettuce doesn’t always eat the salad.

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MANILVA ON SATURDAY

SATURDAY 9^th/ MARCH 2013.

We had a good lie in on Saturday morning after all the excitement of the Basketball; the weather forecast for the weekend and into next week is changeable with sun, clouds, rain, wind and anything else they can find! The good news is the temperature is still hanging around 22/23 degs! It was a at home day as we caught up with chores around the house and I transferred to the office to blog!

In the afternoon it was football over in England and here and Rugby Union over in England which I followed on both PCs;all this week I have been watching on the main sports channel TDP,in the afternoon’s with the live coverage of the “ Paris – Nice ” classic seven stage cycling as they worked their way across and down France to Nice yesterday with the final stage today which is a 9.6km time-trial; in the lead is the Australian Ritchie Porter who for many year has been in the shadows working for Contador,Cavendish and Wiggins but has now come to the front! Meanwhile in Italy Froome and Cavendish are taking part in the “ Tirreno Adriatico ” Froome is second and Contador is fouth while Cavendish, who at one stage lead the race has now dropped back, three more stages to go to Tuesday’s finish in San Benedetto del Tronto.

The first match I caught was the early kick off of the ‘FA Cup’ sixth round Everton v Wigan – oh dear – Wigan scored 3 goals in 3 minutes in the first half – game over ! Sorry Big Bri !! Later it was Manchester City v Barnsley – City won 5-0 with a Tevez hat-trick! Carlos a ‘Happy Bunny’ Later in the ‘Liga’ over here Messi set another record when he scored in Barcelona’s 2-0 win over Deportivo when the ‘Magical’ man found the net for the 17^TH game running and his 51^ST of the season ! On Sunday it is Manchester Utd. v Chelsea for a place in the semi-finals which this year take place at Wembley.

In the ‘RBS 6 Nations Championship’ Wales beat Scotland 18-28 and Ireland could only manage a draw with France 13-13 – both games played in downpours ! Today it is the clash between England and Italy at Twickenham before next week’s final game when England play Wales in Cardiff – many years ago,in fact over 43,we went to the old ‘Arms Park’ to watch the same game! Happy memories of a ‘ Helluva ’weekend away with friends in the “ Three Salmons ”at Usk and Sunday Lunch in Stow-on-the Wold !!

For supper we had the Rump steak that we bought from the English Butchers in Guadalmina, it was very tasty and succulent as I cooked it on the griddle pan ‘Rare’ – with Sauté Mushrooms and sliced Green Beans and crisp Chips,mine topped with a Fried Egg ! The ‘Diet’ starts on Monday !! We then watched the late film; “ What Lies Beneath ”from 2000 – it is a American supernatural drama-horror starring Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer – don’t miss it.

Thoughts for the Day;

Dreams are the touchstone of our character.  If you can dream it, you can do it.

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MANILVA OVER THE WEEKEND.

SATURDAY 2^nd/ SUNDAY 3^rd/ FEBRUARY 2013.

As we got up on Saturday morning the sun was out and the forecast for the weekend and next week is more of the same with clear blue skies and a little breeze occasionally; we are having a quiet weekend as next weekend it is all happening with our trip to the Carnival in Cadiz – we pottered about the house and caught up with our chores. Next week also I have an appointment at the hospital over in Marbella for a check up on Thursday and on Friday morning we are at the solicitors down in Sabinillas as it is that time of the year when we renegotiate the contract on the house. Mano and Anna called in later with some books and for a chat before I settled down in the office to watch the Six Nations Rugby;

Wales’s v Ireland was on first from the Millennium stadium in Cardiff. Wales started terrible in the first half but played better in the second but still lost to Ireland 22-30 – then it was the big one – England v Scotland from Twickenham in the ‘Calcutta’ Cup game, it was great game of rugby as was the Wales game and England played a lot better as the overcame the Scots comfortable and won in the end 38-18 with the newer players Billy Twelvetrees ( Honest) scoring a try and Owen Farrell kicking six conversions. I had earlier watched the Everton match v Aston Villa which ended up 3-3 when Marouane Fellaini ( The one with the hair!) saved Everton with a second half towering display as he scored twice, the last in injury time. Over here the score of the night in ‘La Liga’ was Granada 1-Real Madrid 0  – who scored the goal ? Ronaldo with his first own goal in ‘La Liga’ when he headed in from a corner! That took the sneer off his face !!

For supper we had  two very tasty and succulent Minute steaks cooked rare and topped with a fried Egg along with finely sliced Green Beans, Tomato salad and crisp Chips. The late film was an all action spy thriller “ The Transporter” from  2002 with Jason Statham playing the title part and Shu Qi as the female interest. I then watched a very good live recording of a concert from the ‘ Roundhouse’ in Camden in London – it was from the 2012 “ I Tunes Festival ” and featured the ex ‘White Stripes’ Jack White playing with an all female band including his sister(I think!) on drums, a bass player, a electric violinist, a slide guitarist, a piano/organ player and a ‘Helluva ‘ backing singer – typically loud, fast and together music !

On Sunday morning after a lie in we got our roast on the go – Loin of Pork  with Sage and Onion Stuffing and Brenda’s selection of vegetables and my Duck fat Roast Potatoes ! It will give us cold Pork for Monday and the gravy I use during the week. It was then sports time up in the office as I first watched the Italy v France rugby game – Italy had a famous victory as the beat the French 23-18 in another exciting game; it was then time for the ‘Match of the Day’ over in the Premier League – Manchester City v Liverpool – result 2-2 Sturridge’ strike was super,Gerrard’s was even greater but Aguero’s was out of this world! Meanwhile over in Italy’ Super Mario’ Balotelli scored two in his first match for A C Milan after his transfer including a penalty in injury time to win 2-1 against Udinese! Over here Barcelona could only manage a draw at Valencia 1-1.

After supper we watched a rather good and very gripping film “ Man on Fire ”from 2004 starring the ever excellent and watch able Denzel Washington as a doomed despondent former CIA operative turned bodyguard who goes on a revenge rampage after his charge, a nine-year- old girl is abducted in Mexico – Christopher Walken and Giancarlo Giannini are in the supporting cast but the young actress Dakota Fanning is just adorable. Watch it as there is a catch at the end!

Thoughts for the Day;

Nothing is so simple that it cannot be misunderstood.  The greatest truths are the simplest.

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MANILVA OVER THE WEEKEND.

FRIDAY/SATURDAY/SUNDAY 4^th/5^th/ 6^th NOVEMBER 2011.

After our regular breakfast of tea and toast on Friday it was an at home day as the weather was a little showery and cool by our standards; it is now 20 degs during the day and at night it goes down to 10 degs Over the weekend there is no rain forecast here not like the rest of Spain which is having severe rain and storms and in the Sierra around Madrid and in other parts the first snow! Later in the morning Mano called in and picked up Derrick, Anna arrived back from Tenerife late on Thursday night, her plane was over two hours late taking off; she has come back not well and has gone to bed – so no news or gossip for now! In the evening we had Scampi Provencale for supper with Basmati Rice, I made the sauce at lunchtime and have also made a small Pork and Mushroom Casserole with some of the sauce to use as a snack on another day.

In the morning on Saturday after our Poached Eggs on Toast Brenda pottered about the house and I caught up with the WWW. In the office, later I watched on the BBC IPlayer a documentary programme introduced by Paddy Ashdown about the most courageous raid of WW11 on cargo ships docked in Bordeaux, seventy miles up the river from the Bay of Biscay and the Atlantic. “ The Cockleshell Heroes ” Six canoes set off with twelve commandoes, only two made it and only one crew of two made it back across France and Spain to Gibraltar to survive to tell the tale, the intrigue and heroism is mind blowing and the cock ups by the planners at the time was unbelievable; Paddy Ashdown who is ex SBS told the story with real compassion and even recalled that he met one of his heroes later in life without knowing that it was him ‘ Blondie Hasler ’who was the man who led the attack and was one of them that got away to live and had a full life afterwards ! The BBC at its best. The film of the story was good but the actual facts were far more intriguing. In the afternoon I watched the Liverpool match against Swansea, Liverpool played terrible,Andy Carroll who cost 35 million pounds is useless and it was a goalless draw ! Later the Manchester City game against QPR was a cracker, City won in the end, just 3-2 ! For dinner we had Steak and Chips with all the trimmings before we settled down to watch a film.

On Sunday we had a little lie in and then went for a long walk with Cheta as the weather is back to sunny and crisp during the day, the forecast for next week is for more of the same if not a little warmer ! 22 degs. today as I’ am typing this. We got the Sunday roast on the go, Loin of Pork with lots of Brenda’s vegetables which we had for dinner, at lunchtime we had toasted Bacon Butties for our Brunch ! Earlier in the morning I watched another documentary “ Frozen Planet ” made by David Attenborough which featured the ‘ Thieving Penguins ’amongst many other great shots of the Artic and Antarctica. In the afternoon it was the last Motorcycle Grand Prix of the season from Valencia; it was very exciting and at the same time very moving as they paid tribute to Marco Simoncelli who was killed in the Malaysian MotorGP. Casey Stoner produced a remarkable late charge to win on the finishening line and the young Spanish rider from Valencia,Nicolas Terol won the last ever 125cc championship; the class is being replaced next year with the new Motor3.Earlier team Gresni rider Piro won a emotional Motor2 race,the team of the late Simoncelli ! After our roast dinner we settled down to watch a film on the TV; we had the choice of several good films and finally watched the Steven Segal one !

Thought for the Day;

Charm is the ability to make someone else think that both of you are pretty wonderful.

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