A COOL & FRESH SUNNY MANILVA AND MALAGA ON THURSDAY.

THURSDAY 12th/ DECEMBER 2019.  

We had a little lie in this morning, before a quick freshen up, Brenda then took ‘ Chico’ out for his first walk of the day, when she returned, as I was on the breakfast rota, I had my favourite ‘ Toasted Crispy Smoked Bacon Butty ‘ – smothered in ‘HP’ Brown sauce – open on brown for Brenda, with mugs of hot/strong tea, to set us up for our exciting day ahead. We then took ‘ Chico’ up to ‘Calle Mar’ – outside the Town Hall, as he was being picked up, he’s back with us a week on Sunday for his ‘Xmas’ holiday.

We are taking things easy today, as this afternoon we are going on the ‘Pensioners’ coach trip ( 8 Euros PP ) -  across to Malaga, it leaves from the main roundabout at the entrance to the village at 4-00 pm and returns at 11-00 pm-ish from Malaga, this year it’s a new spectacular festival of “ Xmas Lights & Music’ extravaganza ( three times each evening) - along the main shopping street of ‘ Calle Larios’- in the centre of the city, next to the Cathedral and all the city-centre Bars & Restaurants, which will, no doubt ‘ hit’ later, after a little window shopping, we will then go along to the ‘Marriot Hotel’ – next to the Cathedral, by the side of the promenade, up to the 15^th floor – pool-side  ‘Cocktail Bar’ on the open roof terrace, overlooking the harbour & marina as well as the rooftops of the city, we will then select a nice/fine Restaurant to have supper.

Watch out for all the pictures on tomorrow Blog!

This morning has started rather cool & ‘ Fresh’ as the breeze has stiffened overnight, the clouds are clearing and the sun is attempting to break through, it’s going to hopefully stay dry, but partly cloudy for the day, only reaching 15/16 degs+ - so we will need to wrap up in our warm coats with scarfs! 

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A ' FRESH' WARM & SUNNY MANILVA ON TUESDAY.

TUESDAY 10^th/ SEPTEMBER 2019.

We had a little lie in this morning before getting ourselves freshened up and dressed to go out, we then shot along the coast road, past a choppy/sparkling Mediterranean to Estepona.

I parked in the promenade underground car park and we had fresh Orange Juice and a nice Tostada in the main, very busy, as usual, Cafeteria, in the centre of the Town, Brenda then went shopping, first for some cosmetics and then a nice pair of sandals, meanwhile I called into my Barbers, Manuel, and had a dry razor cut, my goatee beard trimmed, a wash & shampoo, then a cut, trim & style, finally a full scalp & face massage, the ‘ Full-Works ‘!  I feel like a new man!!

We then met up and I spotted a very nice new shirt, that Brenda had picked out earlier, a light blue ‘Tommy Hilfiger’ in my favourite shop, I then found a new Black Leather Wallet, which I’ve needed for a while.

It was then time to shoot back to sunny Manilva, this afternoon we are going across to Marbella to the ‘ Costa Del Sol Hospital’ for my very quick appointment at the ‘ Dermatology Department’ for a review/check up, watch this space.

This morning after a breezy night, as the wind rattled all the shutters/blinds, the ‘ Poinente’ breeze blowing down from the mountains behind the village had stiffened, the sun broke through and the clouds cleared, the sky is blue and it’s warm & sunny, by lunchtime it’s due to reach 26 degs+ - making it very pleasant to be out & about! Over the next few days and into the weekend it’s staying the same, with a few patchy clouds, as the breeze drops a little, hovering in the mid 20’s, overnight still only dropping to 20/21 degs, next week is now looking very similar, just right for the time of the year, watch this space.

On the way back this evening we will call in somewhere to have  a light supper, yesterday evening we watched the second episode of “ A Confession “ as the team closed in on a potential suspect, a true story about the investigation of the murder/missing person, the problem is that the main Detective, played by Martin Freeman, breaks the ‘Pace’ rules in gaining a confession, this evening it’s also the second episode of “ The Capture “ – a excellent police thriller/drama, about fake news, the capabilities of the intelligence services and video surveillance cameras being ‘ Doctored’ ?!

Sadly ' Bar Castillo' is now closed for three weeks, see below! 

“ Countdown 21 Days “

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A VERY ' CLAMMY' WARM & SUNNY MANILAV ON WEDNESDAY.

WEDNESDAY 4^th/ SEPTEMBER 2019.

We managed a little lie in this morning, the village is still very quiet as it’s too hot for anybody to be out & about, the children have not gone back to school yet, but are out later in the evening to play, after freshening up we had our usual light breakfast of ‘Weetabix’ for me and Brown toast for Brenda, with sliced fresh fruit ( Nectarines) – with mugs of tea.

While we were getting ready I was, as usual, listening to the ‘ Andrew Charles Breakfast Show’ on “ Castle Radio FM 89.2 & Online on the WWW” as the Music Quiz came on, it was a eight second opening track, I got it straight away, it was “ Supertramp “ with ‘ Dreamer ‘ from 1974! I’m in this week’s draw, on Friday, again!

After breakfast I shot down to the main ‘ Medical Centre’ in Sabinillas to make an appointment to see the Practise Nurse, I got one straight away, but I needed to see our Doctor, Natalia, for more Insulin, the queue at the reception desk was too long, so I will call in on Friday morning, when I’m out on my travels for the weekly shopping!

While I was out ‘ Scoobie’ was dropped off for his short five day break, ‘Chispa’ has already been in to see him, next week little ‘ Miss Bella’ is back with us on Monday/Tuesday, as usual, then next Friday for a three-night sleep over, with us in ‘ Doggy World Heaven’

Overnight we had another very close & sticky night, this morning the sun was out very early and the sky is clear and blue, with just a very slight breeze, so by lunchtime it’s due to reach 28 degs+ - then for the rest of the week, and over the weekend, as the breeze stiffens, it’s going a little cooler each day, still hovering in the high 20s, with patchy clouds at times, overnight still only down to 20/21 degs, next week is now looking similar, but going a little warmer at times, watch this space.

See below the “ Royal Iris “ the morning on the River Mersey on it’s way to Seacombe, from the Pier Head, ‘ A Ferry Across the Mersey ‘!

This evening we are going out, down to Sabinillas, to meet Daniela at one of her sales meetings, for ‘Health Products’ at the ‘Belle Vista Camping Park’ on the road along the coast, to pay her & Lee for setting up the payment to renew the ‘IPTV’ system!( on their PayPal!)

So we are then go to carry on down to ‘ Castillo de Duquesa’ for supper at ‘La Taberna 2 ‘ – with ‘ Scoobie’ with us, we will then find a nice table, sat outside in the early evening sunshine, Watch this space.

“ Countdown 26 Days “

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A VERY ' CRISP' & SUNNY MARBELLA AND MANILVA ON TUESDAY.

TUESDAY 27^th/NOVEMBER 2018.

We were both up very early this morning and after a quick freshen up we shot down to Sabinillas as the sun was coming up above a sparkling Mediterranean, to go to the main ‘ Medical Centre’ for Brenda’s Blood tests etc, at the same time I made an appointment for my monthly ‘V12’injection tomorrow morning, with the Practice Nurse’- I also booked Brenda in for her review/check up with our Doctor, Natalia, for next Wednesday morning.

I then called into the local Garage to top up the car with petrol, we then had toast & tea in ‘itZabar’ before the ‘English Bookshop’ opened, as Brenda needed a few more ‘ Christmas Cards’ – we are now back at the house and will set off a little later across to the ‘ Costa Del Sol Hospital’ for my appointment at the ‘ Rehabilitation Department’ for a review of my left-hand problem, on the way back we are calling into Estepona for some ‘Xmas’ essentials ( Candles & Night-lights) etc.- where we also bought a new small mat/rug for the space between the table & settee.

As usual as we drove across to the Hospital it gets a little warmer, it’s one of the most beautiful days, at this time of the year, crisp & sunny with a clear blue sky, no clouds and the ‘Mediterranean’ still and sparkling, by lunchtime it’s due to reach 18/19 degs+ - the rest of the week and over the weekend is staying the same, getting a little warmer, with just a threat of the ‘wet-stuff’ still in the air, next week is now looking even better, settled with warm sunshine hovering in the low 20s, watch this space.

We checked into the Hospital at the main reception desk and chased up Brenda’s appointment with the ‘ Heart Consultant’ – we are still waiting for the phone call! After a long wait in the ‘Trauma/Rehab Department’ we were taken into the lower part of the Hospital, through the long subterranean corridors, to see the ‘ Traumatologia Consultant’ – who after checking all my details/X-Rays etc and pressing my left-hand, she confirmed that I have ‘ Arthritis ‘ and must exercise my hand all the time, she is also referring me to the ‘ Estepona Hospital ‘ form some Remedial Therapy, watch this space.

For our supper this evening we are having ‘ Posh Chicken & Chips’ – Chicken Escalope’s pan-seared in a ‘Lemon & Balsamic Vinegar’ Butter salsa, with whole ‘ French’ Green Beans and of course twice-cooked ‘Chips’ Tomorrow evening it’s going to more ‘Chicken’ as we are having the rest of last week’s ‘ Chicken & Mushroom Curry ‘ with Basmati Rice.

On Thursday, as it’s our ‘47^th Wedding Anniversary’ so we now planning to go out for supper, down to the ‘Puerto de la Duquesa Marina’ to the “ Kinnaree Thai Resturante “

This evening we will be back to channel hopping on the ‘ Spanish TV’ system as the ‘IPTV’ system after maintenance, has not come back on, Iv’e tried all the usual re-sets, with no luck, so we are going to have to wait until Saturday, as both Lee & Daniela are away on extended Business/Holiday’s over in the UK! Watch this space.

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A VERT HOT & SUNNY MANILVA ON SUNDAY.

SUNDAY 13^th/ MAY 2018.

We had a nice lie in this morning before having a very quiet time, slowly getting ready to go out for lunch, for our breakfast, to set us up for the day we had ‘ Toasted English Pork Sausage Butties’ – open on Brown, as usual for Brenda, smothered in ‘ HP ‘ Sauce, with mugs of strong tea.

We then made our way down to the ‘Council’ underground car-park and collected the car to go across to outside Puerto Banus to meet up with Joyce ‘Baby’ at 1-30 pm on the roundabout by the ‘La Sala Restaurant’  -as she was coming down from Alhaurin el Grande in her friends borrowed car.

By lunchtime it was already very hot & sunny, the sky was bright blue and there was just a very light breeze, perfect for the time of the year, by this afternoon it was into the mid 20s, the hottest day of the year, so far, next week is looking warm & sunny, hovering on the 21/22 degs+ mark, except on Thursday when it’s forecast to be cloudy, cooler & wet?! The rest of the week and over next weekend is then back to normal, with sunshine and warmer weather, watch this space.

As we set off along the coast road past Estepona, the ‘Mediterranean’ was sparkling in the lunchtime sunshine, we waited for 15 minutes before calling Joyce on Brenda’s mobile, mine was not working, she is normally not late, she had left a message/call on my mobile, at around 1-00 pm, to say that she had broken down, up in the hills behind Marbella and was waiting for her friends to come and help her!!  So sadly she could not make our ‘ Sunday Roast Lunch’ to have a good chat and catch up, we are ringing her later to see if we can meet up again before she goes back to Chester, watch this space.

We then came back along the coast road to a very warm & sunny ‘Castillo de la Duquesa’ to ‘La Taberan 2 ‘ where Carlos greeted us warmly and brought our cool drinks along as we selected from the menu, Brenda had the ‘ Cod Fishcake’ to start and I had the ‘ Salmon Surprise ‘ salad, Brenda ordered the ‘Roast Lamb’ and I had the ‘Roast Beef’ with a selection of vegetables, as you can see below;

For dessert I had the Homemade ( lady owners)  “ Bakewell Tart “ – a Shortcrust pastry shell between layers of Raspberry Jam, Frangipane and a topping of Flaked Almond, served with Whipped Cream, Fresh Rasperries & Vanilla Ice Cream – it’s delicious, very tempting, so much so that I started to eat it before I took a picture, sorry!

We then headed back up to the hills for our first ‘ Siesta ‘ of this year, this evening we are channel hopping to find something to watch.

Over the past day or so we have been in touch with the families over in Australia & Canada’ on Facebook etc, as it’s their ‘Mother’s Day ‘ today, it was the ‘Spanish’ one last Sunday and the ‘English’ one earlier in March! So to all the ‘ Mother’s’ –  wherever you are - “ Happy Mother’s Day “ !! 

NB; Tomorrow’s ‘Blog’ will also be posted later as we are out in the morning, going across to ‘Fuengirola’ to meet up with our friend Julie and her family, watch this space.

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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A WARM AND SUNNY ESTEPONA & MANILVA ON THURSDAY.

THURSDAY 19^th/ APRIL 2018.

We were up early this morning and after freshening up we set off on our travels, along the coast road, past a sparkling Mediterranean to Estepona, after parking in the underground car-park we had our breakfast of Tostada & Tea/Coffee in the main Bar in the centre of the Town, I then had the ‘ Full-Works’ ( overdue!) in my Barber’s, Manuel, styles & cuts, trims, then washes & shampoos, at the same time giving you a scalp & neck massage, then he cuts, before a dry razor-cut, I feel like a new man!



Some pictures of Estepona;

Brenda meanwhile popped along to the main cosmetics shop for her essentials oils & creams etc, we then met-up and I found a very nice shirt, on the reduced rail, in one of our favourite shops, next we went along to the Hypermarket ‘ Carrefour’ were we bought a rather special bottle of Pink Champagne - ‘Taittinger Rose Brut Reserve ‘- for the visit of some old friends in June.

Finally we stopped at ‘ La Casa’ and found a nice selection of white cooking dishes, reduced, as well as the tea-lights that we needed, before heading back along the coast and up to a very sunny Manilva.

The sun was out early this morning and with a little breeze, the clouds cleared and the sky was bright blue by the time we reached Estepona, it’s the perfect time of the year, hovering on the 19/20 degs+ mark, all the flowers are out in the town( see above) - no holiday makers, making it very pleasant, the rest of the week and over the weekend are still keeping dry, but a little cooler & cloudy, next week the sun returns,  going a little warmer, again, but the threat of the ‘ April Showers’ is still hanging around, watch this space.

This evening for our supper we are having ‘ Grilled Chicken Wings’  served with finally sliced French Green Beans and a Baked Potato, on Friday it’s going to ‘Posh Fish’n Chips’ with Mushy Peas, Saturday is ‘ Steak Night ‘ and on Sunday we will be roasting, still TBC, watch this space.

Later, after supper, we will channel-hop and find something to watch.

Thoughts for the Day;  See above.

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