Well, here I am in Spain. We had a fairly uneventful journey to get here. We both managed to get some sleep on the ferry, (Poole to Cherbourg), but it was disappointing to find it was raining when we disembarked. However the roads were empty and by nightfall we had made it just across the Spanish border. We spent the night at a motel near San Sebastian, and after a further day's driving we finally arrived at the flat we are renting, around 8.00pm on Wednesday 1st October.
Our flat has a big sun roof where we can sit and watch the sun rise out over the sea, if we get up early enough. We are just a few steps from the 'coast' which is rocky and very lovely, and if we want a beach for swimming etc, San Juan is five minutes away by car. Our unpacking is all done and we are beginning to feel at home here.
Chris, my hi-tech husband, has sorted out the Internet for me and set up Skype on the computer so I can keep in touch with the folks back home. And now I have this blog which will be a way for me to keep a record of our life out here, and share my news with anyone who wants to read it. I shall record such trivia as the weather (just to make you all jealous), and my impressions of the various places that we visit, so I can remind myself when I have seen so many that I get them all confused! But I will also be writing about how I spend my time, and I look forward to reading your comments.
So far we have spent time in San Juan, Garrucha, and Mojacar, all of which are beautiful. In Mojacar we were directed to a huge ferrateria or hardware store where we bought everything from kitchen utensils, to storage boxes, to computer cables, and various other bits and pieces that we found a need for. The flat is well supplied with most things, but as it is mostly let for short holiday breaks, the kitchen is somewhat lacking after my very gadget filled one at home. The main 'gadget' that is missing is the oven! but I am rethinking the way I cook things and have managed to come up with some fairly edible offerings so far.
Mike came out for his regular cigarette run this week end. He visited his usual haunts and pals along the coast, and then he came here and spent Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning with us. Monday we went to San Juan and enjoyed a swim in the sea. Unfortunately there is an area of standing water across the road from the beach which must be a breeding ground for mosquitoes, and we all got some nasty bites, (worse than any we got in Thailand). We had supper in Villaricos and then enjoyed a few drinks under the stars, up on our roof. The next day we went to Garrucha and swam again. It was very hot there, and I was glad I had added the sun-cream to my bag. After lunch Mike headed back to the airport and we went home.
The owners of our flat had left some magazines and maps for us, and in one of them I read an article about a craft shop in Vera, so today we went looking for it. It is quite well stocked and I am sure I will be making use of it. The owners also run monthly card-making and ATC workshops which I will attend, and hopefully I will meet some like-minded friends. It was a shop predominantly for the ex-pat community, so I hope I will find a way to make some Spanish friends as well.
After shopping we drove to a village called Bedar which I liked the sound of from various property sites I had read. It was a pretty group of white houses stretching up the side of the mountain, but some of the roads were so steep and narrow, and they made me very uncomfortable. I know I would never get used to them enough to live somewhere like that.
This afternoon I was sitting out on the veranda. sorting through my craft stash, and thinking about making some cards, when a few large rain drops drove me inside. This soon developed into a full blown thunder storm, but despite this, it is still really warm, up in the mid twenties. It is nearly bed-time and I am still plenty warm enough in my little sun-dress. After tea I tried using Skype to ring Jean and we had a good chat. I have had three months of just e-mailing everyone to keep in touch so it is really nice to be able to actually speak to them again. And until I get around to chatting to you, feel free to keep track of our time in Spain by reading my blog every now and then.
Chris, my hi-tech husband, has sorted out the Internet for me and set up Skype on the computer so I can keep in touch with the folks back home. And now I have this blog which will be a way for me to keep a record of our life out here, and share my news with anyone who wants to read it. I shall record such trivia as the weather (just to make you all jealous), and my impressions of the various places that we visit, so I can remind myself when I have seen so many that I get them all confused! But I will also be writing about how I spend my time, and I look forward to reading your comments.
So far we have spent time in San Juan, Garrucha, and Mojacar, all of which are beautiful. In Mojacar we were directed to a huge ferrateria or hardware store where we bought everything from kitchen utensils, to storage boxes, to computer cables, and various other bits and pieces that we found a need for. The flat is well supplied with most things, but as it is mostly let for short holiday breaks, the kitchen is somewhat lacking after my very gadget filled one at home. The main 'gadget' that is missing is the oven! but I am rethinking the way I cook things and have managed to come up with some fairly edible offerings so far.
Mike came out for his regular cigarette run this week end. He visited his usual haunts and pals along the coast, and then he came here and spent Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning with us. Monday we went to San Juan and enjoyed a swim in the sea. Unfortunately there is an area of standing water across the road from the beach which must be a breeding ground for mosquitoes, and we all got some nasty bites, (worse than any we got in Thailand). We had supper in Villaricos and then enjoyed a few drinks under the stars, up on our roof. The next day we went to Garrucha and swam again. It was very hot there, and I was glad I had added the sun-cream to my bag. After lunch Mike headed back to the airport and we went home.
The owners of our flat had left some magazines and maps for us, and in one of them I read an article about a craft shop in Vera, so today we went looking for it. It is quite well stocked and I am sure I will be making use of it. The owners also run monthly card-making and ATC workshops which I will attend, and hopefully I will meet some like-minded friends. It was a shop predominantly for the ex-pat community, so I hope I will find a way to make some Spanish friends as well.
After shopping we drove to a village called Bedar which I liked the sound of from various property sites I had read. It was a pretty group of white houses stretching up the side of the mountain, but some of the roads were so steep and narrow, and they made me very uncomfortable. I know I would never get used to them enough to live somewhere like that.
This afternoon I was sitting out on the veranda. sorting through my craft stash, and thinking about making some cards, when a few large rain drops drove me inside. This soon developed into a full blown thunder storm, but despite this, it is still really warm, up in the mid twenties. It is nearly bed-time and I am still plenty warm enough in my little sun-dress. After tea I tried using Skype to ring Jean and we had a good chat. I have had three months of just e-mailing everyone to keep in touch so it is really nice to be able to actually speak to them again. And until I get around to chatting to you, feel free to keep track of our time in Spain by reading my blog every now and then.
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