Relocate to Spain

Picking up the threads.........

2011-12-16T02:29:00.000Z

One of the comments made quite often to me in the days running up to our move to Spain was that, with technology, keeping in touch with friends and family has never been easier. And in a way, this is true. The internet is a great way to share photos and experiences, to chat to people and do it in a very inexpensive way. Even when we lived in areas where the internet was difficult to access from

It's taken 18 months but finally.......

2011-12-14T22:27:00.000Z

It is well accepted in the UK that there is a shortage of places with NHS dentists. By moving abroad we were no longer registered with our old dentist and phoning around various surgeries on our return resulted in a complete lack of any NHS places being available. And so, for 18 months, any treatment we've had has been paid for on a private basis. Not cheap but necessary. On my last visit to

Organising the move back.

2011-12-11T16:51:00.000Z

The main issue when organising the move back was to find someone to bring all our furniture and possessions back. The internet was a necessity for doing this as it saved us a fortune in phone calls. We decided we wanted a UK company to move us back and needed someone with the facility to store our furniture if there was any delay in getting the keys to whichever house we were moving in to.

Settling back in the UK

2011-12-04T21:30:00.001Z

Along side work was the need to find somewhere to live. While we had money tied up in Spain we would need to find somewhere to rent. Having worked in the Estate Agency business for over 20 years I have seen the trends where numbers of properties to rent increases as the sale market reduces. This was good news for us looking for a nice house in a nice area for a long term rental. There were 2

Turning agency work into a permanent job.

2011-12-04T01:23:00.000Z

Monday morning dawned and a review of work showed that while I had done my work for the audit, my colleague hadn't and there was still 2 weeks work to do. Needless to say my 2 weeks trainging evaporated and eventually was condensed into 1 day. Somehow I managed to fathom enough from my notes to work out what to do and how, and week 1 went reasonable to plan, week 2 was better. I was then due to

Monday Morning Nerves

2011-11-18T08:29:00.000Z

There is no doubt that having the thought process of 'It's only a temporary assignment, it's only for 3 weeks' helped a lot with first day nerves. I hadn't been the new girl since 1986 and it was amazing how nervous I felt driving into the carpark on that Monday morning. Everything was new to me, the people, the environment,the industry, the software I would be working with even that they did

Interview Day.

2011-11-16T05:08:00.000Z

The day dawned and I donned my interview suit. I couldn't believe how nervous I was, after all I used to interview for staff in my last job, but I was going to be on the other side of the desk this time. I had done my research on the company, had a copy of my cv and job spec and off I went. I had taken a drive out the night before to find where I was going so I knew I wouldn't have any last

Job searching on the internet

2011-11-14T05:08:00.001Z

Another coffee at my side, I switched on the laptop and waited for Google to load. I typed in 'job vacancies' and was rewarded with 52.9 million results in 0.14 seconds. There at the top of page 1 were Totaljobs, Monster and Fish4jobs. They seemed a reasonable place to start so I set about filling in the search criteria. It soon became apparent that most vacancies are replicated on all the sites

Over 50 and looking for work.

2011-11-13T06:23:00.000Z

I remember the morning I decided to start looking for work again and it was scary. There was a number of issues constantly running around my head that just wouldn't go away. 1. I hadn't worked for 3 years and I'd always felt it was easier to get a new job if you were already in a job - with so many more people in the job market and the recession having reduced the number of vacancies

1 Year On

2011-11-12T05:29:00.001Z

We've had a week of grey skies and drizzle, a common occurence following Bonfire Night here in the UK, and the temperatures have definitely dropped a few degrees. And so, as we head into another winter with a variety of predictions as to how severe the snow will be, how long it will be until the sun appears again, I thought I'd reflect a little . We've now been back in the UK for almost 18

Please come and join me at my new Blog.

2010-11-03T13:09:00.000Z

http://acoffeeandachat.blogspot.com/ If you have enjoyed catching up with me on here, please bookmark my new blog where you can keep up to date with my world. If you bookmarked from my earlier link, please use this one - I missed a couple of letters out of the earlier one - Oooops!

Time for an end!

2010-11-02T21:54:00.003Z

Throughout life things come to a natural end, friendships, relationships, events, hobbies........there are a whole list of things that reach a natural conclusion. Remember the days at Primary School when you made a new friend. They became your best friend, you were going to be best friends forever. And within a month you hardly spoke anymore and had moved on to your next best friend.

A frosty start.

2010-10-24T17:16:00.002+01:00

Today started early. 6am, to be precise when Brinkley woke me to let him outside. Normally, I go out into the garden with him to make sure there's nothing that would start him barking and wake any of the neighbours who may be trying for a Sunday lie-in, or that no-one has tampered with the side gate that would leave Brinkley with a route for escape. Normally, I don't feel the chill in my warm,

How to make 3 weeks last 5 months.

2010-10-13T04:48:00.002+01:00

Back on the 9th August I started my 1st temping assignment after a break from work of over 2½ years. It was a 3 week assignment which went really well. So well, they asked me back to do a further assignment.Then they asked me back again.Now they have asked me to work through until Christmas.It's an ideal placement. It's less than 5 minutes from home, I don't have any traffic to contend with, I

Walking in the tracks of Robin Hood

2010-10-10T16:02:00.004+01:00

We are only 10 minutes away from Sherwood Forest, the legendary hideout of Robin Hood, and today we decided to take the dogs there for their weekend walk.These days a lot of places insist in dogs being on their leads but at Sherwood Forest they can still run free, away from the Visitor Centre.I remember visiting the Major Oak as a child on school day trips, in the days before the tree was fenced

Nature always amazes me.

2010-10-08T09:53:00.004+01:00

I saw some fabulous Canadian Fall (autumn, to you and me) photos on a blog I follow yesterday, where the autumnal colours are really vibrant and I realised that, although we are in October, our trees and hedgerows are still green and only just showing signs of turning. http://journeyandadventure.blogspot.com/2010/10/october.htmlLast year in Spain, I remember commenting on how the trees there

Why can't dogs tell the time?

2010-10-07T02:40:00.002+01:00

And no, it's not the start of a joke, although it should be, it's a serious question.I suppose it should read - Why can't dogs tell the time - discuss!Just recently, Brandy has started to wake me at 2am, he goes out for a wee, has a drink and then wants to play. He's wide awake and bright as a button. At 2am!His brother stays firmly asleep, he loves his bed but Brandy seems to have developed a

Wet weather ruins planned tv day.

2010-10-01T13:37:00.003+01:00

Today I should be sat infront of the TV fixed with the tension that is 'The Ryder Cup'. I was so pleased to only be working 3 days a week as it meant Friday's were free and I could see the opening day for once.And so, at 7.30am we switched on the TV to start to absorb some of the atmosphere. In Worksop it was a dry day but in Wales it had been raining for some time and the players were all decked

My Kindle has arrived.

2010-09-27T21:24:00.002+01:00

I like gadgets. I like reading.I recently had a newsletter from the author of 'Chickens, Mules and Two Old Fools' which included a note to say that 'Chickens' was now available on Kindle.I'd never heard of Kindle so, needless to say, I was straight on to Google. About the same time, there suddenly appeared adverts on the tv for the same gadget. A gadget that is lighter than a paperback, that can

This is home

2010-09-23T06:05:00.007+01:00

I can't see that I have ever posted photos of our new home, despite LL asking me to, so apologies LL, here are a few especially for you:And so, we start with the lounge - as you can see, the dogs don't do tidy.This is my study:I love the dining area:And the kitchen And this is a great place to relax in, a great place for conversation away from the TV.The guest room has a bit of a colour clash -

Fun and Games

2010-09-22T06:04:00.003+01:00

The company I have been temping at had asked me back to do some holiday cover. It's a completely new accounting system to me, I am well versed in Sage, this is Coda. I'd never even heard of Coda before I started here. I've spent 20 years working in the property sector, this company is in logisitics - lorries and stuff.And so it was decided I would have 2 weeks training before covering the work

Pipped at the post? or stolen from under my nose?

2010-09-19T13:05:00.004+01:00

You decide! I have been applying for a number of jobs and most of them are through agencies, which can be an added difficulty in itself. If you don't gel with the staff at the agency they aren't going to put you forward for any jobs.I have a couple of agencies that are working well with me and, through one of them, I had an interview for a fulltime role. There were 5 candidates and we had all

When was your last pyjama day?

2010-09-13T03:53:00.005+01:00

It's not something I do very often but sometimes you just need a pyjama day.Mine turned out to be on Saturday.Neil was up and out for golf at some ridiculously early hour and once he's gone I went back to bed, finally emerging to start my day at a much more sensible hour.I decided I would do my bits and bobs around the house before having a shower and so rather than dressing, I simply donned a

To-do list update

2010-09-08T21:27:00.003+01:00

Earlier than expected, I have an update on my to-do list as any more progress on it this week has come to an abrupt halt.I had a good couple of days and have completed items 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5.I was making good progress........and then today I received a phone call............from the company I had been working at for the last few weeks............'Is it possible you could work tomorrow and Friday

A week to catch up on all those little jobs.

2010-09-06T10:28:00.003+01:00

I find myself with a week of being unemployed and have just been making my 'to do' list for the week.1. Cleaning2. Laundry3. Grocery shopping4. Recycling5. Clothes shopping for work6. Sort bookcase7. Register with Doctor8. Find hairdresserAnd if all this is done by Thursday9. Play golf.First priority is to get the housework done to keep the rest of the week free for me, and so I am about to start

I'll show you what I've bought.......but don't tell Neil!

2010-09-02T15:00:00.004+01:00

Tomorrow is our 5th Wedding Anniversary - our Wooden Anniversary. We already have a wooden loving spoon which would have been a perfect present and so I have been on a mission at our local shopping centre. I wanted something a little quirky but useful. And I think I've found it.It was handcarved in India by people who are part of a scheme to get people off the streets. The chap did tell me more

Sleeping in Swimming Goggles.

2010-08-30T12:35:00.003+01:00

As well as the Jag, there was one other item on Neil's wish list for moving back to the UK. He had always talked about having laser surgery on his eyes but while he was working, he had never got round to having it done. He wore contacts lenses and had glasses which used to cost about £350 each time he changed them. Just before moving to Spain we both got new glasses with reactalite lenses and

For Dianne

2010-08-28T23:05:00.001+01:00

Hi Dianne,You kindly left a comment for me on my post 'A quick 9 holes'. Could you please drop me a quick e-mail to the address on my profile as I would like to e-mail you with more information.Thanks

Work Update.

2010-08-28T22:58:00.002+01:00

I completed my assignment yesterday. I did a 3rd week at the same firm but apart from going in on Tuesday to go through all the figures I am back to being unemployed until the agency can find me another assignment.One thing I have become very aware of is that my Excel skills while competent, are not at the level that a lot of the companies are wanting, and it is stopping me from taking some

Visiting the local farm shop.

2010-08-28T22:30:00.002+01:00

One of the things I used to love in Spain was my weekly wander around the local street market. The fresh produce always looked so fresh and tasty and somehow our shops just don't get the same effect with the prepacked produce. Whether it is the produce, the volume of stalls, the obligatory Namibian Pan Pipe group or the atmosphere or a combination of all I'm not sure but wandering around the

I have a Bank Holiday to look forward to.

2010-08-24T22:43:00.002+01:00

One thing that did seem odd when we weren't working was that Bank Holidays and Weekends meant less. Most of the time we didn't even realise it was a holiday day unless we called at the shops and found them closed. Now that I am working again I can look forward to my weekends. And this week I have the joy of a 3 day weekend to look forward to, as Monday is a Bank Holiday. For this week at least, I

3 hours with a 3 year old.

2010-08-24T22:06:00.003+01:00

One of the joys of being back in the UK is that we can get to know our granddaughter. She is 3 and a half now and although she has only seen us a few times she is starting to be quite settled when she visits us. Today she was looking forward to coming through to see the pups.Unfortunately, the feeling is not reciprocated by the pups.The pups are terrified of her and cling to either Neil or I the

A quick 9 holes.

2010-08-22T13:34:00.003+01:00

Today is warm and sunny and a perfect day for golf, and so I am having a couple of hours with my husband playing 9 holes at his new golf club. This is only the 2nd time I've played golf this year and I am really looking forward to it.I've just got back from walking the dogs along the canal to live rock music. There is Dub Odyssey 2010 going on, which is some sort of festival at the Rugby Club and

Job Hunting

2010-08-19T20:14:00.003+01:00

One of my main goals on returning to the Uk was to start working again.I have been an Accountant all my life and I love it. So, I have been bugging agencies on every vacancy I think I can do, knowing it will not be easy to get a job. After all, I have been out of the job scene for over 2 years, I am the wrong side of 50 (and no, I don't include my age on my CV but anyone with half a brain can

How much more furniture won't fit?

2010-08-18T22:53:00.002+01:00

We always expected to store the hot tub in the garage until we decided if we wanted it putting in the back garden, as wewill need a crane to lift it over the house! Not a simple process.We then had to put 3 wardrobes in there as they wouldn't go through an arch in the hallway and turn 90 degrees to get up the stairs!The 3 seater sofa was already in pieces to get it out of the last house, so that

Moving In.

2010-08-17T21:33:00.004+01:00

We were so busy sorting out the cars that we were almost too late for our appointment to get the keys for the house. When we arrived, 15 minutes late, having telephoned the office to ask them to let the guy know we were on our way, we were met by a very unhappy chap. He was busy checking the house, making notes of it's condition, taking photos of areas that were a problem, so it's not as if he'd

And here they are.

2010-08-17T19:28:00.002+01:00

His And hers

More car shopping

2010-08-15T20:57:00.003+01:00

Having sorted Neil's car we now needed to sort one for me. I have much lower ambitions as far as cars are concerned as I do not like driving big cars. All I wanted was a little hatchback that was good for getting the dogs about, getting the shopping in and reliable.On my trips back to the UK over the last couple of years I have had a variety of hire cars and the one I had particularly enjoyed

Crepes for tea!

2010-08-13T21:31:00.006+01:00

Neil loves to cook new dishes and he knows one of my favourites is a stack of American Pancakes with fresh fruit and cream. A few years ago we visited Calgary in winter (and it was nothing to do with skiing - but that's a whole different story) and stayed in a guest house near town. The Lady of the house was away for the weekend and had left us in the very capable hands of her parents. They were

Car shopping

2010-08-11T21:36:00.002+01:00

We phoned up about the first 2 cars on the list before driving out to see them only to find the first one had been sold and the 2nd one had very high milage. A little down hearted I logged onto the internet one last time before leaving the hotel for the day, just to see if there were any new listings.And there was. Half an hours drive away was a car that ticked all the boxes PLUS, it was red!It

New Girl.

2010-08-09T21:37:00.003+01:00

A bit of a leap forward - just a few weeks, to this morning. I went to work this morning. The first time in over 2 and a half years.I was the new girl, I didn't know where anything was, I didn't who anyone was and I didn't know what I was supposed to be doing.It was quite amusing. One of the reasons I wanted to move back to the UK was to go back to work. Although I had needed a break, I wasn't

Last leg of the journey.

2010-08-07T04:30:00.004+01:00

It was nice getting up knowing that we had a shorter day of driving. In total it would take us just over 3 hours to do our final leg of the trip but we were having a short stop to meet up with my brother first.As we headed for the M25 to start our journey North I offered to drive the last couple of hours so that Neil could relax and listen to the World Cup match between England and Germany. We

Getting connected!

2010-08-06T12:47:00.002+01:00

When we moved to Spain we knew that, technically, we were not supposed to have Sky TV but, there were ways to receive the Sky channels providing you can keep a UK address. Most people use an address for a family member or a friend, and we were no different. We couldn't get all the channels we could in the UK but we got enough to give us the variety we needed. Not long after we arrived in Spain

Photos for Linda Lou

2010-08-06T09:48:00.004+01:00

The Eurotunnel train is effectively a train engine pulling a very long container full of vehicles. I have lifted the following photos from other websites to show you the outside and inside. I cannot take any credit for these photos but they will show you what the eurotunnel train is like. Photos from:http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/private/passenger/Eurotunnel/pix.html

Finally, back in England

2010-08-04T22:31:00.002+01:00

For those of you outside the immediate area of the channel tunnel, I should explain.The channel tunnel is exactly what it says a tunnel under the English Channel connecting Folkestone, England to Calais, France. It takes about 35 minutes to cross under the Channel this way and we had never used the tunnel before so I

Cats, paperwork and delays!

2010-08-03T11:24:00.002+01:00

Q. What happens now? A. Get a later train! And that's all there is to it. What us newbie Channel Tunnel users didn't know is that your booking is valid for anything from 2 hours ahead of time to 2 hours after the time booked. So if you miss a train, you get a later one and if you are early, you can get an earlier train.

Euro Tunnel, here we come.

2010-08-02T22:28:00.003+01:00

The scenery in northern France is not as extreme as that in the south, or it didn't seem so to us, but that could be because of the speed at which it was passing by!!!!Without any stops and with, thankfully, clear roads we approached the channel tunnel terminal just as the clock clicked onto to 10pm. We had 20 minutes to our ticket time. We had to get the dogs scanned and checked in at the Pet

The length of France in a Day!

2010-08-01T23:21:00.005+01:00

We calculated that to reach Calais for our Channel tunnel train at 10.20pm Saturday we would need to leave our hotel no later than 8am. Our route planner said it was 13 hours and 13 mins and we had, of course, to factor in stops every 3 hours for the pups and allow time incase we encountered traffic, especially the closer we got to Paris.I had asked about breakfast when we had finally checked in

Starting the drive north.

2010-08-01T11:26:00.003+01:00

One thing I needed to make sure on this trip was that when we arrived in Sheffield, Neil was not without his golf clubs. When we moved out to Spain, our furniture was delayed by 3 weeks and the golf clubs were with the furniture. Neil was not a happy man.Using a groupage removal means there can be delays on when your furniture arrives. We had been quoted anything between 5 and 14 days, although

Back to the Story

2010-07-30T10:43:00.004+01:00

So, there we both were awaiting the arrival of the removal van, knowing that as well as moving the contents of our home we also had the 2m square hot tub to move. Having moved it once before we knew what we were dealing with and we had re-affirmed it at least 3 times to the removal company so we were hopeful that the guys were prepared for some hard work. With us being a groupage move we didn't

A quick view of our new dog walks.

2010-07-29T10:27:00.005+01:00

This is home This is the viewA couple of hundreds yards up the road, past the Rugby club we cross over a little riverAnd onto the canal banks. And even though there is a road running along part of the canal, it's on the other side and totally safe for the pups to meander along off their leads. My favourite tree on the walk is this amazing weeping Willow, how gorgeous is this tree?As we get

Planning the return.

2010-07-27T12:41:00.003+01:00

I arrived back 2 days before my birthday to a greatly relieved Neil, on 2 counts. Firstly, he had been struggling with a very bad back after tweaking it severely doing something very ordinary. He bent down to pick the dog's dishes up and couldn't straighten up again. This had happened before the weekend but, as it was a holiday weekend in the UK, flights to Spain were incredibly expensive, and so

Viewings 2, 3 and 4

2010-07-24T13:17:00.006+01:00

After a lovely few hours at the Butterfly house where we watched a display of Birds of prey including a Kookaburra, which although not a bird of prey as such, it's an Australian kingfisher, it was such a cute little bird and actually eats mice and lizards rather than fish, I left my friends and headed off to view a quirky cottage in the country.Having spent several months living in the middle of

Starting the process of moving back to Sheffield

2010-07-23T10:18:00.001+01:00

The hardest part about any move is finding somewhere to live. When we decided to move abroad we did what most people do and went on viewing trips organised by an overseas agent.I’m not sure that this facility is available for people moving to the UK. I suppose it’s because we knew the area we wanted to be in and could use

Can you relocate back to where you relocated from?

2010-07-18T04:20:00.000+01:00

This was a question my brother asked me a few weeks ago when I told him we had moved back to the UK.Ok. While you absorb that sentence I’ll check the dictionary definition of ‘relocate’.Relocate – to establish oneself in a new place.Ok, so on that basis – no, you can’t relocate back as it’s not a ‘new’ place.So, instead we will just have to say that we have returned.Having got their head around

Anything from the back of a van?

2010-06-19T21:38:00.002+01:00

So, there we were, just all sat, sitting quietly watching a program we taped last night (on Tiger Woods) when suddenly a van pulled up outside. Now we don't get uninvited visitors, no-one knows we are here and normally we have to give extremely detailed directions for anyone who is genuinely trying to find us, so to suddenly find a van outside on a Saturday afternoon is quite unsettling.Neil went

Finally, the sun is back!

2010-06-16T14:14:00.003+01:00

After several days of torrential rain, thunder, lightening and cold evenings we finally have the sun back. Everyone is hoping that summer has finally arrived.Over the next few weeks many of the local villages will be having their annual fiestas and these are much better when held in the warmth of the sun. Eating Paella and drinking beer is not so much fun when done under a large, dripping

Tonight, of ALL nights!

2010-06-12T19:03:00.002+01:00

We've had lovely, long, hot, sunny days, for ages and ages now. We've had stable internet and phone links via satellite and I cannot remember when we last lost TV signal due to bad weather.SO WHY TONIGHT? WHY NOW?England are due to start their World Cup Campaign in less than half an hour and the heavens have opened. It's been pouring down for over an hour and shows no sign of stopping. As yet, we

Summer has landed!

2010-06-08T04:43:00.002+01:00

I was only in the UK for 10 days but the change from Spring to Spanish Summer has taken place while I was away. So, we are back to the days of working before 10am and after 6pm, back to the days where the dogs don't want to walk more than 50 metres without a drink and no more than 100m before turning back. All the greenery of the fields is rapidly baking brown, the flowers and grasses withering

A quick trip to Sheffield

2010-05-22T14:19:00.001+01:00

I have a quick trip back to Sheffield this week, so nothing to post for a week or so, but please add me to your 'Follow' list or subscribe to the RSS Feed at the bottom of the page so you won't miss any of my new posts once I'm back in Spain.

How is nature doing?

2010-05-10T13:06:00.010+01:00

The red sheen across the hills has gone, now the best of the poppies have died and it has been replaced by a hue of lilac with these lovely flowers.The bellota's (mountain oaks) have finally got their catkin's on before the acorns start to grow and surprisingly, we have a fabulous crop of scottish thistles.The almonds are growing nicely and it looks like our crop may not be as bad as we were

How many holes left to dig?

2010-05-10T12:09:00.008+01:00

Having finished the fencing round the paddock.... (not bad for amateurs!).... this weekend saw us start on the less steep hill down the track to the double gate. Of course, the slope is not an even slope and so we are having to dig some holes 2 feet deep and are having to build others up because the ground is already too low.We decided we would dig all the holes on Saturday ready for concreting

How to keep flies out of your house.....apparently!

2010-05-07T11:29:00.005+01:00

Living in the country, in the mountains and in a foreign country is all a learning experience for us. Having come from an English city existence, the Spanish wilderness is a constant wonderment.But we take it all in, trying to show as little surprise or shock as we can, car eating mice excepted.And so it should have been no major concern to me when I took big car in for a service earlier this

Unwanted visitors.

2010-05-04T18:44:00.003+01:00

A couple of nights ago, we had a fabulous clear sky and a million stars twinkling, so I was tempted to sit outside for a while and gaze. People keep telling me how many shooting stars we see up here due to the clarity of the skies because of the absence of any street lights, house lights and any other type of lights, but so far I haven't seen any. Maybe if I sat for a while I would see my

Duplicate post deleted.

2010-05-02T18:48:00.006+01:00

Quick update on the 'bang on the head'.

2010-05-02T18:48:00.004+01:00

Firstly, thank you to everyone who has shown such concern over my little misfortune with the lump hammer, I am pleased to report the lump hammer is fine and has been back at work today.As for my head, well, I do consider myself to have got off very lightly. After a couple of days rest I have been able to resume fencing duties. Apart from localised pain if I touch the top of my head, which I try

Jasper and the Rabbit.

2010-05-02T16:12:00.002+01:00

Jasper, Fred, Poppy, & Baloo live on the next hill. They are large and boisterous and wonderfully friendly, which is just as well, as this week we were looking after them while their owners were in the UK for a couple of days. Jasper and Fred are large Spaniels with a huge appetite for hunting out any mice and rabbits that may have crossed their territory. Jasper is slightly smaller than a lion,

Hard Hat Required.

2010-05-01T05:31:00.006+01:00

Any ex-pat living in Spain will tell you that the 'Health & Safety' measures in the UK are seriously missing here in Spain. The more rural you get, the further they get from any H&S manual.And so, H&S on a home building site is pretty much non-existent and it's easy to fall into the same mind set. We're doing fencing. We're not up ladders. We're not using sharp tools. We're just doing fencing.So

A trip to the cinema.

2010-04-29T21:34:00.003+01:00

There are only a few things I miss now we live in the wilds of Spain, but I have to admit, when I see some of the adverts for new films being released, I do get a twinge of sadness that I can not go to the cinema here and understand a film.Well, that has been remedied. We have joined a new film club that has started on the Rambla de Oria, which is about 45 minutes away from us. Last week we went

Satellite Panic.

2010-04-26T03:18:00.004+01:00

Very often Neil phone's me when he reaches the golf course before he starts to play so last Wednesday I thought it rather odd that I hadn't heard from him. I picked the phone up to dial him, and found out why - we had no phone! I did the usual unplugging and re-plugging that normally works if the signal has dropped but nothing. I checked the internet and that wouldn't connect either. The skies

One more room, done.

2010-04-22T16:14:00.002+01:00

It started as 4 white walls and a tiled floor.It became a storage room for all the flat pack furniture for the kitchen and the bedrooms for a few weeks until we had built it all. It became a storage room for all the golf gear and tool boxes for a few months until we had finished transforming the garage into a utility and store room.Finally it has become the room it was always intended to be. The

It’s official. We are now residents of Spain.

2010-04-22T15:44:00.002+01:00

The trip to Almeria went much smoother than I had anticipated. We arrived at the shopping centre to meet Charlotte who was going to be our interpreter for the day, and after a cup of coffee we headed for the bank to pay our €10 each for the paperwork to be receipted prior to going to the Office for Foreigners, ‘La Oficina de Extranjeros’ .We had been to the office once before when we were

Residencia

2010-04-18T20:59:00.000+01:00

A big day tomorrow, we finally are going for our appointment in Almería for our residencia. We will formally be residents of Spain and not just long term visitors.Technically we should have applied for this when we had been here for 6 months, but with such delays in getting addresses changed on things I wanted to wait until we had bought somewhere. Finally, we started the process 6 weeks ago by

A weekly update

2010-04-14T12:31:00.003+01:00

It always surprises me how quickly a week can pass when we don't actually seem to do much.The sun has gone for now and we are living in a perpetual cloud. Damp and grey and not nice to work outside so the fence is not progressing much. Last night we lost satellite reception for the phone and internet until sometime in the early hours this morning so, the feeling of isolation was total. The clouds

There are no flies on us!

2010-04-05T12:09:00.003+01:00

On the long list we made of things to do to the house when we first saw it, fly screens were a must. Neil will not tolerate flies in the house and gets very annoyed with them outside. In Terreros we also had problems with the Mossies twice a year, although we are led to understand it is less of a problem here. Although we

26 holes dug, still a lot to do!

2010-04-04T17:33:00.006+01:00

We haven’t been down to any more of the parades this weekend as we have been getting on with digging our holes and filling them in again, with cement. Unfortunately, after a day digging holes or lugging wheel barrows of cement down an incredibly steep slope we are too tired to get dressed for a night out.This week we have managed to get both gates cemented in place and to get all the corner posts

Semana Santa

2010-04-03T06:46:00.008+01:00

You would be forgiven for thinking this was yet another late Christmas post, but Santa in the case is not Santa Claus but is Spanish for Saint. This is Saint's week - Easter! Easter is an important time in Spain and there are many processions over the whole weekend. During the last couple of weeks we noticed lots of balconies had hung fabric banners out – many of them were purple but there were a

Photo Catch-up.

2010-04-03T06:33:00.003+01:00

Our recent trip to the UK was about family and friends and these are a few photos that I shall treasure.Normally, I am behind the camera so this is a rare photo of Neil & I together.We enjoyed a lovely meal with our dear friends, whose birthdays both fell on the weekend we visited.This is me with a very good friend who I first met at college in Nottingham when we both enrolled on the same course

Holiday over, back to work!

2010-03-30T03:39:00.002+01:00

I cannot believe we have been back from our trip to the UK for a week already. Since getting back Spring really seems to have arrived and we have had some lovely warm days although the nights are still quite chilly outside. The house, though, does seem to be taking the warmth from the day and hanging onto it as, for the last couple of nights we have not had to turn up the heating from its daily

Now to sort out the photos.

2010-03-26T09:01:00.002Z

The card reader on my laptop has stopped working and so I have to load them onto Neil's and dongle them across, so that is my task tonight, then I can share some photos of my trip home with you.

Out Thursday, back Monday and lots to do inbetween.

2010-03-26T08:59:00.000Z

Sunday morning saw us with bags packed and a couple of hours journey to London, but first we stopped off to see another of my brothers, I have three in total– 2 older and one younger. Most people think I only have one as normally they only hear me speak about my oldest brother, Andy.We had a good hour with Dawn & Stewart,

I feel like a boomerang!

2010-03-24T15:01:00.001Z

No sooner was I on a plane to England than I was on a plane back to Spain.It was meant to be a quick trip to see a few friends and family, and it was. We seemed to cram a lot into a short time and once we got back, we seem to have spent the same amount of time saying to each other, we never did this, we never did that…..!What we did do was get to spend time with the people we miss the most. Out

And the bags are packed.......

2010-03-17T20:45:00.002Z

Tomorrow, Neil & I are flying back the UK for a very quick visit. We have Friday & Saturday in Sheffield to see some family and friends and then on Sunday drive down south to see my other brother and a very close friend before flying back from Luton on Monday.It's still going to be too long to be away from the dogs although Lucy and her dog, Sophie, are coming through to stay at the house and

Police Spot Road Check!

2010-03-17T20:44:00.000Z

There are not many speed cameras in Spain, unlike in the UK, but there is a much higher number of police checks where they flag you down and check your documents and that your car is ok. So far, having been in Spain almost 2 years I have avoided being stopped when I have been driving. We have been stopped once when Neil was driving for a breath test, that was within a week or 2 of moving here and

When things break.

2010-03-15T14:35:00.001Z

We have been very fortunate that the majority of things we have bought while in Spain have not gone wrong but occasionally, it is necessary to return things or exchange things and this can be quite an effort.We did have to take the cement mixer back to have a new motor fitted after only 3 months, which was a fairly easy transaction although it did mean 2 trips to Almeria which was 4 hours

Where did the rest of the world go?

2010-03-11T21:30:00.002Z

We normally have wonderful views all the way down the valley across layer after layer of hills, covered with Mountain Oaks, Almond Trees and Pine Forests. But every now and then the weather closes in rapidly and we watch the distant hills vanish one after one.Every now and then, we lose all the hills and the world just seems to end 10m from our front door. Weird feeling!

Could this be another bad harvest year?

2010-03-10T17:05:00.002Z

One of the first things we were told when we moved to take over an almond farm was that last year's crop was poor. They were only paying €0.50 per kilo compared to the previous year of €1.50/kg. There was hope that this year would be better.The blossom is still in the trees although looking a little past it's best after a couple of frosty nights and a snowfall, but already there is talk that this

Our new gadget.

2010-03-08T18:39:00.003Z

Bad weather in Spain has consequences not normally experienced in the UK. It doesn't have to be extreme weather - just a heavy downpour, high winds or even heavy cloud which is low enough to cover us. As well as the direct effect of the weather, a lot of rain or a howling gal, the main indirect effect is thay we can lose our TV signal, and the bad weather doesn't even have to be over us, it can

Spring Blossoms.

2010-03-04T23:46:00.005Z

When we first decided to buy a house on an Almond farm we were told how beautiful it is in Spring when all the blossom is out. How the hills look like they are dotted with candyfloss. How people travel miles to come and drive through the area to admire the blossom.We arrived at the end of the season when the nuts were being harvested and the blossom was long gone.But it is back and it is so

The snows have gone, here comes the rain.

2010-03-03T14:14:00.003Z

The land had dried out nicely after all the snows and driving along the dirt tracks isn't a problem anymore, although the chance of keeping your car clean for longer than 2 seconds is remote.Yesterday was a friend's 50th birthday and he had arranged a birthday luncheon at Casa Joya, which is accessed down a dirt track which takes about 10 mins to drive, so is some distance. My only concerns about

El tanque es lleno finalmente!!!!!

2010-02-25T18:18:00.005Z

A recap.We decided to live in a house in the countryside 1,000 metres up a mountain. It gets cold in the winter, there is snow in the winter which is deep enough to stop us getting the car out for days at a time. We decided we would put gas central heating in running on propane from a tank as we are way too far away from any mains supply of gas. Natural piped gas is not common in this part of

The Winds of Change

2010-02-24T02:21:00.004Z

It's howling around the house tonight, gales of 45km an hour. It's been howling for several hours and is expected to continue for many more.It's great for drying the bedding although I make sure everything is double pegged or it will end up dry but halfway down the Rambla.As I walk round the corner of the house I am stopped in my tracks by the wind. The occasional lull allows me to continue. Even

A banquet.

2010-02-22T04:22:00.003Z

Having just spent 4 hours walking over the hills with her goats and sheep, I think Maria was probably looking forward to 5 minutes by the fire with a hot mug of coffee. Instead she was met by a house full of visitors and went straight into hostess mode. Soon, added to the bread & cheese, we had a plate full of sliced Chorizo sausage and another of Serano ham from the recent Metanza. More drinks

A home visit.

2010-02-21T14:11:00.004Z

For a couple of weeks our neighbour on the hill has been promising to make a cake to take to Maria & Bernardo, who have the goats & sheep and live on the farm at km 5.We've never been down to their farm so yesterday, cake made, we all set off for a visit. As we appraoched the yard we were met by 2 dogs and 3 rather large turkeys, 1 black & 2 white. There was no sign of either Maria or Bernardo so

All in a days shopping!

2010-02-16T11:23:00.005Z

Last Thursday was supermarket shopping day. My neighbour and I go down to Huercal Overa about once a fortnight and do all the supermarkets, Lidl, Mercadona and Inter Marche. We knew that snow was forecast so we decided it would be worth getting stocked up ready for being snowed in, and it was a wise choice.We decided to take Brian for a run and he seemed to enjoy the drive down the windy road.

2010-02-15T17:04:00.003Z

The snow arrived on Saturday as predicted and although we managed to get down to town in the morning to change over the gas bottles, it was way too bad to even think of trying it later on. We assume the Carnival was cancelled, although I've not heard anything official, as we haven't been able to leave the house.We did manage a lovely, long walk the dogs yesterday, although the struggled at times

As snug as a bug in a rug!

2010-02-12T23:38:00.006Z

It gets quite cool at night and we tend to leave the heating set to 16c overnight which is warm enough when you're sleeping. Often I wake up in the middle of the night and tend to get up and make a mug of hot chocolate and sit in the study browsing around the internet and taking my turn at online Scrabble. We have an internet system which has a 'Fair Usage' policy and some sites won't load on the

I hope we get bumped!

2010-02-12T00:31:00.003Z

Saturday should be a busy day.Saturday is market day. I love our street market. I love the bustling crowds, the colours and smells. I love rummaging through the stalls looking for things I didn't know I needed until I see them.I love the challenge of finding something I know I do need, at a good price.This Saturday is our Carnival Day. So much work and preparation has been done ready for the

Meerkats & Big Dog.

2010-02-11T02:43:00.007Z

I've always talked about our nearest neighbours being on the next hill, but that isn't strictly true.Our house is next door to a farm and they access the farm behind our house. Now, the couple who run the farm, which is an Almond farm, don't actually live there, they live about half an hour away, but they come over at weekends to do whatever is necessary to maintain their trees, and they have an

More snow on the way.

2010-02-10T05:56:00.002Z

Take a quick look at the weather box at the side, you will see snow is forecast for the weekend. At the moment, it's still far enough off for the forecast to change but it's predicted above 900m and we're at 1,000m so better get some shopping in before the weekend, just in case. We have been told that February is the worst month and we'd all hoped that snow we had a couple of weeks ago would be