The snows have gone, here comes the rain.

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 going to Casa Joya is the condition of the track as there are some steep sections to it. Yesterday was a beautiful, sunny morning, if a bit cool, and since we hadn't had any rain for several days the track was going to be in good shape to drive.

The birthday lunch was a Greek menu and there were about 20 of us there to enjoy an absolutely fabulous meal. There was just so much food, so may different dishes to enjoy - it was really, really good. Just after we arrived it had started to rain and it continued the whole time we were there, but I hadn't realised just how heavy a downpour it was.

4 hours later we all began to leave and the amount of water that had fallen became very apparent. I had said I would drive home so Neil could have a drink, as I often do and so I ran across the carpark to the car. This was when I realised my first error - I had open-toe high-heeled shoes on. The carpark was now an inch thick with mud and by the time I got to the car my shoes were also an inch thick with mud, as were my toes!

As we set off there is a fairly steep climb out of the carpark. As I tried to get the car up and round the corner I felt the back end start to slip. Neil was coaching me how best to handle the car in the mud but I had only gone about 200 metres when it was obvious I was not going to be able to drive us out of the Rambla, I was too hesitant. When we bought the car we lived in Terreros by the coast. We had the chance of buying a 4x4 version of the car but we couldn't see any need so had bought the 2x4. We weren't to know that 2 years later we would be living in the mountains, using dirt tracks and Rambla tracks as roads and having to deal with snow, ice and everything else this winter has thrown at us. Oh, do wish we'd paid the extra for the 4x4. Still, we didn't so we have to make do.

Making do yesterday entailed stopping the car on a flat spot and swapping over so Neil could drive us back to the tarmac road. To say it was a bit hair-raising is an understatement. How all the cars managed to get out of the Rambla and onto the road is a mystery to me, I thought someone would get stuck.

Open-toed high heels is definitely NOT the correct footwear for the conditions but Neil very kindly cleaned them up for me when we got home. The meal was fabulous, the company was great fun but next time I'm there and it starts to rain, I think I could be leaving before dessert!

We've lost ITV, no Corrie, Emmerdale or the Bill!

Watching UK TV in Spain is not essential, but it is nice to be able to. Research before we moved here showed that it would be possible by using our Sky card, providing we kept a UK address as our contact address as 'officially' we are not supposed to have UK TV in Spain.

So, we have been able to keep up to date with our usual programs. We live right on the edge of a broadcasting arial so reception can be 'iffy' and we don't get all the Sky channels but we do get Premiere movies, and a few other film channels, Sky Sports and the regular BBC & ITV channels along with Dave, Watch, GOLD etc. If there is a storm we generally lose all signal and the weather has a massive impact on which channels we can see and which we can't.

There are several BBC 1 areas and if reception isn't good on 101 we can watch it on 980, there are also several BBC 2's to choose from, again in the 980/990 range. But there are only 2 ITV1 channels, 103 & 993. We always found 103 was the best reception and it always amused us that our card have us ITV Yorkshire so we were still getting our local news and weather.

With the imminent issuing of replacement Sky cards it was crucial that I had an address that I could be confident my card would be delivered to.

So I changed our contact address to my brother's house in Surrey. Within a couple of hours we were linked to ITV 1 Mer SE (Meridian SE) and WE CANNOT PICK UP THAT SIGNAL! Neither can we get 993.

Now we have no ITV 1, most of the time we have no ITV 2 or 3 or 4 either and so, I can no longer watch Emmerdale, Corrie, The Bill and the drama we had started watching, Monday, Monday - well, we will never know how it concludes.

It is possible that when we move to our own place we can get a larger dish (2.0m) made of aluminium as opposed to the one we have here which is smaller and made of steel and get better reception.

But I have a feeling that, by then, I will have learned to live without these programs - and found other ways to fill my evenings. A couple of weeks 'Cold Turkey' and I will be free of the addiction that has been with me for so many years.

So, maybe not such a bad thing after all!

Birthday BBQ

Today it was Chris's birthday and Lucy had planned a BBQ party. Here, in Spain, in July you can plan a BBQ and be pretty confident that it won't be rained off.

As you can see from the photos - there wasn't a cloud in the sky, it was red hot and perfect for a BBQ. Neil & Kev were volunteered by Lucy to sort the burgers, sausages and steak so that her Dad didn't have to be stuck behind the BBQ on his birthday,

Lucy tended bar,

And this is the birthday boy with the chefs enjoying a cold can of beer - but drink it quick boys, it goes warm very quickly in this heat!



Fortunately there was a cool breeze that was blowing around the corner of the buildings to help keep us cool but this gave us the biggest laugh of the afternoon. Lucy brought out a birthday cake with candles on and tried really hard to stop them blowing out. By the time the cake reached the table there was only about half of them still lit - nothing to laugh at there, that is to be expected.

Chris duly blew out the remaining candles and got ready to cut the cake - WHEN the breeze blew across the cake and actually got 2 of the candles to re-light, in dis-belief Chris blew them out again, only for them to re-light again. Chris turned to Lucy and asked if they were the joke candles that do re-light, but she assured him that they weren't it was just the breeze that was effectively 'fanning the embers' back to life. It went on for some time and there was a final cheer when Chris eventually got them all out.


Well, we are back home now, in the villa with the air conditioning on. I said it has been hot today but it's now almost 11pm and it is still 30c outside, and apparently it's due to get hotter next week.

Roll on September.

What's on this Summer in Terreros.

Terreros may be a quiet place outside the holiday season but there is certainly lots to do during July & August. The first thing to do when you are visiting is to go to our information kiosk near to La Venta (it's a wooden hut near the roundabout).

Here they have lots of information booklets on the area but the key booklet to get is this one.

It lists all the events that are taking place in Terreros during July & August. If we look at the page for today, there is a dancing exhibition on the Paseo Marítimo at 22.00 (yes, a lot takes place late at night because of the heat during the day), there's Yoga at 18.00 in the Cultural Centre and children's basketball in the court on the Paseo.

There's a few concerts up at the Castle during the summer, including one this Sunday and this Saturday there is the Romería Virgen del Carmen, who is the patron saint of fishermen (romería = picnic & procession) starting at 21.00.

Last year during August there was also a large notice board on the Paseo listing all the events for the month - and there was a lot to do.

Keep an eye open for noticed by the Supermarkets and in the bars as these will give you additional information on events that are taking place.

And enjoy summer in Terreros.

Tenpin Bowling in high heels - whatever next?

A group of us decided to have a trip into Aguilas today for a game of Ten-pin Bowling. We have a lovely Bowling Alley in the Commercial Centre which has 12 lanes and is generally quiet. There were 8 of us playing on one lane and the most lanes in use while we were there was 4. There are also Pool tables, air hockey and other games as well as a bar for drinks.

The whole place is much more relaxed than the Bowling Alleys in the UK, or at least when I last played there a couple of years ago.

The first thing here is, you play in your own shoes, no hiring of proper 'Bowling' shoes. Now those of us who are sensible wear trainers or something similar but I've seen people bowling tonight in flip-flops, bare feet and funniest of all, 3 inch high heels!! Now that was an accident waiting to happen - and sure enough within a couple of throws she was on her bum and she played the rest of the game in bare feet.

What I was impressed by (and forgive me if this happens in the UK bowling alleys, I've never seen it before)were the lane bumpers. The family at the side of us had a couple of children who were only about 4 or 5 and so when they has entered their names, they had obviously tagged it to a command in the computer to say they needed to have the buffers up to stop their bowling ball going into the gutter. Every time their name came up on screen, the buffers came up automatically and when they had finished and it listed the name of an adult to play, the buffers went down automatically - I suppose it's not difficult to do with modern technology but I was fascinated by it.

Also here, the pins are held up by wires, so that when they are knocked over, they are not swept away to the back as in UK alleys, but they are pulled back up like string puppets, they remind me of Pinnochio coming to life.

We had a great couple of hours, €6.50 for 2 games each plus the cost of a couple of drinks - it was airconditioned as well, so on a really hot day like today - it was a welcome break from the heat.

But really, high-heels and flip-flops - it's a bit much.

Flamenco Night!

Well, they say time flies hen you're having fun - it certainly has this last week!

Last Friday saw another birthday pass by. Now, you may remember last year (the big 50) Neil organised a big birthday party with 60 guests, and we had Craig & Cadey over, and it was a really good night.

So, how do you top that - have a local bar coincidentally organise a Flamenco Party for over 80 people on the very day!

So, after a really good day on the golf course, it was time to 'get dressed up'.

A few weeks ago we had been to Villaricos market where there is a stall with loads and loads of Flamenco dresses (€30) and skirts (€20). I tried a few dresses on but they were so heavy, lovely but heavy) so I decided to get a skirt which meant I could wear a summery top and keep a little cooler.

Anyway, this is the skirt I bought!

This gave me a range of colours to choose from for accessories and a top. I found a lovely black top, green beads and earrings and then a needed a proper fan - not a €1 for 3 cheapy. So, I treated myself - a whole €7 - but it matches my mantón!

The flowers were a finishing touch for my hair.

And of course, we couldn't leave Lucy out. So, a couple of weeks ago we were back at Villaricos market, another skirt, another top - more jewellry!

And finally, we had to have a handsome escort - €3 on a hat for Neil - there , sorted.

Put it altogether and this is how we looked!

The night went on until late, and yes, there was plenty of dancing.

So, another good birthday over for another year. Feliz cumpleaños a mi.

And the whole village was there!

Terreros in winter is quiet, you see small groups of people out and about having lunch, on the beach, meeting for an evening drink and you bump into people in the shops but there is little concept of how many people are living here all year.

Well last night, we got a really good idea.It was the annual fund raising dinner held at Mesa Pepa's restaurant to raise funds for the junior football team. Tickets were a bargain at €10 for which we had Chicken and Jacket potatoes plus vegetables - for the English! (I'll explain that one a little later).

I think there would have been little money raised from selling the tickets but the raffle would be the main fund raiser. There was an army of ladies selling raffle tickets all night and as Pepa's filled up, so did their buckets. There must have been about 50 raffle prizes all donated by local businesses and residents and the main prize was a lovely Microwave.

There must have been well over 100 people packed into Pepa's and although it semed chaotic to start with once we were all seated, the meal was served quickly and the drinks flowed. After dinner the raffle was a joint effort with José Luis and Amelia selecting the prizes and drawing the tickets and Michelle and Lucy calling out the numbers in both Spanish & English.

There was a wonderful atmosphere with all the nationalities in Terreros represented, and after the raffle was finished dancing could start to the disco outside. All this went on until the early hours of the morning with some dancing until 3am. It's was so good to see the whole community come together for such a good reason and all have so much fun.

Well done to the organisers, over €600 was raised from the raffle alone.

Now, about those vegetables!

When you eat out in a Spanish restuarant they do not serve main courses with vegetables, they normally only come with chips or potatoes but the English like to have vegetables with their meal. You can ask for vegetables and sometimes they may have some frozen that they can do but considering the fresh produce you can buy at the markets, it seems rather surprising that you don't get them by in restaurants. So, in acknowledgement of the number of English attending last nights dinner, Mesa Pepa's had done plates of vegetables (for the English) to have with the chicken, they were frozen (possibly Bird's Eye) but they added colour to the plates and were not over cooked so were quite a nice addition.

If you are eating out in Spain and want vegetables you need to aks for them, and I would suggest you ask whether they are fresh or not, and what they are as we have known someone who was having a meal of lamb & chips, they asked for vegetables and they were brought a plate of potatoes!

Do you have fresh vegetables? - tienes las verduras frescas, por favor?

Día de la Vieja - Old Lady Day!

Today is a local public holiday. Anyone who has given up something they enjoy for lent will understand that by now it is getting tough. So, locally there is an old tradition going back to the 17th century to help make the sacrifices of lent more bearable. Families picnic on the beach or in the woods having local food and they make a model of an old woman out of paper with a dress, apron and scarf and which is mounted on a cane. Very often the head is filled with sweets or treats. Locally they filled the head with firecrackers so that at the end of the day, it is set on fire and all the firecrackers go off. In other areas, the model is stoned until the sweets fall out of the head for the children to pick up and enjoy.

So, Pulpi council had decided to hold a pensionista day for all the pensioners of Pulpi and Terreros where they cooked a large paella and held a large party at the local Community Centre. The mayor and other officials came down to welcome us all to the 'picnic' and they stayed to eat with us. There must have been over 200 people there, and although it's known as Old Lady Day - it isn't just for old ladies it's for everyone. Amelia, one of the ladies from our Ladies Group kindly organised the tickets for the event, as it was entry by ticket only. I understand that this is because last year people came from nearby towns that were not actually under Pulpi Council and therefore should not have been there.

We arrived about 1.30pm and the paella was already in progress, the meat, peppers and tomatoes were already cooking. It was a sizeable pan of paella and the chef was having to work hard to keep it all cooking evenly but he seemed very adept at his job.

Then they seemed to turn up the heat (I think they threw some more logs on the fire) and added the stock which needed to be brought to the boil before addng the rice.

The rice was added with incredible flourish - I suppose to spread it evenly through the pan but it also looked very spectacular.

Finally the prawns were added and before long we were all seated and our paella and bread was served up and brought to our tables by a team of helpers.

Pulpi had provided water and soft drinks but a lot of people had taken beer or wine to enjoy with their meal and it was actually a very nice paella and we all had a good plate full.

Afterward, we were all given an orange for dessert - locally grown of course - and delicious.

Then suddenly there was 6 loud bangs from flares that had been sent up into the clear blue skies. This was to signify that they were getting ready to 'burn the old ladies' and it was time for us all to move through to the other side of the community centre.

I understand the burning of the old ladies signifies the burning away of bad omens.

We were all given either a scarf or a hat to wear and many people went down to have their photos taken by the 'old ladies'. Then they set fire to them and, being made of paper, they were soon burning fiercely. A few moments later the fire reached the firecrackers and the arena erupted into a mass of smoke accompanied by a lot of loud bangs.

The whole thing took about 10 minutes until all that was left was a very sad looking burned out old lady.

It was a really enjoyable afternoon held in wonderful warm sunshine. As we drove away we could see many families on the beach making the most of a holiday day from school and work.

It really feels like the start of summer.

What do we look like?

Now, you'll know from previous posts that we are not averse to dressing up for an occasion BUT we do normally have some say in how we look.

Not long after we first arrived it was my 50th birthday and I remembered one of the ladies saying she would be watching how I coped with being 50 as it would be her 50th this year. Well, Tineka finally reached her 50th last week. She goes to the same spanish class we have with Amelia each week and Amelia thought it would be nice if we all stayed behind after class and had a group photo done, once we had manouvered Tinake away from class, to put on her birthday card. We all thought it was a nice idea too so we stayed.

But we didn't know she wanted to dress us all up.

We were amazed at the amount of stuff she brought out clothes, jewelry, flowers, scarves etc - but then the spanish are keen on costume parties and Amelia's flamenco dress is gorgeous, so I can understand her wanting to wear it.

It seemed that any thing went as long as it didn't match. I think I actually did OK in the end, maybe a red dress, blue scarf & orange earrings are not a combination I would have put together but at least by the time she got around to allocating my stuff to me she had run out of wigs - see, blonde is the wrong colour out here - apparently, so some of us had big flowers to hid the blonde and others had less than flattering wigs!

Still, it was a fun hour and I actually think the photo looks good - it looks like we were having fun, and we were and Tinake loved it.

And here we all are - the worrying thing is Amelia wanted us all to go down to one of the local spanish bars dressed like this - needless to say there weren't any takers.

Feliz cumpleaños, Tineka

Ever get that feeling that no matter how hard you try it's never enough?

Craig & Kelly have just gone back to a cold chilly UK after spending a few days with us. We did manage a few days of warm sunny weather and on the day they went home they even managed a few hours on the beach and braved the cold sea long enough to take a photo.

They arrived in time to celebrate Valentine's Day with us and we had a fantastic Valentine's dinner and dance at our local Bistro - Danny & Annika prepared a fabulous meal - the starter of salmon and asparagus was even arranged to look like a flower on the plate. We had decided we were going to get glammed up for the evening as there are not many excuses to put on a posh frock and Kevin turned up in full Kilt ensemble - and we have to acknowledge that none of us are in any doubt anymore what may or not be worn under a kilt! I don't think Kelly will ever get over the image!

Sunday was always scheduled as a quiet day due to the anticipated excessive levels of alcohol that would be drunk on Saturday night but Craig had asked if we could do some sight seeing while they were over. Knowing that the waterpark would be closed as it's still too cold, I asked a few people for a suggestion and was told Mini-Hollywood would be worth a visit.

Now for those of you old enough to remember the Spaghetti Western's you may not be aware that they were filmed very close to us in Almeria due to the desert like conditions. About an hour away from us is a Theme Park based on the filming of these westerns - A Fist Full of Dollars, A Few Dollars More, The Good The Bad The Ugly, etc and there is a Western Town where the cowboys come out of the salon and have shoot-out's etc. It's said to be a good day out.

So, all recovered from the weekends excesses we decided we would take a drive there on Monday. As we drove inland we came across lots of the Pine Trees which have the problem with Processional Caterpillars and we could see all the nests we had previously only read about on the internet and could see that some areas have a big problem with them.

Anyway, an hours driving brought us to Mini-Hollywood and as we drove into the car park we got the feeling that something was wrong - mainly due to us being the only car there. Yep, it is currently only open at weekends, doesn't open during the week until April. So, we decided to take the road back to Mojacar and have some lunch by the beach. Normally it only takes half an hour to get to Mojacar - this time it was over 2 hours, hey ho - anyone can get it wrong.

We had done our usual tour on Saturday and after the market we had gone to sit in the square at Aguilas for coffee and told Craig & Kelly how busy it is at night and how they may want to come in one evening to try a few of the bars and get a feel for the vibrant night life.

So, Monday having been a bit of disappointment, they decided they would have a night out that night. We took them into Aguilas at 9pm as the Spanish don't tend to go out any earlier and told them to ring us when they were ready to come home, no matter how late!

It was a bit of a surprise to us when they rang less than 2 hours later to say they were ready to come home. But, as we drove into Aguilas it soon became obvious why they were not wanting to stay too late - the town was absolutely dead, it was like a ghost town. With Carnival week only a few days away the locals were obviously all staying at home and saving themselves for some serious carnival partying.

So Monday was definitely a bit of a write off.

Tuesday was a bit grey so I suggested we too a drive down the coast to Villaricos and had Menu del día at El Mar y Mar, where they do an excellent lunch including wine for about €12. As we approached the restaurant I got that deja vu feeling as the car park was empty - yes, it is closed on Tuesdays! So it was back to the villa for one of Neil's currys. We stayed local on Tuesday Night and had a few drinks in La Venta.

I had been promising all week that Wednesday would be sunny and true to form the sky was clear blue and the sun was warm. We were all set for a Barbecue about 5ish before we took Craig & Kelly back to the airport. After a couple of hours on the beach they were chilling in the hot tub when we got a call from friends to say they were going in to Aguilas for Fish & Chips - did we want to go. When I asked the others, Kelly said she really fancied Fish & Chips so we put all the BBQ stuff in the freezer for another day and set off to meet the others at 4.00pm. Now, we've all been for fish & chips a number of times so you would think one of us would know that the kitchen is closed beteen 4 & 7pm, wouldn't you? But did we think about it? No - we all turned up only to find that the BBQ had been the better option. Of course now there wasn't enough time to do the BBQ before going to the airport so it was a quick baguette and off.

So, did they enjoy their few days in Spain? Well, they enjoyed the relaxation, they enjoyed the sun and they enjoyed the Valentines dinner - but they probably didn't enjoy the hours and hours spent in the car for no reason and they probably are firmly of the opinion that they came to Spain, and it was shut.

But we did try, honest!

Roman Night - another chance to dress up!

Last week was Roman Night at our local bar. They have a themed night every month so that they can try different foods on us. This time they had been researching Roman foods on the internet so we would be have chicken and stuff cooked as it would have been hundreds of years ago.

Anyway, it was to be fancy dress. Now it was probable that most men would be draped in a spare bedsheet with a few leaves attached to their heads and going as Ceasar. I couldn't begin to think how the women would dress but always happy to join in we agreed we would sort out costumes for the evening.

As it happens my friend Lucy had bought a costume when she was up in Lorca at Christmas but the date of the dinner had been changed and she was unable to go, so she said I could borrow her dress. We're not dis-similar in height and size so fine - I was sorted, we just needed to get something for Neil - other than a bed sheet.

We decided to visit the Fancy Dress place in Lorca and see what they had. As always, it was last minute and so we had to hope they would have something suitable - and did they.

A Roman Centurian - oh, images of Brad Pitt in Troy sprung to mind!

We did have a small problem when we finally found the helmet -it was missing it's fine plume of feathers. No problem, we'd improvise with a red feather boa!

And so, we were set for the evening. And here's my Roman Centurian for the night, my Brad Pitt.

We were greeted by a sea of Ceasar's - All but one guy had opted for the bedsheet look. Here's out host for the evening - Danny.

The ladies seemed to have struggled a little with what Roman women would have worn as can be seen from these photos:

But I was fine, I had my lovely costume borrowed from my friend Lucy - maybe I should have tried it on before the night - it only just fit!

We all had a good night with good food, a lot of drink and a good laugh. Next party night is on February 14th, Valentine's Day.

Let's Party - Burn's Night Part 3

By 8pm the Haggis was cooked, the guests were present and we were ready to party. There had been a slight panic with the Haggis as the skin had split towards the end of cooking. Fortunately, we had been checking it very frequently and so it was spotted almost as soon as it had happened and we were able to make sure that the water didn't get into the meat.

We paraded the Haggis in to slow handclapping, as is tradition and Paul kindly read the address to the Haggis during which it is his role to slice it open ready for serving. We had given him a large, very sharp knife and I was a little concerned how fierce he looked with a large knife in his hand!

Supper was a great success and soon it was my role to raise a toast to the immortal memory of Robert Burns. I checked everyone had a glass ready and read my bit of 'history of Robbie Burns' I had researched on the internet earlier that afternoon and don't worry, I'm not going to give you all a rendition - so much info is available on t'internet - you don't need me to tell you anything other than this year is the 250th celebration of the birth of Robert Burns and so there were a lot of events to celebrate Burn's night worldwide over the weekend.

Once everyone had finished eating the whisky's came out for a tasting session. Now, I dislike whisky so I was on my favourite cocktail - Champagne, Orange Juice & Cointreau and soon all the ladies were joining me and leaving the men to the whisky's.

Then it was time for a bit of scottish dancing:


And of course Paul & Neil couldn't help but demonstrate the Gay Gordons:
And after a lot of drinking, singing, dancing and general party chatter everyone weaved their way home about 1am.

And in the morning we had fried Clouty with a poached egg - yummy!

Our very 1st Burn's Night celebration!

The turnips are the wrong colour! Burns Night - Part 2

The traditional accompaniments to a Haggis are turnips and mash. That, along with the varied tastes, gives a pleasing look to the plate - the dark meat, the white potatoes and the orangey turnips. Only one problem then, in Spain the turnips are white. They taste the same but look like this:

Traditionally, we use these:

So, we needed to add something to give is the colour with out changing the taste too much. Someone suggested I add yams and so on Saturday I came back from the market in Aguilas with bags of white turnips and yams.

I cooked the yams and turnips seperately and then added them together before mashing. They soon mingled to make the correct colour and taste wise? well, surprisingly good. The only other problem I had is that white turnip is a very wet vegetable so after mashing and draining the juices that settled out, the full pan I started with was now only half a pan of mashed turnip - hopefully it would be enough.

Barbara & Lucy had offered to do the potatoes and would be bringing them later. Neil was doing an onion gravy and so we were all under control. So much so that when we had a call from some friends in the afternoon to say their Setanta wasn't working and they wanted to see the Rangers v Aberdeen fixture we told them to come round.

As we had decided to do a traditional Haggis supper and so we needed a traditional pudding for afterwards. There is only one thing that would do - we needed, without any doubt, a traditional Clouty Dumpling.

Now I have never made one and I don't think I've had dumpling since my mid-teens. My Scottish Grandpa used to make them. A Clouty is a steamed pudding done in muslin cloth and is a heavy fruit suet pudding - and it's great. If there was anything to bring back childhood memories for me - it's a Clouty! Our friend Sue was up for the challenge and got a traditional recipe, and a top tip from a relative - instead of muslin cloth used a cotton pillowcase - and so Sue made her first (and maybe only) Clouty.


And what a success it turned out to be - all the right flavours, the taste was spot on and it looked great! Well done Sue!

We had 15 people coming to supper so the furniture needed a bit of re-arranging, we had a CD of scottish music, we had bagpipe music to pipe in the Haggis, my Toast speech was written, the shortbread was on it's way and Neil had sorted all the Whisky out - time to get showered and changed and await the arrival of the guests.

Burn's Night - Part 1

Now, although we were planning to have an informal Burn's Night there are a number of formalities that need observing and so I spent quite a while on the internet yesterday researching Burn's Night's Supper formats (I wanted to put itinerary but couldn't work out how to spell it!)

Anyway, we needed the Selkirk Grace:

Some hae meat and cannot eat.
Some cannot eat that want it:
But we hae meat and we can eat,
Sae let the Lord be thankit.


Then there was the parade of the Haggis, the address to the Haggis and then the best bit......
the eating of the Haggis.

I also printed off a few of the shorter Burns poems, and that's not a big selection as Burns was not known for his short writings, some of them go on for several pages.

And then there was the scary bit - the toast to the Immortal Memory of Robert Burns - hey ho, time for more research and some speach writing to be done.

And so to the Haggis. Now, where on earth are we to get a Haggis in Spain, and if we do get one - what will it taste like? No, it has to come from Scotland so, a few weeks ago I had found 'McKean's of Scotland - haggis makers since 1850' on the interenet. http://www.scottishhaggis.co.uk/
Their website said they delivered to Spain and I rang them to clarify a few details and then ordered on line. There was going to be about 15 of us so we ordered a Chieftain Haggis, all 2.5kg of it and also a Veggie Haggis for our vegetarian friends.

I ordered them on Monday 12th January and by last Monday I was beginning to panic about whether they would arrive in time so I gave them a quick ring to make sure they had processed the order ok. Yes, they assured me they had dispatched the order on the Thursday and it would arrive with us either that day or the next. 6 days for a delivery from Scotland to Spain, including a weekend? No, can't be right.

We had friends flying out on Friday so as a standby they could bring a small Haggis with them - but, it wasn't necessary. On the Tuesday as I was out walking with the dogs a UPS van drove onto the estate. I stopped him and asked if he had a delivery for our address and he said yes, so he got the package off the van and there it was, as promised - 2 Haggis. They were in a good sized polystyrene box with ice packs around them to keep them fresh. We opened the box to put the Haggis in the bottom of the fridge until yesterday and wow - 2.5 kilos is a lot of Haggis. Fortunately, we had a large pan to cook it in.

That's the veggie Haggis on the left.....ahhh, bless! The big Haggis would need to be cooked for 2 hours and the little one for 45 mins.

Now, everyone knows that along with Haggis you need turnips and mash - only one problem, you don't get yellow turnips in Spain!

Next: Planning and cooking the Haggis supper............

New Year Arrives (ish)

OK, let's finish off 2008.

There was a slight problem in holding a New Years Eve Party in Spain at our place - we don't have Spanish TV, we don't have Spanish radio so technically we don't know when midnight officially arrives. We have our grapes - one grape for each 'dong' and so we elected Danny to be the official 'dong' person.

When the clock suggested mid-night had arrived Danny started his 'Dong-Donging' and we started eating grapes!



Now, abut the tradition of eating grapes - I found this article here: http://www.topics-mag.com/internatl/holidays/new-year/spain/12_grapes.htm



For a long time, Spanish people have had a traditional custom of celebrating New Year's Eve. On the last day of the year, the 31st of December, they wait until twelve p.m. Everybody has to have twelve grapes ready to eat when the clock starts to chime. It is traditional to eat them as you hear the clock from Puerta del Sol in Madrid chiming.


When it is midnight, each time the clock chimes, they put a grape in their mouth. By the time the clock has finished chiming, everybody has to have finished their grapes and the New Year starts, but nobody ever finishes eating the grapes on time.


Eating the grapes is very funny because everybody starts the New Year with a full mouthful of grapes. It's almost impossible to finish eating the grapes by the time the clock finishes chiming. Normally people still have all the grapes in their mouths, and they start looking at each other and have to laugh.


You can imagine what would happen if they laughed with all the grapes in their mouths. It's really difficult to have a second to swallow them. I think you can imagine the rest of the story.


This tradition started in Spain because one year when there was a big grape harvest, the king of Spain decided to give grapes to everybody to eat on New Year's Eve.



However, we had no problem eating our grapes - we had bought ready peeled, seeded grapes from our Mercadona Supermarket - they were in juice so slipped down very easy but were rather tasteless and a little slimy - I think next year we'll have the real things, it will be more fun and taste better.

Anyway dongs over, grapes eaten - it was time to check on the other Spanish New Year tradition - the wearing of red underwear. All the shops had been full of red underwear for the 2 weeks before New Year for both men & women. The tradition is that it must be bought for you and wearing it to see the New Year in brings you good luck!

Derek definitely took the prize for best undies:

By the time we had stopped laughing at Derek's pants and toasted the New Year in with Champagne - it was almost time for the UK to celebrate the New Year so we turned on the TV and watched the fireworks - goodness didn't they go on a long time. We all enjoyed them to start with but after a few minutes there were just too many going off for too long and we were all just waiting for it to end - I wonder how much it all cost, it would have been better if they'd only gone on for half the time.

Anyway, about half an hour later everyone started to wander home and we were left with a bit of clearing up to do. When we have parties of this size we have paper plates and table cloths, plastic cutlery and glasses and clearing up just means tipping it all into a large dustbin - it would wait until morning and we would be all back to normal within an hour.

We all had a fabulous night and I have to say that we have thoroughly enjoyed our first Christmas and New Year in Spain.

The Salty Sea Dog Inn - Part Deux!

Ok, so - we have a body, a murder victim, a guest with no further part to play?

No, he now becomes the hardest working guest around the table - he assumes the identity of Dirty Wiggins and works to uncover the murderer by closely examining the evidence, questioning the others at the Inn and using whatever means available to him to get to the truth.

Meanwhile, all the others are carrying out their own investigations, so who will uncover the murderer or will they get away with this dastardly deed?

Well, dinner over it was time to complete the evening by voting on the best Costume, the best Actor and uncovering who had bribed and cajoled their way to being the Richest Character as well as everyone disclosing who they thought had 'Dunnit!'

Best Costume went to Bill as Commodore Clearing,

Best Actor went to Danny as Cap'n Redbeard

Richest at the end of the evening was Neil as Gov'r Napier - who had been selling his daughters hand in marriage to anyone who would pay, basically

and the Murderer....

Ah well, can't tell you that incase someone else runs the same dinner party BUT I will say that Bill, as Commodore Clearing did identify the Murderer correctly - well done Bill.

The rest of you.............

...............time to walk the plank!

That's Cap'n Redbeard at the back with Commodore Clearing looking on. On the plank left to right is Sealegs Sam (Chris) Merciless Morgan - brought back to life (Derek) Gov'r Napier (Neil) Thumbless Jacky (Chrissie) and One Eyed Wanda (Annika).

What a great way to pass the evening waiting for Midnight to arrive,

Thanks everyone for joining in the fun.

I buy the Murder Mystery games from Night of Mystery http://www.nightofmystery.com/ . I like the fact that one of the guests is the victim halfway through the night, it adds to the fun. They are downloaded from the internet and you get all the info and a guide on running the evening - you just have a lot of printing to do to get all the character sheets, the invites etc - but it's a lot of fun.

Back to New Year's Eve and the Salty Sea Dog Inn.

Well, shiver me timbers and sharpen me sword!

After a voyage filled with pillaging and plundering, the Jaded Jewel-

-a pirate ship captained by Redbeard, an old but dangerous pirate-

-is docked in a cove near Port Royal. As the pirates head into town to celebrate their homecoming and spend their gold and goods, a night of turmoil and trouble is sure to transpire.

As the night quickly steers out of control, one guest meets a tragic demise and ends up in Davy Jones' Locker leaving the rest of the party goers to bring the guilty to the gallows.
Is the culprit the profiteering pirate organizing a mutiny? Or, the saucy sea mistress who wanted more than a casual commitment? The perpetrator could be the swashbuckling swordsman desperate to win the love of the governor's daughter, or possibly the treasure seeking seaperson incapable of sharing.

In a harbor village filled with backstabbers and buccaneers looking to get ahead, there is little reward for honesty and a high price to pay for deceit.

And so the scene was set. In attendance were:

Cap’n Redbeard—Pirate Captain. A fierce but fair pirate, this man runs a tight ship and won’t have anyone overthrowing it! A boisterous and commanding man.

Merciless Morgan—First mate. Found alone on an island, Redbeard took Morgan in and he quickly became one of the Cap’n’s favorites. Slimy and deceitful. He is always looking out for his own best interest.

One-eyed Wanda—Gunner. Raised as a boy on the pirate ship, Wanda was passed over by Merciless Morgan when it came to promotion. Wanda has a lot to prove if she is to earn her rightful place. Abrasive and boastful. She is capable and willing to fit in as “one of the guys”.

Thumbless Jacky—Crew member. A seasoned pirate, Thumbless Jacky has only been on the crew of The Jaded Jewel for a short while. A salty seaperson. Jacky has seen a lot in her days of pirating, including the loss of both of their thumbs.

Gurglin’ Uma Scarr—Galley wench. As a permanent underling on the ship, Uma has observed more than most. Often overlooked, Uma is a much more valuable asset than her title might suggest! Appears as a follower, but has a few secrets up her sleeve.

Governor Napier—Governor of Port Royal. As the governor of this seaside village, it is his job to keep it safe at all costs! He is reserved and aristocratic, yet he will resort to any means to accomplish his goals.

Breathless Betty Napier—Governor’s daughter. This faithful and dutiful daughter will do anything to help her father’s career advance. But is she willing to do it for the cost of her own happiness? Rebellious and out-of-control, Betty will do anything to get what she wants, including her independence.

Commodore Clearing—Commodore. In charge of the fleet that defends Port Royal, the commodore may lose his job and his arranged marriage if he can’t bring a pirate to justice. Sneaky and deceitful. The commodore will betray whomever in order to advance himself.

Mad Rose—Serving wench. A real spitfire, Rose will make anyone who crosses her regret their actions. Cunning and jaded, Mad Rose will hold a grudge for a very long time.

Sealegs Sam—Merchant sailor. A lowly merchant sailor, Sam wants nothing more than to be married to his true love, Breathless Betty. Cunning, clever and secretive. Sam is very in love with Betty.

Dirty Wiggins—Gallows master. For many, justice in this seaside town means the gallows and Dirty is often the one responsible for putting the guilty there.

And here they all are:

Well, the evening got off to a great start - Carribean Cocktails - Champagne, Cointreau and Fresh Orange Juice. And then as the evening unfolded everyone had tasks to complete, people to corrupt and bribe and plots to hatch and thicken.

It wasn't long before everyone was well into their character and having fun:

Suddenly, it all went pitch black - all the lights went out at once - and when we finally got them all back on.........

There'd bin a Murrrderrr!

There was nothing else to be done but .......

............... to outline the body and.........

.... tuck in!

Will anyone be caught for this evil act? Check-in later!

(And I promise - we did feed the corpse)

And so Christmas has arrived.

The Ladies of Terreros Group was initially formed by 3 of the current ladies who started it off as a slimming club. As others joined the emphasis moved away from the slimming and more to being a social and supportive group. The initial ladies Ann, Carol & Sandra found it a good way to share information about living here and dealing with the problems that occured. As more ladies joined them, this became a huge source of support and knowledge and there are now regularly more than 20 ladies at the weekly meetings.

One of Ann's ideas was to introduce Christmas Carol's to the area in a way of keeping a little of her own english traditions to help her through a Christmas away from her family. Again, over the years this has grown into the fantastic evening that we had on Wednesday night.

It was held at a local bar, The Montesol, who were totally caught on the hop by the numbers that turned up. So our first job was to bring more tables and chairs outside. All the ladies had brought food to hand round in the interval, (yes, there would be enough songs to need an interval) there was everything from sausage rolls and sandwiches to mince pies and cakes. There were also lots of raffle prizes, some donated by the ladies and others by local businesses who were very generous in supporting us.




To get the evening under way Amelia, one of our Spanish ladies introduced a lady who had come down from Pulpi council. Pulpi is where our local town hall is and all the official bits are done for Terreros.


As the crowd were settling it was time for the ladies to assemble at the front, Santa hats in place. As is the tradition is Spain, many of us were wearing red. I have to say for poor Sandra trying to get us all settled, it would have been easier to sort a group of 5 year olds! But eventually we were all gathered, song sheets in hand.

We had rehearsed a few times but suddenly looking out at a sea of expectant faces it really felt like a couple more practice sessions would have been useful, there must have been over a hundred people looking back at us.


But, song sheets at the ready Sandra counted us in for the first carol, Once in Royal David's City.

And it sounded pretty good! In an effort to improve the atmosphere the bar owner dimmed the lights so we were singing against a back cloth of fairy lights, very pretty, just one problem

WE COULDN'T READ THE WORDS!

So, lights back on we continued through the carol's. A few of us that go to Amelia for Spanish lessons had learnt a traditional Spanish carol - Villancico. I never quite understood the relevance of the carol as it's about fishes drinking in the river but it has a really catchy tune. Click here for a link to Youtube and a really catchy version http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84wS1mS0N60 It would be nice to think ours sounded like this but all the spanish in the crowd joined in and seemed to really enjoy it.

During the interval the ladies passed around all the food and sold raffle tickets and shook collection buckets amongst the crowd, all the monies raised would be donated to local charities in Pulpi.

It wasn't long before we were back at the front singing the second list of songs, I think we must have done over 20 carols in total, some of which I haven't sung since I left primary school.

We had a surprise visitor at the end when Santa dropped in for a quick visit, although I think Santa was really too busy making all the toys and sent his friend Superman as a stand in!

It was an absolutely brilliant evening and really brought Christmas to Terreros and on the night, we raised over €300 for local charities which is a great result.

And the last word goes to Santa (who we managed to snap having a quick beer)

Ho Ho Ho MERRY CHRISTMAS