Citizens of Europe

Some friends mentioned a meeting for foreigners in La Nucia last night, so we went along, thinking we might meet a few neighbouring residents. What a surprise. There must have been at least 350 people, english, dutch, german,french, norwegian. filling the large new theatre in the centre of La Nucia.

This was obviously more than an informal meeting. A long line of dignitaries filed in, including the vice- consuls of all the countries represented. The reason for this meeting we discovered was to launch a glossy guide to La Nucia, printed in 5 languages, which tells people everything they need to know about living in Spain, and accessing services – health, education, municipal, sport , culture, leisure.

The aim was to help people to feel part of the town, to find out all the provisions , where to go , how to register. Apparantly La Nucia is very progressive in terms of its facilities, state of the art sports centre, University offering adult classes, huge theatre, auditorium, facilities for seniors, and there was a generous invitation for everyone to share these facilities, and to feel they belong to the area. The guide is exactly what people need. The vice consuls were euphoric in their praise, because it will probably save them lots of time, answering the same questions. The german V.C said that probably the whole of Europe should follow this example – if not the whole world ! Hey steady on…….. The presentation was followed by glasses of wine and snacks, while the young mayor,and his entourage mingled with their foreign guests. Great night out with invaluable free guide

mind boggling

Today Monday it was raining, not a good start to our trip to Castalla , and our friends new home.It was certainly off the beaten track, along a dirt track with no neighbours within shouting distance, but castle on top of the hill opposite In the foreground is the tank/swimming pool, which is near the boundary fence of the grounds. The land is terraced arable ground with almond, and olive trees, which have been abandoned for the last 5 years There is a lot of work ahead, just cultivating/ rotivating the ground. The house has potential We wandered speechless into the courtyard, passing lovingly transplanted pots of parsley, and bird of paradise flowers.

The courtyard was a space demanding imagination , I waited until in the dining kitchen with a rock face for a back wall, before suspending my disbelief;

 Inside the rooms were long, and airy, and yes, spacious, one could imagine groups of house guests relaxing with a cold beer, gazing onto the courtyard, with fountain gently splashing – or was that the overflow?

They move at the end of this week to an apartment in the village, and intend to spend every day working with the builders to restore the place.There may be a few hurdles ahead, it will certainly be living the dream. I can remember John talking when he first came out to Spain about a finca in the country with a swimming pool. and that is possibly what he will have – mind boggling!

home making

Two weeks on and we are starting to make this place more like our home. Michael collected two chests of drawers which were in his previous apartment, and now for sale in the local auction mart. Great to have clothes in their proper drawers, especially as I don’t know from day to day whether I shall need woollies or a blouse.

On Sunday I went to the local church in La Nucia which was half full of children making their first communion. It was also the day when animals are blessed, and last year we watched people bring dogs cats, donkeys ,birds,. This time there was only a bemused girl carrying a terrapin in a bowl of water – she must have got the time wrong!Spain is still very much a Catholic country, and especially in the villages, church is at the heart of the community , weddings are attended by the whole village, the fiestas usually have some religious origin. I again have the sense that family is important in Spain, and children and older people have a special place in families.  Anyway the church was bursting at the seams, and afterwards people streamed out to wander round the local Sunday flea market (car boot sale?)

I bought a book there about Seville, which made me determined to go there  this year, It is 1000 miles return,so will need a bit of planning.

Tuesday we were subjected to the iron hand of the campanians club for British ex-pats in Albir. This includes compulsory purchase of raffle tickets to raise funds, and regular attendance at meetings or suspension of membership. I certainly would not have discovered the walks, the dances, the cultural trips,or the liaison with the local ayuntamiento( aimed at integrating foreigners)without this regular Tuesday meeting.

Monday we are going with Angie and John to see their dream home, just now a ruin in a 11000 square metres of land. They have no thought of developing the place for commercial purposes, just want to restore it, and the track running through their land to the little 12th century Hermitage where the villagers go to mass.I can’t believe I left my camera/lead at home – well perhaps I can, but this means a delay in uploading photos to the blog. Perhaps next time there will be new photos to break up all this print!

 

 

walks, invitations and opportunities

One of my best memories from the last trip  was the weekly walk with a walking group that included the leaders, John and Julie who are now firm friends, and look after Mike’s car and scooter when we are in England. They live with 3 dogs in a smallholding in a village in the mountains. They love the outdoor life and have gradually extended the places where they sit and eat outside. they were keen caravanners before they retired,and already knew and loved parts of Spain, before they decided to take the plunge and live here permanently.They have family in England, their daughter and grandaughter lived here for a few years before having to return to the UK to find viable employment.They plan a new walk every week and Friday saw a group of 15 walking on a circular route, in the shadow of huge mountains, and with the smell of rosemary and other herbs, and the chatter of people , happy to make friends, and share experiences.

We had lunch in a churchyard in the sunshine, and picked oranges en route , eating while we walked – magic.

The apartment above us , where we had invited friends and family to join us- had been surprisingly rented to a young man for a couple of months. We were advised by our landlord to talk to our next door neighbour, and see whether she would be happy to provide accomodation. We were invited to look round last night, and were delighted with her place. She is anxious to rent out her property and we are sure that family and friends would also be delighted to stay there. When I get a cable for the camera, I shall post some photos. I feel more at  home every day and today found a gym and indoor pool within walking distance, a lovely local church in La Nucia,and a chinese bazaar to stock up on clothes pegs , dish racks, and other humdrum odds and ends.I had better stop now  for fear of boring you…………..

SPAIN SECOND TIME AROUND

I had a strong feeling that ,having enjoyed six months in Spain so much,that I would be back,although I did not imagine that it would be with a new partner -Michael.

We went back to England in May 2009,and had a couple of trips back to Spain to sort out Michael’s old apartment, and find a new place to live, and now am sitting in the morning sunshine watching a man doing his weekly clean of the swimming pool. It is not exactly swimming weather, the snow is dusting the mountain range, and there is a keen wind. However the promise is there, and it is a very pleasant backdrop for BBQ’s.

It felt like we got the last plane out of England. We stayed at a travel lodge near the airport, the night before. We had to drag suitcases through the snow, to the main road as the taxi could not make it to the house.Michael had broken two bones in his hand slipping on ice, about 2 weeks before, and on arrival at customs was taken to a private room, while the airport staff examined the foam sling, and brace for suspicious substances.The plane had been unable to fly for 3 days, and was de-iced while we waited. Even so a 40 minute delay was a mere nothing, and we had an uneventful flight, arriving in torrential rain, but feeling very fortunate.

We have been here 4 days and are getting sorted out with spanish Dongle, spanish mobiles, bus timetables groceries, and linking up with old friends.I was a bit shocked to find out that two friends have decided to move to Castailla  near Alicante, and are renovating a finca, which currently has neither electricity nor plumbing. I think it is a brave decision, partly because  valenciano spanish is pretty hard to understand, and there are fewer english people there. It seems less hazardous to rent than to buy, and there are so many properties to rent, that one could live in several areas in Spain for a time, without the responsibilities of maintenance.

We walked along the beach between Altea and Albir, on Saturday. The sea was very wild, and had washed away the boardwalk, and the sea was hurling pebbles over the road, it was not really safe to walk, so we drove through the waves and onto the back road to Albir, past the orange groves.It is good to be back. …..to be continued

Change and more change

It seems a long time since my last visitors left. Graham and Sadie had a long weekend around the middle of March, and

it is hard to believe that they picked a very chilly weekend, actually harder to believe that Graham insisted on a choc chip icecream in an open cafe We had a good time walking up to the lighthouse, chilling out in the square, and eating out at night, with great views over the harbour I gave up the apartment on the 31st of March, and have spent a couple of weeks winding up the exercise class, saying goodbye to friends in Albir/Altea, and going to the occasional do This was a 70th birthday where fancy  dress was appreciated! We left for a trial run in the campervan before Easter, and had a great time watching the young spanish groups putting up their tents, and gathering in the evenings for paella, music and dance. The loudness of the music just added to the atmosphere, and families, old and young just all mixed in. We met an Australian couple, who were playing at camping, having just bought a tent to save money on their hotel bills. They were very fit having tented and run and walked and kayaked competitively for several years. They were both in their late 50’s, we spent a couple of evenings offering them shelter from the rain, and swapping stories of adventures in Thailand, India and NZ. We have an open invite to Australia, so who knows!

Easter Sunday was lovely. I went to church  in my favourite tiny chapel before heading off on a tour of campsites further down the coast. This was Calpe beach, only 5 minutes by bike from the camp site, This is Javea, where we watched the surfers coming in on the waves. Again the beaches were sandy and safe for children. There will  be so many places to take visitors next time! I hardly scratched the surface.

 

The journey up the coast is spectacular with mountains and gorges, and trees in blossom, frangipan and mimosa.

I currently have my clothes in 3 bags, one for camping, one for the journey home, and one for when I get home. This is stretching my packing abilities,I shall be glad in  lots of ways when I finally land , and stay in one place for a while.I shall upload this in an internet shop, when we arrive in Calpe tomorrow. Hasta luego!

AND MORE FAMILY……………

During the last 5 months I have probably spent more quality time with more family and friends than during a year back in England. That does not hold true for all friends and family, but it has been great having a week at a time to relax with people, and do the tourist bit  . and share the delight in sunny days and flowers in

February Here is Bren with the fabled orange trees. The weather was warm enough to have a picnic, but the odd shower threatened. The next day was glorious and walkers joined the odd nudist sunning themselves on the beach. No we didn’t take photos! Here a somewhat chilly walk by the castle walls in Villajoyosa.It seems that if there is a cool day, then a sunny one follows. Today was meant to be the Friday walk but when I arrived there were just 2 people looking bemused, they went home, so I had a day to do what I wanted. I parked the car by the beach, and walked along watching the waves, but glad I was in walking gear, as there was a wild wind. Decided to have a haircut, a bit brave this , as the last time 8 weeks ago I had an extreme cut. However it was great this time, so I even bought a top in the chinese shop to enhance my evening outfits.

Walking up the steps provided the daily exercise, and just look at the views of the sea and flowes on the way up to my house Anyway had more pressing matters to attend to like contacting inland revenue who are insisting I haven’t sent in my tax return. I did sent it online on 22jan, so a letter has to be sent appealing against the decision BAH! I was several washes behind, so it was a pleasure to catch up on domestics, and do a bit of cooking for when I dont want to. Today was the day of repairs. This is an old house, and the plumbing gets bunged up. so the kitchen taps were replaced today, and the shower fixed ( sorry Bren) but am delighted to wash up in hot water without having to put on the patio tap to get enough pressure.( too much information here!)

It has been a delightful surpise that suddenly my wifi laptop is picking up the internet signal from someone’s internet server, and so I can send emails in the comfort of my home. How good is that! The signal is sometimes a bit weak but in the main it works very well. This is unlike my car which continues to play up, and I am very wary of it cutting out on roundabouts or traffic lights. The journey home is going to be interesting. Ferry is booked now, so the present end is definitely in sight. I have to say this 6 months has been on of the best decisions I have made, the exercise group is small and has definitely taken second place to visitors from home.Will have to see what the next 6 months brings.

to be continued……..

meet the family

The last week has been very memorable.Paula and children arrived on the Sunday, and Nina and her two on the Monday. The cousins were delighted to meet up again and explore the delights of sea and sand and playgrounds on the beach

We had some pretty good picnics on the beach , and in a campervan, which they found a novelty while their mums had a more relaxed time on the beach. Paula and Nina even had a night on the town, while grannyann worked magic back home with the Mama Mia DVD.

one of the highlights was the flamenco dancing night, when Esperanza was enchanted by an influx of little girls wearing flamenco dresses, and leotards . She smothered them in kisses, and was rewarded by their delighted imitation of her dramatic fan waving, and swirling of skirts. Katy aged 3 was in her element whirling round and kicking her legs up By the end of the session we were dancing flamenco, rhumba, pasadoble like there was no tomorrow. In fact this was sadly the last day, we had all had a great time, and the general consensus was for a return trip

 

sunbathing in February   YES!!!!!  Adios hasta la vista

ONLY 2 MORE MONTHS?

A few things happened recently which gave me food for thought. A letter came from one of my exercise groups, saying how glad they would be to see me back, the couple who are renting my house would be interested in buying it, my electricity bill for 3 months was £50, I am watching blizzards and deep snow in England and also parts of Spain, while experiencing bright sunshine, spring flowers, almond blossom, and lunch al fresco, and I have already planned to stay an extra month, and do a bit of touring round Spain, especially Seville during Semana Santa.

So the question is what next and why? I did feel that the experience of being in Spain would change me, and that I would not know how I felt until I had spent the time here, and then gone home. I had also felt that I might miss my home, not to mention my family and friends( which goes without saying). Not only have I not missed my home, I have felt OK about other people living in it. Previously I have always come back to the pleasure of familiar bed and kitchen and bathroom, almost like the house was an extension of  me, particularly since I had the kitchen, bedroom and bathroom makeover. I like entertaining, I like family coming to stay, I like the garden and the views, and the wood at the end of the cul-de-sac. I still do not know how I shall feel when I go home, but I now feel, as I had started to feel before I left home, that there is more to life in retirement than comfort, indeed the comfort can seem like a trap, the comfort trap. I am fortunate to own my own house, when many people are struggling. It has taken a long time to reach this happy position. But I am not my house, and in terms of adventures, and new experiences, I have lived a little life, yes I was an au pair in Tenerife, yes I went to uni when I was 36, but I am still living within 3 miles of where I was born, and I have spent a lifetime being sensible, (well mainly) and working for a pension, like we are told to.

So I reckon that if I am going to throw over the traces, that it is now or never.

Life continues to throw up challenges like some kids smashing my front side window , and having to make a statement to the police, and finding out that the car insurance is more convoluted and I had to pay 93 euros, which hopefully will be refunded. Not much luck with my car.

I am now looking forward to Paula and Nina arriving at the weekend with the girls. Marjorie left this morning at 5.30 a.,m and had a 100 mph journey to the bus station in order to link up with flight to Barcelona.There has been some weird weather recently, including high winds which blew down power cables causing massive fires on the mountains around the area, a bit .reminiscent of the hills round Santa Monica.

All for now hasta la proxima vez

blossom time in Jalon valley

This last 4 weeks has been a rush of visitors, in fact the last one arrives in less than an hour. I have had more trips to new places, and fabulous meals out, than I would have in a year at home!

Each person to arrive has been enchanted by the house and the views, so that I enjoy it all over again.

This month the Jalon valley is full of almond blossom, all shades of pink, it is so lovely. We have joined the walkers each friday, and I shall upload a few photos to give you a flavour of the scenery. I really find it difficult to blog and have visitors, so will get back to it after friday this week

fish retaurant Calpe we climbed 1500 feet