Category Archives: spain

accidental lunch

09 Saturday Jan 2021

Posted by in coronavirus, covid, sevilla, spain, tapas, tapas bars

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accidental lunch (1)

I was supposed to have a perfectly on purpose lunch with my friend Lucy, since our birthdays are a day apart and we haven’t seen each other in ages. But when we arrived at the bar I’d chosen (a new place being run by my friend chef Javi Abascal) it was fully booked. Should have known as it was the first Saturday since the January sales started, and also the first non-rainy day all week. After checking out a couple of other places (all fully booked) Lucy and I decided to postpone our birthday lunch for another day, preferably mid-week. To be honest, I have only been going out to eat during the week and at an early hour so I get to places before they get busy.

Anyhow, since I was already dressed and outside I decided to take a river walk, something I haven’t done in far too long. And it was lovely. Meanwhile, my friend Peter had been in touch so I told him I’d be in the Alameda in about half an hour if he wanted to meet for a beer. Then, while I was waiting for Peter (by chance I’d stopped to check my phone in front of Al Aljibe) I saw a couple of women at a table in the terrace paying up (it was 3 pm by this time) and so I took possession of the table and told Peter where I was.

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fase 2 – navidad 2020

17 Thursday Dec 2020

Posted by in andalucia, coronavirus, covid, sevilla, spain

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covid restricciones

So tomorrow we head into Fase 2 of the big SAVE CHRISTMAS programme set out by our various governments, which vary from region to region. For Andalucía as of tomorrow here is the deal…

 
Phase Two
18 December – 10 January
 
Travel permitted between provinces.
 
Bars & Restaurants can fully open until 18.00 and 20.00 – 22.30.
Cafeterias can stay open 18.00 – 20.00 without selling alcohol.
Shops can open until 21.00, essential shops until 22.00.
 
Curfew 23.00 – 6.00
 
Christmas
23 December – 6 January
 
Travel allowed between regions only for gatherings with family and “close friends”.
 
24, 25, 31 December and 1 January Groups of up to 6-10 allowed to meet in one family home, no more than two family groups.
 
Christmas and New Years Eves curfew at 1.30
 

a sunny tuesday with oranges

15 Tuesday Dec 2020

Posted by in seasons, sevilla, spain

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sunny tuesday

It’s that time of year when we (hopefully) get enough rain throughout the winter months to see us through the long hot dry spell that is May to October in Sevilla. Trust me, drought summers here are not fun. But this makes going out even trickier (for me) at the moment as I am still limiting myself to once or twice a week and so NOW those days also have to fall on a non-rainy one. But this day was perfect. Lovely and sunny and still warm enough midday to only need a light jacket and the oranges are reaching their peak. Love Sevilla ❤

balcony life

23 Monday Nov 2020

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balcony life

This pigeon reminded me of me during the first lockdown when I spent all my “fresh air” moments either on my balcony or up on my rooftop. Now we have partial confinement until after the next long weekend December 6-8th, not allowed to travel out of our municipalities, restaurants and non-essential shops closing at 6 pm, curfew between 10 pm and 7 am. I’m good with that. Hope it helps. How are the Covid rules where you are?

black christmas

13 Friday Nov 2020

Posted by in christmas, coronavirus, covid, sevilla, spain, travel

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Those of you who know me also know that there are probably not many other people you know who LOVE the Christmas season as much as I do. This isn’t because of all the happy memories of Christmases past… in fact it’s the opposite. It’s because I never had any nice Christmas memories growing up, so when I left home at the ripe old age of 15 I decided to start making my own traditions. And Christmas became MY THING. And OMG I love it, not as a religious holiday but kind of based on the concept of the birth of Jesus being a metaphor for the birth of compassion in the world. Not a GOD, but just a person like us. So I always made sure to make a big fuss over everything about celebrating the birth of compassion, and yeah, also love the lights, the songs, the movies, the everything. Don’t care too much about gifts, but again, that is another expression of appreciating the people we love, and letting them know, so that’s cool too.

Thing is, this year is different. Really different. We have constantly seen catastrophes happening around us because people will JUST NOT LET GO  of the idea that they can’t do things like they have always done. First it was that they NEEDED their summer holidays (who the fuck travels abroad ON HOLIDAY during a global pandemic??) and as a result of people not staying put we are experiencing a killer second wave of this fucking virus. And don’t even get me started on non-maskers and “herd immunity” assholes and people who have still had big weddings, birthdays, etc. Anyhow, now it’s coming up to Christmas and my Twitter feed is full of people talking about getting home for the holidays and I am like WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK??

Have people learned NOTHING?? Here we are in Spain not allowed to travel outside our own municipalities, with a curfew from 10pm to 7am, and yet they are still allowing tourists in and out?? This also goes for people who live here and have family elsewhere (or vice versa), somehow thinking that their family gathering is worth more than the safety and lives of others, that THEIR situation is the exception. This is the exact opposite of what Christmas should be about because this isn’t about giving or sharing or caring, it’s about selfish personal desire, and then just doing what you want at the possibly horrific expense of others. Honestly, I despair.