Category Archives: summer

32º

15 Tuesday May 2012

Posted by in cats, home, sevilla, summer, weather

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

, ,

I couldn’t take it anymore. So at 5 pm on May 15th I put on the air conditioning!!!

Exactly a month earlier than I did last year. But man! It’s been 32º inside my livingroom since the weekend. Needed some relief, and it’s perked up Azar too. I’ve been quite worried about him overheating and dehydrating. He’s barely eaten the past few days, though he’s still drinking a good amount.

So I’ll probably be bankrupt by September at this rate, but it feels so good to be comfortable in my own home.

And Azar has just got up to have a snack, so there, it’s all worth it.

How’s the weather where you are?

summertime dreaming

07 Wednesday Mar 2012

Posted by in sevilla, spain, summer, travel, trips

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

, , ,


I think it was while I was watching Rick Stein’s latest programme on Spain that I first got the idea of taking a train trip across the top of the country. And talking with Ricardo yesterday brought it all back as he is from Galicia and our conversation had turned to travel. So I asked Ricardo for some ideas of where to stop and it turned out that we will have to dedicate at least a few hours to this topic once my plans firm up a little.

The first concern will be money, of course. But if Peter continues working as much as he has been then he should be able to take some time off and come travelling, and we both should be able to keep the house going in August without working fulltime. But my main concern is the cats. I reckon this trip will take at least ten days, and there is no way I can leave Azar – even with a cat sitter checking in – for that long. So I will start looking for someone (Jessica, are you reading this?) who might want to come and stay here while we’re gone. Of course the beginning of August isn’t the best time to visit Sevilla, but I’m sure someone wouldn’t mind free accommodation in exchange for cat sitting.

Next, how to go? I was thinking by train because, well, I like trains. But Ricardo said that taking buses between stop-offs might be easier (and cheaper) as there are more bus routes. So this would mean flying Sevilla-Santiago and later flying home from San Sebastian. Another option is to find a friend with a car who also fancies this summer adventure…

And so, it’s all up in the air and depending on many, many things, but it’s very exciting to think about. I’ve never had a summer holiday like this before.

Have you got any summer travel plans?

summer returns

07 Wednesday Sep 2011

Posted by in sevilla, spain, summer, weather

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

, , ,


Last Friday afternoon I took a taxi from the hospital to the Plaza Alfalfa, a square near my house, so that I could pick up the various drugs I needed at the pharmacy there. While inside the skies opened and this very unsummerlike scene left me stranded while Nog raced home to get umbrellas so I could get home as soon as possible without getting soaked through.

All that week up until Sunday the weather was lovely and fresh, with a couple of rainstorms to clean the air. But this week The Heat is back. At the moment the thermometer reads 32º in my livingroom but I refuse to turn on the airconditioning because another thing waiting for me when I got home was a 173€ electricity bill for August (!!!). I’m still in shock. That is just for one month! And I only used the aircon for maybe three hours a day in August. So for the rest of the summer I’m just going to sweat it out and look forward to the cooler weather to arrive. Though I could do without another rainy winter…

jessica’s birthday night out

24 Wednesday Aug 2011

Posted by in birthdays, food & drink, friends, sevilla, summer

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

,


Had a fabulous evening out with Jessica to celebrate her birthday (which is really on Saturday but, hey, she won’t be here then). In typical Spanish style I was invited out for a meal and we ended up at the most fabulous La Azotea, newly reopened after summer holidays. The food was amazing. And knowing it was Jessica’s birthday Juan brought us cava on the house as soon as we sat down. The original plan had been to go for dessert at Al Aljibe afterwards, but we were both so stuffed we opted for a nightcap cocktail at Roof, the new rooftop bar at the Casa Romana Hotel.

And now to bed. It’s Jessica’s last day in Sevilla tomorrow and we have to get up early to find exquisite olives for her at the market to take home.

happy toes 2011

10 Wednesday Aug 2011

Posted by in animals & pets, cats, food & drink, holidays, Malaga, spain, summer, tapas, travel, trips, work

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , ,

This morning I took my first beach walk, leaving my sandals with a group of elderly women who were hanging out under a massive colourful umbrella, and it felt great. Though at the water’s edge it’s quite slopey, which makes walking in the waves extra difficult. Will have to go out again tomorrow morning as I won’t have time on Friday.

I still don’t know what’s going on in terms of meeting with Victoria and getting some work done, but as we’d only have this afternoon/evening it’s not looking very promising. Ah well, I’m getting lots of other stuff done.

Meanwhile, I got some great news this morning when Nog called to tell me that Azar had had a BM, which meant he didn’t have to be taken to the vet’s for an enema. And as I’ll be back on Friday, I can “do the honours” then if need be. As for the blood test, it’ll be easier for everyone concerned if I’m there too, so that can also wait until I’m back. I was really starting to feel badly because of leaving Azar all week when it turned out I could’ve come out today and saved a lot of worry, but now that it’s turned out okay I can go back to enjoying myself.

Had a nice day yesterday. Went to a new place for lunch called La Cosmopolitana, which had been recommended by Agustín, and it was great! Then I came home to do a bit of work, thinking I’d go to the cinema in the evening. Well, an extra long siesta took care of that plan, so I decided to just keep on sleeping.

The friends I invited to the vineyard tour are coming in to Málaga tomorrow. Still might nip over to Mijas in the morning as I’ve been invited by cookbook author and personal hero Janet Mendel to have a few tapas with her, so may be able to do lunch there and then have dinner out with the gang. Busy, busy, busy…

What have you guys been up to this week?