Category Archives: trips

on the road…

19 Wednesday Mar 2008

Posted by in friends, holidays, trips

≈ 7 Comments

travelling_car.jpg
[written at 12.30pm yesterday]

Writing to you from the top of a mountain somewhere in the Algarve. Was kidnapped picked-up today by Pipocas and her husband CHUCKY (who doesn’t like having his name mentioned on blogs – this is my revenge 😉 ) and driven up a very long and winding mountain road until I thought I was about to lose my brekky.

Nature all over the place. Meh.

Anyhow, just arrived in Cachopo (our destination for some reason) and next to the wee Museo Vivo – where they sell flax products and also show the flax-making process – I found this free internet access place! Interesting combination of high-tech inside with chickens pecking and clucking around outside the window.

Have no idea what the others are up to right now, but I know the Kidlet (P&C’s 4-year-old daughter) wants to have lunch soon so I’d better get going. I think we’re having wild boar.

Nog’s laptop can’t pick up the wifi connection at our inn, which is totally gorgeous and charming, btw, so I might not be around again till Thursday night.

Having a great time so far! Especially as we are being threatened with being taken over here for a cold beer after we get back to Tavira… 🙂

off to the algarve!

16 Sunday Mar 2008

Posted by in holidays, life stuff, portugal, trips

≈ 5 Comments

tavira.jpg
An impromptu holiday trip to Tavira!

When Pipocas and I went out for some much needed cold water after our Japanese luncheon the other day she mentioned that she was going to Tavira during Semana Santa with her husband and 4-year-old daughter and asked if Nog & I would like to come and hang out with them for a couple of days while they were there. And well, I’ve never been to the Algarve and Tavira is very close to the Spanish border (and also accessible by bus) so I started looking into this possibility . . .

Continue reading →

gibraltar, here I come?

12 Wednesday Dec 2007

Posted by in christmas, clothing, holidays, life stuff, retail therapy, trips

≈ 3 Comments

gibraltar.jpg

Will it be third time lucky???

As I mentioned on the travelling plans post, my friend Carmen has very generously offered to drive me to Gibraltar to buy underwear at Marks & Spencer, but the date has been moved up to this Saturday instead of the 22nd. And really, not a moment too soon given the very sad and sorry state of my knickers. Of course given my bad luck with having tried to get to this place twice in the past (mentioned here and here) I probably won’t believe it until I’m actually through passport control and walking through the M&S front doors on Saturday morning.

Anyhow, I’m getting quite excited and also plan to stock up on mince pies if they have any. And maybe a sweater or two. Oooh, and some socks. . .

f_cracker.gif

travelling plans

29 Thursday Nov 2007

Posted by in holidays, life stuff, nablopomo, trips

≈ 6 Comments

car.gif

Suddenly we seem to be going everywhere! (well, maybe)

Yesterday I mentioned that Nog & I might be going to Granada over the holidays. Since then even more travel ops have turned up! f_bigeyes.gif

Today my friend Carmen said to me that as her husband will be working on Saturday 22 December, she thought this would be a good day to drive me to Gibraltar so I can finally buy some underwear. It’s no joke – ever since Marks & Spencer closed I’ve had to get my knickers sent to me from friends in England as M&S doesn’t deliver outside the UK. My two previous botched attempts to get to the M&S store in Gibraltar have been mentioned here and here. But Carmen has never forgotten my plight and so it looks like I’ll be getting new knickers for Christmas! f_somersault.gif Oh, and also see Gibraltar.

Then another friend Paco told me he’s going to be driving to Lisbon the weekend of December 28-30 because he wants his girlfriend to see the city in winter all decorated for Christmas. And Nog and I have been invited along because Paco knows how we fell in love with the place when we went there last June.

The planned Granada trip is also going to be with Paco as he and his girlfriend often go there to ski during the winter, so apparently we’ll have several weekends to choose from. Paco says they can just drop us off in Granada on Friday evening before they head up to the mountains and then pick us up Sunday on their way back to Sevilla.

And then, while I was talking about possible ways to sell some of our natural clothing stock this spring, it was suggested that I go down to Marbella. Carmen said she was there not long ago and there were several boutiques selling similar looking stuff, so I might have some luck there. And I remembered that my friend Manolo had offered Nog & I the use of one of his holiday apartments in Marbella for a weekend (well, as long as it isn’t booked) and said he might even be able to drive us there and back as he often goes to Málaga at weekends.

And so suddenly there are four possible trips to think about, none of which should cost much. In fact, all of them together should cost less than our Lisbon trip did. And since we’ll only be away two nights max (and no nights when we go to Gibraltar) we won’t have to worry about a cat-sitter. Ohhh, this is quite exciting! Hope it all works out as this would certainly make the coming winter months a lot more interesting. 🙂