papelería ferrer

23 Friday Aug 2019

Posted by in sevilla, shopping

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Over the past few years Sevilla has lost several of its landmark independent shops (and bars), usually replaced by tacky souvenir places or chain stores. Papelería Ferrer, founded in 1856, is one of the last ones still standing. It’s important for us to support these places, and not just lament the loss of them after they are gone. Though I do wonder if it’s inevitable, especially when owners die and there is no family member to take over. Of course in other (most?) cases it’s a case of rents skyrocketing and these small businesses not being able to afford to carry on. So perhaps the most realistic thing is to just enjoy and appreciate these wonderful places while we still can.

dishwasher 101

22 Thursday Aug 2019

Posted by in casa azahar, cats

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

, ,

I remember being all excited when I moved in to the present Casa Azahar two years ago and saw there was a functioning dishwasher. It certainly came in handy after moving and unpacking. After that I stocked up on dishwashing pods (2 for 1 offer! because man, those things are expensive) but after an initial flurry of frequent-ish use, I stopped. There just never seemed to be enough washing up to justify using it (though my friend Gabriella tells me they actually use less water than washing a few things out in the sink).

Anyhoo… earlier this month I wanted to use it but it had been, um, maybe a year since the last time? So I put some stuff in that I don’t eat from (dish draining tray, utensil holder, etc) to put it through a cycle to clean the thing out first. Then I was going to use it again yesterday and wondered if I should run it through a cycle again first as it had been three weeks. So… halp!

If a dishwasher isn’t being used frequently, how often should it be cleaned out by running it through a cycle? Or does it have to be? Also, those detergent pods I stocked up on? They’re looking kind of weird now. Do these things go off?

summer house temps

21 Wednesday Aug 2019

Posted by in sevilla, spain, summer

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

, ,

Translation to celcius for this tweet linking to a New Report on recommended temps for energy efficiency. It caused a huge Twitter fuss with everyone saying how high these temps were, that babies would die, etc, etc.

· 25.5C when you’re home
· 29.5C when you’re not home
· 27.5C when you’re sleeping

But this looks totally reasonable to me, especially because these are the actual temperatures I live with in summer (when it’s 40ºC outside). I set my A/C to 25C when I am home, if the indoor temp goes above 28C, and it usually settles at about 26C. I turn it off when I’m not home, and then it can hit 28-30C, especially during the afternoon. If I’ve been out in the evening I cool the place down for about an hour before bed and when I get up in the morning it’s usually 26-27C.

And even this costs me a small fortune. My gawd, if I left the thing on all day and night I’d be broke. At night a fan is enough, and I also have a fan going in the living room when the A/C is on to move the cool air around. How about you?

triana sunset

20 Tuesday Aug 2019

Posted by in sevilla, sevilla staycation

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

,

Have pretty much been “off work” this month. By this I mean no tours, but as usual I keep busy working on other things. No money coming in though, so I’ve been having a staycation and enjoying some nice lazy days. Even getting some reading done! And I take a walk every day, either morning/midday or in the evening. Much cooler in the evenings, and I get to see scenes like this. How’s your summer going?

plaza de españa

19 Monday Aug 2019

Posted by in sevilla

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

,

After my hospital visit the other day I walked home past the spectacular Plaza de España and was reminded of the first time I saw it, back in the autumn of 1993. Most people make a point of visiting what was once the Spanish pavillion for the 1929 Expo, and have probably seen photos of it. But I was just out for a walk and had no idea what to expect, so you can imagine when I turned a corner, looked to my left and went …. OMG.

I’ve always been glad that it happened that way, taken by surprise. And it still takes my breath away.