Tag Archives: friends

christmas is over

05 Tuesday Jan 2016

Posted by in christmas, friends, holidays, home, sevilla

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christmas is over

So that’s it for another year. This was a very unChristmassy Christmas at home – more than usual I mean, given that my flatmate is a Grinch. Also, my tree lights died, I had no friends over for Christmas meals (though I did get to enjoy some time with this fab family on Christmas Day), and I didn’t get around to seeing any of the special Christmas events around town. But that’s okay. I have a feeling that next Christmas is really going to sparkle. Lots of changes coming up in 2016. Looking forward to it! 🙂

hope 2017

03 Sunday Jan 2016

Posted by in cancer, friends, hope, life stuff

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hope 2017

Continuing with the “tradition of hope” that began back on January 3rd 2009 when I posted my first ever Photohunt entry. The theme that week was “hope” and I put up a photo of my daybook turned to January 3rd 2010 with the words “STILL HERE!” written on it. I had finished a second stint on chemo just a few months previously and hoping felt like a very bold thing to do. Since then I have posted a similar photo on this date and – as ever – I hope with all my heart that I’ll be here to turn the page and see this next year.

Since I joined the “5 Year Club” marking five cancer-free years I am now down to one PET scan a year (instead of every 6 months) but I still feel just as tentative writing this as I always have. So I hope to see you back here for Hope 2018.

lucky grapes

31 Thursday Dec 2015

Posted by in christmas, friends, holidays

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grapes

I can’t remember the last time I went out on New Year’s Eve! But the other day a friend called and said she and her husband were having family and a few friends over for dinner and drinks, and that they’d love me to come. So off I went and I had a wonderful time. And I got to eat my 12 lucky grapes at midnight – another thing I haven’t done in years. The last one was a bit tough to get out of the glass, but I managed to munch it down before the last bell tolled. Lucky me!

Wishing you all a wonderful 2016!

girl power

30 Wednesday Dec 2015

Posted by in andalucia, tapas tours, welcome

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girl powerIt was a great week with Tomoko visiting from Jerez. We got to hang out a lot, talk a lot, and I also introduced her to some Sevilla friends. Best times were hanging out with other chicas (Aldara from We Love Tapas and Eva from I Show U Sevilla), which naturally turned into impromptu brainstorming sessions.

g power

Tomoko is busy starting up her own food & wine tour biz in Jerez, Tomoko Tours, specialising in promoting sherry experiences to Japanese visitors. Together we are working on setting up a network to support and promote each others tours, which will also extend to northern Spain and Portugal. Go us!

turning japanese…

28 Monday Dec 2015

Posted by in food & drink, friends, sevilla, sherry

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japanese lunch (3)chef Kosei Takakura

…at least for a day. One of the things I miss living in Sevilla is that there is very little good international food here, especially Asian food. Sure, there’s a “sushi bar” on practically every corner these days, but you can imagine what they’re like…

So when my friend Tómoko said she was coming to Sevilla with other friends from Jerez to have lunch at a Japanese restaurant run by a chef she personally knows,  I reckoned it would be the real deal. And it was.

japanese lunch (1)TĂłmoko preparing our shabu-shabu

We had a wonderful selection of sushi, sashimi, shabu-shabu and other things I can’t remember the names of. All delicious. But what made it extra special for me was that sauces such as wasabi, ponzu and yuzu-koshou were all made from scratch by chef Kosei, and they were outstanding. Unfortunately, this delightful discovery will soon be no more as Kosei is off soon to try his luck in Málaga. But hey, I can always catch up with him there.

japanese lunch (2)pringá for dessert!

After lunch TĂłmoko and I decided that the rest of the gang couldn’t leave Sevilla without trying Bodeguita Romero’s award-winning pringá montadito, so we popped across the street and shared pringás with some lovely sherries for our “dessert”. It was a great afternoon and I’m happy that TĂłmoko is spending a few days here with me in Sevilla. I’m sure I’ll be posting more of our adventures here during the week.