Sunday with friends and family, Nadal the king of Flushing Meadows, publishing contract signed, Fátima came to visit, waiting for Elliot and other stories.

Sunday, 15th September, 2019

With my dear Lebanese friend Rania at home last Sunday

Hi my friends.

Here I am again reporting on my week or should I say our week as this blog is not just about me but about my family.

Last Sunday was a wonderful day with family and friends and quite unexpectedly so too. The girls had invited their dearest friend, Copi, who they have known since they were 3 and 4, and Ana or Anita as we call her. Anita was Oli's friend at University but she also lived with Suzy in London for 2 years. Both girls are in many ways part of our family.  Thus I had to rush to make lunch for 8; the five of us, the two girls and Lucy our carer. For the record I made broccoli and mushroom soup for starters and meat loaf with mushrooms (again) and rice with home made tomato sauce for the second course. 

Both girls brought great news. Copi has become engaged to Unai and we look forward to her fairy tale wedding in 3 years time. Ana's news was far bigger. She has just got over Hodgkin's lymphoma after 7 months of intense and dreadful chemotheraphy treatment. We are so happy for her. At just 36 and one month after her last session, she is free of cancer, he hair is growing and she is beginning to not only enjoy life but to relish it. She told me that after such an illness her outlook on life has completely changed and now she understands what is important in life and what isn't. Cancer has made her strong. 

It was another lovely sunny day and on Sunday Oli insisted we eat outside, despite the wasps that would attack our food hahaha. And here are the four girls just as we sat down to what would be a wonderful meal and not only because of the food.

The four girls united. At the back Suzy. At the front from left to right: Oli in stripes, Copi in the middle and dear Anita on the right. 

It was a long lunch with plenty of chatter and laughter. I later took a short nap while the girls convened to the pool. 

Our Honduran guests had gone into Madrid so we had the house to ourselves. I was sorry for Josefina, her husband Oscar and son also called Oscar as when they arrived it felt like they had arrived on Mars or on the Moon.  They came quite unprepared with no adapters for their devices and sim locked phones and of course no hired car. They couldn't even use Uber for transport as it won't respond to a Honduran telephone number. I ended up using my Uber account to order and pay for a taxi for them to go to Madrid. I gave them my tips on what to do in Madrid including a walk to the main points of interest in the city and wondered all day long how they had got on. Finally at night I got a message from them to say they were eating out and would be home shortly. They had got a phone and Spanish sim card for their 41 year old son, Oscar, and finally a Uber account that worked. Their next mission would be to find accommodation for Oscar for his year here while studying at the UEM University.

Later I joined the girls and was so happy to see them together, enjoying little croissants Copi had bought which they had with "nocilla", the Spanish equivalent of Nutella and very much a childhood treat. They used to love it as kids. Here they are together.

The four girls on Sunday afternoon

But I was to have my own visitor too on Sunday. In the afternoon, my Lebanese Airbnb friend, Rania, who lives in Brussels, was in Spain to settle her son, Jo, into his new residence near where we live. Last year she came with him to find accommodation and they stayed with us for 10 days. We immediately felt a connection and soon became friends. She returned with her husband and youngest son, Raphael, in October but I hadn't seen her since. She came armed with a beautiful box of delicious Belgian chocolates which I fed my father with every day this week. He loved them.

It was just great to see Rania again. We had lots to catch up on and it was nice for once to have a friend come and see me. I remarked later to Suzy that night that it was such a pity that nearly all my real girlfriends live abroad. I was thinking of my dearest Sandra, Adele, Kathy, Anne and Amanda and of course Rania. Oh I do miss them and don't see enough of them. If only I had them near me. Rania and I sat and chatted for hours. I told her about this year's project, my father's book, all the work that had got into it and of course I gave her a signed copy. I showed her the photos, all his cards and the English press clippings. Eladio came up to see us and commented that I was doing my "propoganda" hahaha. Later, Miguel, who had had lunch with his nephews, soon to be Elliot's cousin, arrived and as he is our official photographer, he took a photo of Rania and I. It's the photo I have chosen for this week's feature photo. You can see we are sitting happily and relaxed together by the pool enjoying each other's company.

Rania was going through a bad patch as her sister had just been diagnosed with breast cancer and a 6 cm tumour. She was worried stiff that it would have spread and would be nervous and upset until they got the results of the biopsy later in the week when she was back in Brussels. I was so pleased to hear later that it had not spread. Thank goodness for that.

Everyone was staying for dinner so it was all hands on board in the kitchen later to make the meal. Rania, feeling quite at home and knowing my kitchen well, gave a helping hand. We had a very Spanish dinner, gazpacho, various hams, salad and the 4 small tortillas. We had to have two photos taken so that I would be in one and Miguel in the other. I don't like selfies of a huge group of people as the person taking the photo ends up with a big head. Samsung, you have to improve the selfie camera. Here they are.

A very happy dinner with family and friends

If at lunch Copi had brought bread, pastries and mini croissants and Anita had brought more bread and also ham and salami, Rania, as I said,  had brought her delicious Belgian chocolates. They were the icing on the cake of dinner that night except that I was good and didn't taste even one as I want to stick to my diet and shed the weight I have put on. I was told they were delicious and they certainly looked it. I saved some for my father who is a great chocolate fan and I have to say that Belgian chocolate is the best.

It was  happy bunch of people around the table all talking a mixture of Spanish and English. It was a night to remember. But, as usual, all good things come to an end and at around 10.30 our guests began to leave. We gave them a great send off accompanying them to the street, hugging each other and waving them off. We won't see Copi for some time now as she lives in Vitoria in the north of Spain. As to Ana, I hope we see her soon again. Rania I would see for lunch the next day before she returned to Brussels on Wednesday.

While we were having our dinner, a great tennis match was being played in New York, the US Open final at Flushing Meadows. The two finalists were Spain's Rafa Nadal, the world's current number two player and the Russian player Medvedev the number 4 seed. Rafa who already had 3 US Open titles was looking to win his 19th Grand Slam, just one less than the man with the most grand slams, Roger Federer. The match started at 10 pm US time so I only got the news the Spaniard had won his 4th US Open the next day. I was so pleased. To judge by the score; 7-5, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4, the match must have been absolutely thrilling and both men must have felt exhausted at the end. In Rafa's case, exhilarated as well. Here he is lying on the court and savouring his victory. What a great ambassador he is for Spain and Spanish sport.

Rafa after winning the US Open on Sunday night

For the record, Federer has 20, Nadal now 19, Djokovic 16, Sampras 14 and Roy Emerson 12. It's obvious the two best players in the history of tennis are Switzerland's Roger Federer and Spain's Rafa Nadal. Aged 33, he can still win more and who knows maybe even beat Federer's 20 titles and become the tennis player with the most Grand Slams ever. Another statistic for you is that amazingly the 3 big players, Nadal, Federer and Djokovic, between them have won the last 12 Grand Slam tournaments.

I don't think it was broadcast on TV so we did not see the match when we went to bed. In any case I would have found it so nail biting so doubt I couldn't have watched it. Instead we carried on with our silly series "Traición".

Our Honduran guests arrived home ok which I was glad about. That day I got another reservation for October, this time from two German girls coming at the beginning of October. Our house receives guests from all over the world. I commented to Suzy that day, that of course money was the reason we do Airbnb, but that there was  a lot of enjoyment in hosting precisely because we get to meet and know people from all the corners of the world and to make new friends, like Joanne from Lancashire or dear Rania. I'm so glad I embarked on my Airbnb adventure when I started my new life after Yoigo. 

Monday came.  It didn't feel as though it would be a particularly interesting day but it certainly turned out to be one. With no sign of Elliot that day, off we went for our walk in the morning. I had to work when I came back and had a video conference call using my new PC. The call was made on Google Hangouts which on my new computer finally worked. It's a marvel and I prefer it to Skype. Try it my friends, it's great.

It was that morning that my Facebook memories reminded me of photos I had posted a year ago. I always love looking at the memories to see what I had posted on that day in the past 10 years. One was of me with Olivia, a babe in arms, at the Retiro Park. I thought, soon it will be her with a babe in arms. This is it and I love it.

There was another one too that I particularly like. Taken in 1993 when I was 36 and Olivia was 8, she is holding one of our beagle puppies that she had dressed up as a doll. The photo was taken in our kitchen in the old house in Río Tajo in nearby Boadilla. We used to breed beagles and the girls adored the puppies. I can hardly recognise myself in the photo but I can certainly recognise little Olivia who was beautiful even then just aged 8. It's a wonderful memory of the past. Here we are. Eladio said he didn't recognise me in the photo. Oh dear, I wish he did as now that I look back at it, I can see I was quite a good looking young woman. To think then I was just 1 year older than Suzy is now and 2 years older than Olivia now. Wow, where did the time in between go?

Olivia and I aged 36 and 8 at our old house in Río Tajo in 1993. 

For once on Monday I didn't have to cook. I was going out for lunch with my dear friend Rania. Thus the men would have Sunday's leftovers.  Rania arrived at 2.15 or so and we got into my Mini and drove to a restaurant in Boadilla. We ended up having lunch at El Kiosko, a popular place which gets very full at the weekends but was quiet on Monday. We ate outside. Unfortunately and surprisingly for me, I had left my phone in the  car so there are no photos of our time together that day. We spoke mainly about Rania's family. She was very upset about her sister. I told her she would have to be both positive and brave when she returned home this week. That's why I was so glad to hear the good news later in the week. She will have breathed a huge sigh of relief.

I came home to find a quiet house. Our Honduran guests were out. I spent some time at my desk dealing with emails. I then did something I had been thinking about for a while. I wanted to know if little Elliot, my future grandson, would be entitled to British citizenship from his mother, Oli who is a British citizen because, I, her mother am British and was born in England. I had to ring the Passport Office and then the Home Office. It is the latter that deals with applications for citizenship but it was impossible to talk to anyone as everything was automated. I finally found the answer to my question hidden deep in the UK Government website. I was totally deflated by reading the following words:
"A child born outside the United Kingdom will not be a British citizen if neither parent is a British citizen otherwise than by descent. A parent who is a British citizen by descent cannot  pass that status on." I finally understood that my children could be passed on citizenship through me but that, unlike in Ireland, it only works for one generation so they cannot pass on their citizenship to their offspring. Oh how unfair I thought. I was very disappointed, my family less so. I read also though that if Elliot had been born in the UK to a British citizen even through descent then he would have been automatically a British citizen. Suzy later remarked just how racist Britain is. Her comment hurt me but she has a point. Eladio remarked later that Elliot would be a very good Spanish citizen. Well, of course.

 A bit down, afterwards I went upstairs and outside to the sunbeds by the pool to read my book, the Lives of the Mountbattens. It was then that I got an email from my London publisher that would change my mood.  It was to sign and return the contract after my input, some of which came from a lawyer friend, Mónica and a publisher friend, Javier. I was amazed to see they accepted each and every clause change proposed by me. Thus I signed it and sent it off. I did so alone feeling rather brave. Have I done the right thing? Will my book even have a chance in England? But I had to try and only time will tell. I got Eladio to take a photo of me smiling with the contract in hand.

Smiling after signing the book publishing contract

There will be a lot of work to do now before the book becomes available in bookshops in the UK but I know it will be an interesting experience and of course I shall put my heart and soul into it.

Later at dinner, we didn't exactly celebrate but I was on a high. I told Suzy that if I hadn't done it, I would always have regretted the chance to get my father's story published in England. She agreed. I had hardly seen her all day as she had been busy with her classes but we caught up a bit over dinner. Just as we were finishing our Hondurans arrived. They had got over feeling a little lost and stranded as they now have a Spanish phone and sim card, can use Uber and more importantly have found accommodation for their son Oscar. The mother, Josefina, promptly sat down with us and asked if she could share our melon! We were a bit taken aback but could not refuse hahaha. She does talk a lot.

We were in bed late that night but not too late to watch the end of our series Traición.

Tuesday came and there was still no sign of Elliot who no doubt is getting bigger and bigger. Poor Oli.  The day started with our walk with Suzy and my goodness how we noticed that the temperature had dropped. Mercury would not rise above 22c that day. It was the first day I wore jeans since our trip to the UK. I'm glad I'm on a diet as I can't get into all of my jeans - how frustrating. After our walk it was food shopping time to Carrefour Market and Mercadona. We were home on time to make lunch which was a quiet affair with my father.

I didn't do much in the afternoon. I had meant to press on with something a bit urgent but put it off - I should not procrastinate - and sat down in the lounge to carry on reading my book on The Mountabattens. Lord Louis does not really come out in a good light I'm afraid even though he is a sort of Royal national hero in the UK. Talking about the UK, the images coming out of Westminster in the closing down ceremony were quite appalling. But I have to admit I was admiring of the speaker who was standing down, John Bercow. What a speaker and I mean it in the two senses of the word. The House of Commons is losing a lot without him. I don't know whether he is a remainer or a leaver but I think he is the best politician we have or at least the one who makes us all sit up and listen and laugh. I love his sense of humour.

That afternoon my dear Uni friend Adele who lives in Orleans in France where she is a University teacher of English rang me. We hadn't spoken since our girly weekend in Brussels in March when we stayed at Sandra's. Would you believe we spoke for 1.5 hours. It was just great to talk to one of my best friends. Later I moaned to Eladio too just how much I miss my closest girlfriends who all live abroad. You are Amanda, Sandra, Adele, Kathy and Anne and I only wish you lived here.

The evening was quiet, Suzy was out at Oli's, our Hondurans came home but didn't use the kitchen and we only saw Andy while having our dinner. Later we started watching a new series on Netflix, The Spy which we found promising.

Wednesday came and the cold front which had affected other parts of Spain, seemed to make its appearance in Madrid that day and temperatures were down again to 22ºc which is unusual for this time in September.   Wednesday was the 11th September and the 18th anniversary of the terrible terrorist attacks in the US. As everyone else, I shall never forget that most terrible terrorist attack, one of the worst in history. For me it symbolised the start of a new world, a world of uncertainty, a new type of war where attacks from fanatical Muslim groups can happen at any time in any part of the world. It's hard to fight. It doesn't bear thinking about but it is today's reality.

That morning I had lots to do and as soon as I was back from my walk I went straight to my desk. I had to prepare for sending a press release for a customer on Thursday and I also had to re-do the corrections and additions to the latest manuscript of my father's book which will be like a second edition as I have added so much since I first self published on 1st May. At 1.30 I had a video conference call with Russel, the Senior Editor of L.R. Price Publications my London publisher. We had been exchanging emails for quite a while. It was good to put a face and voice to an email address. I really liked Russel who was very complimentary about my book. He explained that they had chosen it because of its timeless value from a historical point of view. In an email later he wrote "thanks for sharing your wonderful book with us". I was flattered. Really, I have him to thank for taking it on. During the call he explained what the publishing process will be all about and it seems it will take a while; even up to a year. That's a lot for an impatient person like me hahaha. Later I sent him the updates and corrections in the format he had asked for. I imagine the next steps are hearing from the editor who will go through the manuscript. In one of the clauses in the contract I have made sure they include that they will not change the style of the book and that I will have veto rights on any changes they propose to make.  This is all very exciting but will take a while, so I have to sit back for the moment as the ball is in their court right now.

I told my father at lunch about the latest on "his" book and he was very pleased. Suzy joined us for lunch as that day her lessons to Chinese kids finished earlier than usual. In the afternoon I worked for 2 or 3 hours and when I felt free of commitments, went outside to finish my book on the Lives and loves of the Mountabattens.

My friend Fátima was coming that afternoon to see me although she didn't arrive until 7 pm. It was great to see her. She gave us an update on how her cancer treatment is going. She was diagnosed with stage 4 bowl cancer over 2.5 years ago and is fighting it like a lioness. I can only admire her. We sat and chatted on the benches in the kitchen patio enjoying the last rays of sunshine. Eladio joined us and I got him to take a photo of the two of  us with our dogs; old friends reunited. We have been friends since we met at Motorola in about 1991 nearly 28 years ago.

Fátima and I with our dogs, Pippa and Chispi on Wednesday

That was  when we were young and beautiful but not really aware of it. We were close colleagues. At the time Motorola sponsored a cycling team and we were both very involved in the sponsorship. I have a photo of the two of us when we were at the famous Paris Roubaix race which I treasure. This is it. See the difference 30 years makes to a face and body my friends, but not to our hearts, spirits and souls. We are still the same people and still friends. That is what matters I tell myself hahaha.

Fátima and I in a photo at the Paris Roubaix cycling race about 30 years ago!

She stayed for dinner which we had in the kitchen as it was too cold to eat outside. I do hope the cold front goes away and the warm weather comes back.

That night we continued watching the new series on Netflix which we had begun the day before; The Spy. It's based on the life of Israel's top Mossad agent, Eli Cohen in Syria and is well worth watching.

Thursday came and still no sign of Elliot. I was getting a little worried. Everyone was asking us for news but we would have no news until Friday.

Thursday was a work day for me. I had to send out a press release for my customer Adamo, the Swedish fiber internet operator. It was the announcement of a new CEO, the story of which had been leaked by another paper a couple of weeks ago. That would prove to be a hindrance for getting press coverage as the news was out. Also it wasn't exactly breaking news for the telecom media. It was much more important for the staff. I spent all morning on that and part of the afternoon.

It was a warm but windy day. In other parts of Spain the cold front produced havoc. On the south east coast, aka, the Costa Blanca, the area was experiencing the worst floods and storms since records began. I couldn't believe what I was seeing on the TV. That was indeed freak weather. 6 people have died and perhaps the worst hit town was Orihuela in the southern area of Alicante. Luckily in Madrid we were not affected although rain was forecast for the end of the week. It came yesterday and has rained all night. The main news in Spain this week was the weather, the freak floods in the South East and in Málaga with unprecedented damage. The images were shocking and my heart went out to the victims, their families and everyone affected.

We enjoyed the warmer weather her though that afternoon siting on our lovely wicker sofas by the pool and reading. Here is Eladio. See if you can spot Pippa with him.

Eladio and Pippa by the pool on Thursday afternoon

Having finished the book about the Mountbattens, I began reading a book which might surprise you. About the real story of the investigation of the Yorkshire Ripper, it is not my usual genre but the news of the book piqued my interest. That's because when he was killing and attacking women in West Yorkshire I was living there. His first known murder was in 1975, the year I finished my A levels. He went on killing and attacking until he was caught in 1980. Only women living in that area during those years will have any idea of how frightening that was. I remember my father taking me to the bus stop to keep me safe. I remember hearing warnings such as "trust no man, not even your father or your brother". I remember looking at men on the trains and buses  frightened they may be the ripper. I think one of his last victims was a student from Leeds University where my mother taught. A few days later I was at a hospital in Leeds for some reason and there were warnings everywhere. When they eventually caught the evil man, I was stunned to learn he lived just up the road from us in Heaton in Bradford. The book, Wicked beyond belief - the hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper - by Michael Bilton, centres on what went wrong in the investigation. He was able to write the book only after files on the case became available not so long ago. Thankfully, Sutcliffe, who was given a 30 year sentence, is safely locked away in Broadmoor and despite his plea to be released after fulfilling the sentence  was not deemed safe enough to let out. I hope he ends his days there. What fear he put into me at the time and everyone around me. I shall never forget that period of my life.

The day ended quietly with Eladio and I having our dinner on the table on the kitchen patio. I went out to the swimming pool terrace just afterwards and was rewarded with a stunning sight. There was a full moon and its reflection on the pool. Let me share a picture of that moment with you.

The full moon reflecting on the pool on Thursday night

Once in bed  we continued watching The Spy on Netflix until we fell asleep.

Friday came. That day after our walk, with work out of the way, I went to the hairdresser to get my roots done and have a hair cut. I walked out looking good I suppose but it was raining. Eladio came to pick me up as Suzy had my car. With a plastic bag on my head I dashed into the passenger seat. The rain had reached Madrid finally and it was the first rain in a long long time.

That morning Oli and Miguel were at the hospital for an appointment. Oli's due date was a week over and we were anxious to know the opinion of the doctors. Well, the news was that if she didn't go into labour this weekend, she would have to be admitted into hospital on Monday morning at 8 am for the birth to be induced. Finally then Elliot is on his way but we still don't really know when he will be born but now it should be very soon. We were happy with the news that Oli and Miguel shared with us when they came for lunch that day. For the record I made one of my youngest daugther's favourite dishes: "cocido madrileño".

After a short siesta I had my afternoon cup of decaf tea which I enjoyed while reading my book. It was quite cold outside and I had to wear a warm dressing gown. Later I was joined by Josefina and Oscar, my Honduran guests and we chatted for a while. They told me they loved our house and that we are privileged to live here. Because I live here I don't really see it but of course the house is amazing.

It was Friday night and Oli suggested we go out to dinner. I didn't really want to break my diet but I did want dinner out with my family so off we went. They chose "Casa Iván" in nearby Boadilla where we had been before but they hadn't. I have to say the food was lovely. It was at dinner that Miguel showed me some wonderful photos he had taken of Oli and her bump such as this one.

Oli and her bump at 9 months pregnant

I hardly have any photos of when I was pregnant as I thought I looked so awful. My daughter has hardly put on any weight and it's only noticeable on her bump. I put on double when I was pregnant with Suzy - a whopping 24 kilos. In my day we tried to hide our bumps by wearing tent like dresses. Today bumps are considered beautiful and a pregnant woman is nearly revered. That wasn't so in my times and I'm glad things have changed.  We all commented at the end of the evening that that was probably going to be Oli and Miguel's last dinner out for quite a time after Elliot is born.

We were home at about 11.30 and watched more of The Spy.

Saturday came and brought the rain with it but thankfully it only made its appearance after our walk. On my walk I kept thinking about buying a proper smart TV. We use an older flat screen TV and are able to watch streaming thanks to Amazon's little device called Amazon Fire Stick. However it plays up a lot, gets frozen and blocked and I am always fighting with it. So that morning Eladio and I went off to El Corte Inglés in search of an up to date smart TV. We ended up buying a 55 inch Samsung for a reasonable price as there was a 20% discount on TVs that week in El Corté Inglés. I can't wait for it to be installed tomorrow. In the afternoon, I wanted to watch a film as it was raining. The fire stick played up. I ended up spending 1.5h trying to fix it with all the tricks in the book. In the end I had to have Amazon call me and it turns out it is broken. They will be sending me a replacement in 2 weeks time. By then I shall not need it as, hopefully, our new smart TV will have solved all the problems we have when using streaming to watch Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc. Meanwhile we are using my trusted iPad pro, a throw back from my times at Yoigo, and last night finished watching The Spy.

We were alone at home for most of Saturday. Our Honduran guests had gone into the city centre to visit the Royal Palace, Suzy was at Juli's and Oli and Miguel at their flat. No doubt we shall see them tomorrow at the hospital when, fingers crossed, she will go into labour. Waiting for Elliot is our status at the moment. I can't imagine the moment I have him in my arms and only then will I really know and understand what it is to be a grandmother. I asked my father if he was looking forward to becoming a great grandfather and of course he is.

Today is Sunday and it looks like it is going to rain all day. I wonder if we will get our walk in. I do hope so. If not it will be  a quiet day at home. Zena, our weekend carer, is back and today she will be doing the cooking. I bought the ingredients for her to make her signature dish, Russian stuffed cabbage called "gloupsy", a dish both my father and I love.

On a last note, Facebook reminded me today of a memory from 9 years ago. I always love to check the memories as you know. Well it seems 9 years ago today we were in Jordan visiting that most amazing site, Petra, built by the Nabateans probably in  about the 4th century BC. We did so on horseback and wearing local clothes and it was one of the best experiences of our lives. We shall never forget Petra. This is the photo of us on entering on horseback.

Eladio and I entering Petra on horseback 9 years ago today. 

So that's it for the moment folks. As you see this week coming will be all about Elliot and hopefully you too will get to see him in photos in next Sunday's blog post.

Wishing you all the best, cheers till next week.
Masha

80th anniversary of WW2 and my parents role in the war, Boris Johnson defeated in the House of Commons, my new toy and other stories.

Madrid, 8th September, 2019

At my desk with my new toy

Good morning everyone.

How has your week been? Let me tell you about mine.

Last Sunday, 1st September was a quiet day for us. 1st September 2019 was an important date; the 80th anniversary of the beginning of WW2 when Hitler invaded Poland. My father was just 20 at the time and shortly afterwards would enlist in the Navy. I wonder how his family took the news; probably with great alarm. 

My father in his Ordinary Seaman RNVR uniform just after signing up. Later he would become an officer. 

This week at lunch, my father asked me to remind him of the exact date WW2 broke out. I told him that officially it was on 1st September when Hitler invaded Poland but that on 3rd September both the UK and France declared war on Germany. I asked him how he remembered the news of the announcement and he told me his story. When WW2 broke out my father  found himself in Sweden on holiday. His love for Scandinavia had already begun and he had learned some Swedish and Norwegian already then. He had just finished his first year at Cambridge and went hitchhiking in Scandinavia. Hitchhiking was very customary in those days he told me. He had returned to the youth hostel in the small town of Åre in Sweden where he was staying and that was when he heard the news. I asked him what his reaction was. He told me gravely that he had alarming memories of his father’s descriptions of the horrors of WW1 and his hope then was that they would not be transferred to this new war. He had no idea then that he would be witness to what would become the deadliest military conflict in history. His immediate thoughts were that he must return home but it wasn’t easy. He hitchhiked to Bergen in Norway and there were lots of passing cars but they were nearly all full. He told me he cried out to them in Swedish “Har du plats I bilen?” (Do you have room in your car?) and that the answer was nearly always “Nej”. He made it to Bergen eventually and went straight to see the British Consul. There were quite a few stranded British citizens like him that the Consul repatriated to England by boat cost free he told me. 

Once back in Bristol and because of the war, there was no question of returning to Cambridge. He had to sign up as did most young men of his age. Upon his father's suggestion he chose the Navy thinking it was a little less dangerous than the other Armed Forces and after inevitable delays it was not until 8th January that he joined the Navy. If you haven't read the biography about my father where you can find out much more about his role in WW2, this is the link to the e-book on Amazon.co.uk. It's available on all Amazon sites, so just type in my name as the author and bingo you will find it. 

My mother's family would have been worried too in far away Bulgaria where they took refuge after fleeing the Russian Revolution. For her the consequences would be far graver than for my father as because of WW2 the family were scattered all over the world and she would never see her father again. As a child I was brought up on my parents' tales of WW2 which have remained with me always. Particularly alarming were my mother's stories of her flight to Germany to escape the invasion of the Russians in Bulgaria and her frightening time in a prison run by the Gestapo. She wasn't Jewish but because of her Russian origin she was suspected of being an enemy. She was no enemy, just a young woman, running for freedom. She managed to get out of prison just 4 days before the Red Army tanks entered Berlin and escaped to Austria with her two brothers, Sasha and Nicolai.   My mother and her siblings waited for her family to join them from Sofia, going everyday to the train station in Salzburg where they had sought refuge with her Uncle Misha. In the end they never came although they could have got out. It was because of the stubbornness of my grandfather, Dedushka Andrei, an Orthodox priest who decided to remain for his parishioners. Later when the Communist regime took hold, he tried to get out and it was too late. 

When the war came to an end, she was employed by the French Control Commission whose main mission was the handling of displaced people, many of them Russian soldiers who feared being sent back to Stalin's Russia. They would have faced either a labour camp or firing squad. In  many cases she told the Allied Control Commission they were not Russian but Bulgarian or Polish saving their lives. Little did she know that in not so far away Schleswig Holstein, her future husband, my father, was also working for the Allied Control Commission but under the British where his role was to help catch Nazi criminals on the run and to establish a new democratic political party. They both played an important role in the war. 

My mother, Princess Elena Von Lieven, in Feldkirch, Austria, in 1945 just after WW2 finished.

I reflected on all this last Sunday, more than on other days, imagining what it must have been like for ordinary people like my parents when WW2 broke out. How lucky my generation is to have been brought up in war free Western Europe. 

While many world leaders were gathered in Poland to commemorate the start of WW2, we had a very quiet day at home. The morning was spent working and on preparing the house and pool for the arrival of our new guests who were Dutch. We had lunch together as always and just as we finished, Eline, her husband Vincent and one and a half year old, white haired little boy, Johan (not sure of the spelling) arrived at 3 pm on the dot as they said they would. They are a delightful couple and their little boy is very sweet. They spent the time by the pool. 

Meanwhile, Eladio and I took refuge in our bedroom together with Pippa who we had to keep out of the toddler's way as she is petrified of small children and barks away like mad. I watched the end of the documentary, "Diana in my own words".  Although Eladio had told me he wasn't a bit interested, he ended up watching it with me too. 

By then our guests had gone out to dinner. I'm not sure what they would have found on offer as Spaniards have dinner late; from about 9 pm onward if they are going out. Thus we spent time on the sunbeds by the pool. My latest book had me engaged until dinner. Called "Conclave" by Robert Harris it is one of his most famous books. Funnily enough I had hardly heard of him. I was inspired to read the book when I read a tweet by the Master of my father's old College, Selwyn College Cambridge where I learned that Robert Harris was an ex alumni too. 

Eladio and I had a light dinner alone on the kitchen patio and were up in our room by 9 pm to watch the news. Later we continued watching a series on RTVE called "Tración" (Treason); a family saga with a lot of suspense.

Monday came and Monday was the day I went back to healthier eating, so as to shed any weight I knew I had put on this summer. I do not want to go back to my "fat days" and am determined to become slim again. Once I have decided to do something, in general I will stick to it. That's how I am and  have always been.

Our morning started with our daily walk with the dogs. It's great to have the company of Suzy these days before she returns to Bali at the end of October. It was a little chilly and she decided to wear a long sleeved top. I don't know where she dug it out but she came out wearing an old sweat shirt of mine; a Yoigo merchandising relic with the words "Soy Masha" (I am Masha) on it. That had me in stitches. I thought it was hilarious.  Here she is.

Suzy wearing an old Yoigo relic of mine hahaha

It was cool when we started off but by the time we got back it was far warmer. That day the temperatures reached 32ºc. Our Dutch guests went into Madrid that morning. I spent most of it working for one of my customers. Oli and Miguel turned up for lunch which was lovely. The girls and Miguel spent the afternoon by the pool but I was tied up with long conference calls and didn't see much of them. A friend of Suzy's from school, Pilar, a psychologist, came to spend the afternoon. It's so funny to see the two of them together, grown up women when the image I have of them together is as children at St. Michael's school. Pilar joined us for dinner which both girls made while I was busy on my late night conference call.

It was on Monday afternoon that I received the contract from my London publishers. I read it quite a few times and had some feedback to give them.  Before signing it though, I sent a copy to a publisher friend and a lawyer friend to get their opinion just to make sure I'm doing the right thing. I don't have a lot of choice in the matter as this is the only publishing house of those that I have been in contact with, willing to publish it, but I must make sure that what I sign is reasonable. I'm not usually a very cautious person but in this case I must be. Cross your fingers friends and readers.

The day ended quite late and Eladio and I stayed up in bed watching "Traición" until nearly midnight.

Tuesday came, only 2 days to Oli's due date. Would Elliot come on time we all wondered?  Well he didn't as the due date was Friday and it came and went. But surely it will be any time now. Tuesday was a very busy day work wise for me. I also had time to start updating the manuscript of the book about my father for submission to my publisher. Since I self published the first version, I have thought or learned more things that I am now able to add to the book. That finds me quizzing my father at lunchtime. He gets so happy when I ask him questions about the past and told me that that ot is what keeps him going and thanked me for it.  I hugged him, kissed him, told him I loved him and that for me this was pure pleasure.  I never used to hug and kiss my father - it just wasn't done but now that he so old it's a different matter. The story of where and what he was doing when WW2 broke out (told above) was new to me and I had to add  it to the manuscript.

But before work, of course we went on our early morning walk joined by Suzy. Here she is with two of our dogs, Elsa the lab and Norah the beagle. I love the picture.

Suzy on our walk on Tuesday - here with two of our dogs, Elsa the lab and Norah the beagle.

As I said I spent most of the day working on two customer projects and on the manuscript. I had a conference call at 7 pm which finished an hour later. Eladio and I had dinner on our own - the Dutch were out as was Suzy. Oli and Miguel have spent most of the week at their flat and Tuesday saw them attending a breast feeding training session, complete with power point slides, with her assigned midwife!  She showed us some of the slides, mostly about milk extraction and how to conserve it including how to freeze and unfreeze it. Gosh I thought, I never got training like that when I was pregnant.

We caught up with the news on my iPad while eating our meal - very healthy one too; a plain omelet with steamed asparagus. The main international news came from Westminster when Boris Johnson lost the majority in the conservative party. The opposition and some of his own party members voted to take control in the hope of delaying Brexit and above all leaving the EU without an agreement. Events became even more heated the next day when MPs backed a bill to block a no deal Brexit. Johnson had hoped to call elections, too late to stop Britain crashing out of Europe without a deal but that looks as if it is not on the cards either. He has now been defeated on 3 counts and is looking weaker and weaker. But don't underestimate the guy. Anything could happen now.

On the home front, one of the biggest items of news this week was about the disappearance of a former skiing Olympic medalist, Blanca Fernández Ochoa. She comes from a family of skiers and her older brother Paco Fernandez Ochoa was the first Spaniard ever to win a gold medal in the Olympics. Believe it or not I know her or knew her as she once tried to teach me, unsuccessfully, how to ski. It was with a Nokia skiing incentive trip to Baqueira. She left her home in Aravaca, near where we live, on 23rd August and had not been seen since except on security cameras doing some shopping that day or the next. She had told her family she was going hiking in the mountains in the north. The funny thing is she left her mobile behind. Who would go hiking without their mobile I wonder? A few days ago her car was found at a car park in Cercedilla in the mountains of Madrid. Her family thought she may have had an accident but the police were also exploring other lines of investigation. It's a very high profile case. I only hoped she would be found alive. Very sadly, her body was found dead on Wednesday and the world of sport in Spain and elsewhere is in mourning. I was very shocked and my heart reached out to her family who will mourn her for the rest of their lives. The autopsy report has not been released but it is more than likely that she took her own life. How sad.

Later we watched more of our latest TV series, "Traición" the script of which is becoming a little far fetched and were asleep quite early.

Wednesday came. It brought the best international news of the day. Finally the Chinese backed down and gave into the demonstrators in Hong Kong who have been fighting extradition to mainland China. That day the Governor of Hong Kong announced the bill would be suspended (but not withdrawn). That's one could step forward. However, protesters  say it is not enough. They say the territory is supposed to have a separate justice system under one country and that's how they want to see it stay. No doubt then, the protests will continue.

The other big news that day and this week in fact has been about Hurricane Dorian. Later  it made its  way to North Carolina but no longer category 5 before heading for Canada.  First it hit the Bahamas causing such devastation that 90% of the houses on Grand Bahama were destroyed.

Life continued quietly here with no signs of the arrival of little Elliot. I had lots of work to do on Wednesday which kept me occupied much of the morning. Suzy was busy too with both her morning online English lessons to Chinese children with Dada and new face to face lessons with a company called "La Casita de Inglés" where she is teaching 4 year old Spanish children. She is loving it.

We had a very similar day to all others. I managed to get most of my work out of the way in the afternoon and was able to sit under the trees by the pool with Eladio.

Where we love to read in the afternoons

I finished Conclave by Robert Harris - highly recommendable by the way and started on a new book. I am a sucker for biographies as you know and am now devouring the new biography on the Mountbattens, Lord Louis (Dickie) and Edwina his wife. I just can't put it down and am enjoying every page I know. Called The Mountbattens, their lives and loves, it is by Andrew Lownie and contains information never revealed before.

My book of the week

Dinner was alone. Our Dutch family went out, Suzy was at Oli's so we had a quiet dinner together before returning to our chambers to watch the news and then more of our latest series. One piece of news I would never have wanted to read is about the series of accusations of sexual harassment by one of Spain's best ambassadors, Plácido Domingo, one of the most revered figures ever in the opera world. I always admired and loved him and now am feeling so disappointed. "Him too", would you believe it. Well I think we should, however much he denies it. Last month 9 women accused him of sexual harassment and abuse saying he pressurised women into having sex with him. Only one of the women gave her name; the retired mezzo soprano Patricia Wulf. The rest did not dare as they are still working and do not want their career jeopardised. The 9 women claimed his behaviour was common knowledge. The scandal sort of went away but arose again this week when a further 11 women came forward with more allegations against him. Again only one when gave her name; Angela Turner Wilson. The workers at the Los Angeles Opera where Domingo has worked since the 80s, were well aware of his behaviour, tried to shield the younger women from coming into close contact with him. Some of the women have claimed that when they refused his advances they faced losing promotion or even their careers. I am shocked but not surprised but also glad, if this is true and it very much seems to be, that this has come to light. He may not own up but there are too many witnesses for him to get away from the claims. Shame on him is all I can say.

Thursday was to be a busy day.  That morning we went on our walk. I then rushed back as I had to send out a press release at 11 am and have lunch on the go before that and also say goodbye to our lovely Dutch guests, the young couple Eline, Vincent and their toddler son Johan. They were off to Valencia which seems an ever more magnet for tourists. Our next guests, arriving the same day, had been visiting Valencia too and were driving to Madrid and would reach us in the early afternoon. They were  a middle aged couple from New Jersey in the US touring Europe to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. They are originally Indian and are from Calcutta.  They were also a lovely couple.

I didn't get work out of the way until lunchtime or so I thought. After our US guests arrived, I spent time on my PC updating the manuscript of my father's book which I have to get to my London publishers by 1st October. That day I sent them my comments on the publishing contract thanks to feedback from an Spanish publisher friend, Javier and a lawyer friend, Mónica. Their feedback was invaluable. Thank you both.

There is not much more to tell about Thursday. It ended with us in bed watching more episodes of Traición.

Friday came, 6th September and it was Oli's due date to deliver little Elliot. I wondered if he would really arrive that day. But no, he didn't. That day my pregnant daughter had an appointment at the hospital. She was told that not so little Elliot now weighs a whopping 4 kilos. That is 8.8lbs and if he is born in a week or two then his weight will go up even more. There is a possibility that because he is a large baby, Oli may have to have what she doesn't want, i.e. a cesarean. In any case she has another appointment next Friday so let's see although you never know, he may be born before that day comes. We're all waiting in excited anticipation.

On Friday we heard of the death of the ex dictator of Zimbabwe, a man my father thoroughly disliked, Robert Mugabe, aged 95. We also heard that Hurricane Dorian hit the North Carolina coast trapping hundreds after its nearly total destruction of Grand Bahama. Boris Johnson got a further hit that day when The Lords passed the bill to stop a no deal Brexit and when the opposition refused to agree to a General Election which if he won would have given him power to crash exit the EU. I'm very pleased about that. He has no other option for the moment than to ask for another extension from the EU if there is no agreement on a deal before 31st October. That gives Brexit a breather for the moment but who knows what will happen. On a much happier note, Rafa Nadal has cruised through to the US Open final and if he beat the other finalist, the Russian, Medvedev, he would be one grand slam behind Federer's 20. It would also be his 4th US Open title.  With both Federer and Djokovic out of the way, he was the favourite at Flushing Meadows this year. He will play the final today. I am crossing my fingers for him.

My mind was on all this news on our walk in the morning but once home, my mind turned to other things. I was to have a very busy day. That night I had decided it was high time I got a new computer. My 7 or 8 year old Windows 7 HP Pro Book I had inherited from my time at Yoigo is about 8 years old and kept crashing this week. It was getting slower and slower and only one of the USB ports worked. I had no option but to buy myself a PC for the first time in my life. All my others had been given to me at work. So that morning after our walk, I drove the car to El Corte Inglés, Spain's only real department story but always a place to shop with quality. I wanted a PC laptop, not a Mac as I am used to PCs. I chose an HP probably because all my past PCs were HP. In about half an hour I had purchased a 15 inch red HP laptop with a storage memory of 512 gigabytes. I was tempted to buy a 17 inch model with a larger storage memory but thought that the former would be fine for my needs. After all, I only really use my PC for my work which is mostly emails and documents, for my blog and for my writing and storing of photos. I also got a Microsoft Office pack, a McAfee anti virus, an external DVD player, a new mouse and an external USB adapter. I had expected to pay about 1000 euros but paid quite a lot less as the laptop came at quite a good discount.  Ah and one of the deciding factors on the model I chose my friends was its colour - red. I have always had black laptops and was delighted to be the owner of a bright red one. Even the mouse matches it hahaha. This is it. It is also a lot lighter than my old Yoigo PC.

My new PC which I am delighted with.

I was dying to get home and start setting it up but on the way back from El Corté Inglés I had to buy some food for lunch and also concentrate on making the meal when I returned. Our Indian guests were out for the day so it was just us at home that afternoon.

The whole afternoon, apart from an hour long conference call at 17h, was dedicated to setting up my new laptop. That was a new experience too as in the past at work all the PCs I owned had been set up for me. I had the added difficulty of using Windows 10 for the first time and it's rather different to Windows 7 which I am very used to. It took me a while to get the hang of it and to get rid of the dreaded and unwanted Microsoft search engine, Bing. Who wants Bing when you've got Google? By late afternoon my new laptop was ready for using. I had copied all my files from my Windows 7 laptop and had installed all the necessary software.

My new laptop all set up and ready to go and I love it.

I must say I love it and it's a lot faster than my previous computer. No doubt, I shall be writing my mother's story on my laptop. What an honour. I got Eladio to take a photo of me at my desk in our lovely study for this week's feature photo.

In the morning on Friday I had a chat with our Indian/US guests at breakfast  and was rather flattered when Indranil said "oh you're an author". He must have seen my father's book lying around. Me, an author? Well, I suppose I am. Funnily enough, it turns out he is an actor! They are a lovely couple.

I didn't feel like going out to dinner on Friday night. Besides, I had started my healthy diet on Monday and didn't want to break it too soon. It was just Eladio and I for dinner again and we had a delicious prawn and pineapple salad. Later we watched the news and watched another episode of "Tración".

Saturday came.  I was up at 5.30 in the morning. I just couldn't sleep any more. That morning it was only me on the walk. Suzy was busy working and Eladio wanted to mow the lawn. But before my walk, I saw my Indian guests off. They wanted a photo with me; imagine. Here we are, me in my dressing gown and unwashed face hahaha.

Seeing off my Indian Airbnb guests

Indranil later posted a "rave" review which was so nice of him.

Indranil's 5 star review

We didn't have long to prepare for our next set of guests, a family from Honduras! I was also busy organising lunch for 7 as Miguel and Oli were coming. I had to go out and do some emergency shopping and ended up serving them oven baked salmon with loads of vegetables; blue cabbage, green beans and roast red peppers. It was a wonderful family lunch.

I only saw the end of the 3 pm news - equivalent to midday news in the UK hahaha as everything happens later in Spain.  I didn't get my siesta either as I was interrupted by messages, phone calls and at about 4 pm, the arrival of Josefina, her husband Oscar, an gynecologist, and their son Oscar who at the age of 40 has come here to study at the UEM University. I'm not sure I heard right when he said he was going to study nuclear medicine. The three of them are staying here for 10 days and their main mission is to find accommodation for Oscar "junior" who is not so junior. They did not hire a car as they said with a Honduran driving licence they weren't able to do so. Thus they will have to rely on Uber and on buses. I don't see them on buses really as they are a couple in their 70s. But who knows. Out of a sense or responsibility I took them shopping to get food at Carrefour Market. I also took them to a "chino" shop (equivalent to Poundland) to find an adapter for their American 110 volt plugs. Later we realised that they would need a transformer but I wasn't taking them out again in my car. I hope they download Uber soon.

With my afternoon taken up with my guests, it was only at about 7 pm that I was able to relax by the pool with my book. Soon I was joined by the girls who later went for a gentle stroll as Oli needs to walk or so she has been told. Miguel stayed behind reading on one of the sunbeds. Our guests ate their food on the terrace and I had to lock the dogs in the kitchen as otherwise they would have sat by them begging for food hahahah.

We had a little chat with Josefina and her husband Oscar and I told them that their Honduran Spanish was very clear. Often different Latin American accents can be rather strong and different to Castilian Spanish but theirs is very clear. Oscar, the father and gynecologist, told us he had been taught by Spanish Salesian monk so maybe that is another reason his Spanish is so clear and easy to understand. He is very interested in history and soon he and Eladio were discussing the Spanish Civil war. They went to bed early as they had obvious jet lag, the girls and Miguel went to a friend's house for dinner and we were left "alone at home" again. It was another quiet dinner for us and then to bed for more Netflix which Eladio calls "our drug". Well I can think of worse drugs hahaha.

And today is Sunday. Will Rafa win at Flushing Meadows? But, more importantly, will there be any sign of Elliot?  Hopefully by the time I write next Sunday I will be a grandmother. Me a grandmother? Am I that old? Can it be? Well yes it can although I still can't imagine it.

Now friends, this is it for this week. I hope you have enjoyed the read. Cheers till next time,

Masha

To Montrondo for a few days, Boris Johnson suspends Parliament, honey from a quaint house, home again, Gordon the guinea pig; Elliot's first friend, family dinner and other stories.

Sunday 1st September, 2019

Saturday night family dinner at Oli and Miguel's, the highlight of the week

Good morning all. It's 1st September today. How fast the summer has gone or is going. I suppose most of you are back from your holidays. Our main vacation to the UK, Wales and Ireland in June now seems so far away.

Last Sunday saw us home alone again after our Dutch guests left. We had the pool to ourselves and took advantage of it. Suzy had been out all night with her Australian friend whose phone, she told me, was stolen just as they were taking a taxi home. There are so many robberies in the streets of Madrid and Barcelona as there are in many other cities like London or Paris. What a world we live in.

She joined us by the pool and the four of us spent the afternoon reading. As usual we were accompanied by the dogs. Here are Elsa, our lab, Norah, our beagle and Pippa, our miniature dachshund, at Suzy's feet begging for some crumbs from her late lunch. You will be pleased to know they got a morsel each.

The dogs begging for some food

It would be our last day together for a while. The next day Suzy was having friends from London and they would be off to Cáceres to see another friend and wouldn't be back until Thursday. Miguel would be back from Valencia and for good until after his paternity leave and they would be at their flat near the city. Eladio and I, as you know now, would be off to Montrondo. I wasn't really for leaving, preferring to stay in Madrid in case Oli went into labour but Eladio persuaded me as he wanted to see about a leak on the terrace we have here and promised if she did go into labour we would head straight home. I went reluctantly. Thankfully she did not go into labour during our absence. I didn't want to miss a minute of it. 

We left at about 10 am on Monday morning. Eladio wanted to visit his mother too who had a recent fall and is now in a home for the elderly in León. On the bright side we stopped off at Palacio de Bornos for our traditional glass of wine - verdejo for me and sauvignon for Eladio - and plate of delicious ham. That was at 11.30 and would have to suffice as our lunch for the day.

Eladio at Palacio de Bornos on Monday morning

By 1.30 or so we reached the home and went to see Eladio's mother. We were there for about an hour after which we left for Montrondo, about an hour's drive away. I wanted to take Pippa with us into the home but she wasn't allowed. Spain as I always tell you is a very unfriendly country when it comes to dogs. I was sure her presence would bring a smile to the senior citizens and my mother-in-law which of course it would have but I had no option but to take her back to the car. I could have left her tied to a post outside but she hates that and is also at the mercy of dog thieves. Later I was upset to see how hot she had got in the car despite leaving the window open. The poor thing drank loads of water and was soon better but it was a lesson in the dangers of leaving a dog in a car, especially in the summer. 

We arrived in my husband's village to brilliant sunshine. Meanwhile in Madrid there were torrential downpours of rain There was a heavy and unexpected downfall at home in the morning before we left but later in the day the capital was hit by flash floods and hail with streets turning into rivers. It even affected the metro.  Down south, in Campillos, in the Málaga region there were even tornados. We never get tornados in Spain so what happened? Well, people are saying this extreme weather is a sign of climate change and it is of course. Luckily, we were not affected in our neighbourhood. Later the cold front moved east  to the Valencia region, causing  more damage and from there it went to the Balearic Islands after it left the peninsula making its way to Italy. 

But there was no sign of any rain in Montrondo. After unpacking the food we had brought to last us, Pippa and I went on a walk to Murias and back and a bit further to add a kilometre or two to Monday's exercise. The village looked lush and green as it always does but is even more beautiful in sunshine as you can see in the photo below.

The village as seen on my walk on Monday

I came home to read on the new sunbeds in the back garden for about an hour when at 8 pm it started to get cold. Just before I got a message from our new Airbnb guests, two couples from Israel, to say they had arrived. Only Lucy would be there to welcome them in and show them their rooms. Unfortunately though she does not speak English but I heard later everything went smoothly.

8 pm is usually our dinner time so I went in to make it and soon we were sitting at the table enjoying a tuna fish salad. Later we watched the news; mainly about the outcome of the G7 in Biarritz one of the topics being the fires in the Amazon and a bit of a row between Bolsonaro and Macron.  At long last the new President of Brazil, a far right and controversial figure, had bowed down to international pressure and had sent the army out.  However, he refused financial aid offered by France from the EU claiming they had a colonial attitude he would not accept. What a stupid man he is. The Amazon fires affect the world and what's wrong in accepting international aid? Last week I wrote that none of the G7 leaders would bathe in the sea but I was wrong; some of them did, although under heavy security. 

I have no idea what else we watched on TV or Netflix that night as by about 10.20 pm I had fallen asleep on the sofa and Eladio nudged me to go to bed. I slept until 5 but it was too early to get up and luckily I was able to sleep until about 6.30.

Tuesday came and it was another good day weather wise. It was sunny throughout our stay in Montrondo although the maximum temperature never surpassed 22ºc but that was fine with me and a bit of a respite from the heat in Madrid.  After breakfast I set about an important domestic task, changing the sheets in the bedrooms and cleaning all four bathrooms which I hadn't had time to do when we left last time. Later I spent time cooking; something I love to do here. I made home made broccoli and mushroom soup followed by a pork rib stew with potatoes. As usual I made too much and we would be having leftovers at some stage.

I also did some work that morning. I love working from my little study in our house in Montrondo. As there is no one else around it's much easier to concentrate. With work out of the way, I got on with the day.

I slept a marathon siesta with Pips at my feet and we woke up at nearly 6 pm. A cup of tea was in order after that followed by an evening walk in the sun with my husband. The three of us enjoyed the quiet and beautiful walk to the end of Murias and back. It was quite warm and both Pippa and I were thirsty when we entered the village. Pippa headed straight for the natural mountain spring and I followed suit. The water comes straight from the hill tops and is cool and chemical free. Eladio took a photo to capture the moment and I love it.

In Montrondo this week - here drinking fresh mountain water after a walk.

Meanwhile back in Madrid, Oli and Miguel were nesting before Elliot's birth, the right thing to do as they both need a lot of rest to conserve their energy for his arrival, especially my daughter. That day the put up some wall prints to decorate his room. They later sent a photo. I was to see it with my own eyes on Saturday night when we were invited to dinner by Oli and Miguel. 

Everything is ready for Elliot's arrival.

Suzy, being foot loose and fancy free - lucky her - was with her London friends in Cáceres and sent us a photo too. Here she is enjoying the company of her friends and some of their family.  I asked her who was who but never got an answer. No doubt she was having too good a time to look at her phone, for once. 

Suzy having a good time in Cáceres this week

Instead of going straight home from the spring, I meandered off to see one of the villagers, Manolita. I wanted to offer her my condolences for the recent passing away of her brother Isaac. Not so many years ago she lost her other brother and is now the only sibling left. I know the feeling. Thankfully though she has a niece and a nephew with whom she is in close contact. She was making a pie accompanied by her nephew Isaac's wife, Ana, curiously a teacher of English. I had a good chat with both of them until it was time to leave. Really it was time for our dinner.

Dinner was a light affair; scrambled eggs with fresh asparagus. However, I indulged in a glass of red wine we had bought at the Palacio de Bornos which had me nodding off during the news. Thus, once again, we were in bed super early - just after 10 pm. We were too tired and sleepy to watch anything on Netflix that night.

On Wednesday morning I was awake at 5.30. I saw I had some Airbnb enquiries. I cannot ignore them, so after answering them, I was wide awake and got out of bed and went upstairs to our kitchen to have my morning caffeine fix.

It was another quiet day for us but not for the UK. The most dreadful thing happened. Our hard line Brexiter and un-voted for Prime Minister (by the people),  Boris Johnson, just shocked the world when he asked the Queen to suspend Parliament for 5 weeks. His reason? To get on with important government legislation. So, sure, he needs lots of time for that. In reality and although he denies it, what he has really done is to cut short the time needed to debate Brexit and the UK leaving the EU.  I am disappointed the Queen gave him his way. Did she have a choice, I wonder, from her bolt hole in Scotland? How could this happen? Apparently this is allowed in UK Government law, so yes it is legal. It may be legal but in my eyes it is completely immoral. I am furious and am one of those who has signed a petition to stop the suspension. Have you signed it yet? If not here it is.

Boris Johnson and the Queen

I often wonder, between you and me, whether the Queen is for Brexit or against it. I suspect it is the latter but that she had no power to stop Bojo's undemocratic move. I do suspect also that he may well be her least favourite Prime Minister of all those she has worked alongside. But we will never know unless someone one day writes a biography and includes what she thinks both about Boris Johnson and Brexit.

We got on with the day. After some work, I spent the morning reading in the back garden. What a luxury and what lovely weather. At midday we drove to Murias, the next village. The day before we had spied a small poster advertising locally made honey being sold by a villager. Eladio was not brought up on treats such as chocolates and sweets like most of us were. When he was a child, he lived under Franco's rule and when he was born in 1944 the dictator was at the height of his power and it was not long since the Civil War had finished. Rationing was the norm and although there was more food to be found in the villages, there were no such luxuries as sweets for children or certainly not on a frequent basis. His treat as a child was honey and has been ever since. Thus our home is always stocked with it. We had run out here so when I saw the sign, I rang the number and agreed to come and pick up 3 large jars on Wednesday. It so happened that the family selling their home made honey are from one of my favourite houses in Murias. I have only ever seen it from the outside and have always admired its old fashioned and quaint structure and one of the few houses to have preserved its 19th century style. This is it.

My favourite house in Murias

The style of houses in this area is quite unique and most of the façades are white or stone. Many people in recent years who have rebuilt old houses or built new ones, have ignored the local style and spoiled it by painting houses yellow, pink, orange or even purple believe it or not. They have used modern style roofing not at all in keeping with the style of the past and there are quite a few monstrosities around I can tell you; complete eye sores. But this beautiful house is a sight for sore eyes. Eladio told me it used to be where the local priest lived when he was a little boy. A certain "Don Juan" lived in it and was the priest who baptised my husband when he was born.

On Wednesday I was to see inside it as we knocked on the door to pick up the honey. We were greeted by the owner, a delightful lady called Chus. She showed us around the old house with its quaint patios and old fashioned beams and floors. She took us into the kitchen and lounge which felt like walking into a house in the 19th century. Oh how lovingly she had restored this most singular of houses in Murias. It was the highlight of the day to see inside.  The world is a small place we learned again that day when the owner told Eladio she thought he had taught her sons when he was a teacher of philosophy at a military school in Madrid called El Gran Capitán in the 80's. Indeed it is.

We came home to make lunch - fish and chips was on the menu that day which we wolfed down. After a shorter siesta than usual, Eladio mowed the lawn while I went out for my walk with Pippa. It was a warm evening and I didn't need my cardigan.

We had the old path to ourselves. Here is Pippa charging towards me on the green path.

Pippa charging towards me on the old path 

We did see the odd animal though but not my favourite donkey and pony which must have been in another field. I did see a beautiful white horse though at the end of the village in Murias. I went up to it to take a photo and it came up to be stroked. I would have done so with great pleasure but it was covered in flies; quite disgusting. If I had a horse, I would keep it immaculate like I keep our dogs.

The white horse in Murias 

We saw just one person on our walk back; "Logio" (Elogio), an elderly man who lives in Murias but was born in Montrondo. I nearly always see him on my walk. We always say hello and in a very English fashion, always comment on the weather.

I came home to read a bit more in the sun before it was time for dinner. Back home in Madrid, the girls were entertaining. Suzy was back with her London friends from Cáceres, Oli was there with Miguel and they had invited their bosom pal, Elena, and must have had a splendid dinner on our terrace. Above all Oli was pleased the house was guest free as that day the Israelis had left. Suzy later sent me a photo of the girls together. Unfortunately I was not to meet her friends from London as when we got back they had already left.

The girls and their friends at our house on Wednesday night

We had a simple dinner and then watched the news. I was disgusted with the news of the suspension of Parliament as I told you. Later we watched a British TV series on Netflix, or rather started one: "Requiem" which is a bit slow and by about 11 pm we were both nodding off.

On Thursday morning I was up a bit later but still early; at 6.15. We were leaving that morning. We took it leisurely and were ready to go at about 10.30. Rather than heading straight for Madrid we took a detour and drove to León to visit Eladio's mother. When we got to the home, she was being taken on a walk outside and seemed in good spirits. With Pippa in the hot car, we couldn't stay long so at about 12.30, we set off again. I was dying for a coffee and we found a little bar just on the outskirts of the city and before the motorway. I was very surprised to see that Pippa was allowed in, after all dogs are strictly out of bounds in cafés and restaurants in Spain or so I thought. The owner told me that there was a new law making it up to the owner of the establishment to let pets in or not and that she had chosen to let them in. She was a dog enthusiast and told me she had just adopted a beagle. "A beagle I said. Oh I have to see it". As you know we have a beagle, Norah, and used to breed them in our younger days. What I didn't like seeing was that the poor dog was tied up albeit on a very long leash. The owner explained it was because she was afraid it would run away. The place looked closed up enough to me and I urged her to let it loose. Oh what a sucker I am for dogs.

Soon we were on the motorway and discussing where to have lunch on the way. We decided on the Parador in Tordesillas and that's where we went. It's not one of the most stunning Paradors in that it's not a restored old castle, palace or monastery but it is still lovely as they all are.

The facade of the Parador just outside Tordesillas

Here Pippa was definitely not allowed in. I'm not sure about this new law the lady at the bar in León told me about. So, we left our little dog in the car in the shade with the window partially down. I do wish Spain was a more dog friendly country. Eladio and I love the state run Paradors in Spain and the food on offer at their well run restaurants, even if they are a little slow. Eladio went for a chickpea stew and I went for my proverbial steak and chips. I was served a nice piece of meat but with just 4 chips!! Having quite a lot of English blood in me, I protested, so was brought 4 more! Spaniards don't go much for "sides" with their main meals I'm afraid and the Parador in Tordesillas wasn't much different. On the bright side that was good for my figure hahaha.

We were home by about 5ish to find just Suzy waiting for us. Well, she was sitting at the table outside the kitchen working and we didn't see much of her that afternoon, although she joined us for dinner that night. I had stuff to do but at about 7 pm was able to relax by the pool, take a dip and read a bit. Eladio had to deal with a leak in the water mains which had happened while we were away. It was nice to see my father again and good to hear he had been well looked after.  What was not nice was to see three speeding fines had arrived in the post. They were from our road trip to France where Suzy had driven like Schumacher so I suppose they were not unexpected. Two were from France and one from Spain. All in all I paid about 200 euros, enough to have gone by plane to Bordeaux commented Eladio ironically. I paid them immediately and was impressed with how they do it in France, fast and quick through a special app. Paying the Spanish one was easy too but had to be done talking to a machine on the phone on an expensive number to ring.

The house was clean and tidy, thanks to Lucy and it was also guest free. Our next set of guests are not coming until today; a couple with their baby from Holland.

We lingered too long after dinner to watch the news and thus started on a film on Amazon Prime. However, we soon fell asleep feeling tired from our journey.

Friday came and I had lots to do. I had drawn up a to do list as I often do and that would also include making lunch for everyone including Miguel and Oi who would be joining us.  At the moment I have two press releases in the making so they kept me busy that morning. Thankfully Lucy was on hand to make lunch for everyone. Oli had yet another baby monitoring session at the hospital and all seems fine. Not long now. On her way back she stopped at the post office to pick up a parcel. Very annoyingly, the postal service in this area no longer delivers parcels and you have to pick them up. Soon she had in her hands Gordon the guinea pig who will be Elliot's first friend. My dear friend Jacky had lovingly knitted it for Elliot. It's so sweet and anything handmade for a baby has, in my mind, an extra meaning. It just can't beat bought stuffed toys. So meet Gordon, the Guinea Pig:

Gordon the guinea pig, Elliot's first friend

By lunchtime, my work was out of the way or part of it. Thus I was able to enjoy the family meal. Later we all had siestas and then convened by the pool to read. Thunder threatened and I got caught in a huge rain storm when I went out to do some quick food shopping for dinner and the weekend. Driving home was a challenge as the roads turned to rivers and I was a little afraid. Thank God I wasn't on a motorway. In any case the drive was short and I was home soon with my shopping load.

Oli and Miguel went out to dinner and Suzy preferred to stay at home and have dinner with us. For the first time in ages we had it inside. It was at that time, internet, decided to play up or rather the fixed line connection which meant wifi was not working. I rang the provider to hear a taped message that the line was down as there was an incident in the area. No doubt it was because of the thunder storm. It wasn't restored until the early hours of Saturday. Things never come in ones, they come in twos and threes and it was not only internet that was giving us trouble. The other day there was a water leak and it turns out there is problem with the pipe buried in the garden which channels the water to the house. Various plumbers have been and of course Eladio has been in touch with the Insurance company but so far not so good as it seems the affected pipe is very deep under the garden. That means we are losing precious and expensive water until it is repaired. We now have to wait until tomorrow Monday for a plumber to come with the right machinery to mend the leak. Cross your fingers.

That night we had to watch Netflix using our phones as a modem. We began watching a new series on RTVE, a family suspense thriller but soon fell asleep. I woke up at 3.30 in the morning, looked at my phone to see the time and saw various important emails which I was unable to avoid reading. Thinking about them and the work that would entail because of them kept me awake for at least an hour so I had very interrupted sleep that night.

Saturday came and the atmosphere was cooler after the rain but then all trace of it left and the sun was out again and the temperature reached 34ºc. Saturday was 31st August and the 22nd anniversary of the tragic death of Lady Diana, Princess of Wales. We all still miss her and can never forget her. There are no words to describe the "people's princess" and what she meant to everyone. I remember as if it was yesterday finding out about her death. I think it was a weekend and when I saw the newspaper headlines, I burst into tears. England and the world had lost someone so special, someone we would never forget. She was just 36, 4 years younger than me and I couldn't believe it was happening. Even the girls who were quite small then remember me crying, especially during her funeral which I watched glued to the TV. Maybe one of the most emotional moments was when Elton John sang the newly worded "Candle in the Wind" especially for her which began with the phrase "Goodbye England's Rose". I bought the song and played it over and over again. In fact it would later become my phone's ring tone for many years. Remembering her and prompted by Olivia I have recently watched bits of 2 documentaries on Netflix about her tragic life: "The Story of Diana" with interviews with her brother and "Diana in her own words". The latter is fascinating as it is nearly entirely made up of taped interviews with her so the story is told by her in the first person. I love her voice.  I don't think there will ever be anyone like her again.  I shall always miss her.

Irreplaceable Lady Diana 

But Facebook reminded me of something far more positive yesterday. 8 years ago that day, Olivia made her first live TV report when she worked for a programme called "La Mañana" on TVE. Until then she did lots of behind the scenes stuff and some taped reports but that day was to be her debut as  a live TV reporter. She told us, chillingly,  later that it was her first chance to become one and that if she had got it wrong or made a mistake she would never have been asked again.  It was a make it or break it moment and no doubt she must have been very nervous although that wasn't obvious when we saw her on TV. Thankfully she did it perfectly. Her debut, believe it or not, was with Pedro Almodovar and Antonio Banderas at the press conference for the premiere of the film "La piel que habito". Here she is with the famous Spanish director. She was just 26 at the time and told me yesterday that she didn't wear any make up. Amazing. Since then she has grown professionaly and become an accomplished and successful TV journalist. I was proud of her that day and am proud of her today. I still get a thrill when I see her on TV. What is it about TV I wonder?

Oli with Pedro Almodovar 8 years ago after her first live report with TVE

I remember Suzy and I were so excited and happy for her, we decided to make her favourite food for lunch that day. In those days she worked from 6 in the morning till 2 as La Mañana is a morning programme. We decided to make "croquetas". The problem was we had never made them before and they are fiddly to prepare. But we did it. Here we are proud mother and sister making croquettes for Olivia to celebrate her first live TV appearance.

Saturday was a quiet day after the storm. I had lots of work to do in the morning including drafting a new press release which had me busy until lunch time. I tried to get all my work out of the way so as to be free to read by the pool in the afternoon. I nearly managed it although I had to leave my sunbed and return to my desk a couple of times. While my afternoon was quiet, the streets of England were full of people demonstrating against Boris Johnson's suspension of Parliament. I am so angry with what is happening in politics in the UK at the moment and have been ever since the referendum in which I was not allowed to vote in even though the outcome would affect me a lot.

On a more positive not, last night we were invited for dinner by Miguel and Oli to their house. I wondered to myself whether it would be the last dinner there before Elliot arrives. I was keen to see his new room and all the paraphernalia the couple have gathered, bought and collected for their new baby.

As we were leaving, the dogs were by the kitchen patio looking at us woefully as if to say, "take us with you". We weren't going on a walk so we couldn't and they looked a little mournful and turned their backs on us but not before I had caught them on camera.  Here they are, our little dachshund Pippa, our labrador Elsa and, slightly hidden, our naughty beagle, Norah. I say naughty because she is a food snatcher. Apparently when the Israeli guests were here this week and we were in Montrondo, one night while they were eating at the big wooden table outside the kitchen, Norah jumped up on the table and gobbled down all their food. Poor things. I hadn't been there to warn them to keep the chairs close to the table as if one is pushed out a bit, she can jump on it and then jump from the chair to the table. I'm still dreading their review which they haven't posted yet. Oh dear! Anyway they look very sweet here.

Leaving the dogs behind yesterday when we went out for dinner to Oli and Miguel's

Suzy had gone ahead in my car as she would be sleeping over. On the way she bought some ice cream for dessert. We left a little while later with a bottle of our favourite wine, "Juan Gil". We arrived to find Oli and Miguel in the throes of finishing cooking what looked like a sumptuous meal. It was lovely to be the guest for a change and not the cook which is the norm in our family gatherings and dinners. I took the opportunity to take a proper look at Elliot's room which I loved. I couldn't believe how much stuff they have for him. Suzy and I have been wracking our brains to buy something for Elliot which they haven't got and it's difficult to come up with anything.  Hopefully next time we go to their flat Elliot will be using all the paraphernalia hahaha.

Before we tucked in we had to have the proverbial photo to capture the moment and that is the photo I have chosen to illustrate today's post.  It's lovely. As to the dinner it was lovely too. Miguel and Oli served us stuffed aubergines, octopus with potato pure, croquettes and giant prawns. Everything was made from scratch and was delicious. For dessert there was  a choice between rice pudding (Eladio's favourite - not mine), fruit and ice cream.  On offer was Haagen-Dazs macadamia, Jerry and Ben's vegan cookie and chocolate chip and even coconut. I had to try them all.

Later we all went for a walk around the block or rather behind the apartments which has a lit path at night. We said our goodbyes at around 11 pm with strict instructions to Oli to let us know when the first signs of labour appear.

The house was quiet when we got back and we were in bed by midnight. I was wide awake so watched a bit of the documentary "Diana in her own words" until I fell asleep.

Today is Sunday 1st September and the start of a new month.  I will be busy preparing for our new Airbn guests, a young couple from Holland and their one and a half year old baby which of course means I shall be having to hide Pippa.

I shall sign off now, publish this, give a hard copy to my father and then go on our morning walk.

I wish you all a great week ahead. I wonder if this will be the week that Elliot arrives. It's all so exciting.

Cheers till next Sunday
Masha.