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| Oli with Elsa, both feature in this week's blogpost. |
Hello again
It is Sunday 28th August, nearly the end of the
month and I haven’t written since Tuesday 16th. So sorry for the delay which in part is due
to laziness but also to so much happening that I never found the right moment. So I have lots to tell you in this new
edition.
The weather has changed for the cooler since I
last wrote. We went through a dreadful
heat wave and all we could do was cool off by the pool every afternoon. That was when Eladio’s Mother was here and
even she, who is very sensitive to the cold, complained, although I suspect she
didn’t suffer as much as us. I had to
persuade her to take her thick stockings off when it was 40ºc. However she refused to remove her vest and
underskirt.
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| The abuela and Eladio by the pool which is where we spent most of our time during the heat wave |
The week before last was very quiet, the
highlights being a trip with Olivia to the Tres Aguas shopping centre where I
bought t-shirts I didn’t really need, and dinner out with our friends Juana and
Oscar. We went to an Italian place
called Viancco in Zielo, yet another shopping centre, this time in nearby
Pozuelo. It is called “zielo” which sort
of means “cielo” (sky or heaven in Spanish) as you can see the skyline of
Madrid from where it is located. The
skyline at night from the rooftop dining area of Viancco was spectacular. The heat had remitted a little but was
replaced with heavy winds of warm air which kept blowing our napkins and bread
basket away. Juana who used to work in
Nokia and now works in Microsoft and Oscar who works for Siemens Nokia Networks
were colleagues of mine when I worked for Nokia. Apart from talking about our holidays and
families, the conversation naturally turned to the events in the industry, such
as Google buying Motorola. We discussed
too whether one day Microsoft may buy Nokia which at the moment is a just a rumour. One thing is for sure, there is never a dull
moment in the telecommunications sector and changes and takeovers are the rule
of thumb we all live by.
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| This was the terrace where we had dinner at Viancco with Juana and Oscar with the view of the Madrid skyline. |
If the week was quiet, the weekend
was busy. On Saturday Olivia invited the
girls’ friends Ana and Juli for lunch and to spend time with us cooling off by
the pool again.
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| Ana, Rocío and Juli came to be with Oli and cool off by our pool and Juli brought Oddy. |
Juli brought with him his lovely
Westie dog, Oddy. We were worried that
Norah and Elsa wouldn’t be too happy but after some initial suspicion and
sniffing, they couldn’t have been happier with their canine visitor.
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| Norah and Elsa were delighted with Oddy's company |
On Sunday we were expecting Eladio’s
sister, Pili, her husband Andrés and their daughter Paula and her boyfriend
Pedro as well as Eladio’s brother Isidro, his wife Yoli and their daughter
Alicia who is our god daughter. They had
been staying in Madrid in Eladio’s brother’s, José Antonio, house in Madrid
where they had come from León to prepare the flat that Paula and Alicia will be
living in from September onwards. For
the records it belongs to Pedro Delgado, my cycling friend, and his wife Ludy. They were also coming to pick up the abuela to
take her back to cooler León where she lives with Eladio’s sister Adela.
I was up early that morning as there
was a lot to do to make lunch for 13 people.
I also wanted to take an early morning walk as I wouldn’t be able to
later as we had a dinner engagement that night.
The walk turned out to be a bit of an adventure. I couldn’t go on the normal walk as it is the
shooting season and I could hear shots being fired at what I imagined were poor
scurrying rabbits on our usual path. So
I walked all the way up our steep street and made a left turn at the top. The walk would have been too short that way
so I decided to prolong it by taking a different route back through the nature
paths behind some of the houses and that was my pitfall. I was not sure of my way and there were many
paths to choose from. At one stage I hit
upon thick bramble and had to turn back and I still have the marks on my legs
to prove it. From there onwards, totally
disoriented, I tried to find my way back to a street and to the top of the
hill. I did finally but the whole
adventure took nearly two hours. Amazingly,
when I got home, no one had noticed my absence.
I then had a quick swim to cool off before heading to the local
supermarket to get provisions for the big lunch.
Whilst Eladio was preparing the fire
for the barbecue and I was laying the table, making the salad, getting the meat
out and all the other etceteras, the family arrived early and unannounced. Luckily my sisters-in-law gave an immediate
hand and we were then all able to enjoy being together around the pool for a
while before lunch because that was the only place we could be in the prolonged
heat wave.
We were to have a barbecue but we
couldn’t eat it outside unfortunately because of the heat so we retreated to
our air conditioned dining room, just fitting 13 people round our big
table.
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| The family barbecue we had to have inside because of the heat. |
We spent more time by the pool after
lunch and it was so hot even the abuela put her feet in the water, despite Pili’s
hesitance. You can see from the smile on her face in this group picture just
how much she loved it.
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| Cooling off by the pool with Eladio's family. Even the abuela put her feet in the water! |
You can see more photos of their visit and the time the abuela was with us too, here on Facebook.
All too soon they left us, eager to
be back in their beloved hometown León and we were left alone again, to clear
up and spend more time by the pool with our books. I was re-reading an old favourite, A Townlike Alice by Nevil Shute, an English author who wrote in the 50’s. I cannot recommend the book highly
enough. Set in England, Malaysia and
Australia, it tells the story of a young English girl who is caught prisoner in
the war in Malaysia and how she and a group of women and children walk aimlessly
guarded by Japanese soldiers for years.
It is here that she meets Joe, an Australian. They seek each other after the war and the
reference to a town like Alice refers to how she builds a town like Alice
Springs in the settling in the Queensland outback where he is a ringer. It is a book I have read and reread over the
years and was also a favourite of my Mothers which makes it even more special
for me.
Often when I read by the pool, I am joined by our dogs. I particularly like this picture Suzy captured on her camera some time last week.
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| The dogs often like to join me when I am reading by the pool! |
Sunday was important for the family
barbecue of course but it was more important in my heart for it being our
wedding anniversary. It was actually
rather fitting to be with Eladio’s family on that very day as they had all been
with us on our wedding day on 21st August 1983. We were celebrating
28 years of happy marriage, something of a rarity these days. We actually met in the summer of 1980, so
have been together for 31 years.
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| Eladio and I the summer we met in 1980 (camping in Portugal) |
I was a snippet of a girl at the
time, just 23 years old and when I met Eladio I could hardly have known that I
would be spending the rest of our lives together. But that was life’s gift to me for which I am
forever grateful.
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| Eladio and I 31 years later, still looking good I hope |
That night we had a dinner
engagement with our friends Javier and Ana, who have been our hosts many times
in their adopted village of Peñacaballera in Salamanca and, of course, in New
York where they are have been living for the last three or four years. We couldn’t make it to “Peña” this summer, so
arranged to have dinner in our around Madrid last Sunday. Knowing our taste, Javier suggested La Vaca
Argentina in Las Rozas where they live when they are in Spain. We immediately agreed as it is probably our
all time favourite. We hadn’t seen them
since Christmas and they were looking as radiant and happy as ever and it was
good to catch up. This year they will be
apart as a family, the women staying in Spain and the men in New York, except
that Ana will be coming and going and it will be tough for them. Thus we
celebrated our wedding anniversary with them, just as we did last year in Peña,
when they ordered cakes especially for the occasion.
As we were out to dinner with Javier
and Ana, we missed Suzy returning from her holiday in the south of Spain with
Gaby, her boyfriend. I wasn’t to see her
until breakfast the next day. She had
been away for two weeks, first with her friends in Almería and then camping
with Gaby in Huelva and in the Algarve in Portugal. She was looking as brown as a berry and radiant
as ever.
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| Suzy and Gaby on holiday, camping in Portugal |
Monday was back to normal, with all
of us for lunch for a change but little were we to know that it wasn’t to last very
long. We had booked an appointment with
my Father’s G.P that afternoon because his chiropodist had noticed his ankles were
swollen. Eladio, being the “doctor” in
our family accompanied him. The
appointment was at 16h and it seemed they were taking a long time. I texted Eladio to find out what was
happening only to get an alarming text back saying they were at the emergency
ward of the Puerta de Hierro hospital in Majadahonda.
My Father’s GP had detected arrhythmia which could cause blood clots and
had obviously caused the oedema in his ankles; an abnormal retention of
liquid. Only one person could accompany
my Father so it was no use going to the hospital which felt very
frustrating. The next news was that he
would be staying the night for observation.
By then it was nearly 11 o’clock at night and neither of the men had
eaten. I knew it had to be me who would
accompany my Father and I wanted to be with him. So I made some sandwiches and packed a small
bag of my Father’s things and a pillow and cardigan for myself and Suzy drove
me to the hospital. I took over from Eladio just before midnight and prepared
to spend the night with my Father at the Emergency ward. And, what a night that was. My image of a hospital being glamorous from
the hospital television series I so love, went out with the wind as I witnessed
the reality; the smells, the coughs, the noise in an atmosphere of near
chaos. My Father was not given a bed
until 2 in the morning. Luckily he was
given a bed in a corner by a window, not like other people who lay on
stretchers in the corridors. They had
run out of pillows but thankfully I was able to offer mine to my very
uncomfortable Father that ghastly night we shall both remember for a long time.
I had a stiff plastic chair with a low back to sit next to him. Needless to say neither of us slept a wink and
I still have a sore rib cage as I write today from sitting on that
uncomfortable chair most of the night. Things
got worse for me as at about 6 in the morning after coming back from getting a
bottle of water, I found my chair was missing and had to stand for the next
couple of hours. When I complained to
the orderlies, they told me they themselves had needed my chair! What was I to say? OK I wasn’t the patient but at the hospital
they need the patients to have an escort to look after the patients as there is
not enough staff to administer their needs especially during the night. If that is the case, there could at least be
a reclining chair for the escorts. I was
not to find any sympathy in the Emergency ward and would never ever want to
spend a night there again and I know I speak for my Father too. I cannot forgive them for leaving him aged 92
in a wheel chair from 5 in the afternoon until 2 in the morning without giving
him even a stretcher to lie on or a morsel of food. Unbelievable!
Luckily the atmosphere, care and
treatment were much better in the room he was moved to the next day. Eladio took over in the morning and I was
able to come home and have a shower and rest before returning after lunch. My Father had rested too by then and was more
comfortable and well looked after. All
my fears about the Spanish public health system became history as I saw how
kindly and professionally he was treated by the nurse called Elena and the
pregnant doctor Esther as well as by the cheerful orderlies and auxiliary
nursing staff. He was given a big, impeccably
clean, single room with his own bathroom and luxury of luxuries, a sofa bed for
his escort who was to be Eladio on the second night. Happily that night both
slept all the way through. Grandpa underwent all sorts of sophisticated tests
including a scan and electrocardiogram before the treatment began. The doctor told me that he was in very good
health for his age and that he was responding well to the treatment, pills to
keep the water retention and blood clots away.
In fact he responded so well he was discharged after only 2 nights and
we were able to bring him home on Wednesday morning. It was a huge relief. He has been a bit unsteady on his feet since
the stay in hospital but is quickly getting better. Furthermore with the new medication, he is
now sleeping better than he did before, hardly getting up in the night anymore.
The episode was a shock for us all and only served for me to try and look after
him even better than before by anticipating his needs rather than waiting for
us to tell us if he has a problem; something he never does. We are so happy he is on the mend and home
again with us. Life can now go back to
normal.
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| Grandpa tucking in at the hospital with The Daily Telegraph at his feet. He recovered very quickly thank goodness. |
On Wednesday, whilst Grandpa was in
hospital, Olivia made her debut as a presenter on television on the main state
channel, TVE1 in the programme she is working for called “La Mañana de la 1”. My
Father and I were able to watch it proudly together from his hospital
room. She had prepared a report which
she herself presented on screen about modern day hippies; not the most scintillating
of subjects, but I didn’t care as I was so proud to see her on TV. You can see it for yourselves in this
link. Until now she has done voiceovers
for many reports but hardly ever actually appeared on the screen which was why
this was such an important moment for us all. If you are a mother and are
reading this, I am sure you will relate to how proud I feel.
So life was back to normal but not
for long. On Friday morning I had a
meeting with Cris (an avid reader of my blogJ) at Zielo to go over our activities
in Santander next week. This time I will
be going alone as Eladio will be invigilating the UNED (Open University) exams
whilst I’m there. I will miss him.
The next shock came in the
afternoon. Eladio and I were by the pool when we heard a car coming up the
drive. We then heard a terrible shriek
which I knew came from Elsa and it was immediately evident she had been run
over. We rushed to the drive, me without
my glasses to find Olivia distraught and Elsa nowhere to be seen. I wasn’t wearing my glasses so mistook a big
stone for Elsa lying on the ground. I’m
ashamed to admit I went a bit hysterical, thinking she was dead or dying. I quickly found my glasses and then found her
sitting frightened between two chairs by the swimming pool. We picked her up, not sure what had happened
to her and Olivia drove us to the vet. After
an initial examination and exhaustive x-rays, it turned out that Elsa had been
very lucky. She had hurt her left paw
but nothing was broken. Valeria, the
Argentinian vet, gave her a painkiller and told us to observe her for the next
48 hours to look out for any possible internal damage, such as her
bladder. I can happily tell you now,
that, all she has is a bruised limb which will surely heal very soon. Again, luck was on our side.
That evening we had another dinner
date, this time with our friends and neighbours, Elena and José Luis. They picked us just after the Elsa incident,
when all was calm, and we went to an Italian place in Boadilla, Il Portone,
which was new for us. Apart from telling
them about Grandpa and Elsa, most of the evening, we spoke about where we would
like to retire, which is Marbella. This
was done, over wonderful Italian dishes such as ham and mango carpaccio and
warm prawn salad. As they are lovers and connoisseurs of the area, it was great
to get some inside information from them.
As to whether we will ever actually retire there, who knows? At the moment it is only a dream. In my dream I want to live in a luxury
dwelling, big enough to accommodate the girls and their families for holidays, probably
in a secluded set of apartments with a lovely communal garden, right by a nice
quiet and clean beach. I want to have a
sea view, but above all, I want to be able to walk outside the gate and cross
the road or path straight on to the beach and be able to take morning walks
daily before breakfast and at sunset. I
hope that’s not too much to ask. Meanwhile
back to reality.
It was only yesterday, Saturday, when
things really returned to normal; i.e. no more nasty surprises like Grandpa’s
stay in hospital or Elsa being run over.
It was also one of those Saturdays when we all had lunch together and
Gaby, Suzy’s boyfriend, joined us. I cooked, of course, as Olga is still on
holiday. I am dying for her to come back
as the house needs a thorough clean, although I am sure she is not.
Today Sunday, has been another
normal lazy Sunday, if not a bit cooler, although as I write from the table by
the swimming pool, Suzy and Rocío are bathing in the company of Oli and Juli
who came for lunch again today.
As I write too, the dreaded IreneHurricane has hit New York City. Luckily
the hurricane which swept the east coast, causing at least eight deaths and massive
power cuts, lost its power as it hit Manhattan and had turned from a hurricane
into a tropical storm. Amazingly in its
anticipation all the shops had been closed, public transport was cancelled,
300.000 people were evacuated, provisions for food were scarce and people were
ordered to stay at home. It sounded
incredibly alarming so I was a bit worried for Javier and Ignacio. Therefore it was music to my ears to read a
message from them on Facebook to say that nothing drastic had happened and that
they were perfectly alright. So, to
quote Javier, Hurricane Irene in NYC was “much ado about nothing”. Well that is my best effort at translating “mucho
ruido y pocas nueces”. It might well
have been much ado about nothing, but I can only imagine the US authorities
went to such strict measures after the lessons learned from the terrible
devastation caused by the Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans just few years ago
that they weren’t taking any chances with New York City, one of the most
populated areas in the world.
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| NYC empty and much in the news because of Hurricane Irene. |
And on that good piece of news, I
have come to the end of my tales for this blog post.
I do hope you all have a great
week. I can only hope that ours is
incident free and would just ask for “normality” with no more nasty surprises.
Cheers till next week,
Masha
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