Vodka for my Father, an earthquake in Ecuador, a midweek party and a Yoigo press breakfast, the Queen turns 90, the girls together in London, to Alicante for the weekend, 400th anniversary of the death of Shakespeare and Cervantes and other stories.

Sunday 24^th April 2016

With my Father last Sunday during Simon's visit

Hi everyone,

This week I am writing from our flat in Santa Pola near Alicante.  We have come to spend the weekend, looking for sun as it’s raining everywhere else in Spain at the moment.

I last wrote on Sunday, the day the Pope brought back 3 Syrian refugee families in a last minute decision during his visit to Lesbos.  I think that was a great idea.  I am wondering why more refugees haven’t arrived here in Spain after the government announced the country would accept 18.000.  We have on our hands the worst migrant crisis since the Second World War and it is being handled as badly as it was back then. 

The Pope with the Syrian refugee families he took home with him from Lesbos

One would hope that the Pope’s gesture would spur on the powers to be to solve the humanitarian tragedy but I don’t think it will.

Sunday was an entertaining day for my Father. His ex-Russian pupil from nearly 40 years ago, Simon H, was still with us and made his day.  After breakfast with his former teacher, we took him out to nearby Boadilla to see the palace.  It’s about the only thing to see in the area.  Built by Ventura Rodríguez in 1763 it was the residence of the Infante Don Luis, sixth son of Philip V and brother to Carlos III.  It hasn’t been restored inside and I wonder if it ever will.

It was a sunny day so we did what many Spaniards do on a Sunday morning; we had an “aperitivo”.  Eladio, Simon and I enjoyed tapas and drinks at La Lonja de Boadilla and below is a photo of the two men together: the philosopher and the journalist, just as we were leaving with the palace in the background

Eladio and Simon last Sunday morning by the palace in Boadilla

Simon is also a photographer and he took some great shots whilst with us.  Thankfully he liked our dogs – we have three and not everyone is keen on animals – and I am very grateful to him for this particular photo of little Pippa our miniature dachshund and Elsa our Labrador, charging down the path to greet us with the wind in their ears when we came back from Boadilla.  It is such a familiar image but I have never seen it on camera.  

A great shot of little Pippa and Elsa rushing down the drive to greet us last Sunday

Simon wanted to enjoy a glass of vodka with my Father at lunch so we stopped at our local supermarket to buy the Russian spirit.  There wasn’t much choice and believe it or not we bought a Galician made vodka which turned out to be as good as the best.  We had it for lunch after Zena’s Ukranian cabbage and meat dish.  That was the moment I got the best shot of teacher and pupil reunited after nearly 40 years. 

My Father and Simon his ex pupil of Russian at Bradford Grammar School enjoying a glass of  vodka together

After lunch goodbyes were in order as Simon was leaving.  He took some last minute photos of us before I was to take him to the station.  I particularly like the one of my Father and I together which I have chosen to illustrate this week’s post.  He also took one of the group of us including Zena.  I was so sorry neither of the girls was here to meet him.

Saying goodbye to Simon

That afternoon Suzy was still enjoying the visit of the girls’ Indian friends in London.  Here she is with her latest beau, Alex, and of course Sumit and Sandeep.  It was taken by Embankment.

Suzy, her latest beau - Alex - Sandeep and Sumit at Embankment last Sunday

After a short siesta I went to pick Oli up from Majadahonda.  She had been to Salamanca for the weekend with colleagues from work visiting one of them who had just had a baby and was on maternity leave.  Once home we went on our walk and she joined us.  Thankfully it was sunny but only for a while as there would be intermittent showers all week.  At times it felt like The Great Flood and Eladio had to deal with a huge leak in the garage caused by the torrential rain.

There was good news at the end of the day.  Our favourite tennis player, the Spaniard Rafa Nadal, had made a comeback after a long spell of injuries and won his first Masters in 2 years too. It was to be his 9^th Montecarlo Masters where he beat Gael Monfils in the final 7-5 5-7 6-0. I do hope this is not just a flash in the pan and that he goes on to win at least one grand slam this year.  Here he is amazed at his win on the court just as the game finished.

Nadal after his win at the Masters in Monaco last Sunday

Well done Rafa!

But there was bad news too.  That night an earthquake struck the coast of Ecuador.  It came just a day after two large quakes hit Japan – a country which, like Ecuador, is situated on the “seismically volatile ring of fire”.  The death toll from the devastating magnitude 7.8 earthquake, the worst in Ecuador in 70 years, has risen to 602 people.  130 are still missing and feared dead and some 12.500 are injured.  It will take the country years to restore the damage done to so many houses and buildings.  There have been numerous aftershocks but thankfully no further casualties. 

Destruction from the earthquake in Ecuador last Sunday

Monday was a quiet day and the best day for weather in the week.  I think it was the only day it didn’t rain.

Tuesday was busy.  I had a meeting in the office and worked all afternoon on the materials for our press conference the next day to announce our first quarter financial results.  There was no time for walks and besides it rained most of the day. 

That night I had a party to go to.  For once it wasn’t me organising it.  Huawei had invited most of the sector to a big event at the Círculo de Bellas Artes to launch their new flagship phone the P9.  It was one of those events you have to go to but not necessarily want to.  We live quite far out and I had no inclination, far preferring a quiet dinner at home with Eladio. But duty bound and off I went.  As I had predicted it would be loud, dark and crowded, just what I hate.  The best thing about the party was meeting up with my ex colleagues from both Nokia and Motorola, especially the latter.  It was great to see Carlos G, Juan Luis V, Alex B and Vicente H.  Here we are together all enjoying the reunion. 

Reunited with my ex Motorola colleagues at the Huawei launch party this week.  From left to right: Vicente, Carlos, me, Juan Luis and Alex (with the bow tie).

There were many young and unfamiliar faces and Alex and I commented that we were now the older generation of the sector, having started off together to actually create the mobile phone sector in Spain in the early 90’s at Motorola, just when phones began.  He said we were the dinosaurs of the industry and he’s probably right.  As soon as I could make a quiet escape, off I went, leaving at about 21.30.  Thankfully I was on time to watch another episode of Crossing Lines with Eladio before we got our shuteye.

Wednesday was my busiest day. I had to be in the office early for our press conference beginning at 10.30 after which there would be a staff meeting; all to communicate the good Q1 results.  Sales had increased 10.6% to 218 million euros and profit (Ebitda) by 29%.  It was good news to announce but affected by the rumour of a sale of the company to a British private equity firm which was speculated to be announced this week too. Well it didn’t happen, so we just got on with the job of communicating our good results.

I left early and there was dreadful traffic on the way which was exacerbated by the rain.

Traffic and rain on my way to the office early on Wednesday morning

It took me nearly 1.5h to get to the office and I thanked God most of the way that I can work at home and don’t have to face it every day like most office mortals.

I have a great events agency and PR agency and nearly everything was in place when I arrived. It was the first time we were to do a press breakfast in the office and I was worried the board room would look a little too corporate but my agency had done a great job, especially with the catering firm.

The Yoigo press breakfast about to start in our board room on Wednesday morning

All the main journalists turned up and all went well.  The q+a session went on for a long time as I had suspected and we practically had to throw the journalists out if we were to be on time for the staff meeting coined as Yoigo Mornings that started at 12.30.  It was full house for that too.  Here we announced and explained the results, two new employees introduced themselves, after which we all enjoyed an “aperitivo” together before everyone went off for lunch.

Thursday was the Queen’s 90^th birthday.  When I say “the Queen”, there is one and only and it is Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth 1, the longest reigning monarch in England or the UK (her reign began in 1952).  I am only a monarchist when it comes to her and cannot help loving and admiring her for everything she has done for her country; despite many hardships and family setbacks.  She looks in great health.  There has been much news about her birthday, as well as photos and videos. I particularly like this one of her 90 years in 90 seconds done by The Telegraph.  I remarked to Eladio that she was a very good looking woman to which he replied she “wasn’t bad” hahah.

The Queen on the day of her coronation in 1952.  I have always thought she was a beautiful woman

On the day of her birthday Buckingham Palace released a set of photos taken by the famous and edgy American photographer Annie Leibovitz at Windsor Castle last month.  They are very evocative and at times informal. Perhaps the most evocative one is of the Queen with all her grandchildren.

The Queen with all her grandchildren

I suspect Leibovitz was inspired by a similar setting of Queen Victoria and all her grandchildren, although the latter had many more, some 42.

The most symbolic photo is of the Queen with three crown princes who are in line for her throne, her son Prince Charles, his son Prince Philip and his son, her grandson, Prince George.  We all wonder whether Prince Charles will ever be King. I particularly like the little Prince’s stance, having to stand on a pile of books in the photo hahaha.

The Queen and 3 crown princes in line for her throne

But my favourite is the informal photo of my Queen standing on the steps of Windsor Palace with her dogs; the corgis Holly and Willow and the “dorgis” Candy and Vulcan. The Queen mated her corgis with her sister, Princess Margaret’s dachshunds and created this particular breed.  The British monarch is both a dog and a horse lover and from what I have read there is nothing that makes her happier than watching her horses race or when she goes riding at Balmoral.  She still rides today at the age of 90!

The Queen with her beloved dogs

Her most important guests that day were the “Obama's” who were “in town” to wish Her Majesty a happy birthday.  But Barack had another mission and that was to side with Cameron in promoting that the UK stays in the EU.  He has been criticized for getting involved by some but not by me as I am against the Brexit and would hate to see the country I was born in outside what was once known as The Common Market. 

Whilst celebrations were beginning in England, life went on as normal for me of course; although I would have loved to see her on her walkabout at Windsor where she received so many bouquets of flowers and cards.  I went on our particular walkabout, or rather normal walk with Eladio, Elsa, Norah and Pippa.  Finally the sun came out and thanks to the rain we were greeted with sights of lots of wild spring flowers everywhere on our walk in the fields.

Eladio and our dogs

Friday came and as more rain was forecast we decided to spend the weekend in Alicante at our flat in Santa Pola.  We later saw on the weather news that the South East of Spain would be one of the only warm and sunny parts of the country this weekend.  Olivia was also going to be away as she had flown to London the night before to spend a long weekend with Suzy and Anita, my older daughter’s flat mate and Oli’s University friend.  I wish I had been there for their reunion.  I love it when the girls are together and in good spirits and was happy to see this lovely photo of the two of them when they were waking up that morning.

The girls waking up in London together

We left Madrid at about 10.30.  We stopped for lunch at El Cruce, now known as “El nuevo Cruce”, a place popular with lorry drivers, some 70km from Alicante in Caudete on the A31.  The place has always offered good food at very competitive prices but it had also been renovated.  There was so much choice on the 10 euro “menu of the day”, both Eladio and I had trouble deciding. 

Lunch at El Nuevo Cruce in Caudete on our way to Alicante on Friday

We arrived at Gran Alacant just after 4pm and it was blissfully sunny. As soon as we had settled in I went to sit on the grass to read my latest book. 

Pippa in the garden with me on Friday afternoon

This week it had to be about the Queen and I had chosen The Final Curtsey written by her cousin Margaret Rhodes which I am thoroughly enjoying.

The book I am currently reading

The girls were having a lovely time in London that day.  They went on their bikes to London Fields with Anita and here is a photo of them having fish and chips at a pub somewhere in the area.  It's lovely to see them together.

The girls together 

Later on we would go for a walk in the evening sun on the beach with Pippa which was quite empty.  Oh how wonderful it was to be by the sea again. There is something about the sea that attracts us nearly all; I myself included.

Eladio and Pippa on the beach on Friday evening

Wetting my feet on the rocks with Pippa on Friday evening

It was not only sunny but there were far more signs of spring than in Madrid with all the flowers about.  I could not stop taking photos of them. Not able to decide which one to share with you, I made a collage of them which includes geraniums, hibiscus, various types of coloured daisies as well as bougainvillea so typical in this area of Spain.

Beautiful flowers in the gardens of our flat here in Gran Alacant

After our lunch on the way, we decided to have a small dinner at home.  The TV remote control wasn’t working, so we got our evening’s share of the Netfilx series we are following, Crossing Lines, using my great big iPad Plus in the comfort of our bed. Why hadn’t we discovered that before I wonder?

Saturday came. It was St. George’s day but more importantly the 400th anniversary of the death of (perhaps) the 2 greatest literary giants of the world, William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes.

Shakespeare and Cervantes two literary giants of the same era who died almost on the same day.

They are recorded as having died on the same day, 23^rd April 1616 but there is some dispute according to which calendar is taken into account.  So who is the greater of the two?  If you are Spanish you will probably say Cervantes but if you are from another part of the world you will probably go for Shakespeare which, however much I love my adopted country, is the greater of the two in my humble opinion. Cervantes is credited with writing what is considered the first modern European novel but Shakespeare’s plays such as Hamlet or Romeo and Juliet have been read by many more people.  Only 2 out of every 10 Spaniards say they have read Don Quixote.  I did read it once but in English when I studied Spanish at University as it was far more difficult to understand Cervantes’ 17^th Spanish prose.  The difference may lie too in the fact that the English are taking the celebrations much more seriously than the Spaniards who have been accused by the literary world for not making a big enough effort. 

The day of their anniversary was a glorious sunny day in Alicante and after breakfast Eladio, Pippa and I went for another walk on the beach.  It was nearly empty and we had it practically to ourselves.  The sun was strong at first so Eladio made a makeshift headgear out of his handkerchief as you can see in the photo below.

Eladio protecting his head from the sun with his handkerchief this morning on the nearly empty beach with Pippa

The next item on the agenda as a drive by the sea to nearby Santa Pola.  Here we parked at the end of the Varadero Beach and walked along the sea front until we got to Playa de Levante the town’s main beach.  We had a cup of coffee at the Pola hotel where we reminisced about when we first bought the apartment at Gran Alacant.  It was in May 1999, just a few months before my Mother died and I always regretted her never seeing it.

Coffee by the sea in Santa Pola this morning

Lunch was to be at the flat again where I made fish and chips from the fresh “whiting” fish I had brought from Madrid.  Served with fresh peas and chips, it was delicious. 

We had expected warm and sunny weather throughout but apart from on our morning walk on the beach when Eladio had to protect his head from the sun, the latter was quite intermittent during our stay and it was not as warm as we had hoped.

Thus I had to wear my coat which I would later take off for our afternoon walk with Pippa to the lighthouse cliffs.  It's quite a long walk and very popular but well worth the views when you get there. Our apartments are perched on the cliffs too but from the lighthouse you get great views of the little island of Tabarca where a handful of people live probably from fishing. For the records yesterday, Saturday, according to my "fitbit" we walked over 16km!

A glorious walk to the lighthouse cliffs on Saturday afternoon

Being Saturday night we decided to go out to dinner.  We would have loved to go to our favourite place, Maria Picola, but unfortunately it has closed down, temporarily I hope.  We opted instead for El Batiste which is supposed to be Santa Pola's best restaurant.  The place is a little outdated without any charm but the food is guaranteed to be top notch and it was.

In the Alicante region of Spain it is typical to serve garlic bread with tomato and ali oli mayonnaise with a meal and which I adore.

A typical way to start any meal in the Alicante region

We both had a craving for rice for which this region is well known. But we didn't order paella - more typical of Valencia - and both opted for our favourite type.  I had "arroz a banda" and Eladio had "black rice" as you can see in the picture below.

Dinner at El Batiste last night

The two glasses of wine I had with the dinner brought with it a headache which I am still trying to shake off this morning with my first cup of coffee of the day.

We shall be going home today but not before another walk on the beach to completely charge our batteries with sea air.

So I will leave you now to make our breakfast and get on with the day.  Hope you have a good Sunday and week to come.

Cheers till next time
Masha

A snowy Sunday in Montrondo, a Yorkshireman wins the US Masters, last dinner with Keith and Lorraine, “Hala Madrid” and Aupa Atléti”, royal visit to The Taj Mahal, ex Bradford Grammar school pupil comes to visit my Father and other stories.

Sunday 17^th April 2016

On the cold and snowy walk to Murias last Sunday with Keith and Lorraine

Good morning friends and readers

It has been a fast paced week packed with work and at times I have found it hard to juggle my time to fit in my routine walks though the rain didn’t help when I did find the time.

Talking about rain of which there has been a lot this week (oh when will the sun come out to stay?), it rained too in Montrondo last weekend but only on the last day. On Sunday it quickly turned from rain to hail to snow.

Snow in Montrondo last Sunday

Thus we stayed inside after breakfast.  Our guests and Eladio read their books and the news whilst I made our lunch; lentil stew from a recipe by the Bible of Spanish cookery books; 1080 recipes by Simone Ortega.

The lentil stew I made last Sunday in Montrondo

We were to leave in the afternoon and were all in need of a walk so at midday we braved the weather and off we went to Murias and back.  Pippa was dressed in her fur coat but was shivering so much I sent her back into the house.  She scampered in, relieved to escape from the cold.  And it was cold as you can see in the photo illustrating this week’s blog post. 

The only bar in Murias; La Palloza, was thankfully open.  People were coming in from mass and there was a great atmosphere.  Keith was particularly pleased to go in, being a typical British pub goer.  La Palloza is not a pub but a delightful bar housed in a grannery type structure with a thatched roof.  It is actually round.  In the summer it is a delight to sit outside, sipping wine and contemplating the view of the mountains.  But on Sunday we went inside to take refuge from the bad weather and sat near an old fashioned stove. 

Outside "La Palloza" in Murias with Keith and Lorraine last Sunday

Here Eladio and I had “mosto” (non-alcoholic wine – before it is fermented) to our English friends’ amazement.  We are not big wine drinkers or rather we love wine but only with meals.  La Palloza, as is typical of the area, serves free tapas with a drink which were to fortify us for the cold and wet walk back.

We left in the afternoon at around 5.30 but had to make a u turn about 15km on when Eladio remembered he had left his wallet and glasses in Montrondo.  It never ceased to rain throughout our journey back which to me seemed eternal.  The journey out always seems shorter.  We stopped on the way for a bite which turned out to be our dinner and a delicious one at that; toast smeared with olive oil, tomato and ham and washed down with well needed hot homemade broth; ummm.

Monday brought more rain which didn’t stop Keith and Lorraine going into Madrid to visit the centre.  I had to stay to catch up on my work.  But I also wanted to join my Father for lunch after being away for 3 days.  I was happy to tell him that morning that a Yorkshireman from Sheffield had won the US Golf Masters, against all odds.  He was to be the first Englishman to do so in 20 years.  Danny Willett, aged 28, the son of a vicar and ranked 12^th in the world, stunned the sports world by beating Jordan Spieth to win the coveted Green Jacket at Augusta.  Even he didn’t believe it had happened. 

Danny Willet in the coveted green jacket at Augusta. Well done for Yorkshire, well done for England.

The funny thing is he had no plans to compete in the Masters as his wife was expecting a child last weekend.  Fate had it that the baby arrived early and he changed his plans and at the last moment entered the tournament.  There couldn’t have been a happier Englishman this week.  Even if he never wins again, he will be forever remembered in the golfing world for this amazing feat.  Well done for him, well done for Yorkshire, well done for England. 

On a completely different note, on Monday morning we received an invitation to a wedding.

The wedding invitation

It wasn’t just any wedding but the wedding of Lucia, the youngest daughter of Pili G and Gerardo (RIP).  Pili and Gerardo welcomed me into their family many years ago when I did a year in Spain for my degree and I have considered them my extended family ever since.  It will be a delight to be there to see them all, especially Lucía’s siblings; Gerardo, Irene, Julieta and Toti.  Gerardo and Irene were my pupils of English when I lived in the bosom of this wonderful family and the ties have only grown stronger over the years.  I’m looking forward to the occasion but can’t think for the life of me what to wear that day.  When the time comes, you will find out of course.

Keith and Lorraine returned at around 5, just in time for afternoon tea in the lounge, a room or set of rooms we don’t use very much; just for visitors and at Christmas.  Keith asked me what we would do with all the furniture and bits and pieces when we eventually move out and I have no answer to that question.  It is full of Russian, English and Spanish elements; quite eclectic but possibly a bit eccentric. 

Our eclectic lounge as seen from both sides. We don't spend much time there.

There is my grandmother’s piano, Russian icons, old paintings, antique furniture inherited from my Father’s family which we brought from England and ornaments from the family, going back more than a century, as well as lots of stuff we have brought back from our trips.  No I don’t know how we will be able to keep it all but we shall cross that bridge when we come to it.

The day ended with Keith and Lorraine inviting us out to dinner at La Txitxarrería in Pozuelo.

Dinner on Keith and Lorraine's last night at La Txitxarrería on Monday

It is one of our favourite restaurants and one we take many a visitor to, to enjoy the excellent Basque cuisine, served with cider from that area of Spain.  Keith was doubtful about eating hake with cider but Eladio, Lorraine and I enjoyed the fresh sparkling low alcoholic beverage which in my mind can be drunk with any meal. 

They were off early the next day and Eladio was their chauffeur to the airport.  The journey was fraught by awful morning traffic on the M40 but thankfully they caught their plane on time.

The highlight of Tuesday was the second leg of the Champions League quarter final between Real Madrid and the German team Wolsfburg who arrived at the Bernabeu stadium with 2-0 to their advantage.  Cristiano Ronaldo worked his magic that night and scored a hat trick taking the team through to the semi-final for the sixth consecutive season.  The Portuguese striker is with no doubt the top goal scorer in the championship. 

Cristiano Ronaldo worked his magic to bring Real Madrid through to the semi-finals of the Champions League

All I could say was “Hala Madrid” (go or forward Madrid) the famous club chant echoed by fans of Real Madrid around the world.  If they win the final it will be their 11^th cup, the “undécima” they are so anxious to win.  I think I am right in saying that no other club has won the Champions League as many times as the team from the Bernabeu. But it will be no easy journey as we will see.  It says a lot for Spanish football that of the 8 teams in the quarter finals, 3 of them are Spanish. Being good at football is a great brand enhancer for the country and a wonderful way of engaging with people you meet around the world.  Football, at its best, is an international language and excellent ice breaker. I wonder if you agree.

The other 2 Spanish teams in the Quarter Finals were none other than the reigning champions, Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid, both eternal rivals of Real Madrid.  Well that night, the Argentinian coach, Simeone’s players stunned the football world by beating Barça 2-0 thanks to goals from Antoine Griezmann (I just wished they had been scored by Fernando Torres). 

Antoine Griezmann, the man of the match in the second leg of the quarter finals between Atletico de Madrid and Barcelona. 

The club’s slogan is “never stop dreaming”.  Well that night, the club known for having the most long-suffering fans in football, saw their dream fulfilled. For the second time in history, Atlético de Madrid will play in the semi-finals.  Could there be a repeat all Madrid derby final like the one in Lisbon two seasons ago, when the “blancos” (the whites – RM) won “la décima” (10^th cup)?  Atlético will dream of winning and for once I am on their side.  I always support RM but they have 10 cups and it seems fair for Atlético to win their first.  When I read the result on Wednesday morning I too said “Aupa Atleti”, the club fans’ chant which deafened players and spectators when they beat Barcelona that night. We wouldn’t find out until Friday what the outcome of the draw for the semifinals would bring for the 2 Madrid clubs.

Thursday was my busiest day workwise.  I am currently involved in one big secret project (oh I wish I could tell you about it) and in the communication of the company’s first quarter financial results to be published next Wednesday. 

On Friday I had more meetings at the office and lots of things to organize and delegate.  Meanwhile I changed phones, from my Note 4 to the new Samsung S7 edge.  I was very excited to be unboxing the brand new model but soon got frustrated.  I had thought to use the smart switch app to transfer the data from my old phone to the new one but it kept getting stuck.  I also tried the Samsung pc data suite called Kies but it’s rubbish I can tell you.  I am more a fan of Samsung than I am of Apple but when it comes to transferring data from one phone to another, Apple beats the lot.  Thus I had to manually install most of my apps and freshly login into them all which was a huge bind and time consumer.  Finally it is all set up and I’m enjoying it.

My new phone.  To quote Google "feeling lucky".

I don’t see any great difference from previous versions of the S7.  In fact it’s hard to see if there are any differences.  What I will miss in the Note is the size of the screen and the pen that comes with it.  Meanwhile I consider myself lucky to have a new phone, one of the great perks of being in the mobile phone business.

And lo and behold the first thing I saw on my brand new S7 were the results of the European Champions League semifinal.

I breathed a sigh of relief to see that Real Madrid and Atlético would not meet.  The former will play Manchester City and the latter Bayern Munich.  I can only hope that one of them gets through to the final and wins of course.

It was on Friday whilst I was multitasking that 2 DVDS I had ordered from Amazon arrived; series that are not yet available on Netflix.

Looking forward to seeing these 

I can’t wait to see Julian Fellowe’s (of Downton Abbey fame) adaptation of Anthony Trollope’s Doctor Thorne for three reasons: 1) I am a great admirer of Julian Fellowes, 2) it is period drama based on a novel from a very good British writer, 3) it is the story of a Doctor and I am a sucker for any film or series about doctors, nurses, nuns, clergymen, prisons, schools etc and don’t ask me why as I don’t have an answer.

As to Grantchester it was recommended to me by Lorraine and I know I will relate to a romantic detective story about a vicar in a village near Cambridge in the 50’s around the time I was born, not to mention the place. Remember my trip down memory lane recently in Cambridge to visit the house where I was born?

But I wasn’t to watch either on Friday night.  Instead, Eladio and I went to the cinema, something we haven’t done for a long time because I can’t remember when the last time was or which film we saw.  We went to see Pedro Almodovar’s latest film, Julieta.

Pedro Almodóvar's new film which we went to see on Friday night. 

Most of his films are very similar in their genre so I was not sure what to expect.  I had no preconceptions and only knew that the two leading actresses, Adriana Ugarte (my favourite from the TVE series La Señora) and the older Emma Suárez were in it.  I had also heard the two had had a shouting match in the street recently when it was being promoted.  What I did know is that the premiere was blemished by the famous and quirky director’s involvement in the Panama Papers.  Just a couple of days ago he went public to give an apology.  He said that he wasn’t aware of having any offshore assets but that was no excuse for what he had done.  Good for him I thought.  After all he is a private public person and having an offshore account is not really a crime, unless he has evaded taxes in Spain.

The Spanish Industry Minister, José Manuel Soria, also involved in the scandal, is a totally different story though.  At first he denied any assets in offshore accounts but investigative journalism showed otherwise.  Then yesterday, he surprised us all by resigning. He is probably the first “corrupt” politician to do so in a long time in this country where we have become immune after so many cases.  I say immune but I think it’s more correct to say, “fed-up”.  This will come as a huge blow to the interim Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy who appointed him in the first place. 

Spanish minister of Industry, José Manuel Soria, who resigned on Friday because of his involvement in the Panama papers

But back to the film. Did I like it?  Yes I did, although I was left feeling a little forlorn at the end as I was hoping for a happy finish and it was only suggested, not projected but that is typical Almodóvar. You can see the trailer here.  Essentially the story is about a woman called Julieta.  Her young self is played by Adriana Ugarte and her older self by Emma Suárez and I don’t know which of the two do a better job.  Julieta meets two men on a train, one of who will become the love of her life and with whom she will be-child a daughter who at the age of 18 will cause her great suffering. No more spoilers or I will be in trouble.  If you a fan of Pedro, then you will enjoy this film I can assure you.

Meanwhile, Olivia was on her way to Salamanca with friends from work. They were going there for the weekend to see a colleague who has just had a baby.  As I am writing now, Oli just sent us a photo of her in that lovely Castillian town of University fame.  I am happy to be able to share it with you.  It must be cold as the girls are well wrapped up.

Oli is in Salamanca this weekend with colleagues

And in London this weekend, Suzy has had the pleasure of the company of our Indian friends, Sumit, who was here recently and who lives in Bombay where he works as a Bollywood script writer, and Sandeep his soul mate who lives in Plymouth where he works for a British TV production company.  Oh how I wish Olivia and I could have been with them.  I’m sure they have had or are having a great time as these two boys are just the best.  Olivia met them on her Erasmus year in Falmouth in Cornwall and the friendship has extended to the whole of our family.  Suffice it to say both Sumit and Sandeep mean an awful lot to all of us.  And here I am happy to share with you a photo of them with Suzy, her flat mates, Vicky and Anita and friend Chati (the latter two from the girls’ “manada” (herd) group of friends.

Happy times in Camden this weekend for Suzy with our Indian friends Sumit and Sandeep

Saturday came and brought more rain.  I weathered it to go out on my walk and came back drenched. 

I was interested to see in the news yesterday that Kate and William were visiting The Taj Mahal on their tour of India and Bhutan.  

The royal visit this week of William and Kate to the Taj Mahal. They sat on the same bench as Lady Diana did

There was much interest in the visit because Prince William's Mother, Lady Diana, visited it too in 1992.  Sadly she visited it alone when her marriage to Prince Charles was breaking up.  It was a bleak photo of her by herself, the most beautiful woman in the world  in front of the greatest monument to love in the world and the most beautiful building in the world. They separated only a few months later and the photo of Lady Diana below took on more significance as it summed up her sadness and loneliness at the time.  She would be pleased to know how happy her son was when he visited it today with his beautiful wife.

Lady Diana alone by the Taj Mahal in 1992, a symbol of loneliness and unhappiness 

I know it to be the most beautiful building in the world because I too visited it but not alone; with Eladio.  We went to India for our 25th wedding anniversary and of course saw The Taj Mahal which is when I decided it was the most beautiful building in the world. In fact it's so beautiful it took my breath away and actually made me cry.  It is the only building ever to have done so.  Here is a photo of a photo of Eladio and I in front of India's most well known symbol.

Our visit to The Taj Mahal in January 2009 was a very happy moment and highlight of our trip to India and Nepal for our 25th wedding anniversary

In the royals' photos there are no other people in the background; unlike ours.  Theirs were probably private visits.  I remember that in order to take good photos the only way was to hire a photographer on site and pay between your teeth if you were ever to get good shots of the visit.  Then you got an album of printed photos.  Hopefully they give you a pen drive these days as I have had to take a photo of this photo from the album hahaha.

I have been following their tour of India closely and am a little disappointed that most of the news is about the clothes Kate has been wearing.  I have to admit though I wanted to see her in a sari and that hasn't happened so far.  

On another topic, yesterday afternoon we were expecting an important visitor.  Simon H, a critic of Russian art who lives in Geneva was coming to see my Father to include a section about him in a book he is working on assembling his writings on Russia.  

He was my Father’s pupil nearly 40 years ago so it was to be an amazing reunion. Simon’s descriptions of my Father as a teacher of languages at Bradford Grammar School show a different father to the one I know as I have explained on some occasions when other ex-pupils have reached out to him after all these years.  To all of them he was huge influence in their academic careers.  I always knew he was a good teacher but that he was one of the best at that very prestigious school where he sent so many of his Russian students to Oxford and Cambridge, makes me so very proud of him.  I only wish I had known at the time and listened to him more.

Simon arrived at our local station where I picked him up.  We came home to find my Father watching the BBC World News and they were introduced.  Meanwhile Zena, our Ukranian carer offered my Father a cup of tea and Simon, who speaks perfect Russian, talked to her too.  Later I left my Simon alone with my Father for them to speak privately as I didn't want to interfere.  They sat together for over an hour and a half at the end of which I did interrupt them to see if Daddy was tired and he was a little, though very pleased to see Simon and amazed he had come all the way from Geneva, a city close to his heart, especially to see him.

Teacher and pupil from Bradford Grammar School reunited after nearly 40 years.  

It was great later to catch up with Simon, after so much email and FB correspondence and get to know him better.  The Rueda wine helped as did the dinner of Spanish tortilla, salad and ham.  The evening finished with drinks (Pedro Ximenez sherry unchilled I'm afraid) in the lounge to the sound of Enya and a little indulgence in the exquisite Swiss chocolates he had brought.

And today Simon will be with us until the afternoon so he will be able to spend more time with my Father. Zena will be making us a Ukranian dish made with cabbage and meat and Simon wants to go out and buy a bottle of vodka to drink with my Father.  Now that will be a good moment for sure but you will hear all about it in next week's post.

Cheers till then
Masha