Sunday 24th May 2020
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| Face masks are now obligatory everywhere in Spain - Oli and I wearing ours on Thursday |
This week was our 10th week in confinement in Spain. In the Madrid area we have possibly the strictest lockdown in the world and it is and has been hard to bear. Again and again I tell myself though just how lucky we are to be confined in a large house with a garden and pool. The weather was gorgeous this week and certainly brightened my spirits. It's as if summer was really here but not with the vengeance of July and August when temperatures rise to the high 30's or low 40ºs. It has been marvelous.
As many countries come slowly out of lockdown, as is the case in Spain, figures for contagion and death tolls are coming down. In Spain last Sunday, for the first time since before lockdown, the death toll was under 100 (87). It's still a lot but a far cry from the alarming numbers of previous weeks. On the "continent", numbers went down a lot in France and Italy and in the UK there were signs the country is over the peak. The countries which are now top of the dreadful league are the US (still), Russia and Brazil. So let's compare this week's numbers to last week's. Last week (Saturday 16th May) the total number of cases worldwide came to 4.7 million with a total of 313.266 deaths. Today the numbers are 5.372.822 and 342,634 respectively. Below you can see this week's table of figures and compare it to the figures for last week.
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| Table Saturday 16th May |
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| Table Saturday 23rd May 2020 |
The virus crisis is at different stages around the world but as you all know it is still with us. Going into deconfinement or easing lockdown measures is a tricky step in our war against coronavirus as it hasn't gone away and according to the WHO it will probably stay with us forever. However, there was news of a vaccine this week, from a US company called Moderna. It has been tried out on a small group of people and there are high hopes it will work. What I would like to see is a worldwide effort for a vaccine to be found and shared with all countries for free or practically free. Unfortunately, the majority of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies are from the US and somehow I don't see that happening. It should though. This week also saw its president, the one and only, larger than life, Donald Trump, admitting to taking the controversial medicine hydroxycholoroquine (hope I spelled that right) which has dangerous side affects and has not proven to cure the virus. This week also saw the President slam the WHO for what he says has been mismanagement of the crisis. He, however, is not doing well in his handling of it on his home turf as we all know. So who is he to speak?
On Sunday last week we were happy though to see that Spain is no longer a hot spot in the world and can see some light at the end of the tunnel. For us it was a lovely family Sunday, although for me most days in lockdown have seemed like a quiet family Sunday. That day Elliot turned 8 months old. He is so big, weighing nearly 10 kilos and measuring about 75 cm. He had been practicing crawling for weeks now and it was finally on Sunday, the day he turned 8 months old, that he mastered it and did many more steps or knee shuffles hahahha. Here he is in a video taken by his father that proves he can now crawl. Crawling is a big step in a baby's development as that is when it gets its first taste of freedom of mobility. The average age for a baby to start crawling is between 6 and 10 months, so Elliot is doing fine. We think he is teething too. When I read up about the subject, I was surprised to hear that it is not until a toddler is 3 years old that he or her has a full set of milk teeth.
We all went for a walk that morning enjoying the vegetation, the flora and the fauna which was spectacular. There are lots of wild flowers, especially bluebells, poppies, dandelions and huge daisies but there is another flower which is very abundant. It is purple like bluebells but different and I wondered what it's called. This is it.
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| Harebells everywhere in the area where we live. |
Apparently it is a wild harebell also known as the Scottish bluebell and is from the Campanula family. Well, I love it.
We came home to prepare what is now our weekly barbecue; except that we didn't have one yesterday. Over the last few years we hardly ever had one but are enjoying them at the weekends now in lockdown. Here is Eladio tending to the gourmet burgers and "butifarra" spicy sausage which we would have with caramelised onion, juicy sliced tomatoes and jacket potatoes.
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| Eladio tending to the barbecue |
Thanks to the good weather, once again we were eating outside. Here is my father at the table. I know he loves our meals outside and as he was always a sausage fan (he used to burn them when making our tea) I imagine he enjoyed the barbecue that day.
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| My father at the table just before we had our barbecue lunch last Sunday |
In the afternoon we all gathered in the shady area by the pool. Elliot was on his blanket and it was then that he first managed to crawl properly. We all clapped when he showed us he had mastered the art of crawling. Here he is on his blanket with his mother, our younger daughter, Oli, looking on lovingly.
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| In the garden with Elliot last Sunday |
It was his father, Miguel, Oli's TV cameraman partner, who took the photo above and the video. He was enjoying his last hour or so with his son and Olivia before heading off to Valencia where he was working this week. The last of his paternity leave was over and he was going back to work. We would miss him this week. The good news is that from 1st August he will be transferred permanently to Madrid. So no more week on week off of work and week in Valencia and week in Madrid which does not make for good family life.
Just as Miguel was leaving it was time for my weekly Skype call with my dear friends Sandra and Adele who live in Brussels and Orleans. It's always lovely to catch up. Now all three of us have had our hair done. Both Adele and I had been to the hairdresser and Sandra had done her own.
We chatted for at least for an hour until it was time for us all to make dinners in our respective homes. That night I made a light dinner of tuna fish salad which we ate outside in the sun at 8 pm. Later I helped Oli bathe not so little Elliot who now sits up in his bath and splashes all over the place. He was soon in his cot, fast asleep. After kissing him goodnight, I went to our room to watch the news with Eladio. We later saw a silly film starring an ageing Pierce Brosnan called The November Man which I do not recommend.
Monday came and the temperature would rise to 26c. From then on the good weather came and the forecast for the next few days was fantastic. I hoped and prayed we would have no rain again until after the summer, or as little as possible.
Lockdown is so much more bearable with sunshine and for most of the last 2 months or so since the announcement of the State of Alarm and lockdown started, we have had little of it. Rain depresses me and sunshine always makes me feel good, so yes, because of the weather, I have felt a lot better this week.
Monday brought with it good news vs a vs coronavirus. The death toll in Spain fell even lower, to 59 and the government announced international travel could commence on 1st July. If that happens, barring new outbreaks of the virus, that means I may salvage some of my Airbnb business this summer. It also means we can go on holiday. I have been dreaming of going to Scotland but maybe we shall have to leave that till next year. I discovered a route up in the highlands called Route 500 and have been dreaming about it ever since. Finances, though, will only permit a staycation this summer. So, no doubt we shall be coming and going to Montrondo and Santa Pola. Reality is they now seem almost like dream destinations after such a long time in lockdown. Until Madrid is in phase 3 we shall not be able to move from our province. So, roll on phase 3 I say.
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| The forecast for this week and it will continue next week too. |
Monday brought with it good news vs a vs coronavirus. The death toll in Spain fell even lower, to 59 and the government announced international travel could commence on 1st July. If that happens, barring new outbreaks of the virus, that means I may salvage some of my Airbnb business this summer. It also means we can go on holiday. I have been dreaming of going to Scotland but maybe we shall have to leave that till next year. I discovered a route up in the highlands called Route 500 and have been dreaming about it ever since. Finances, though, will only permit a staycation this summer. So, no doubt we shall be coming and going to Montrondo and Santa Pola. Reality is they now seem almost like dream destinations after such a long time in lockdown. Until Madrid is in phase 3 we shall not be able to move from our province. So, roll on phase 3 I say.
With Miguel gone and Olivia working, it meant that Eladio and I were on grandparent duty with sole responsibility for little Elliot that day and on Tuesday. Thankfully Oli had Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off as her employer RTVE owed her 3 days holiday which she had to use up quickly before they expired. Elliot behaved well but of course needs our undivided. Thus we took him on our walk. Eladio took the dogs and I pushed his state-of-the-art push chair. It's easy to push on the flat but it's another story going uphill.
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| Taking Elliot for a walk on Monday during grandparent duty. |
Half way through he fell asleep. Pushing him up the hill back home was strenuous; especially for the arms. We gave him some food - my forbidden yoghurt - and then he ate a whole nectarine. And what a mess he made. Eladio also got his polo shirt stained hahahahaha.
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| Elliot making a mess while enjoying his nectarine. |
While Eladio was in charge of Elliot, I made our lunch; cream of asparagus soup with white asparagus followed by my salmon parcels with leeks and creme fraiche which we had with puree made from sweet potato, pumpkin and potatoes. Oli could not complain there weren't enough vegetables hahahaha.
Oli gave us a one hour break after lunch then it was grandparent duty again until I remembered I had a scheduled skype call at 5.30 with my old school friend, Amanda, who lives in Devon. I had forgotten about it so when Amanda reminded me, it was a wonderful excuse to escape grandparent duty hahahahahah. We nattered on for more than an hour, more than half of our call remembering our school days at St. Joseph's College, a Catholic Grammar School in Bradford. We were in stitches remembering our pranks, especially mine.
Then it was time for dinner, a simple meal of more asparagus; green ones this time, with scrambled eggs. Later I helped Oli bathe Elliot again who is quite a handful now in the bath as he moves around so much and splashes the water so.
Finally it was bed time and after watching the tail end of the news we resumed watching Fauda. I got a headache which I couldn't shake off all night and even woke up with it when I got up at 6.22 to another day of grandparent duty.
Tuesday was mostly spent with Elliot. Again we took him on our walk and left early, at 10 am, to avoid the sun. Again he slept most of the way. During our Skype call, Amanda and I talked about the wild flowers we see on our respective walks and I told her that dandelion clocks are often gigantic here. I have never seen them as big in the UK as we get them here. So on the walk that day I remembered to take some photos to share with her, like this one.
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| Giant dandelion clock on our walk on Tuesday |
No doubt, Elliot, when he is a little older, will love to blow on them, just as all children do. I remember as a child loving them, puffing at them and seeing the seeds fly into the air later to turn into new dandelions next spring. The seeds can fly as far as 5 miles from their origin! It was Amanda who reminded me they are called "clocks". They turn into "clocks" or puffy balls of fluff when the head of the wild flower goes to seed. So this occurs always after flowering. I had to search google to find out why they are called clocks. Apparently it's from a children's game - not one I ever played - where the number of puffs to blow the seeds is supposed to tell the time. Don't ask me how. I am not a botanist. As to the name of the weed or flower, depending on how you like to see it - dandelion comes from the French (dent-de-lion) or the Spanish (diente de león) meaning the tooth of the lion. I read that this is because of the flower's toothed shaped petals. There you go, a piece of useless information for you or maybe for you UK lockdown quiz freaks an interesting piece of trivia.
Once home I fed Elliot an apricot which he loved - he adores fruit (and bread) - and then it was play time on his blanket under the chestnut trees by the pool. I sat for a while on one of the benches watching him and had to take a photo of our lovely house. We have lived here since 2006, nearly 14 years ago. Oh how time flies. I often wonder for how many more years we will live here as I can hardly see myself still being here when I am really old. The house is far too big for that and there are too many stairs and steps.
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| View of our house from the shady part of the pool |
While there was and is a big debate in this country on the reopening of swimming pools, both privately shared and public ones, I admired ours. The debate is how to reopen them and keep them virus free. There is no easy answer. The same debate is going on about opening beaches. Beaches and pools apparently will only be allowed to function with 30% of their usual capacity, something difficult to control. I am grateful we don't have that issue without our pool as I cannot envisage a summer in Spain without enjoying bathes to cool off when it gets really hot and it will. The forecast is for a very hot summer.
Oli finished work at around 5.45 and we spent time by the pool keeping Elliot amused. There really is not much more to record for Tuesday, so let me move on to Wednesday.
I was awake early again, as usual but had finally shaken off my headache. Wednesday was a good day overall. Oli relieved us of grandparent duty as she would be off work until tomorrow. The four of us went on our walk at 10 am, to avoid the heat, with our dogs in tow. They are getting a lot of exercise recently which I know they much appreciate.
Grandparent duty resumed upon our return though for Eladio as that day Oli and I went to do the weekly shopping together. We didn't do it together which is not allowed but went in the car together and once inside the supermarkets followed separate lists. That made the whole process so much easier for me. We were in a hurry though if we wanted to be home on time for lunch and in the space of 2h or so made it to Mercadona, Carrefour Market, BM, the chemist and Alveran bakery. It was at the bakery that Oli ordered the pastries for her birthday breakfast. We came home to unload all our purchases which we hoped, this time, would last a whole week. Well they should!
The afternoon was spent by the pool as the temperature rose to 30ºc that day. I was there on and off as I was a bit busy working on a press release which I sent out on Thursday morning. Miguel, Oli's partner, ever the cautious one when it comes to Elliot, had ordered him swimming gear. A parcel arrived that morning from Decathlon containing a wet suit, sun glasses and a sun hat for our little tot. I laughed when I saw the wet suit - so tiny - which I thought was a bit much for a baby. I mean, our girls never got any protective ware of any type when they were small, except for arm bands and they have fared perfectly well. Today's parents are far more protective. Elliot didn't like the wet suit being put on him as it is tight and difficult to put on. I grudgingly admitted though that it would protect him more from the cold water than the strong sun. Here he is all ready for his first dip in the pool, quite a milestone in his life.
His mother was wearing her bikini and I am quite proud of her for keeping her figure after childbirth. In comparison I ballooned after giving birth hahahaha. Then Mother and baby sat on the steps of the pool ready to go in the water. Elsa, our lab is by their side and later went in too. She only goes in though if we throw a ball in the water so she did not join Elliot that day.
I joined them later for my first bathe of the season (it was cold) but first was on photographer duty. I took a lovely video of Elliot's first experience in the pool which you can watch here. Then Oli got out an old lilo left behind by some Airbn guests and sat Elliot on it and cautiously looked around. He was clearly enjoying the experience but sat very still as if he knew he had to avoid danger. Soon, I hope, his father, an expert swimmer, will show him how to swim. The only thing we needed that day were arm bands but they didn't come with the Decathlon delivery as he has some at his parents' flat and they must go and get them he is to enjoy the water properly.
I found my own bathe quite cold but as it was warm outside it didn't really matter. I did skinny dipping and when I told Oli the term which she had not heard, she thought it was very funny. Well, I love skinny dipping, always have and am privileged to have a pool which none of the neighbours can see. My life loving mother would have approved I am sure.
Elliot didn't mind the wet suit but was a little puzzled by the sunglasses although he willingly allowed his mother to put them on. Just before he pulled them off, I got a snapshot of his first time wearing sun glasses. Here he is.
I think it was around that time that Suzy, my elder daughter, rang us. We had a great family video call. She was amazed at how much Elliot has grown - we are too. He seems to grow by the minute.
Again we had dinner outside. It gets dark now officially at about 9.30 pm which makes for lots of sunlight hours. That is another reason for May being my favourite month. That evening I made artichokes or rather tried to make fried flower shaped ones. Instead of boiling them in oil which is far too fattening, I boiled them in water and perhaps overcooked them which made it difficult to turn them into flower shapes when it came to lightly frying them. This is what they looked like. It was my first attempt and I must say they tasted delicious although they didn't look very professional.
After dinner it was Elliot's bath time and I helped Oli again. When we bathe Elliot I always remember a story from my family. My parents used to tell us (my brother George and I) that when he was small and they were living in Cambridge, my father used to take him for a walk before dinner which was probably called tea then. Upon returning my 2 year old brother would say: "see Mummy, haf tea, baffy, beddy" (see Mummy, have tea, bathy, beddy). So when I help bathe Elliot I say these same words to him and which mean so much to me.
Later it was time for the news and Elliot joined me on my bed while his mother got ready herself. I love these moments with him. I give him lots of secret little things from my bedside drawer - his favourite being a tube of anti wind tablets (hahahaha) because of the sound it makes when he rattles it. He also likes my tub of chewing gum and a bottle of nail varnish which is tightly shut before it reaches his hands. Here is the little mite that night on our bed.
When he had been taken away to be put to sleep in his cot which he hates, we had time to watch some of the news. The main stories that day in Spain were the further extension of lockdown - another 2 weeks, which was grudgingly approved by parliament and the fact that face masks will now be obligatory in public where it is not possible to maintain social distancing. We would witness that personally when we went out the next day.
Thursday came and I would be busy in the morning sending out a press release about the appointment of two new board members for my main customer, a fiber internet operator. New board members is never of much interest to the media so I knew this would be a tough one. Luckily though I did get some initial coverage but would have to wait until the next day to know how much from my press tracking agency. I think I got about 7 articles in the end which I considered good enough.
I had everything ready to go live at 11 am. Thus I managed our 10 am walk and came back to send out the press release and contact some of my key journalists in the hope they would publish the news which was not exactly breakthrough. But I got a breakthrough when Europa Press, a Spanish news outlet published it, meaning it would be shared with the media if they were interested. That is always the question.
With my work out of the way, I had time for a mid morning coffee with my family, then Oli and I went out to get the pastries she had ordered for her birthday breakfast at the Alverán bakery. It was on Thursday that we witnessed the new normal in the street with everyone wearing face masks. Thus we wore ours, surgical ones, as you can see in the photo illustrating this post. Luckily they are not obligatory in the open if social distancing of 2 metres can be maintained. I posted this photo on social media and my dear friend Sandra remarked that she would have expected Oli and I to wear fashion type floral masks. To begin with we don't have any and I haven't seen any here in Spain; not that I go out much. In any case small shops only began to open on Monday. I could order some online of course, but actually I haven't seen any I would want to wear. In a way, like my underwear, I think I like my masks plain white. But we will see. Here is Oli in the bakery (Alverán) where as you can see it was the new normal too, with only one person allowed in and wearing the obligatory mask.
As we drove around the area on our way home, we were pleased to see that small shops were gradually opening again. That lifted our spirits a bit.
We later had a simple lunch of vegetable soup followed by lentils. It was actually all vegan so, no doubt, Suzy, my older daughter would have approved. As the week progressed it got warmer and warmer and lunch under the awning in the kitchen patio was very uncomfortable. We said we would have lunch inside again if it continued to be so warm.
To cool off in the afternoon, Oli and Elliot went in the water again. I didn't as I had a bit of a headache. But my, was it warm, even in the shade.
I had nearly forgotten to bake Oli's birthday cake but of course had plenty of time - we have so much time on our hands in lockdown - I made my standard Victoria sponge cake which came out a treat. I would decorate it the next day, just as Oli likes it, with jam and whipped cream inside and icing and bilberries and raspberries on top.
Dinner was lovely. I made coleslaw for the first time ever which we had with duck and orange salad (also delicious). For the first time ever, too, I used the shredder from my relatively new Kenwood chef. It's a lot more complicated than my old one. Eladio came to the rescue and with the help of You tube tutorials, we finally managed to work it out. The coleslaw turned out a treat.
Later I helped Oli bathe little or not-so-little Elliot; something I love doing. We went to bed quite early, caught the tail end of the news again - deaths were down to 50 that day in Spain - and then watched 2 more episodes of Fauda.
On Friday morning I was up early at 5.50. I was excited too as it was Oli's birthday with all that that entails in our house. It was to be a special one; her first as a mother. Olivia had asked Miguel to get people to send video greetings - a new fashion for birthdays as you all, no doubt, know. He complied and Suzy and I helped to gather as many as we could. I only wish we had included ourselves. So, he sent a final video beautifully put together by where the first half was of Olivia and Elliot since motherhood. All in all there were about 30 videos from friends and family and the video lasted a good 35 minutes. I had to download it on my PC to show to my daughter later after breakfast. Later in the week I uploaded it to my You Tube Channel to share with you here but my video was blocked because of music rights. In any case, it was a lovely gesture.
Oli came down to my study to find me together with little Elliot. We were soon laying the table outside for her birthday breakfast and getting everything ready. Only Miguel and Suzy were missing but we hoped to make up for their absence by creating an extra special birthday for our youngest daughter. To think that 35 years ago I gave birth to her and to see her now as a mother herself is mind boggling. Where did the time go? This was my little baby just after her birth.
She was always a happy baby and happy little girl. She did well at school and at University where she got a triple degree (!) and went on to have a good career as a TV journalist. We are proud of her for that but what fills our heart with joy is to see her as a mother.
Her special day started with a birthday breakfast which included all the treats we usually love. Here we are around the table (well I'm not as I took the photo hahahaa).
Oli got two lovely presents, a jump suit from Miguel and a watch (previously chosen by her hahahhaa) from us. Elliot was more interested in the wrapping paper, hahahaha.
The next item on the agenda of the day should have been a walk at 10 am but we got waylaid -me finishing off Oli's cake, Oli getting Elliot ready and answering her phone which pinged all day and Eladio busy in the garden. He was too busy to join us on our walk and that morning saw him fumigate a green fly infested plum tree. Here he is fumigating it.
It was just Oli, Elliot and me on the walk as when we were about to leave, Eladio was already on his next task - this time white washing one of his utility rooms. Here he is; the painter this time.
The walk was far too hot at 11.30 in the morning but we needed the exercise. Thankfully part of it was on shaded paths. Here is Oli with little Elliot in his push chair on our walk that day.
We came back and went more or less straight inside the pool to cool off. Then it was time to make our standard birthday lunch of beer battered fish with chips and home made mushy peas. This was the meal before we polished it all off.
For the cake moment, I got out some funny glasses and a sash for Oli to wear. Here she is with them on and about to blow out the candles with Elliot at her side. He is looking on with interest while munching on a nectarine.
It was then that we heard the good news that Madrid would finally move from Phase 0 to Phase 1 of of lockdown lifting, starting tomorrow, Monday. We all gave a round of applause when we found out. What great news. Now we shall be able to meet other people, invite them round and even go out for meals. Restaurants and bars will be able to open their outdoor dining area with 50% capacity. Churches too will be opening at 30% capacity but we shan't be going hahaha. We can't wait for our first meal out. We want to go to the Moroccan place we love, El Tuareg, in Villaviciosa. It was the news we had been hoping for as other parts of Spain had moved to Phase 1 and even Phase 2 and it was just Madrid, Barcelona and some areas of Castilla León that were lagging behind.
In the afternoon we spent the time by the pool. This time even Eladio went in the water for his first bathe which was quite an historic moment as he hardly ever goes in. I think he wanted to after the painting as he was all dusty hahahaha. The water was not as cold by Friday so Elliot didn't have to wear his wet suit thank googness.
In the early evening, our neighbours, Julio and his Russian wife, Ekaterina, came by to give Oli a birthday present, a lovely loaf of his special bread which has sultanas and walnuts in. It was lovely to have a visit even if our visitors couldn't stay as that is not allowed until tomorrow.
It was the perfect compliment to the birthday dinner; giant prawns with garlic and asparagus. The oil that went with the asparagus was also a present. It came from my former Nokia boss, Félix, whose family own an olive oil firm called Fuenquesada in his native Jaén. It was delicious, very green and tasty. I congratulated my former boss for the award his olive oil got at a recent contest. The Fuenquesada oil won the top award for outstanding "picual" (type of olive), a gold award at the NY100C olive oil contest, considered the most prestigious in the world and which takes place in New York. When Felix sent me a whatsapp with the news of the award I congratulated him and cheekily asked if maybe he could send me a bottle to try. Well, he did, and I loved it and I know I shall be buying some from his website. This is it if you are interested.
The day was at its end and it had been a good one, even without Miguel and Suzy and without having been able to go out to dinner. But Miguel will be here tomorrow and no doubt next week we shall do so. As to Suzy, we'll have to wait and see when she can leave London - it all depends on her flight which keeps being rescheduled.
Saturday came and it was another hot and sunny day. The day unfolded as usual with our morning walk, bathes in the pool, lunch, siesta, more time by the pool, etc. There was good news that day when the Prime Minister announced that international travel to Spain will resume on 1st July, thus partially saving the tourist trade in this country in the summer. He also announced that La Liga will resume on 8th June, although behind locked doors. In the same live TV address he told Spaniards there would be a 10 day period of national mourning from this Tuesday - the dead so deserve that. His other news was economic, an introduction of a minimum basic wage to help "4 out of 5 people in severe poverty". As we all know the health crisis has caused an economic crisis the likes of which the world has not seen since the Wall Street Crash. In Spain 28.628 people have died so far and unemployment rose by 300.000 and 283.000 in March and April respectively. There is a great need for a minimum wage. To understand that, all you have to do is look at the people queueing up at food banks. I was happy to hear international tourism will resume, meaning I shall be able to host Airbnb guests, but at the same time I am a little worried people will bring the virus with them. Only time will tell. Later in the day, more lifting of lockdown measures were announced and I was delighted to read that from tomorrow, finally families will be able to go out and walk or do exercise together in groups of up to 10 people. For most of lockdown, no going out, including exercise, was allowed, except for trips to the supermarket or chemist. That changed not so long ago and one parent was allowed out with up to 3 children. From now on both parents will be able to go out with their children. Halleluya I say. All this was good news, on a day when less than 50 deaths were reported.
This was all news I gave our friends, Phil and Kathy, in Yorkshire, when we had a Facetime call yesterday evening. They would love to come to Spain this summer, but then that depends on what lockdown measures are lifted in the UK. I would love to go to Yorkshire this summer but maybe we shall have to leave it until next year.
However, not everyone here is too pleased with how the government has handled the crisis - in my mind neither better nor worse than most governments - and Saturday saw car demonstrations all over the country calling for the resignation of the Prime Minister although the man is not for turning (hahaha). They were also calling for an end to the state of alarm that gives the government power to prolong lockdown in all its different stages.
The protests were called by the far right wing party (Vox) who accuses the government of a "draconian response to the pandemic that has resulted in unemployment and misery" according to one newspaper.
We discussed all the day's news over a lovely evening dinner outside on our kitchen patio when we enjoyed Julio's bread once again. Later I helped Oli bathe Elliot again but tonight Miguel will resume the role when he returns from Valencia.
Today promises to be another scorcher with temperatures rising above 30ºc. I'm so grateful we have the pool to cool off. I have been up since 6.22 - not bad for me - Today will be our last day in Phase 0 of lockdown and we all look forward to regaining just a bit of our lost freedom when Madrid enters Phase 1 tomorrow. You will hear all about it in next week's post. Meanwhile, friends and readers, I wish you all a great week ahead.
Until next Sunday,
Masha
Grandparent duty resumed upon our return though for Eladio as that day Oli and I went to do the weekly shopping together. We didn't do it together which is not allowed but went in the car together and once inside the supermarkets followed separate lists. That made the whole process so much easier for me. We were in a hurry though if we wanted to be home on time for lunch and in the space of 2h or so made it to Mercadona, Carrefour Market, BM, the chemist and Alveran bakery. It was at the bakery that Oli ordered the pastries for her birthday breakfast. We came home to unload all our purchases which we hoped, this time, would last a whole week. Well they should!
The afternoon was spent by the pool as the temperature rose to 30ºc that day. I was there on and off as I was a bit busy working on a press release which I sent out on Thursday morning. Miguel, Oli's partner, ever the cautious one when it comes to Elliot, had ordered him swimming gear. A parcel arrived that morning from Decathlon containing a wet suit, sun glasses and a sun hat for our little tot. I laughed when I saw the wet suit - so tiny - which I thought was a bit much for a baby. I mean, our girls never got any protective ware of any type when they were small, except for arm bands and they have fared perfectly well. Today's parents are far more protective. Elliot didn't like the wet suit being put on him as it is tight and difficult to put on. I grudgingly admitted though that it would protect him more from the cold water than the strong sun. Here he is all ready for his first dip in the pool, quite a milestone in his life.
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| Elliot in his wet suit |
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| Elliot about to go in the pool |
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| Oli and Elliot in the pool on Wednesday - his first time ever in the water |
Elliot didn't mind the wet suit but was a little puzzled by the sunglasses although he willingly allowed his mother to put them on. Just before he pulled them off, I got a snapshot of his first time wearing sun glasses. Here he is.
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| Elliot in his new sunglasses |
Again we had dinner outside. It gets dark now officially at about 9.30 pm which makes for lots of sunlight hours. That is another reason for May being my favourite month. That evening I made artichokes or rather tried to make fried flower shaped ones. Instead of boiling them in oil which is far too fattening, I boiled them in water and perhaps overcooked them which made it difficult to turn them into flower shapes when it came to lightly frying them. This is what they looked like. It was my first attempt and I must say they tasted delicious although they didn't look very professional.
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| Artichokes for dinner |
Later it was time for the news and Elliot joined me on my bed while his mother got ready herself. I love these moments with him. I give him lots of secret little things from my bedside drawer - his favourite being a tube of anti wind tablets (hahahaha) because of the sound it makes when he rattles it. He also likes my tub of chewing gum and a bottle of nail varnish which is tightly shut before it reaches his hands. Here is the little mite that night on our bed.
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| Elliot having fun on our bed just before going to sleep |
Thursday came and I would be busy in the morning sending out a press release about the appointment of two new board members for my main customer, a fiber internet operator. New board members is never of much interest to the media so I knew this would be a tough one. Luckily though I did get some initial coverage but would have to wait until the next day to know how much from my press tracking agency. I think I got about 7 articles in the end which I considered good enough.
I had everything ready to go live at 11 am. Thus I managed our 10 am walk and came back to send out the press release and contact some of my key journalists in the hope they would publish the news which was not exactly breakthrough. But I got a breakthrough when Europa Press, a Spanish news outlet published it, meaning it would be shared with the media if they were interested. That is always the question.
With my work out of the way, I had time for a mid morning coffee with my family, then Oli and I went out to get the pastries she had ordered for her birthday breakfast at the Alverán bakery. It was on Thursday that we witnessed the new normal in the street with everyone wearing face masks. Thus we wore ours, surgical ones, as you can see in the photo illustrating this post. Luckily they are not obligatory in the open if social distancing of 2 metres can be maintained. I posted this photo on social media and my dear friend Sandra remarked that she would have expected Oli and I to wear fashion type floral masks. To begin with we don't have any and I haven't seen any here in Spain; not that I go out much. In any case small shops only began to open on Monday. I could order some online of course, but actually I haven't seen any I would want to wear. In a way, like my underwear, I think I like my masks plain white. But we will see. Here is Oli in the bakery (Alverán) where as you can see it was the new normal too, with only one person allowed in and wearing the obligatory mask.
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| The new normal - Oli with a face mask at the bakery on Thursday morning |
We later had a simple lunch of vegetable soup followed by lentils. It was actually all vegan so, no doubt, Suzy, my older daughter would have approved. As the week progressed it got warmer and warmer and lunch under the awning in the kitchen patio was very uncomfortable. We said we would have lunch inside again if it continued to be so warm.
To cool off in the afternoon, Oli and Elliot went in the water again. I didn't as I had a bit of a headache. But my, was it warm, even in the shade.
I had nearly forgotten to bake Oli's birthday cake but of course had plenty of time - we have so much time on our hands in lockdown - I made my standard Victoria sponge cake which came out a treat. I would decorate it the next day, just as Oli likes it, with jam and whipped cream inside and icing and bilberries and raspberries on top.
Dinner was lovely. I made coleslaw for the first time ever which we had with duck and orange salad (also delicious). For the first time ever, too, I used the shredder from my relatively new Kenwood chef. It's a lot more complicated than my old one. Eladio came to the rescue and with the help of You tube tutorials, we finally managed to work it out. The coleslaw turned out a treat.
Later I helped Oli bathe little or not-so-little Elliot; something I love doing. We went to bed quite early, caught the tail end of the news again - deaths were down to 50 that day in Spain - and then watched 2 more episodes of Fauda.
On Friday morning I was up early at 5.50. I was excited too as it was Oli's birthday with all that that entails in our house. It was to be a special one; her first as a mother. Olivia had asked Miguel to get people to send video greetings - a new fashion for birthdays as you all, no doubt, know. He complied and Suzy and I helped to gather as many as we could. I only wish we had included ourselves. So, he sent a final video beautifully put together by where the first half was of Olivia and Elliot since motherhood. All in all there were about 30 videos from friends and family and the video lasted a good 35 minutes. I had to download it on my PC to show to my daughter later after breakfast. Later in the week I uploaded it to my You Tube Channel to share with you here but my video was blocked because of music rights. In any case, it was a lovely gesture.
Oli came down to my study to find me together with little Elliot. We were soon laying the table outside for her birthday breakfast and getting everything ready. Only Miguel and Suzy were missing but we hoped to make up for their absence by creating an extra special birthday for our youngest daughter. To think that 35 years ago I gave birth to her and to see her now as a mother herself is mind boggling. Where did the time go? This was my little baby just after her birth.
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| Olivia soon after she was born 35 years ago |
Her special day started with a birthday breakfast which included all the treats we usually love. Here we are around the table (well I'm not as I took the photo hahahaa).
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| The birthday breakfast - spot Pippa |
The next item on the agenda of the day should have been a walk at 10 am but we got waylaid -me finishing off Oli's cake, Oli getting Elliot ready and answering her phone which pinged all day and Eladio busy in the garden. He was too busy to join us on our walk and that morning saw him fumigate a green fly infested plum tree. Here he is fumigating it.
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| Eladio the gardener |
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| Eladio the painter |
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| Oli and Elliot on our walk on her birthday |
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| Fish and chips for Oli's birthday lunch |
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| Oli's cake moment with Elliot looking on |
In the afternoon we spent the time by the pool. This time even Eladio went in the water for his first bathe which was quite an historic moment as he hardly ever goes in. I think he wanted to after the painting as he was all dusty hahahaha. The water was not as cold by Friday so Elliot didn't have to wear his wet suit thank googness.
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| Fun in the pool - Eladio's first dip |
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| The present of a loaf of home made bread for Olivia on her birthday from our neighbours |
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| Fuenquesada olive oil - a must for olive oil gourmans |
Saturday came and it was another hot and sunny day. The day unfolded as usual with our morning walk, bathes in the pool, lunch, siesta, more time by the pool, etc. There was good news that day when the Prime Minister announced that international travel to Spain will resume on 1st July, thus partially saving the tourist trade in this country in the summer. He also announced that La Liga will resume on 8th June, although behind locked doors. In the same live TV address he told Spaniards there would be a 10 day period of national mourning from this Tuesday - the dead so deserve that. His other news was economic, an introduction of a minimum basic wage to help "4 out of 5 people in severe poverty". As we all know the health crisis has caused an economic crisis the likes of which the world has not seen since the Wall Street Crash. In Spain 28.628 people have died so far and unemployment rose by 300.000 and 283.000 in March and April respectively. There is a great need for a minimum wage. To understand that, all you have to do is look at the people queueing up at food banks. I was happy to hear international tourism will resume, meaning I shall be able to host Airbnb guests, but at the same time I am a little worried people will bring the virus with them. Only time will tell. Later in the day, more lifting of lockdown measures were announced and I was delighted to read that from tomorrow, finally families will be able to go out and walk or do exercise together in groups of up to 10 people. For most of lockdown, no going out, including exercise, was allowed, except for trips to the supermarket or chemist. That changed not so long ago and one parent was allowed out with up to 3 children. From now on both parents will be able to go out with their children. Halleluya I say. All this was good news, on a day when less than 50 deaths were reported.
This was all news I gave our friends, Phil and Kathy, in Yorkshire, when we had a Facetime call yesterday evening. They would love to come to Spain this summer, but then that depends on what lockdown measures are lifted in the UK. I would love to go to Yorkshire this summer but maybe we shall have to leave it until next year.
However, not everyone here is too pleased with how the government has handled the crisis - in my mind neither better nor worse than most governments - and Saturday saw car demonstrations all over the country calling for the resignation of the Prime Minister although the man is not for turning (hahaha). They were also calling for an end to the state of alarm that gives the government power to prolong lockdown in all its different stages.
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| There were anti government car demonstrations in big cities in Spain yesterday |
We discussed all the day's news over a lovely evening dinner outside on our kitchen patio when we enjoyed Julio's bread once again. Later I helped Oli bathe Elliot again but tonight Miguel will resume the role when he returns from Valencia.
Today promises to be another scorcher with temperatures rising above 30ºc. I'm so grateful we have the pool to cool off. I have been up since 6.22 - not bad for me - Today will be our last day in Phase 0 of lockdown and we all look forward to regaining just a bit of our lost freedom when Madrid enters Phase 1 tomorrow. You will hear all about it in next week's post. Meanwhile, friends and readers, I wish you all a great week ahead.
Until next Sunday,
Masha
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