The rain came, family dinner at Elliot's, picking blackberries from the garden, my father fell and went to hospital, home again, Friday night out, the girls reunited with Copito, Corona virus spikes and other stories.

 Sunday, 16th August, 2020

Picking blackberries from our garden. 

Dear all.

Another week has gone by in August and I can't wait for next Wednesday when we are off to Portugal for 4 nights to celebrate our 37th wedding anniversary and I'm also wishing 15th September would hurry up too as I am impatient to take possession of our new house in Asturias. The week would have been a very normal one if it hadn't been for my father's fall. Read on to hear all about it. 

Meanwhile, we are here at home and slightly invaded by our guests from Paris. But of course if we have made our bed we have to lie on it. The income was worth it and that's why we do Airbnb at home but this family, unlike nearly all of our past guests, just don't leave the house. We try to keep our space and I think they do too. I also thought we would make the perfect match but living together can be a strain. If I think back to other families we have had who have been a delight to host, this is not the same and I believe it's because our values are different. 

The pool was where we spent most of the time last Sunday as it was so so hot. It was Oli and Elliot's last day with us and we wanted to make the most of it. I think we managed. Our guests had brought another guest - thankfully only one but they hadn't told us which was not in the agreement. It turned out the man who came was the mother's brother who she told me had come to pick her mother up to take her home. He may have come to pick his mother up but while here, he had  a bathe and also lunch. The girls and I decided we would grab our spot by the pool and the four of us went and sat there before lunch and decided to bathe despite our guests and their guest being in the pool. 

The pool was full last Sunday

We grabbed the sun loungers too and here are the girls and Elliot together on our spot - the grass in the shady area where we also spent a lot of the afternoon.

Our spot by the pool

I left them every now and again to check on the chicken in the oven. At around midday our guests at the apartment in Santa Pola were leaving. I was relieved to see they had left me another 5 star review. The next set would come on Monday. It was such a good idea to list the apartment on Airbnb and I only wish I had thought about it before. 

Oh, yes, back to the chicken - That day I made a new dish that I had invented recently; roast chicken with pumpkin and red peppers. It was delicious. For dinner I asked Lucy to make us 4 small Spanish (potato and onion) tortillas. They were delicious too and the best thing was that I didn't have to cook again. 

By and large it was a lazy and hot day. Eladio decided it was too hot to leave our air conditioned room and watched a nature documentary while we spent time with Elliot in and out of the pool. Dinner was again the highlight of the day and our last dinner as a family together at home until tonight. Miguel was back from Valencia that night and the family went to their flat in Mirasierra until Oli comes back with Elliot today. 

I went to bed early and soon fell asleep watching some silly Cuban soap opera. I then woke up again feeling hot, despite the air con, so decided to go down to skinny dip only to find the French couple there. I went to join Suzy who was still awake and later I managed to get my dip just after midnight when the guests left the pool area. It was glorious skinny dipping at midnight with the sheen of the moon on the pool. It took me ages to get to sleep later and I was awake at around 6.30 am on Monday.

I had just laid my breakfast on the table of the kitchen terrace when the skies suddenly opened and rain poured down. I had to remove my breakfast and get the table and chairs to a dry spot so as not to spoil the wood. I have to say the rain was rather welcome. Of course the rain brought a much welcome cooler temperature that day which was a huge relief. I think, for the moment, the heat wave has gone. For the rest of the week it was in the high 20ºs. 

I had a very busy morning on Monday. First I did some quick extra shopping at Mercadona, then at 10.20 I had an appointment with my GP to get a prescription for my sleeping tablets. I had an interesting conversation with him about corona virus. I was happy to hear that there were very few cases in our area - he had only come across one in the whole of July. His opinion of the pandemic was rather different to what we have learned from the media. He told me that far more people died from normal flu which in his opinion was the mutation of the terrible Spanish flu a hundred years ago. He also told me we shouldn't fear Covid as much as we are being told as the mortality rate is very very low. When I questioned this pointing out the awful stories of people dying during the worst part of the pandemic, he said that was because we were not prepared then and hospital staff had to perform triage and that since then the medical world had learned  a lot more and that as people are being much more careful, the numbers of those badly infected or dying were also very very low. His overall opinion is that this virus will not mutate and that it is most probably fabricated by mankind although he has no proof. The worst thing I heard from him is that because of the fear, our lives will never be the same again. His story came when that day we heard Spain has the highest number of cases per 100 people. I am worried about another national lockdown but it seems the government prefers to confine the most affected areas and not the whole country. I am still wondering whether we will be able to go to Portugal this week. I sincerely hope so. 

After the visit to the clinic, I went to get the pills from the chemist and then was on my way again, this time to meet my friend and neighbour Elena. M. for a coffee. I hadn't seen her since before lockdown and we had a lot to catch up on. I had to leave at 12.15 as I had another hairdresser appointment at 12.30. It was to trim my hair as it hadn't been cut very well when I went last week. Thankfully my favourite hairdresser, Elena, was there and she soon had my hair looking perfect. It was chance that brought me another reservation for our apartment by the sea and near Santa Pola while at the hairdresser.  Out of politeness I asked Elena where she was going on holiday and she told me she wanted to go to Santa Pola but hadn't found accommodation yet. I immediately offered her our apartment which still had a few empty slots towards the end of August. After I sent her the information, she discussed it with her husband and both of them thought the apartment was perfect and there and then booked and paid upfront. How great to get a direct booking. Reservations via word of mouth are the best and hopefully there will be more of them.

I was very pleased to see this week that the listing for our apartment in Santa Pola is now a 5 star listing after some great reviews from our first guests there. I still have some free days after 27th  August if any of you are interested. Here is the listing. 

I was home from the hairdresser on time to help with the final touches for lunch which we had with my father as usual. Suzy joined us at the end as her lessons finish a bit late. It was funny not to have Elliot with us or Oli. So we were very appreciative of the photos our daughter sent of him. Here he is crawling in their communal garden. Soon he will be walking and then the fun will begin (hahahahaa)

Elliot crawling on grass - Monday

And here he is playing with some toys. His choice here last week was very limited but he has loads at their flat. 

Elliot playing with his toys on Monday

We also missed Oli. I asked for a photo of the look of the day for her appearance on TV that evening and got this one. She is wearing a green top and jeans. The top was very flattering.

Oli ready to go live on TV on Monday evening

While she was working, rehearsing, getting prepared, etec, we spent time in the garden by the pool but we didn't go in. When I say "we", I mean Suzy and I. Eladio was in our study pouring over the internet looking up how to convert an attic into a studio room of some sort. I refer to the attic in our new house in Asturias. I am more interested in breaking the wall in the pantry next to the kitchen and adding a door to lead to a small terrace which right now can only be reached when going outside the front door. We are both keen to do the same in the lounge to reach the garage and make one big lounge, far preferring that space for living than for parking. These are all dreams I hope one day we will be able to fulfill. We are both so excited about our new house and the plans we have for it.

We then joined Suzy again in the garden and read our kindles while she played her ukelele and sang which was nice background music. For the record I was reading a wonderful book called "The winemaker's wife" by Kristin Harmel, set in France in the Champagne area in WW2. 

Soon it was time to watch Oli live on TV. We now mostly watch her on the RTVE app. This is the link to her  appearance that day. She was reporting on a new Covid app that will be available soon. 

After watching Oli it is usually time to start making dinner. It was just the the three of us on Monday but we had a very pleasant meal after which Suzy gave us our own private concert. Sitting with us always are the dogs and I had to get little Pippa on camera as she looked so sweet. Here she is.

Pippa - simply Pippa - always with us. 

We made the wrong choice on Netflix once again that night. We started watching an Italian series called Baby but soon realised it wasn't our sort of thing.

I was up again to more rain on Tuesday morning. It rained nearly all day and the temperatures plummeted. 

It poured it down on Tuesday

There was a thunderstorm in the morning and I recorded it in this video as the weather was such an unusual occurrence at this time of year. 

Of course the rain changed our day and we had to spend it inside the house or in the sheltered parts of our terraces. That morning we did a much needed task in washing the dogs, or rather I persuaded Eladio to bathe Elsa and Norah - his job as mine is to bathe Pippa hahaha. Here is a photo to remember the moment. 

Eladio bathing Elsa on Tuesday

We were joined by my little shadow, Eva, our 7 year old guest from Paris who adores our dogs; especially Pippa. She was with me all morning like most mornings and helped me make more pies together with Lucy. This time we made my Mother's Russian version of "perushki" filled with minced meat, onion and rice to which I added sultanas and pine nuts. 

Making pies on Tuesday

Eva had picked some blackberries from our garden and made a couple of pies with them for herself and her brother. I heard later her 4 year old brother had misbehaved and wasn't given his:-(

I found an old Russian doll for her which must have belonged to the girls and she played with it while I tried to read my book - The Winemaker's Daughter.

It continued raining all day even when we left the house to go to Oli's for dinner that night. We were to be reunited with little Elliot who was delighted to see us. The poor chap never knows when we are going to appear or when he is going to come here but he is always pleased to see us. We had another great family dinner. Miguel cooked this time and made a great rice dish. Later we spent time with Elliot on his play mat where he has some lovely hand-me-down toys which seem very sophisticated to me. He loves being the centre of attention and was soon clapping his hands with glee. He makes us laugh so much.

Elliot clapping hands on his play mat surrounded by us all at Oli's on Tuesday evening

All good things come to an end and at around 10.30 we set about leaving. But Elliot wasn't having it and clung on to his grandfather. It was obvious he didn't want us to go as, of course, he wouldn't know when he would next see us. Poor little lamb, he is so innocent. Later Oli told us he cried after he left wanting his grandfather and that he didn't want his shower. I only wish he could have understood that we would see him again today. 

But we had to leave and say goodbye. It was a dark and wet journey home and we arrived to darkness in the house too. We were in bed late but I was wide awake and started watching Vanity Fair on Netflix. It had been a set book at school but I only really remembered the name of the heroine, Becky Sharp. I enjoyed what I saw that night.

Wednesday dawned and the rain had gone for the moment although it was very cloudy. The temperature at 6.30 in the morning was 15ºc and I found it rather refreshing.

The day started off quietly and had me picking blackberries with the help of Eva. There were more than last week and although there will be more to come I was eager to get a first batch and Eva wanted to make another pie. 

Blackberries from our garden

I have chosen the photo of me picking the blackberries, which is one of the most positive stories of the week and I like positive stories.

All was going well that morning or so I thought. Oli sent us a lovely photo of Elliot and his father who was teaching him how to brush his teeth. He only has two so far, but you have to start early (hahaha).

Miguel teaching Elliot to brush his teeth

Just before lunch I was finishing laying the table and called Lucy and Eladio who didn't appear. So I went downstairs and I found disaster. They were tending to my father who had just had a very nasty fall and there was blood everywhere as well as a huge gash on his forehead. He had been in his wheelchair taking the newspaper, El País, back to Eladio when it fell off his lap. He bent down to pick it up and then fell himself, head first on the wooden floor. It was Eladio who found him spreadeagled a short while later and lying in a pool of blood. I was horrified when I saw the gash. My father had not lost consciousness though and seemed to be ok, saying his head did not hurt. But the wound was quite deep. While Eladio and Lucy bandaged it, I rang the local health centre. Getting no reply I rang the emergency number 112. They wanted to send an ambulance to take him to a hospital but we were reluctant because of Covid and  preferred a doctor and nurse to come and see him. They did about an hour or so later but both agreed the gash was far too deep and would need proper surgery. The wound had no tissue and would be difficult to sew. They were more worried, however, of internal injuries and so we had no option but to take him to the hospital. The ambulance arrived at around 4 pm and I went in it with him. He was on a stretcher and was wearing a face mask for the first time. Of course as he hasn't left the house since lock down, that was a first for him. I wanted a photo for the girls and asked him to smile as much as he could and he told me he could laugh if I wanted. He was in good spirits and I guess he was quite enjoying the adventure. It's not often he gets out so I actually think he didn't mind at all. 

My father in the ambulance on Wednesday afternoon

The ambulance team who were marvelous, reassured me that there were very few Covid cases at the hospital we were going to, the brand new Rey Juan Carlos in Móstoles. I know it well. Sadly it is where my dear friend Fátima died. The team told me that in any case A+E was divided into two sections, non Covid (clean) and Covid (dirty!). We, of course,went to the former. I was worried we would be sitting in a waiting room with lots of people but no, my father was wheeled straight inside. I was allowed to accompany him to explain what had happened but was then told I couldn't stay with him as during the pandemic no one is allowed to accompany patients. Later though a nurse rang me to say I could be with him (hurray). That was because the doctor in charge of my father factored in his age (101) and communication problems. Although my father knows lots of languages, including Spanish, he hears very badly and needs me for communication. After explaining to her what had happened, she wanted to make sure he was lucid. So I had to ask my father two questions: where we were and what his age was. He passed the test very well of course. She then looked at the wound and confirmed the earlier opinion, that he would need proper surgeons to stitch it. But first she wanted him to have a scan and a blood test. That took a while and waiting for the results did too. My father was in a private box as it seemed all patients were and I was not allowed out and both of us had to wear our masks throughout. I was relieved to see the precautionary measures in place. Besides, I later heard there were hardly any cases at this hospital, there being more of them at an older hospital in Móstoles nearby. Thank goodness for that. The results brought good news. There was no internal injury to be seen. The doctor pointed out that there could be later so he would have to stay the night and we would also have to look out for any strange symptoms over the next few days. The surgeons came later. The two men looked very experienced and knew exactly what to do. I thought they would take him to an operating theater but no they stitched him up in the box, another precautionary measure I suppose. I don't quite know how they managed to sew the wound which was very wide, deep,  devoid of tissue with his scull completely exposed. But they performed their magic and thanks to the anesthesia, my father didn't feel a thing. He was stoic throughout, never complaining and I think we were all amazed at how he took it. Most old people would have grumbled and complained but not my father who was brought up to "be a good beast and suffer in silence". If he suffered it wasn't because of pain but because he wanted to go home. I did too, but there was nothing we could do to avoid one night in hospital. I have to say that he was very well looked after and I saw nothing but efficiency. We were lucky too that there were few patients.  We were also lucky that there was no internal damage. Equally comforting was the support I got from his GP, Doctora Martín. I had written to her on whatsapp when he fell. She was on holiday but even so wrote back and in fact was writing to me all day and until late at night. I was very touched. She didn't have to do that and it was much appreciated. 

Later nurses came to apply a special dressing and they added a bandage all around his head to put pressure on it. What with the turban like bandage and the mask, he looked so funny, sort of Turkish except that he has blue eyes. Here he is again, smiling for the camera.

My father after surgery

They then gave him antibiotics and he was on a glucose drip but not allowed to eat or drink anything until the next morning. I did manage to get a sleeping tablet for him though. He found it hard to sleep. In Spain, there is a custom of family members staying overnight with patients. I don't get why as the person accompanying hardly ever gets any sleep although a comfortable chair is provided. It should be the nurses who look after the patients, not family members. So, when my father, was dozing off, it was getting late and I was extremely tired so decided to leave him to sleep, go home, get some sleep myself in my own bed and come back the next day. I left by taxi and was home by around 11 pm. I didn't sleep well reeling from the shock of the day. 

I was up at 6.30 on Thursday morning and keen to get to the hospital as soon as possible as the earlier we arrived the earlier my father would be discharged. I found him in good spirits and with no repercussions from his fall which was rather a miracle. His own father had fallen in his late 60's and a week later died of thrombosis and I had that on my mind the whole time. Thankfully my father must be made of stronger stuff. He has fallen countless times and although this has been one of the worst falls, he got away with it again, apart from the stay in hospital. I have told him repeatedly not to do anything to provoke a fall and to call us always. But he can be stubborn and I do not rule out him falling again. The protocol for discharging him took its time when finally a doctor gave me his report which entitled his injury as "craniofacial trauma" with a long list of conditions to look out for, etc. In the report it said a nurse from his local health centre would be coming daily to change the dressing. We were out by about 9.30 and home again very soon. My father was delighted to be back and said "home sweet home". He also added he had quite enjoyed the adventure. I suppose it was the interruption to his routine that he enjoyed most. I did not enjoy the adventure which had me both worried and exhausted. 

It was great to be home. We had lots to do that morning, mostly food shopping and I was accompanied by my dear husband. Lucy made lentils for lunch which we had with one of my pies "perushki". I then got a well needed siesta and when I was up at around 5 pm, Suzy had left to spend the night with friends; Mónica and Chati. That meant Eladio and I were on our own. Our French guests were on their own too, or rather the parents were on their own with David, their 4 year old boy who kept running round the house naked! (hahahahah). The woman's mother was supposed to be coming to stay but when she heard my father had been to a hospital she got worried about catching Covid, This is because  she is in a very vulnerable group. She is in her 70's, had a heart attack last year and is diabetic. I am absolutely convinced that with all the precautions, we did not bring the virus into our home but she is still worried. Instead, Eva, went to stay with her.  However, she must have changed her mind as she is coming back today. Thus the house was very quiet until yesterday. I enjoyed reading in the garden until it was time to watch Oli on the TV and then have dinner with Eladio. 

Oli looked spectacular that day. I told her to congratulate her hairdresser who had done a great job. 

Oli ready to go live on Thursday

She was actually on twice but we only saw her the first time. Later she sent us the links so I can share the second appearance with you. It was about the banning of smoking in Galicia because of Covid.  This is it.  Meanwhile Miguel was in sole charge of Elliot as he has been all week. He sent me a great photo of our soon to be 11 month old grandson, one I love and want to share with you. He looks far older than his age don't you think?

Elliot posing in between playing with a ball on Thursday - such a happy little chap

He is a very happy little chap but he is also a very determined toddler. He can now crawl up steps as you can see in a funny video his father sent me and which I added to my You Tube channel here. I love it and hope you find it funny too. Shortly after he was reunited with his mother, the highlight of both their days in this lovely photo she sent us later.

Oli and Elliot reunited on Thursday

It was just Eladio and I that night for dinner and we enjoyed the peace and silence. Our meal was accompanied by a bottle of natural Asturian cider, Suzy's friend, Elenita, had brought us back from Asturias where she had been on holiday. We love the cider from that area. It has to be poured from high so as to preserve the sparkle and it was Eladio's job to do that. There is a special name for pouring cider in Asturias which is "escanciar" (the verb) which is nearly an art although these days you can buy special machines that do it automatically. We shall be investing in one when we move into our new house in September.

Eladio pouring cider the Asturian way on Thursday night

We managed to watch the news that night. For once there was some good and non Covid related news. The Israeli Prime Minister, Netanyahu, announced an historic peace deal with the United Arab Emirates. The deal normalises their relations with Israel announcing in exchange that it will stop its controversial plans to annex more of the West Bank. I really hope that is true. The only Arab states that had diplomatic ties with Israel until yesterday were Jordan and Egypt. Hopefully now with the UAE added, more countries in the area will lengthen the list. That would be great.

As to the news of coronavirus, it just gets direr and direr. France and Spain announced surges in numbers of new cases and the UK has now added France to the countries where quarantine is obligatory upon return to the UK. I was thinking of our friends Kath and Phil who are currently in France who will now face quarantine when they get back. They decided to stay and enjoy another week or so of the holiday and aren't too bothered about self isolating as they are both retired. I thought they had taken the right decision. 

The day ended with us watching a new film on Netflix, "Captain Philips" about a ship being hijacked in Somalia and based on a true story. I don't know whether it was good or bad as I fell asleep half way through.

I woke up at 5.40 on Friday morning to complete darkness but couldn't sleep anymore so up I got. I think I even surprised the dogs. It was another quiet day. Eladio and I went out on errands, first to our bank and then to El Corte Inglés, a big department store. While there we had a relaxing cup of coffee at Starbucks and were home at midday. Lunch was in the making and I spent time reading again. I had finished "The Winemaker's wife" and was reading another book by the same author, Kristin Harmel, also set in Nazi occupied France in WW2. "The book of lost names" is the story of a young Jewish woman who becomes a forger of documents that saved thousands of lives. I found it fascinating. I read it in two days and an now hooked on Harmel's WW2 stories and began "The Sweetness of Forgetting" on Saturday. But I put it down for a while when I came across Mary Trump's biography of her uncle Donald Trump and that makes for fascinating reading, I can tell you. 

I devoured "The book of lost names" in the afternoon but was interrupted occasionally by my 4 year old guest, David. I had to take him to the swings and talk and play with him. I think he was missing his sister and was bored, even of the swimming pool. He has been her since the middle of July and has hardly been out so the novelty is probably wearing off. I think he found the house very quiet too as did I. Suzy wasn't there either as she had gone out to see her friend Juli and we wouldn't see her again until the next morning. 

Soon it was time to watch Oli on TV.  You can see her presenting here. I knew what she would be talking about as that day the Spanish Minister of Health announced new measures to combat new outbreaks of the damned virus. They were measures that would affect the whole of Spain  and included no smoking outdoor (unless a safety distance of 2 metres can be maintained), all night life banned and the recommendation that people stick to their bubbles. Well, we certainly stick to ours as much as we can. At restaurants we feel safe though as the tables are very distanced. Thankfully there was no ban on movement or closing of frontiers. That afternoon I got a booking for a room in this house from a French couple coming at the beginning of September. But who knows whether they will be able to come. I am crossing my fingers and I imagine they are too as they are coming to settle their daughter into the local UEM University. Who knows too whether schools and Universities will be able to function normally again from September.

Being Friday night, we went out to dinner and chose El Tinglado where we went with the girls and Elliot the week before. We had a lovely dinner together al fresco. I chose salmorejo made of beetroot. Salmorejo is a dish from Córdoba, similar to gazpacho but thicker. For my second course I chose clams but had to give them back as they were full of bits of grit. Thus Eladio shared his second course with me, batter fried cod. 

Eladio at El Tinglado yesterday

I love the menu at El Tinglado except for the desserts. I always want ice cream which they don't have so once home had a couple of scoops of some delicious chocolate and mint ice cream I had in the deep freeze.

Saturday was not a quiet day. Our guests from France announced they were having friends round for a barbecue which mean plans for our own barbecue went out of the window. As I told you last week we never let guests bring other guests but have had to make an exception with this family. I also told you it won't happen again. I felt invaded. Eladio was less bothered and thankfully the girls were out. They had gone to Avila to Copi's mother, Celeste's birthday party. I was worried about Covid but Oli assured me they were less than 10 and would take great care. Copi is their friend from school and was in Suzy's class. They met on the first day of school at St. Michael's which our girls didn't join until November as we had just moved house. They were 3 and 4 at the time. I remember in the hallway Suzy spying a small girl and saying "Who is that little black girl over there? I want to be her friend". Well, they have been friends ever since and Copi, short for Copito, is part of our family. Her real name is Ana María but for a reason unknown to me was called "Copito", after the albino gorilla at the zoo in Barcelona who was famous at the time. Miguel sent me a photo of the three of them with Elliot which I treasure and am happy to share here.

From left to right: Suzy, Elliot, Oli and Copi yesterday

I don't think Suzy had seen Copi since my father's 100th birthday and yesterday was a very special day for them. Copi is makeup artist as well as hair stylist and works in a beauty salon. Yesterday she applied her art to Suzy. As children she used to put make up on them and when I saw the photo below it took me back years in time. 

Copi the make up artist applying make up on Suzy yesterday

She also did Suzy's hair in lots of wonderful plaits as you can see in the photo below.

Copi worked her magic on Suzy's hair too.

As you can see Suzy took her ukelele along and no doubt entertained everyone yesterday at the birthday party. Ah and here are the two of them together, still the greatest of friends after more than 33 years. And long may that friendship prosper.

Copi and Suzy reunited

I wished I had gone with them as our day was invasive but on the other hand relaxing. Lunch was leftovers and I spent most of the day reading. Ah, but I also attended remotely to guest bookings and requests and was happy to get a new booking for Santa Pola at the end of the month. Now nearly all of August is full. I am not sure September will be the same. No doubt my guests will all be nationals as there is little hope for tourists from the UK and now Germany which has also imposed restrictions on travel to Spain due to Covid. 

The numbers keep going up, in Spain and everywhere. The total number of cases worldwide stood last night at nearly 21.5 million with an overall death toll of 766.194. The US, Brazil, India, Russia and South Africa top the table with Spain coming 10th and the UK 12th. There is no sign of abatement and there is an increase in spikes in countries where the curve had been flattened. The curve is going up again. One of the reasons is that so many more tests are being done, with half of the infected not having any symptoms. The average age of those infected in Spain is now under 40 and the mortality rate is very low which is perhaps why the country is not going into lockdown. It seems the onus is on the behaviour of young people, generally unafraid of the virus and fed up of restrictions. With no night life and street parties banned I wonder how they are  going to entertain themselves. Meanwhile on the border of France and the UK, British and French tourists were rushing to their respective countries last night to avoid 14 days quarantine. Why on earth didn't the British government give their subjects more warning instead of causing chaos at the border and thousands of people having to drive for hours and hours to try and make it on time? The German government issued a similar warning yesterday with Spain (with the exception of the Canary islands) and saw its over 300.000 nationals frantically trying to return home, mostly from the Balearic islands. Apparently, in Majorca, they make up 90% of tourists. That of course has put the final nail in the coffin for international tourism this summer in Spain and what that means for the economy of the country. I consider myself lucky to have had so many Airbnb and direct bookings this summer, thanks to national tourists. No doubt though I would have had more if it hadn't been for Covid. As my GP said this week, our lives have changed forever. I do hope he is wrong.

Today is Sunday and will be quiet until this afternoon and evening. The French family's grandmother and their daughter Eva will be returning. So will Suzy at some time today and in the evening Oli will be coming with Elliot as Miguel has to go back to Valencia where he will working this week. It will be full house again tonight but not for long. We shall be on grandparent duty tomorrow and Tuesday. On Wednesday of course, Covid permitting, we shall be off to Portugal. Ah, and like our friends Kathy and Phil in France, if restrictions are imposed and we have to self quarantine we shall do that. The worst would be if we have to self quarantine in Portugal. If that is so, then we won't go. 

Now my friends, I have come to the end of the tales of this week and it is time to sign off, publish this post and give a hard copy to my father. You will be pleased to hear he is very well, after the great shock he gave us this week. 

Next week, "inshala", I will be writing from Nazaré, that lovely old fishing town in Portugal. Cheers till then,

Masha.