The Aquarius migrant boat arrives in Spain, Oli in Florida, Suzy in Bali, World Cup brings surprises, summer solstice dinner with friends, off to Santa Pola and other stories.

Sunday 24th June 2018

All set for dinner with friends at home on Thursday the summer solstice

Hi everyone,

Well here we are in Santa Pola where we have come for a few days to enjoy the beach in between responsibilities and other stuff at home. Funnily enough you will read later that we have a very illustrious neighbour in these parts as this is where Mariano Rajoy, the outed Spanish Prime Minister, has returned to his job as a well paid property registrar believe it or not. 

A year ago on Sunday it was my 60th birthday party and I well remember just how hot it was then, over 40ºc .Well on Sunday last it reached 32º and that has been the tonic ever since and temperatures are going to rise next week even more. Thankfully, here at our apartment it's slightly cooler. 

It was on Sunday last that the Aquarius migrant ship with 2 others, arrived at the port of Valencia carrying over 600 refugees from Africa mostly; many of whom were unaccompanied minors.  These were the people the new far right wing Italian government refused to let disembark in Italy. They will only admit migrants rescued at sea by the Italian sea guard, not international ONGs as was the case of the Aquarius. 

Some of the migrants arriving in Valencia

The Aquarius migrants who will be well looked after in Spain and in France, and who had a huge welcome reception are just the tip of the iceberg though. Now that Spain has taken them in, there are literally thousands and thousands waiting on the shores of Libya or near Melilla and boats all over the Mediterranean sea about to come. The EU is not sure what to do and it's no easy question. I read of a proposal for a big  camp for them all somewhere in Africa where they could be held in decent conditions until they are sorted as legitimate or  non legitimate refugees, i.e they are escaping violence or war or are coming to earn more money. Frankly I feel for both types. I mean all those who populated the USA at the beginning of the last century were mostly people looking for a better life. The real solution lies in helping them economically in their countries of origin but I'm afraid I tend to agree with Jesus Christ who  said "the poor will always be with you". So yes, there was a huge reception for the Aquarius migrants but the problem has not gone away. 

Oli's boyfriend who is a TV cameraman and works in Valencia, paid us a surprise visit that morning with 5 of his colleagues who had been on a caravan holiday in Galicia. All of the them would be involved in covering the news of the Aquarius migrants upon their return to work in Valencia on Monday. I told Miguel how lucky he was to be part of what I considered "world wise news". 

I had quite a lazy Sunday, enjoying having the house and pool to ourselves with no Airbnb guests. The hen party girls left that morning without saying goodbye which was a bit rude, especially when they had come with 3 more friends and had a party when my 2 major house rules are: no extra guests and no parties. I think they were first time Airbnb guests and thankfully are the exception to the generally really nicely behaved people who come. 

Having finished Bill Clinton's book The President is Missing which I can highly recommend  if you like suspense, I turned to a completely different genre; North Korean defector biographies of which I have read many. "Dear Leader" is not just another escape story because of the status of Jan Jin-sung who worked in intelligence and even once met Kim Jong Il, the current dictator's frightening father. He is probably the defector with the most inside information  of how this hermetic country is run, ever to have made it to South Korea. His story is astonishing to say the least. 

In between reading I bathed as it was so hot. In fact last Sunday was my first bathe of the year. It was Oli's too when she came back from a barbecue with friends. 

Meanwhile, in Russia, the world cup was underway with some countries making their debut. There have been some shocks since it started with a lot of the big teams struggling. Mexico stunned the German champions by winning 1.0 and Brazil drew with little Switzerland, another shocker. 

But the good sports news for Spain on Sunday didn't come from Russia but from France. Fernando Alonso, the Formula 1 driver won the Le Mans 24 hours "endurance test". That was quite big although I would prefer him to perform better in F1. He won it twice a few years ago but has not done well since. He was pleased though as you can see in the photo below. 

Fernando Alonso won the 24h Le Mans last Sunday

I read later that it is one of the most prestigious car races in the world and has been called the "Grand Prix of Endurance and efficiency". It is part of the Triple Crown of Motorsport, two of which Alonso has now won, Le Mans and the Monaco Grand Prix. He now aims to try his luck with the Indianapolis 500. If he wins all three I think he will be the first Spaniard ever to do so.  

After time by the pool it was time for dinner, our last with Olivia for a while as she would be off to the west coast of Florida on Tuesday and not back until the end of next week. She is 6 hours behind us and Suzy in Bali is 6 hours ahead of us. It's funny to have both girls at different ends of the globe so to speak. They, by the way, speak at midnight Florida time which is the only time they can I think. 

We had a delicious dinner of my home made gazpacho and the remains of the potato salad and cherry syllabub. Then she was off and the house was empty again. But not for long. That evening I got another reservation from Airbnb; an Italian family coming in September. I have a German family staying now and there will hardly be any free days without guests from now until September.  

We put the air conditioning on for the first time last Sunday. It was not a good night's sleep for me as, naughty naughty me had indulged in chocolate and wine at dinner,  a combination guaranteed to give me one. 

Monday came. Now that the days are so hot, we decided to go on our walks early in the morning. I came back to bathe in the pool and even shower there. That's a great way to start my day. Oli's day was deliciously different on Monday. She had been asked to take part in a real time online interview with spectators of her programme, "Madrileños por el Mundo" about the latest one on Croatia which would be broadcast on Tuesday evening. As it was live, I followed it and even sent in a question; mine was the first haha, just in case there weren't many. Miguel sent one in too but we shouldn't have worried as there were plenty. This is the photo they took of her answering the questions. I told her it was a great photo and she typically replied "but I haven't got any makeup on" hahah. Well, I like it. Judge for yourselves.

Oli doing something different on Monday

Here is the link to the interview if you are interested. 

On Monday I was busy with lots of little errands and was surprised to get yet another Airbn reservation for a few days free in the calendar next week. A French couple are coming to find accommodation for their son who will be studying dentistry at the University nearby. We get a lot of French people and they are always great guests. 

Oli wasn't the only one in my world to have an interview that day. Spain's new Prime Minister, the dashing socialist Pedro Sánchez, was to give his first TV interview that night on TVE. We watched it with baited breath as after the whirlwind of the vote of no confidence and his becoming Prime Minister he has given out many good signs. The most important thing he did was to appoint a majority of women in his cabinet. I have read in the international press that he is following a similar strategy to Canada's Trudeau. During the no  confidence vote session he had promised to call elections. However, in the interview, he revealed it is his intention to stay in power until the next general elections in 2020. So he lied, yes he did. So he likes being Prime Minister, yes of course. But let's give him a chance and see whether the economy continues to thrive and just how much he will have to concede to the Catalan separatists. He is doing everything differently which might not be a bad thing at all. The first international visit for a new Prime Minister in Spain is traditionally to it's neighbour Morocco. But Sánchez' first visit was to the Elysee to see Macron who gave him his support over the Aquarius. It will be good to hear him speak English to the French President and others as Sanchez is the first Spanish Prime Minister who speaks the language and that is in his favour when it comes to international politics. He may be all sorts of other things but for me he is a breath of fresh air. 

Pedro Sanchez' first interview on TV after becoming Prime Minister

Tuesday came, another hot day. While we were going about our day, Oli was flying to Tampa. It was to be her first time in the USA and I warned her about the strict security. It would take her all day to get there, flying via Atlanta. She left at 11 am Spanish time and got to Tampa at 1.30 in the morning, our time the next day. The poor girl was exhausted. She complained later at how difficult it was to eat healthy food for breakfast at her hotel, The Hilotn and that it was surrounded by burger joints! That didn't surprise me. 

As usual I was up early in the morning at about 6 am. I am avidly following the World Cup group standings although we only watch the Spanish matches. So I was happy to see that England had beat Tunisia but with a last minute goal. This World cup is certainly proving difficult for the top teams. That win should spur on England fans though to travel to Russia to see the next matches. I read that not many had gone after the tensions of the Salisbury poison attacks. I have also read that the Russian bars are quickly running out of beer as they hadn't factored in just how popular it is with football fans. 

After our morning walk, I had to work and then make  lunch. It was "fabada" (bean stew) that day. I also had time to change the flowers in the house for our next guests. I love our summer flowers, mostly roses and hydrangeas. It was on our walk we noticed Elsa had a problem with her ear, she kept scratching it. In the afternoon, it was obvious she was in pain so we quickly took her to the vet. To look properly they had to sedate her and then operate as it turned out she had yeast infection which caused otitis and must be very painful. We went back for poor confused Elsa later in the evening. She is now on antibiotics and I hope the infection clears up and doesn't come back. 

Elsa after she came back from the vet on Tuesday, a bit drowsy and hopefully no longer in pain.

We had dinner on the terrace and as it was late we watched the news on my iPad. The most interesting news for me that day was about Mariano Rajoy. I mentioned at the beginning of this post that he is returning to  his job in Santa Pola, of all places, as a property registrar. He actually started on Wednesday. It was where he worked in the late 80's and is a well paid civil servant job in Spain (between 10 and 20.000 euros a month). I was quite amazed to hear he had rejected his right to a 80.000 euro per year stipend as an ex Prime Minister as well as one for 100.000 as part of the Executive Council.  He has also given up his status as an MP, thus completely severing ties with politics. He does though still have a bodyguard and chauffeur car. t seems funny that he is going back to an "ordinary" job and does not want any of the monetary trappings an ex Premiere is entitled to. At least this is what I have read. I do know for sure that he is now working here. This also means our flat comes under his jurisdiction. We might even meet him at his and our favourite restaurant in Santa Pola, "Batiste" where he has been seen recently. He will be living here too but I wonder where. I must say that his attitude is praiseworthy. He is actually living at the best hotel in Alicante, the Melia where he will probably stay until about October when he can opt for a transfer to Madrid with his job. He is apparently watching as many of the World Cup matches he can from there as he is an avid football fan. How many ex Presidents do we know of who have gone back to their previous jobs I wonder? None probably. If I ever meet him here I shall congratulate him on his decision. Meanwhile there is one big political battle in his right wing party (PP) to see who will succeed his leadership. By the way he was late for work on Wednesday as he had to attend to a huge group of journalists waiting for him to arrive.

Mariano Rajoy received by a crowd of journalists as he arrived for work on Wednesday in Santa Pola

Equally interesting that night was watching Oli's programme on Croatia, a country I know nothing about. She made me want to go after having seen it, especially to Dubrovnik and to Zagreb. 

A shot from Oli's programme on Croatia

Wednesday was another scorcher. I had a shower after breakfast, we went for our walk and I came home feeling so hot I had another shower and left my hair wet. Where it was just as warm and always is,  is in Bali. That morning Suzy sent us a photo of her relaxing in style. She looks lovely.

Suzy enjoying life in Bali

Oli sent us a photo too from the other side of the world. That day she interviewed a doctor from Madrid who works in cancer research at a hospital in Tampa. She told me it was very hot and humid in Florida too.

Oli on the job in Tampa - here with a Spanish medic who researches in cancer

At the beginning of July I am going to France (near Poitiers) for our annual cousin reunion, from my Mother's Russian side of the family. I had bought a return ticket a while ago via Expedia and would be flying with Air France to Charles de Gaulle where I need to land in order to catch the TGV to Poitiers. Well, it turned out I bought the ticket on Expedia's US site which gave me endless problems. It was on Thursday when buying my TGV ticket I realised my outbound flight was at 8.15 in the evening, too late to catch the last train. I had meant to buy the ticket for the plane leaving at 8.15 in the morning but due to the US way of showing the times of day, I made a mistake and bought a seat on the evening flight. Sadly, I had to buy another ticket and had to so on the Expedia US site again, hoping for a refund as I had bought a protected ticket. But no, I ended up buying a new ticket, this time with Vueling. I then bought my TGV ticket and in the end spent a small fortune on the whole trip. I shall never again buy a ticket on Expedia. Rather I shall do so direct with the airline. What a nightmare. Happily though, just afterwards I got another Airbnb booking, the income of which should cover part of the extra cost of my trip to France hahaha. 

Thursday saw Spain from  group B (Portugal, Spain, Iran and Morocco) play its second match and it was against Iran at 8 pm that night. In the first match Spain and Portugal drew so both had 1 point each. Just before the Spain match, Portugal played and beat Morocco but only by 1-0, thus they led the group by 4 points. That made it crucial for Spain to beat Iran and preferably with 2 goals. We had dinner watching the match which was so tense and so close mostly because the Iranian side did nothing but defend; they were like a brick wall. Finally the breakthrough came in the second half when Diego Costa scored a goal. The Iranians looked to have scored an equaliser not long afterwards but  the VAR, showed it was offside. That was a huge relief for Spain who now have 4 points like Portugal after beating Iran 1-0. Their last match will be against Morocco next week. 

Spain beat Iran 1-0

If anyone thinks beating Iran was a knockout they are completely wrong. This valiant team, managed by Queiroz, who was once a Real Madrid manager, came to the competition unbeaten throughout the qualifying stage and were not to be taken lightly. The big news of the match though had nothing to do with football but to do with Iranian women. In Iran women are not allowed to go to football matches and here they were to be seen in western style dress and non veiled faces, many of them with the Iranian flag painted on their faces. That was a lovely sight. I wonder what the ayatollahs thought about that back home?

Thursday 21st June was the summer solstice and the longest day of the year. It was hot again even on our 8 o'clock in the morning walk. We had to do the weekly shopping that day as our cupboards were getting bare. Also we were having guests for dinner that night and I had to get the ingredients for the dishes I would serve.

I love the summer fruit here, especially the juicy black cherries and  we always buy lots. You probably know by now that we  are great fruit and veg consumers. Here is just some of the fruit I got at Mercadona that day. I posted the photo on Instagram with the caption "wonder how long this will last?" and usually it's not that long hahaha.

Some of the fruit we bought on Thursday

I was able to relax by the pool in the afternoon but not for long as I had to prepare the dinner. Our friends Javier and Ana who we hadn't seen for possibly a year were coming and I was looking forward to it. Being the summer solstice made the dinner even more special. It didn't get dark till past 10 pm. that night. For the occasion I made prawn cocktail, Italian risotto which I'm afraid had got a bit dry when I served it, and mango and raspberry Hagen

Dazs ice cream with mango and raspberry fruit. I do love ice cream with fruit. 

Everything was ready just 10 minutes or so before our friends arrived. I wore my coolest dress, a white creation I had bought at the Majadahonda market last year. The photo illustrating this week's post is of me just before our guests arrived. I look so old. 

Our friends arrived on time. It was lovely to see them. They had lots of news, especially the upcoming wedding of their daughter Laura this September which we congratulated them on. We had drinks by the pool and chatted non stop until it was time for dinner. And here they are at our kitchen patio table about to begin.

Summer solstice dinner with our friends Javier and Ana

Since we met last time, Javier has set up an editorial, Volcano Libros which focuses on books about nature. He has already published 10 books and is living his dream. We talked a lot about books that night when my philosopher husband recommended one he has just read called La Edad de la Penumbra. You won't catch me reading it haha as I am not into philosophy. It's probably a pity I am not. We were up chatting after dinner till past midnight when it was time to go to bed. 

We missed watching the news that night, but thanks to our mobile phones were up to date. The main international news this week has come yet again from the US. The main story is that of migrant children being separated from their parents and put into detention, while their parents are put in jail. It has caused an uproar all over the world. The next day, The First Lady, Melania Trump, who has been trying to persuade her stubborn husband to revoke the law, visited some of the children. She wore a very unfortunate jacket for the occasion, with the words "I really don't care, do you?" on the back of it, a green Zara jacket. That also caused an uproar. Whatever was she thinking of when she wore it to visit the children? The story is now being called "jacket gate" true to US fashion in news.

Melania Trump's unfortunate choice of jacket when she visited separated migrant children this week.

If that was the main story on the international front, the main story in Spain was that of the provisional release from jail of the now famous "wolf pack" gang, 5 men from Seville, who had sexually abused and raped, in most people's minds, a young girl aged 18 during the Pamplona bull run in July 2016. They were released despite the non firm sentence of 9 years in prison which is not yet final as both sides are disputing the sentence. Both the sentence and the release have caused huge demonstrations all over Spain and the news of 

their release this week just added insult to injury. 

Friday came, the day we were off to Santa Pola and the day a German family of 5 were coming from Kiel for 3 nights. But before leaving, I had an appointment with my eye doctor, the one who had operated on my eyes about 3 months ago.

While I was waiting at the hospital (Qurión in Pozuelo), I was glad to see whatsapps posts from Suzy of photos of her in Bali, especially this one on her scooter. She looks so happy.

Suzy on her scooter in Bali

She was on her way to a place called Uluwatu with "2 sweet Germans" as she told us. It is on the south western tip of the Bukit peninsula of Bali and is known for its cliffs and beaches which are popular with surfers. I don't think she is into surfing but maybe she will try it. 

The cliffs of Uluwatu in Bali

The appointment I was waiting for was important as  my left eye did not respond well to the intraocular lens he put in as I still had astimagatism. He had told me to wear prescription glasses for 3 weeks and when he did more tests that morning, he advised laser surgery on my left eye. According to him it will correct some of the astigmatism but not all. To sum it up I will see without glasses as well as I do now with those he prescribed which is not great I can tell you. There is nothing organically wrong with my eyes and when I asked, my doctor told me my case was the first he had ever seen and was difficult to explain. The laser surgery will be done on 16th July so cross your fingers my friends that it will be successful and that I will be able to see better than I do now and that I won't need glasses. 

I rushed home after my appointment to finish packing and also load lots of food into the car as I hate having to do food shopping when we get here. We left at around midday with quite a lot of traffic it being a Friday. It was also the San Juan midsummer feast in Alicante and all over Spain so there was even more traffic than usual. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant bar in Zarza de Záncara we like which was full too. The waiter took ages to bring the bill and all in all our stop there was 1.5h. That meant we didn't get to our flat in Gran Alacant, some 7km from Santa Pola until the early evening. 

I was dying to go down to the beach but first we had to clean a bit and settle in. Eladio would have preferred to read on the terrace afterwards as he was tired from driving.

Eladio resting on our small terrace after our arrival on Friday evening

However, in need of a walk, I persuaded him to go to the beach. We had to leave Pippa in the flat as, sadly, dogs are not really allowed on beaches in Spain, at least in the summer. It was to be the first bathe in the sea this summer and we both enjoyed it. We can never go in together as one of us always has to look after the valuables: my phone, our kindles and the car keys. Here is Eladio coming out of the sea after his first bathe. The water was quite warm and very calm and we both enjoyed it immensely.

Eladio's first bathe in the sea this year

We then went for our customary walk to the end where the rocks are and from where we can see our apartment and of course the island of Tabarca. We came home late at around 9 pm. I went to the pool to wash off the sea water and sand and had it practically to myself. Dinner was a small affair, scrambled eggs on toast after which we watched a film about the Roman invasion of Britannia until we fell asleep. 

Yesterday Saturday 23rd June was San Juan a feast celebrated all over Spain and especially in the Alicante area where St. John is the patron saint. People light bonfires at night  on the beaches all over Spain and here too of course and have barbecues with their families and friends. I'm sure the experience is lovely but the many  signs of no parking after 5pm put us off going to  what we would imagine to be large crowds, something we both hate. We decided, instead, to go the beach from 10 to 12 in the morning after which it would get very hot and crowded. Again we left Pippa behind and we were a bit worried about her as she had had bouts of diarrhea since we left Madrid. I looked up veterinary surgeries close by just in case and found one at a nearby shopping centre which was open until 10 pm or so we thought.

We took our kindles, bathed, read and went for our usual walk. By 12 we were home and chillaxing, to quote my daughter Suzy hahahah. By the late afternoon Pippa was vomiting so we whisked her into the car and took her to the surgery I had found on internet only to see it was closed due to the San Juan holiday. It was to be the same with all the others. I searched on the internet desperately until until I found one in Elche, a big town about 15km from here. Despite our GPS we always get lost in Elche,  a town made rich by shoe manufacturing, but luckily, this time we didn't. 

A nice young vet called Veronica analysed the sample I had taken, took Pippa's temperature and also took 2 x-rays. It seems there was no bacteria lurking although she could be incubating something.  It was the x-ray which worried Veronica because she thought she saw the shadow of some sort of obstruction "foreign matter" in her intestine. She gave Pippa a couple of injections to relieve the symptoms but we have to go back today to repeat the x-ray and most probably do a scan. If there is something obstructing her;  possibly something she ate on one of our walks, she will have to be operated on. Please cross your fingers that won't be the problem and that it is just gastroenteritis.

We were back late to the apartment but happy to have found a vet for Pippa. Luckily she has no temperature and apparently no pain. We could see the bonfires on the beach below our flat which was a  pretty sight but difficult to capture on camera. We had a very simple dinner and then watched half of a soppy film on TV. We had missed the news but I was up to date with the World Cup group standings. Germany had beaten Sweden and amazingly Switzerland beat Serbia. 

Meanwhile, in Florida, Oli continued her work filming there if you can call it work hahaha. She sent us a photo last night together with a group of girls scantily dressed. I asked her who they were and she replied "Hooter Girls", as if I knew what that is. She then told me they are waiters of the famous chain of Hooter restaurants which i had never heard of. I have now hahaha. You can read more about them here. 

Oli with the "hooter girls"

The photo was taken at the Hooters restaurant on Clearwater beach. Oli had told me it is ranked one of the  best beaches in the USA. I had never heard of that either hahaha but I do hope she got to try the food at Hooters and at least walk on the famous beach. 

Today is Sunday, the last day of this blog post and the end of this week's tales. I was up early. Pippa had a relatively good night but the diarrhea has not cleared up and we shall be going back to the vet this afternoon. Poor Pips.

Hopefully, after publishing this post we shall go down to the beach for a couple of hours but of course I will be telling you all about our day in next week's post.

Therefore my friends, I shall sign off now. Wishing you all a good Sunday and great week ahead,

Cheers til next time,

Masha

A 60th birthday in Lombardy, Nadal makes history in Paris, leaving Italy in style, Trump-Kim summit in Singapore, home again, the Aquarius refugee boat to come to Spain, the World Cup takes off and other stories.

Sunday 17th June 2018

My last moments in Italy had to be done in style

Good morning everyone.

How has your week been? This time last Sunday I was still in Italy having gone out to celebrate my soul sister Sandra's 60th birthday. It was a long weekend of celebrations with her family and closest friends who all came from afar. 10th June was her actual birthday and that day she invited us all out to lunch. We didn't have to be ready until 13h, so her brother, Paul, kindly took Adele, Olivier and me to the local market (mercato) in nearby Caseggio. They wanted to buy cheese and I wanted to buy parma ham which I never got as the electricity broke down and the stalls had difficulty weighing produce and charging for it. 

Olivier, Paul and Adele by the cheese stall

While they waited patiently at the cheese stall, I wandered around the market with its amazing colours and smells. I wished I could have bought some of the incredible tomatoes but no way could I put them in my suitcase. A fruit and vegetable market in a small town in Italy is a sight for sore eyes, as it is Spain but the atmosphere is different. I enjoyed every minute there.

The choice of tomatoes was overwhelming

I wish I could describe the atmosphere at the market 

Apart from parma ham which I didn't get, I wanted to buy rice to make real Italian risotto and so did my companions. Paul took us to a special shop and here we all bought a big bag each. I was to try it out when I got home as you will read later. 

Soon we had to head back to join everyone at Villa Arabella from where we would be driving up the mountains to a delightful place called Cella di Montalto for Sandra's special birthday lunch. Our hosts know the owners well. They are owners of a hotel and restaurant where they serve home grown produce. In fact I think their main business is selling salami, etc from their pigs and cows. We were to try it out for lunch.

The hotel and restaurant Cella di Montalto

Nestled in the mountains it commands beautiful views, like the ones we had seen the day before during our "sound of music" moment hahaha.

The view from Cella di Montalto

Apart from our crowd and we were quite a few, we were to be joined by Sandra's family friends from their Bombay days, "the Rossis": Esmeralda, Sandra's best friend in India, her amazing 90 plus mother Fiametta  who survived the 2nd World War and Esmeralda's husband Giulio who all live in Milan. Fiametta and Sandra's Mother, 92 year old Magda, are old friends and I was happy to have a picture taken with these two extraordinary women both of whom are absolutely "with it" despite their age. 

With Magda left and Fiametta right 

Nicky, by the way, was her other great childhood friend in Bombay. It was an amazing group of people and oh what wonderful food we were to eat. I love Italy but am glad I don't live there as if I did I would look like an elephant hahaha. Once again we were treated to a full 4 course meal, starting with the typical "antipasti" (cold cuts or "entremeses" in Spain) except that they were home made. They were very fattening too as you can see in the photo below.

The "antipasto" the first course

Accompanied by delicious focaccia bread, I was already full when the second course came. As it was cheese I skipped on this course which was actually two courses as they served both ravioli and risotto!  The main course came next which was delicious thinly sliced roast beef with sauteed potatoes. Here I had a field day as I love roast beef. 

My favourite course in a meal is always dessert so of course I was looking forward to the birthday cake. Paul asked me to be the "official photographer" bless him - not that I am particularly good and if I am it's because of a few tips and above all because of my super duper new phone. And here is a photo of the birthday girl with this amazing cake which had me bursting I can tell you haha. 

Sandra and her wonderful birthday cake. 

If I was to take photos of the group, I had to call everyone's attention, so up I got to announce it and somehow there I was suddenly making an impromptu speech about Sandra and how we all know and love her with a mention of everyone at the table. I think it was good and if it was it's because it came from the bottom of my heart.

It was quite a job moving everyone from the table to a spot which would be ideal for a photo, except that they all wanted to be in the shade. So I got my photo but not the ideal spot hahaha. And here we all are -  me included - as this photo was taken by a member of staff with strict instructions from me hahaha.

Group photo at Sandra's birthday lunch last Sunday

Later I did find the perfect spot and was able to take these lovely photos of my two best friends Adele, Sandra and Barney who is like an extension of her, a bit like Pippa with me hahaha.

Beautiful Adele

Sandra with Barney, sassy at 60!

We spent the afternoon at the best place possible after the copious lunch, by the swimming pool at Villa Arabella. People gradually left and my visit was coming to an end. It was my last night in Italy. When it started getting late and the sun was coming down and we were literally being eaten alive by mosquitoes, dear Paul and Arabella rustled up a light dinner for those of us who were left, Nicky, Sandra, her Mother, Adela and I. 

It was at dinner that I heard that Rafa Nadal had made tennis history once again. Last Sunday he won the French Open, Roland Garros, for the 11th time by beating the Austrian Dominic Thiem 6-4 6-3 6-2 in the final. No one has ever won it 11 times. There is the history in the making. What a guy, what a champion, what an ambassador for Spain. Rafa the king of Clay. 

Nadal with his 11 Coupes de Mousquetaires

I would love to see him do so well at Wimbledon which he was won twice, but he will be very tired after an intense season and also grass is not his favourite surface. 

Hopefully he went out to celebrate in Paris. We, on the other hand, for once during our time in Italy, went to bed early as we were all exhausted from so much partying and short nights. I loved sharing the "blue room" with Adele. It felt like being back at University except that our accommodation was on a much higher level. After chatting we both turned to our kindles until we fell asleep.

On Monday, still in Italy, but about to leave, "all good things came to an end". I woke up at 6.30 and first things first, I made a cup of coffee in our room with my new travel kettle. Later Paul made me a proper capuccino. We had a leisurely breakfast until we were joined by Sandra and Nicky who were staying at the hotel in Fumo with her Mother. She was looking beautiful, despite the ravages of her birthday celebrations and I took yet another photo of her which I love.  I do wish my friends didn't live in Brussels and Orleans but much nearer  as seeing them only once a year is just not enough. 

Sandra on Monday morning at Villa Arabella

When we were at Nottingham University, Sandra was the only person I knew who had a car and she was often our chauffeur. In Italy she was our chauffeur again and that morning she would take us to the station to catch the train to Milan. En route we stopped at the hotel to say goodbye to Magda. They remained in Italy after our stay and are driving back to Brussels with Barney this weekend. I must say Magda is extremely fit for her age despite having to use a zimmer frame which she calls her "car" hahaha.

Very soon we were at Voghera station, about 1h away from Milan. We were on plenty of time so decided to have a cup of coffee at a bar there. It was to be my first and last bought capuccino in Italy and was delicious. I couldn't believe it cost just 90 euro cents. 

My capuccino at Voghera train station.

Italy is cheap, at least is was cheap where we went. Maybe Milan and Rome are different. When our train was approaching, Sandra and Barney saw us off on the platform and it was  a sad moment. Here are my friends just before our "tren regionale" came. 

Sandra, Adele and Nicky on the platform at Voghera station

The "tren regionale" which felt like being on inter rail, got us to Milan on time thankfully as Nicky was in a bit of a rush as his plane was leaving earlier than ours. He had booked an earlier train, the "inter city express" which was very delayed so he had to take our train. I was very grateful to have him as a fellow passenger as he helped me with my huge suitcase carrying it up all the steps at the station. There was a shuttle bus just about to leave which we caught and which for just 5 euros would get us to Milan Linate airport in 25 minutes.

Adele and I sat next to a couple from Singapore. Coincidentally at that very moment Singapore was the centre of the world, as it was where the King Jong Un and Donald Trump Summit was taking place. News of the historic talks was the biggest news of the week. It has now been dubbed the Trump-Kim Summit. And below are the two men shaking hands would you believe? The pair shook hands at a luxury hotel on Singapore's Sentosa island before the talks. It's funny because I asked my fellow bus passenger from Singapore where he thought Trump would be staying - it had been a big secret - and he said he thought it would be the Sentosa Island. It seems he was right. 

The handshake at the Trump Kim summit in Singapore on Monday

These two leaders have become the first  sitting US president and North Korean leader to meet, something no one ever thought possible after a year of exchanging threats. My opinion is that Trump wants North Korea to denuclearise and Kim Jong Un wants his economy to grow by the lifting of sanctions although I think he may only pretend to "denuke". These are funny times. Disappointingly, human rights, the biggest issue, was not on the agenda. 

As I was travelling I couldn't follow the day's events but would  catch up later. We were well on time at Linate although Nicky was in a bit of a rush. Security was pretty fast and once through we said goodbye to dear Nicky. I do hope it won't be another 40 years until I see him again hahhaha. Adele and I were very hungry and had asked where the best place was to eat at the airport. We were told to head to the Michaelangelo restaurant and that's where we went. I had 30 minutes before I had to go to my departure lounge so lunch had to be fast. Fast, but in style I said to Adele. It's not often you see a luxury restaurant at airports these days but this is Italy so I guess it's normal. We loved the place but above all we loved the wine and the food. Here is Adele sitting at our table and choosing the wine.

Adele at the table for our delicious lunch at Linate airport

We chose the dish of the day, "risotto milaese". Before it came, the waiter brought a plate of the most enticing bread you can imagine. We couldn't eat it all so I put the rest in my handbag for dinner with Eladio that night haha.

The bread at the restaurant at Linate airport

If the bread was to die for, so was the risottto. I think it's the best one I have ever had. Needless to say we ate it all. Disappointingly there was no time for a dessert as I had to rush to my gate for departure.

The risotto at the Micaelangelo restaurant at Linate airport

We certainly ended our stay in Italy in style. My goodness what wonderful food they serve in Italy. 

Adele came with me to my gate as her plane to Paris was an hour later than mine. My plane which was pretty empty, left on time and even arrived early at Barajas Terminal 2. I was quickly out and a few moments later, Eladio arrived to pick me up. It was only 20c and raining, cooler than in Milan. What is happening to the weather? Thankfully as the week went by it has got a lot warmer. 

It was funny to be home after so much excitement in Italy; a bit on an anti climax and of course my house wife duties resumed and I had to make dinner that night although I wasn't at all hungry. When I don't know what to make for dinner I always prepare scrambled eggs on toast, it's so easy and quick to make. 

Before making dinner I met our Jewish guests. They would be leaving the next day. Amiram, a retired judge and his sister whose name I didn't catch, had loved our house and it seems they will be back in September. They must come often as their mother lives nearby. They explained that their father had been a viola player in the Reina Sofia orchestra, although he had passed away since. 

But back to dinner because something funny happend. I walked into the kitchen after unpacking and found Eladio had opened a big bag full of hams and cheeses and had even opened one of the packets of "lomo". He thought I had brought it back from Italy but I hadn't. It belonged to Amiram and his sister. Funny they eat ham or maybe it was for friends. Whatever, I panicked, was going to leave a note inside and in the end decided to swap the open packet of lomo for a packet of good "iberico" ham I had in the cupboard and just hoped they wouldn't notice. 

Over our scrambled eggs, we watched the news and apart from the US North Korean summit, the main news in Europe and in Spain was the future of a boat called Aquarius with 629 refugees on board, including 120 minors travelling alone. Unbelievably, the new far right government in Italy had refused to let it dock and so had Malta. The Spanish government, under the new socialist leader Pedro Sánchez, offered to let it dock in Spain and it will be arriving in Valencia today. The refugees from North Africa and Sub Sahara countries were in no state to continue on the Aquarius in the conditions it was in so they have been separated into 3 boats and from then on were looked after as well as possible. Let's see what their fate is after they arrive. The Spanish government said it was letting the Aquarius come to Spain to solve a humanitarian crisis but that it wanted the EU to try and solve together the problem of migration to Europe. I am happy with the Government's decision but not so sure there really is a solution to migration. It's a sad story but hopefully will end up well, at least for some of the migrants on board. 

The Aquarius is now on its way to Spain.

Just before retiring to bed, I had a quick phone call with Olivia. She has been preparing her next programme which will be about Tampa and the west coast of Florida. She flies out on Tuesday and it will be her first time in the US. 

The day ended watching a new series on Netflix, Line of Duty. We didn't really like it so have moved on to new films and series since then. 

I was exhausted when I hit the pillow and I must have slept quite well as I woke up at 7 on Tuesday morning. Suzy video called me from Bali but it was too early for me so I rang her back after breakfast. It was amazing to "see" her in her new environment, the Monkey Surf Club. She is loving Bali and the relaxed style of life which is what she was seeking. 

The news that morning was about the outcome of the Trump Kim summit in Singapore centred on nuclear disarmament and reducing tensions and I was eager to catch up on all that had happened. After the talks the two egocentric leaders signed an agreement. I wonder whether their signatures on the document mean that much.

Signing the agreement

From what I could understand, the agreement said the two countries would co-operate towards "new relations", while the US would provide "security guarantees" to North Korea. Now lets see how that pans out. 

Our cupboards were very bare as I had been away and we hadn't done the shopping last week, so that morning the most important item on the agenda was stocking up on food. I got loads of fruit and vegetables and it was fish and veg for lunch. I needed a food detox after so much heavy eating in Italy. I also needed to resume my walks as soon as possible. 

At 3.30 pm I had an important appointment, my annual "MOT" with the gynecologist. I left the house at 3 for the Quirón hospital in Pozuelo and believe it or not I was home by 4.30 with absolutely no waiting. I was received by a very young doctor; possibly in her 20's. She pronounced the results of the tests I had done and the one she performed on me that day as all good. I still have to have the results of another test but things are looking good. You see my Mother died of breast cancer and previously had bowel cancer so I have to be careful. I remarked to her when she gave me the all clear how nice it was to hear those words as no doubt she often had to give bad news. I was happy to be on the receiving end of good news and thanked my lucky stars. 

On the days following my return from Italy I was very tired and needed to catch up on lost sleep, so when I got home I went straight to bed for a late siesta and slept 2 whole hours. Afterwards we went on our walk, my first for a week. We were home by 8.15 and for dinner that night we had one of our favourite evening meals; tuna fish salad. 

Wednesday was a big day for news in Spain. The previous day, Julen Lopetegui, the Spanish football squad manager, had been announced as the new Real Madrid manager after Zidane left. The announcement took place in Russia where the team were preparing for the World Cup. The new head of the Spanish Football Federation, "Rubiales" was so furious at the appointment, saying he only heard about it an hour before it went live, that he sacked the Spain manager. Yes, he sacked him just 2 days before Spain's first match against Portugal. He must have been mad. I do not see the reason for this. The best thing would have been for him to continue managing the team during the World Cup and then start his Real Madrid job. The whole affair  will have put the team into turmoil and spoil their concentration on the sport. The news rocketed the football world.

Rubiales, right, sacked the Spain manager Julen Lopetegui

A short while later he appointed the team's Sporting Director, Fernando Hierro as Club Manager. I felt really sorry for Hierro who had to step into Lopetegui's shoes at the last minute when he has little managerial experience. On the other hand he played football for 30 years and was one of Real Madrid's star players. I remember meeting him once and found him to be a real gentleman. Thankfully he will have the team behind him as he was a very respected football player. He is 50 years old and hails from Malaga. 

Fernando Hierro the new Spain manager

So we had a big sport scandal in Spain that day and during the week. But we also had a big scandal around the new Minister for Culture and Sport. Maxim Huerta a former TV presenter who had been minister for 7 days and who professed hating sport some time back on twitter, was found by an online newspaper, El Confidencial, to have evaded taxes in the past. His resignation was called for and by the end of the day he had no option but to resign. 

Maxim Huerta probably Spain's shortest lived Minister ever

It is not a good start for Sanchez’ government which overthrew Mariano Rajoy precisely for these kind of practices. Sánchez had only a few days to form his government but I wonder why he and his aides did not look into each and everyone of his new cabinet member's past. The press stirred up this story and they are now accusing the new Agriculture Minister for another scandal and they will hound the government at each step. It's funny how powerful the press are becoming in Spain. This never used to happen before; maybe because the sitting government then controlled the media, something I hope Sánchez never does. 

That wasn't the only scandal that day. Iñaki Urdangarin, the King's brother in law, who had been sentenced at the beginning of the week to 5 years and 10 months in jail after a long drawn out court case for fraud, money laundering and influence peddling, went to the court in Palma (Mallorca) to  receive his jail order. He has to report to jail by tomorrow although he can still appeal to the constitutional court. In a corruption case that has shaken Spain's royal family, Urdangarin will become the first member of a Spanish monarch's family to go to jail. It's good to see justice done and that a member of the royal family is equal, or nearly equal, before the law. It will be a historic moment when and if we see him entering jail. 

Iñaki Urdangarin

His wife, Cristina, the King's sister, who has supported her husband throughout and who has been shunned by her brother and sister in law is a "broken woman" according to El País. No wonder!  Discussing the case with Eladio that day, I pointed out that he must have been very greedy as he had absolutely no need for more money and that he could have lived the Royal life without his shenanigans. I'm sure he thinks the same now and regrets every moment of his corrupt dealings. 

Wednesday was a beautifully warm day. After working hard in the morning I rewarded myself with a few hours by the pool reading my new book, The President is Missing by Bill Clinton. The day ended with a lovely walk in the evening sun followed by dinner on the terrace and a film we fell asleep over on Netflix that night in bed. 

Thursday was a quiet day for us. Finally the good weather was here to stay and temperatures rose to 26c. Pablo, our sweet guest from Airbnb who had come for the night left us that morning. He is from Seville and had a very heavy accent which I actually found charming. He wrote me a lovely review bless him. 

It was on Thursday that I tried out the risotto rice I had brought back from Italy. I semi followed a recipe for Risotto Milanese I found on internet but chose different ingredients to put in it; mushrooms and ham. I was very pleased with how it turned out, delicious and creamy as you can see in the photo below.

My attempt at Italian risotto turned out well

The trick it seems is to pour  lashings of vegetable stock. I now wish I had bought more "riso" in Italy but will have to make do with what I can find in the supermarkets here. No doubt I will be making it again and it will join our repertoire of family meals. 

If it was a quiet day for us, it was a huge day for international football as on Thursday the World Cup being played in Russia, kicked off. That day the hosts, Russia beat Saudi Arabia 5-0 which probably wasn't difficult for them. If you are interested in the group formations, these are them.

The World Cup groups

Some countries have it easier than others. Spain is in a group with Ronaldo's Portugal team who are the reigning European Champions. That was to be the biggest match of the first part of the World Cup. England plays against Tunisia, Panama and Belgium so let's see how they all get on. 

On Friday after breakfast I had another video call with Suzy. It's amazing to see her there in her new chilled out surroundings. She showed me them including the room she shares with 4 Indonesians where they all sleep on bunk beds! She has hired a scooter to get around the island which she told me costs her just 50 euros a month to hire!  She seems so happy and is learning Bahasa the official language of Indonesia which derives from Malay or so I read. Good for her.

That morning I went out shopping again as last night we were having friends for dinner. Benito and Loli who we met when we first lived in Madrid in the working class area of "Saconia", were our guests. I had decided on a menu of: home made gazpacho, potato salad with king prawns and cherry syllabub for dessert. I cooked all day and had everything ready so as not to have lots of preparatory work on Saturday so  thatI could be free to be with Oli who came on Friday to spend the weekend with us. I hadn't seen her since the night before Suzy left for Bali on 6th June. 

That night I prepared dinner to have in the TV lounge from where we would watch Spain's inaugural match against Portugal. It was the most nerve biting match I had seen for a while and I couldn't watch it, I kept having to go out and each time I came back there was a different score. Cristiano Ronaldo was the man of the game scoring a hat trick. It felt like Ronaldo against Spain as the rest of his team would be nothing without him. Spain played well and scored 3 goals so it was a draw at the end 3-3. At least Spain was not completely knocked out. Both Portugal and Spain will probably beat the other teams in their group; iran and Morocco, but it remains to be seen who will go through as the leader of the groupo. 

Thus we went to bed late that night. We started watching a new series on Amazon Prime, the Spanish production called "La Verdad" (The truth). It was so good we watched 2 whole episodes and didn't switch the light off until past 1 in the morning.

Saturday dawned and I was up at 6.30. We were expecting new Airbnb guests, 5 Spanish girls who were arriving early. I put flowers and fruit in their rooms. However, 8 came, not 5 and they had obviously thought they would have the house to themselves and that we didn't live here. They hadn't told me they would be celebrating a hen party when our listing says strictly no parties and no extra guests who haven't booked.  They were nice girls but had come armed with balloons and huge lilos for the pool and God knows what other paraphernalia but at least they behaved reasonably. 

With lunch and dinner organised, Oli and I went off shopping after they arrived. She was wearing a beautiful jump suit she had bought when we last went shopping. Isn't she gorgeous?

Oli looking glamorous when we went shopping yesterday

My youngest daughter wanted to change some trousers at Stradivarius and of course we looked at everything in the shop. Oli bought more clothes, I had no need for any but my dear sweet daughter bought me  a lovely white summer top. I then treated her to coffee with a pastry of some sort at Rodilla. And here is a selfie of the two of us enjoying the treat. 

Coffee with Oli yesterday when we went shopping together

It was great mother and daughter time. There is nothing I like better than going shopping with my girls.  We stopped off at Lidl on our way home to get some of their delicious bread as well as some of their BIO products which are so popular these days. 

Lunch was another healthy option; gazpacho followed by grilled cod garnished with parsley from the garden and chopped garlic which we had with vegetables. 

As the hen party girls had taken over the swimming pool completely, I decided to sit in the shade under a tree in the garden to read my book after lunch. I also read the news now and again on my phone and was following the results of some of the early stage matches of the World Cup. I was surprised to see that Iceland drew with Argentina 1-1 and that Messi, yes almighty Messi, failed a penalty. It was Iceland's debut in the World Cup and that was a good start. 

Eladio would join me later  until it was time to lay the table for our dinner guests. Thankfully by about 8, the girls had left the pool and were getting ready to go out on the town to party. That was a relief. It also meant we could have drinks with our friends by the pool when they arrived. 

Earlier on in this post I told you what dinner would consist of. Now I can show you the end results which I am quite proud of. I love cooking although I'm not very good at sophisticated cuisine. Below are my gazpacho, served in individual bottles and the garnish, my king prawn potato salad and the dessert, cherry syllabub. No one around the table knew what syllabub was but now they do hahaha.

Home made gazpacho

Potato salad with king prawns

Cherry sylabub

If you are interested, here is the recipe for the syllabub which of course can be made with nearly any fruit. I just chose cherries because they are in season and I love them. 

Our guests who we have known since I first came to live in Spain and who were our neighbours when we lived in Saconia, arrived early and came armed with 2 bottles of delicious Ribera wine as well as some lovely biscuits from my favourite cake shop, Mallorca.  We had such a good time that I totally forgot to take a photo of them - unusual for me hahaha - or maybe it was because I drank too much of the lovely wine. 

Thankfully this morning I only had a small headache which quickly went away after I had my coffee. 

Today it will be another hot day. Today also is when the Aquarius boat refugees will be arriving at the port of Valencia. France has offered to take those who are entitled to asylum and want to go to France. More than 1000 Red Cross officials, police and authorities will be there to welcome them. This is in sharp contrast, at least in my mind, to the other 933 migrants who have arrived this weekend on the shores of beaches in the south of Spain in Andalucia and there has been no hooha about them. It seems everyone wants to get medals for helping the migrants on the Aquarius but there is no talk about the other migrants arriving. What the fate of the migrants on the now famous boat will be, we won't know until each and every one of them has been interviewed. From what I have understood only those with asylum rights will be allowed residency papers. Does that mean that the rest will be shipped back to their countries? I would not like to be in their shoes today or any day.

So now my friends, I have reached the end of the tales of this week. It's early, nearly everyone is asleep except for my Father. He will want a printed copy of this week's post so I shall make haste to publish it for him and then I shall get on with the day.

I wish you all the best. Have a good Sunday,

Cheers till next time,

Masha

Y cuenta gente les espera. Tantos como el Aquaruis? Andalucía recibe 933 inmigrantes llegados en patera en menos de 48 horas