Our 1st Year Anniversary

Good Afternoon All

A year has passed to the day that we said our farewells and boarded that plane for our new life here in Spain. We cannot believe that a year can pass by so quickly, Any regrets....not one apart from wish we had done it sooner. We have spent our anniversary day on the beach, swimming and a tapas lunch out in around 35 degrees and beautiful blue seas to swim in. We both feel extremely lucky.

When we moved here i thought i would be writing this blog on a weekly basis but you end up just carrying on with life as normal even though it is just in a warmer and more relaxed place, but you still end up having to go shopping each week etc but it brightens up after the shopping when you can lay on a sun lounger and then have a dip in the jacuzzi....hehe

In the last few months Graham has got himself a job as a chef in a local restaurant in the evenings which helps out financiallylly alot and lets us have the treats of meals out and shopping days...much to Grahams delight..he has discovered a Zara, H & M, C & A etc only about 40 minutes away from us....dam it

Spanish lessons are plodding along but blimey it is tough going, just when you think you have cracked what a word means they then tell you it can mean something totally different and that you can change the last 2 letters in about 14 different ways as to whether it is male female happened yesterday tomorrow etc etc etc. And then you have the local dialect which basically means drops all the letters out of each word apart from 2 join them all together and speak them at 100 miles per hour and there you go......

We have plenty of visitors lined up for this year and the only months we are without guests so far is August, November and December...which is fantastic as its always good to see everyone and always appreciate the nappy sacks ( Dog Poo Bags ) for the boys as they are really expensive here. talking of the Dogs, Basil has not been very well, he was coughing up blood so a trip to the vets..Xrays, Scan and blood tests and he has the start of Heart Disease and Fibrosis so he is rattling with all the pills that he is now on. But he does seem to have perked up we seem to be having good days and bad days with him but as the vet said he is an old man and we have done all we can for him, so just treasuring every moment with him as always.

The garden is really starting to look good again now after the winter and I have had several cactus come into flower and all the Hibiscus are flowering, figs on the fig tree and just the one orange on the orange tree..all the rest of the blossom seems to have got blown off in the wind, but it is the first year for them.

We have been spending alot of time with our neighbours Maureen & Barry who live a couple of doors away and having some good days out with them. Not sure if i have written this before but Maureens Sister is married to my Aunties Brother !!! what a small world.

Graham and I are hoping to have a few nights away in October when my sister arrives for a week or so and has very kindly offered to dog sit for us...so BENIDORM  here we come........poor Graham is dreading it i think especially if I get my way and we stay at The Solana ( where they filmed the series Benidorm ).

Eurovision did not pass us by this year as anyone who knows us will testify that our Eurovision parties are quite legendary...well this year apart from supporting Spain of course we went to a friends for a Eurovision party and it was a fantastic evening. We were there along side some Spanish friends who really became quite excited by the whole thing...coloured wigs , face paint and very very vocal. A great night was had and ended up with a swim in the pool and then back home for around 3.30am.

Hopefully that has been a decent enough update.

Just to say we are both very happy and have no regrets and long may this life continue. To all our friends and family we do love you all and miss you very much but we are still not coming back...hehe

Thank you for reading this

Lots of Love

Barry & Graham

Sorry This Is Not The Most Frequent Of Blogs

Firstly sorry that I am not one for writing every week, it is strange because when we first came out here I thought it is something that I would do, but I guess as you start to settle in and it begins to feel like home you end up doing what you would do wherever you live in the world and that is just going on with normal day to day life and to write about it doesn't seem that it would be that interesting for anyone to read.
We have been living here nearly 10 months now and I cannot believe how quickly time has gone by, and still no regrets. Thank goodness.
We seem to be over the winter now and I have to say I never expected it to get so cold here, don't get me wrong we have had some glorious days of sunshine but once the sun has gone down the evenings turned very cold. We had a new large log burner fitted a few months back and it was worth every penny as it heated through the whole house. It is a fact that the houses here are designed for the summer and to be cool not the best in winter.....but the weather has definately changed the last few weeks and it looks like the log burner has been cleaned hopefully for the last time for a while....
My sister Tina and Brother In Law graham came out for a week at the end of February which was fantastic and we had a week of going out and about and of course coffees with a few side orders of Tapas to go with it. Markets had to be attended and the compulsory shopping by Tina completed, much to Graham's amazement they did manage to get home the three wall hanging pots and three paella pans in the luggage.....hehe
I am pleased to say that bookings for this coming year at "CallaBaza" are on the up despite the recession in the UK...friend Lesley is due in a weeks time followed by mum & dad, then Tina and Nephew Jack, then Tina & Graham and again followed by mum & dad...that completes the guest list so far......but who knows ????
Graham has got himself a job as a chef in one of our local restaurants and seems to be enjoying it, plus the extra cash is really useful and let's us have a few more treats and lunches out etc.
Spanish lessons are still plodding along but I have a feeling it is going to take a very long time.
The dogs are all fine and we have just given them haircuts ready for the warmer days and nights.
In this region it has just been confirmed that Paramount have purchased the land to build a large new theme park which hopefully will help with the property market in this area as we are only 15 mins drive from the proposed site...fingers crossed..they are meant to be laying e first blocks at the beginning of June. They estimate aprox 5 million visitors a year.

There we go as to prove the point...life just plods along.

Would I change anything ? No

Thank you for reading this drivel

Take care

Barry & Graham

Visitors January 2012

Good Afternoon Everyone

Well here goes with the latest update from Mazarron.

After what was an odd Christmas being away from the family we did'nt have to wait long as Mum and Dad arrived on the 10th of January for one weeks holiday. I drove to the Airport to collect them whilst Graham stayed at home and got the dogs walked etc before they arrived. the flight landed early ( good old EasyJet ), straight through the little airport with only the one suitcase to collect and we were on our way home. It isn't that far about 55minutes door to door.
Some changes had happened around the house and garden since their last visit and they seemed very impressed, garden paths had been laid, more plants arrived, walls painted and bedrooms changed around.

Our days out went as follows and this is for Mum's benefit as well as at least now she will be able to read this and know where she has been !!!!

Thursday   -  Callenegre...which is a little village with bars right on the beach where we enjoyed coffee and tapas with beautiful skies and the sound of the waves. This is my favourite place that we have discovered so far since we have been here. From here we drove along the coast road calling into other bays along the way.

Friday..Graham worked today so I took them to the Monastery for coffee and then further up the mountains to the village of Aledo which has breathtaking views. On the way home we called in to Totana to have a look around a local pottery shop and then back through the village of El Pareton to order some more fire wood for the log burner as the evenings are still cold although the days have been glorious ( sunbathing weather ).

Saturday...A trip down the coast to the town of Aguilas which has a fantastic waterfront, a lovely stroll along the paseo and a coffee in the beautiful square and then off to a shopping centre for some Tapas.

Sunday... A relaxing morning and then off to El Saladillo to watch the Spanish horses and of course a couple of drinks and more tapas. Although I have seen he horses before I still think they are magnificent to watch.

Monday...A trip down to Puerto Mazarron and stroll along the paseo and the coffee stop of course. The harbour there is fantastic and we have chosen the Yacht ready for when the lottery numbers come up !!

Tuesday...the weather wasn't so good today for our trip to Alhama market ...in fact it poured down for a brief period of time and was very windy so the lucky man selling umbrellas done a roaring trade..this was the first time coffee had to be drunk inside the cafe......

Wednesday .....Cannot believe that week has gone so quickly...this is the bit I dread ...saying good bye never gets any easier...but on the positive side it is only 104 more sleeps till they are back again...

Also this Wednesday morning was a bit hectic because within an hour of me leaving to take Mum and Dad back to the Airport Grahams Sister and Brother-In-Law arrived for a couple of nights...They have a place in Spain but further down and were lovely enough to do the 4 hour drive up to see us. I felt so pleased for |Graham that he has had family out to visit now. As it was only a brief visit we spent the Wednesday just chatting in the garden and on the Thursday took them down to Puerto Mazarron. We feel they loved the area and were quite surprised how rural it is and were not expecting us to be surrounded by mountains and open space. Sadly on the Friday they had to make their way home but it was fantastic to see them both.

The house feels very quiet now, it is amazing how you get used to doing things at your own pace and just pottering around with the time just disappearing....

5 weeks time and my sister and brother-in-law are coming out for a week...so we can have our rest now and then have good times to look forward to.

There it is the latest update....now back to a spot of sunbathing

lots of love to all

xxx

Life Continues In Sunny Spain

Hello Everyone

I know it has been quite a long time since I have written anything but life just plods along doing the daily routine things that we all have to do no matter where in the world we live...cleaning out kitchen cupboards included ( this has nothing to do with the fact that Mum and Dad are coming over in 4 weeks time ( honestly ).

I guess the biggest bit of news we have is that Graham and I now have got our Spanish Residency, this seemed quite a daunting process but as it happened it turned out to be very straightforward with the help of Antonio the translator and legal rep who came with us. To do this we had to go to the Police station in Cartegenaand then produce all the relevant papers, have our finger prints taken, supply photographs and hey presto we are now legal Spanish Citizens.We have also sorted out our Medical Cover and are now treated the same as if we were Spanish thanks to the form S1 which was obtained via the Uk, based on tax you have paid whilst working in the Uk entitles you to upto 2 years free medical cover after which we will either have to get a job or start paying for private healthcare...the only incident whilst trying to to sort this out with the Spanish Social Security was when they asked Graham if he was a "pensionista" hehehehe.  We have one more challenge left ahead of us and that is to change our UK driving licences over which we are going to do in January....

It hardly seems possible that Graham and I have been living here for 6 months come next Wednesday, time has just flown by, and I have to say...still no regrets and no desire to return to the UK.

We have taken up Spanish lessons and go once a week, although it seems difficult to remember things as easily when you get older but I am sure things are sinking in slowly, Antonio who teaches us is excellent and very reasonable rates as well as the class is only the 2 of us and he only charges us 5 euros each for an hour.

We are going out each week with our friends Mike and Gareth on discovery trips trying to find new places which is fun, even when we end up at a dead end in a field....the day we discovered the hidden lake which is shown in the photograph above, it was a lovely day out and Graham saved my life even though i thought he was trying to throw me over the mountain side....I leant on a stone pillar, Graham pulled me back by the scruff of my neck as my hand was 1" away from a snake's mouth that had reared its head up because I had disturbed it sunbathing...what is it with me and snakes !!!

Another one of our trips out was to Agulias and to the city of Murcia which Graham was delighted about as it had "Normal" shops including Primark...who ever thought Graham would get excited over going into Primark !!!! We even splashed out and had a Burger & Chips...the first "Fast Food" we have had in 6 months.

Christmas for Graham and I ......One Turkey, 2 Crackers and loads of cheap wine.....just discovered a local bottle of Port...2 Litres for 4.50 euro..it would be rude not to partake

We have friends coming Boxing day and are going out New Years Eve to friends. The one thing I have to say I am REALLY NOT missing is all the Christmas hype that starts at the begining of September in the Uk.

We would both like to send everyone our very best wishes for Christmas and the New Year and hope that it is a Healthy and Happy time for all, May all your dreams come true in 2012 as ours did for us in 2011.

Speak Next Year

Lots Of Love To Everyone

Barry , Graham, Travis , Basil & Ralph

xxxxxxx

The Girls Visit

Hi Eveyone

Well the time arrived for my sister and her three friends to come out for their five day visit...I warned all neighbours that "the girls" were coming , leaving children and husbands at home and that it may be a little noisier than usual...intact alot more noisier than usual.
They arrived on the 13/10/11 the day after my birthday at 3.55, the flight arrived early but it took about an hour to get the car hire sorted as there was quite a big queue. Tina came in the car with me and the other 3 girls followed ( Lynda, Clare, & Sue )
A lovely first evening was spent eating outside and chatting, they all seemed very impressed with the house.
Friday morning we drove up the the monastery and the village of Aledo, calling in Totana to the pottery shop on the way home which gave the girls a chance to do a bit of shopping and bless them they brought us some beautiful bowls...my olives look beautifully presented now....
Friday evening at 6pm the White Daimler arrived to take us to Benidorm to the benidorm palace...the chauffeur complete with cap and champagne in hand...how impressed were we !!! All the neighbours came out to take photographs, we felt like royalty..I urge anyone who has never been to The Benidorm Palace to go..we had a five course meal which was excellent, wine and cava included and one of the best shows I have seen in years...it was the most special night. I saw more womens breasts in 5 minutes than I have seen in 47 years...I hasten to add they were the showgirls not my sister and friends !!! Got home around 3.30 in the morning. It was a fantastic night..loved it
Saturday we were up fairly early and went down to puerto mazarron for a stroll and tapas lunch, ended up eating far to much, back for a rest and sunbathing before Gareth & Mike joined us for an al fresco evening meal...another lovely evening.
Sunday up sharp and off to the local Market.....how can women look at so many and get so excited about handbags !!!!! After the Market a tapas lunch at El Saladillo , then home for rest....saying rest the girls manage to chatter the whole time...I felt like I was on the set of Loose Women !!!
Supper that evening was one of the funniest evenings I have had for years, the wine flowed and it just got funnier and funnier...the neighbours did say that it sounded alot of fun when we saw them the next day.
Monday morning up early and off to Totana for breakfast and a wander round, garden centre and pottery factory. The girls were so kind to Graham and I and bought us some beautiful plants for the garden.
1pm and it was time for the girls to head back to the airport....I bloody hate saying goodbye...it was very emotional ...I've got to get used to this..
By god the house felt quiet afterwards...really missed them, we had just had the most fantastic 5 days
Xxxx

Friends Visit

Hi everyone, i say everyone but might only be me and graham reading this...hi graham....

We have just had a fantastic week with our friends Steve and Vince who came over for a week and went home on Saturday 24th.

They arrived on the 17th and I drove to San Javier airport to pick them up, the journey went well except going round the usual roundabout twice...it is always the same one that catches me out...i will learn.
We had a great week sightseeing and going to the beach, the weather was lovely apart from the Friday night when it rained, fortunately we had just finished eating our supper outside in time.

The highlights of the week for me and I think everyone else were the visit to Aledo ( and the Monestry ) and the views from the Statue Of Christ breathtaking.

On the Sunday we went to a local bar in El Saladillo to watch the Spanish horses dancing and me being the soft git that I am ended up with a tear in my eye when they danced to a Spanish version of My Way..a great lunchtine out and its free apart from buying the drinks of course, Vince had the largest Vodka I have ever seen poured.

The beach at Bolneuvo was a hit with the guys and the water was still plenty warm enough to enjoy swimming in, we met a lovely American lady who called Vince a "Floater" because of the way he was floating on his back in the water, sadly the word "FLOATER" does not translate so well in the UK....

We have brought some lovely outside oil candles to burn around the dining area which also help keep the mosquitos at bay, but these were bought after Vince had been bitten a few times...told him he should have worn long trousers, a parka coat and balaclava....so its his own fault really !!!!!
The garden is really starting to take shape and I love the fact that you can grow exotic plants outside rather then your standard Geraniums or Marrigolds...The Guys bought us a beautiful Bird Of Paradise which is fantastic.
We discovered a really quaint little bar called La Jardin which is very quirky and the gardens are planted very heavily and all the walls just covered in "bits" ...plates, bottles, parrots and even a sewing machine hanging..all sounds very bizzare but it is fantastic.
Steve and Vince stayed in the room at the top of the house which I think they liked as it gave them their own sun terrace and they went home with fantastic tans...did'nt like to ask if it was all over..
Very sad saying good-bye to them at the airport and it has taken me a couple of days to get back into a routine as the house seemed so quiet..the week spent with them made us feel like we were on holiday as well.
My sister and 3 freinds are coming out in 2 weeks time so that is something to look forward to and we have booked to go to the Benidorm Palace on the Friday night by limousine....can't wait..hope we bump into Madge !!!
We were woken up early Sunday morning by an earthquake which made me jump out of bed as the house shook and the windows rattled, Ralph was not impressed, did'nt know what was happening, it was all over very quickly but then we had a second one an hour later..they were a 3.1 and 2.6 about 5 miles away from us, fortunately no damage was done.

So life is now all back to normal and we are both still loving it, the dogs seem to like it even more now that we are having cooler evening ( still not had a window shut though ) still in the 20's at night and high 20's in the daytime...tough life !!!

love to all
xxx

Mum & Dads Visit

Hi Everyone

Mum and Dad have been out for 8 days and went home last Thursday so this blog is dedicated to their trip and all the things we done whilst they were here.

Wednesday 31st August
Mum and Dad arrived at 3.30 pm, Graham and I were so excited it was making our tummy's churn, waiting at the Arrivals gate was really emotional because people coming through were coming out to visit relatives and there were alot of tears flowing...it was nearly enough to start me off even before they got through. We saw Mum first waiting by the luggage carousel and I thought she may run straight through and leave Dad waiting for the suitcase..but she remind in control. We could not believe they were here, never thought we would be seeing them so soon..yahoo

We arrived at the house and the Dogs were really excited to see Granny and Grandpa, they said the house was so much nicer than they even imagined and even better than the photographs we had sent through.
That evening we had a meal outside in the garden and a view glasses of wine and plenty of time to catch up on the news from Eastbourne etc.
The following day we went to la Hoyaz where there is the most beautiful bar set up on a hill overlooking the whole bay and across to Mazarron, the views are spectacular and you feel like you could be anywhere in the world it is so tranquil.
Oh I forgot to say after living here now for over 2 months and just wall to wall sunshine we had a storm last night, could not believe it first night of parents visit and we end up with thunder and lightening...typical eh !
Friday Graham went to do his days work at the charity shop so I took Mum and Dad up to see the Monastry in Elado....not sure whether to write this or not....but it was lassoing it down with rain, it was like a red river running down the mountain side as we are trying to drive up it...all a bit worrying..could not believe it...we carried on and when we got to the top the weather did ease a bit and we went inside the beautiful chapel there and then in the Hotel for coffee, due to the weather we could not walk round the gardens but it was a lovely day all the same.
Saturday the weather was all back to normal and we went off to the beach, persuaded Mum to don her swimming costume and we all went swimming, fantastic.
In the evening we went to a local Market to get some bread and fruit and veg etc.

Sunday and it was round to our friends Mike and Gareth for morning coffee which turned into Gin o Clock...parents think they are two wonderful guys and I think Mum wants to adopt Gareth.

Monday it was another day at the beach and a fantastic Tapas lunch in the port of Mazarron.

Tuesday we went to Totana for morning coffee and "Tostada Con Tomat " which they loved and then in the evening Gareth and Mike came round for a few drinks !!! They left at 1.15 and cannot remember much about the night.....

Wednesday it was a relaxing morning at the beach and lunch at La Pena which is a restaurant which Graham and I first went to when we were out here house hunting.

Thursday...local Market at Camposol and then it was time to pack the cases....saying that most things have been left here as they have booked to come back again in January....we must have got it right I guess

Saying goodbye at the Airport was horrible and was far worse than saying goodbye when we left to move out here...really strange..
We had the best week ever and I miss having Dad on the dog walking with us, mind you I am sure he will be glad he missed the snake that Travis and I came across on Sunday night...how come people have lived here for years and never seen a snake and I have been here 2 months and seen 2 already ?

Mum and Dad bought us a Lemon and Orange tree which we have planted up in lovely terracotta pots and they are sitting either front of the main steps leading up to the house they are called Peter ( the lemon tree ) and Gill ( the orange tree ), Peter could do with growing a bit quicker as Gill may fruit first !!!!
It all seems very quiet here now and life is returning to it's old routine...Graham has caught up with Hollyoaks and Emmerdale is being viewed once again.

We also now have Spanish television so are trying to make sense of what is being said !!!

Still loving our lives and look forward to our next visitors who arrive on Saturday ( Steve and Vince )

I shall waffle again soon

Lots of Love

Xxx