Six Go Back to Spain.......

13th to 19th October

Sunday
We started with the 2:30am alarm and picked up by friendsM&P at 3:30am. Southend Airport and met up with friendsT&F. This is another holiday to friendM's apartment in Riviera del Sol on the Costa del Sol. 

I'll not do a detailed account, let's just say there was a lot of drinking (not me) and eating, men playing pool and very late nights with plenty to laugh about. 

We hired a car this time and friendP did all the driving, so we were out and about every day.......hopefully the photos show what a great time we had.

Cabopino to La Lonja Bar to see Stelvis then across the sand to Andy's Beach Bar for more live music.

Benalmadena marina and cable car

Ronda

There were markets and beaches but I was obviously having too much fun to take photos. And our grand finale evening was also friendT's birthday, so silver service dinner with Soul/Mowtown/Jazz singer and birthday cake dessert with candles and giant sparkler! 

A week goes very fast when you are enjoying wonderful weather and great company. 

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My valentine man......

Valentine's day is also Hubby's birthday and this year it fell on a Wednesday so our usual gang of three couples, who always spend Wednesday nights together, agreed to celebrate our valentine's and Hubby's birthday together.

All dressed up for a special evening at the lovely old Orwell Hotel in Felixstowe.

Starting with a complimentary glass of prosecco blush in the bar.

We made our way into the full dinnig room, where we were the only table of six as all the rest were romantic two's hahaha. Once seated we were greeted by the maitre d', Costas, (who knows friendsM&P and has seen the rest of us a few times) greeted the men with a handshake but for us ladies it was a kiss, a long stemmed red rose and a small box of chocolates!

This was the menu.....

As you can see if we ordered starters and main course we got a sharing dessert for free, so that's what we did. Dessert was two portions but served on one plate between us so each couple huddled together romantically 😉

Quite late and all very full we still decided to continue the evening and ran to our cars in the most dreadful wet and windy weather and drove to a newish bar that the others had tried once before but I'd not been to. It's called Copas on the Felixstowe sea front, and it's very elegant inside.

It even has a free pool table, so the men were happy and didn't miss out on their Wednesday game.

A lovely evening had by all, especially my birthday/valentine boy! 

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Spain Holiday with friends.......

Sunday 24 September started oh so early with the alarm going off at 3:30am. Think I'd had about four hours sleep.
     We were on the road at 4am allowing a bit extra time as the main road to Stansted has had road works over night for months and months....... actually it was all open so we got to the airport early.
     We'd already arranged between us for each couple to go through formalities as we arrived then all meet up in Wetherspoons for breakfast, which was a good idea saving any of us hanging around. Hubby and I weren't the first there as my case was selected for extra security which took another 20mins. We weren't the last either so when six of us were all together we had breakfast.
     After my bacon butty and cuppa we took the long walk to gate 48 and they were already boarding so straight on. Unfortunately the hand luggage quota had been met so four of our bags were put in the hold. Slight delay on the runway then a really easy flight and we were met by the booked taxi at Malaga airport.
     Always so lovely being in bfriendM's apartment and as six close friends we are going to have a great holiday.

The days between were a mixture of relaxed and busy and always quite hot, even the one rainy morning was grey but still hot. We were out every day, either local walking to the beach or supermarket or the fascinating Chinese hardware shop or getting the bus to Fuengorola for the market and a failed attempt to see the castle which was closed, and the market at La Cala.

     Late afternoons were siesta for all but me (makes me feel dreadful sleeping in the day). There was also some use of the pool in the community garden (that was without me too). And there was the afternoon beers and pre-evening drinks (also excluding me,  I'm sounding like a bit of a party pooper!). While they snoozed I read and when they woke it was lots of conversations and laughter. 

     Eating out every evening is delicious as bfriendM's local knowledge takes us to all the best places. On the beach for paella, Argentinean Steakhouse, Mama Nostra's Italian, La Plaza which is a bit classier and this week had a Rod Stewart tribute act who was very good and got us all up dancing.

     The men rounded off most evenings playing pool and made friends with a group from Norway who we saw various times, very friendly and very funny. Meanwhile we sat outside and both girls chatted to Jimmy's and the Asian lady who are regular sellers of bags and novelty items, yes they both bought stuff too. When we made it back to the apartment it was more drink and snacks out on the balcony with bedtime always after 1am, even on the last night when the plan was an early night.....I knew that wasn't going to happen hahaha

Friday 29 September and we are packed up and picked up by the booked taxi at 9am. Very crowded airport was the usual queuing and waiting around and was really busy, but it does the job of getting us from there to here so can't complain. Big goodbyes as we headed off to different car parks, but we'll see each other on our usual Wednesday night out. 

Great fun and great memories, so probably a good point to add photos.......

So now just seven days to unpack and process all the laundry and repack then off to Crete. 

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Medical avalanche........

Been a very busy time of late and calander booked to stay that way till just passed the new year.

R and O performed for the last time with their Saturday drama group, a fun performance as always. Unfortunately this drama group has been ended by the County Council as they only want to run Saturday school for music in future so this was an emotional end of term and end of an era for the children and also for Daughter who started coming here for her own music as a child and now as a parent has helped with registration and tuck shop for years. Sad farewells all round.

Last week seemed to be dominated by medical things too, and none of them involved my health for a change.
     We are both fine, which has been no easy task in fact, as Daughter then O and now M have all been ill with a sickness bug and we haven't been able to avoid seeing them.
      Our next door neighbour has a very serious medical condition diagnosed 40 years ago (told back then she only had six weeks to live) and she now needs stronger magic so has been in and out of Papworth Hospital and sometimes Addenbrooks over the last few weeks. Her husband has been asked to take in various bits of her medical supplies when he visits every day but midweek he phoned Hubby urgently asking him to go into their house and find some tubes in her medical supplies and get them to Papworth as he was there already (as the hospital had the wrong ones) so on his bike more than an hour's ride away! The staff were so grateful.
     Wednesday night I was out with my friends and before dinner had arrived friendM had a really funny turn, acting so weird that we were all concerned and I thought she should get checked out so took her and her partner to the local A&E. They decided she needed an ambulance to the main hospital about 11 miles away. FriendsT&F met us at the local hospital then went to the pub to tell another friend we should have met what was going on, then met us at the main hospital. Meanwhile I took her partner home and we gathered up what she might need if they kept her in overnight, then as he hadn't even had time to finish his first pint we could take two cars and ended up following the blue lights into town. It was nearly 1am when I left them there as having checked her thoroughly they suggested maybe a CT scan, but by the time I got home they had text me to say "no scan needed on our way home" so I was relieved and slept well. The think she'd had a TIA or mini-stroke! Very scary at the time and there will be follow ups but thankfully she's feeling fine now.
     While we were in the hospital friendM got to see her daughter as she was there with a sick baby, thankfully they'd just been discharged and I caught her just in time before they left for home.
     Heard from friendLW too who is totally drugged up as she has horrid sinus problems so she can't breathe and makes her sick and made her eyes really swollen.
     Also I went to visit friendHM to tell her about friendM and she is still unwell having one infection after another and now has a nasty rash on her face and in her eye.

My mum always said that winter needed a really cold snap to kill off the germs but even that wouldn't help for most of this!
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Spain holiday - September/October 2015......

BfriendM now owns an apartment on the Costa del Sol so with her partner, friendsT&F, Hubby and I we've had a holiday together there.
Thank you BfriendM for arranging all our flights and transfers and providing great accommodation

Sunday 27th - went to bed early (about 10:30pm (early for me lol)) last night with a definite head cold, what bad timing!  A very early start with the alarm going off at 2am and away by 2:30am to give us plenty of time as Hubby had looked up road stuff and there were ongoing overnight road works on our route, but actually they must have finished and we sailed through and got to the airport with about an hour to spare which allowed a very welcome first coffee. When the desk opened we got in the queue and the others met us there before we got to the front so we grabbed friendsT&F case and checked them both in together. We arrived at Malaga Airport and our transfer driver introduced himself as Kenny with a middle name Roger so we won't forget Kenny Rogers haha. Hubby and I both liked BfriendM's apartment immediately we saw it. It's on the fifth floor (very top) so has fantastic views from the balcony,

but only feels like second floor from street level as it goes down as well as up and not too many stairs. It's gated so feels very safe and the grounds and pool are maintained beautifully.  My five companions all embraced the Spanish style by taking a siesta but I really can't do the daytime nap thing so a relax outside with lots of water, tissues, cough sweets and my book. That evening we walked down to the beach - I say 'down' as it's down stairs to street level which is still the top of the hill, so down the gentle roadway which is a huge sweep round or the shortcut which is a very steep rubble slope on an unmade plot, they left it up to me each time which way depending on how my knees were. We stopped at George's Bar first and they have free WiFi   :-)

At the beach restaurant I had paella my Spanish favourite meal.  When we got back there were a few more drinks then there was the pumping up of the air bed ceremony to make up a bed in the lounge for T&F and they shared the wardrobe space in our room. I think we got to bed about 1:30am.

Monday 28th - awake just before 6am but couldn't get back to sleep, can't do anything without pockets full of tissues and continuously sipping water. We walked down to the restaurant that advertises English Cooked Breakfast and that's what we all had about 11am-ish then to the bus stop. BfriendM wasn't feeling well so we left her and P there and we walked up to the taxi rank and sent a taxi to get them them and take them back home while we went to the supermarket. Hubby had carried the heavy beer yesterday so friendF carried the water pack today. We all relaxed sitting around while BfriendM slept but that made the men restless so they went out for a walk. FriendT and I had a good old natter which was lovely. Rested and fully hydrated again BfriendM felt better and arranged to meet the men at the bus stop to try again. We went into Fuengarola and M&P left us for a while to go and buy a washing machine (the handle had broken off her's the last time she was here) and they caught up with us at a bar by the beach having successfully bought and arranged delivery for Thursday including removal of the old one, not easy with language and time restrictions and her apartment being up on the fifth floor! After that was a lovely roam around the shops as they were all opening up after siesta time.

We decided to have an early dinner at a beach restaurant they know for sardines mmmm. Back on the bus and into Dave's Bar so the men could play pool and the girls could meet the handbag seller again to haggle and buy.

Back to the apartment and all the nibbles came out with the drinks (well we had had an early dinner). So lovely sitting out on the balcony late at night.

Tuesday 29th - I'd slept really well till about 2am when the lorries outside were emptying the big recycle bins so thought I'd go to the loo, I was just going into the bathroom in the dark as friendF opened his door and he jumped right out of his skin! Very funny! Six of us and one bathroom hasn't been a problem so far but it does take time. So now all up, showered, lots of tea and some toast and ready to head out by 11:30 hahaha. Bus to Fuengarola change bus to Mijas.

Lots and lots of shops to wander. Tapas for a late lunch. Italian dinner. Ended the night at George's Bar to meet the handbag seller again and he sold another three  (Hubby thinks they are mad). Then the lightning started and the thunder so we drank up and made our way home as it started to rain, we got a little wet but thankfully we just got through the front door as the heavens truly opened, lucky eh? We then stayed up till the early hours storm watching (any excuse lol).

Wednesday 30th - Think my cold is on its way out but now have a very irritating cough! First stop was to the breakfast cafe (although it was nearly lunchtime) then we went to the beach and walked the boardwalk to La Cala which is only about 2.5km and it felt like about 28°C but thankfully with a bit of a breeze.

There was a beer stop of course and later a very welcome icecream stop in a lovely shady square. We took the bus back so they all could late siesta before heading out for the evening. Fuengarola by bus to Moochers Jazz Bar which is up Fish Alley (think that might be a local nickname). Singer who apparently had been with Eddison Lighthouse many years ago, he was good and then the owners wife joined him (she had been our waitress) and sang Annie Lennox style and they were brilliant. All up and dancing and all got very drunk ('cept me) so two taxis home as the buses finished at 11pm. There was more drinking before bed about 2:30am.

Thursday 1st - First thing F said was "I hate you for not drinking because you can't know how rough I feel" hahaha I've no sympathy when it's self inflicted! We had to stay at the apartment for the washing machine being delivered. It was an excellent delivery, two men carried up the machine, plumbed it in, carried the old one down together with all the packaging, paperwork signed and away within about 15 minutes!  We decided to stay by the pool for a while, I had to move to the shade, Hubby got bored quickly and went back up F had a proper swim said it was bracing, T had a quick swim said it was freezing and M dipped her toe and declared it too cold so I didn't bother lol. P went for a walk to hunt for some plant babies he could take home. Another siesta and more reading for me, then P left as he had to go back to Moochers as he'd left his bag there. For our evening meal we tried a beach restaurant none of them had been to before.

Very attentive waiter. Free appetiser thing, free bread rolls and we finished with a free limoncello shot!

Friday 2nd - unfortunately woke to find that BfriendM had been ill all night. She thinks the clams she had last night had been off! Having made an effort to use up food before the last day there was just a croissant each for breakfast. We took today's bus in the opposite direction to every other day and got off at Marbella. We wandered round the old town which Hubby and I hadn't seen when we were there about 12 years ago. Stopped in a pretty square and had lunch after a little shopping (as afternoon everything is closed for siesta).

We've had a bit of hassle with the gate keys but after a bit of back and forth discovered the locksmith won't be open again till Monday so M will have to sort it next time she comes. Dinner tonight was in La Plaza, which had to be booked in advance as it's so popular because of the live music. The singer was really good doing Frank Sinatra,   Michael Buble, Dean Martin etc. Nobody drank much and although it could have been an early night because of leaving in the morning we were having fun so stayed till the end and got to bed just after midnight.

Saturday 3rd - alarm was set for 6:30am, six of us through the bathroom, beds stripped, air bed deflated and our transfer taxi arrived in good time. ...so airport and flight home.
It's been a great week :-)