I'm baaaaaack!

Just a quick post to say that we're back from a lovely break in Southern Germany. I did try to keep up with commenting now and then but, as you can imagine, it was a busy time.

And, in between many other things going on, this is the view I had on Sunday whilst relaxing and watching the Red Kites flying around searching for any small pickings on the ground. Two parents and two young ones - an amazing sight but I never caught them on camera, sigh.es. We get them here at home too but I've never seen them with youngsters.

No card from me this Wednesday - still recovering from long, but so worthwhile, journeys to get there and back! And we have two new little snippets playmates - I took a load of card making stuff for the little girls. Watch this space!

Friday Feast - Sausage and Apple Bake with Mash

Whilst I do love travelling and 'foreign' muck as Kath would say food, I also get a huge hankering for good old British cooking by the end of a foreign holiday. This dish will certainly be on the menu again for this coming week! I strongly recommend it - absolutely scrummy!

Sausage and Apple Bake with Mash

Serves 4

1 Braeburn apple, core removed, cut into wedges
1 leek, cut into 1cm slices
150g cherry tomatoes on the vine
1 tsp fennel seeds
6 sprigs fresh thyme
pinch crushed chillies
8 thick pork sausages
250ml white wine
1 tbsp olive oil
mashed potato, to serve

Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/Gas 6.

Place the apples, leeks and cherry tomatoes in a roasting dish then scatter over the fennel seeds, thyme and crushed chillies and season.

Place the sausages on top then pour over the wine.

Finally, drizzle over the oil.

Roast for 40 minutes until the sausages are golden brown, cooked through and no pink meat remains. Serve with mashed potato.

Things I do: Not a lot really, although as it was for two of us  I did think that just two sausages each wasn't gonna tick all the boxes so I used three each (frozen Richmond Thick Irish sausages in fact) with the rest of the ingredients exactly as in the recipe. And no extra vegetables apart from creamy mashed potato 'cos of the leeks and tomatoes in the recipe.

Quick, simple and really yummy!

By the time this posts, we'll be tucked up in our own bed, recovering from the looooooong and very tiring trip back home. Quick edit: We got home safe and sound and I'm already in my PJ's and ready to hop into bed, less than an hour after getting into the house! That has to be the fastest shower on record  - 14 trips I think we've made to Thailand and it seems to get harder not easier :( For some reason the room is swaying right now, I think it's from the flights - no time as yet to go hunting in the Playground for any leftover cocktails mixed up in buckets so we can't blame those! 

Di

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A last post before I leave for the Playground

...........and check to see what's been going on there. My fear is that Parsnip will still be comatose and unable to 'snitch' though :( This Anon email arrived the other day - I kid you not!

Hi Miss,

Erm Parsnip  might be sleeping oft more than just a angover.
It might have been wot wos being mixed up in the bucket behind the shed for the  um forthcoming party.
Snot my fault.
A.     I told im not to drink from the bucket.
B.      I told him not to snort it up through a straw.
Think he must ave cos he wos found laters  laid on his back surrounded by  a pile of straws. He wos muttering about seeing spiders , bats, bugs and goblins crawling outta the walls but I explained that wos just cos it was dat time of the year and he sighed  (appily I swear) turned over and passed out like. Dat wos Friday!

Hugs
Anom.

Sigh, I knew we ought to have brought him with us :(

It's lunchtime here on Wednesday as I type and we're all packed bar the last minute stuff - which is a great idea 'cos we did it right after be breakfast and still have the rest of the day and evening to play with, wahoo!!

This was my 'Five a Day' fruit at breakfast this morning:

My choices vary from day to day, this morning I just had two types of melon, pineapple and a slice of the delicious fruit on the left Any guesses? I bet at least Kate and Sam will know from their Far East jollies - it's called 'Dragonfruit' and is delicious. One variety even comes with deep purple flesh and little black seeds, the more common one has white flesh - as shown.

 

These days most large supermarkets in the UK sell Dragonfruit but at one time they were the sort of thing that a check-out person would look at in bewilderment :) Cost about £1 each at home, here they're 'cheap as chips' of course. Yummy too!

So my leetle Playmates - I guess I won't be on line until Friday sometime, last party here, long journey, time changes and the jet lag will wipe me out for sure :(

But I thought you might like to see a little new friend. Earlier today a quite young Nok Kaew came and sat on our balcony for well over half an hour, all puffed up and singing his heart out. For ages we didn't dare move to get cameras lest he flew away. Eventually I got a few average piccies, but this one taken from the rocking chair I was sitting in tickles me most:

'The Birdman of Samui' (aka Len) only went and found a little plastic 'nibbles' dish that we bought here and crumbled up one of our bedtime Hershey's chocolates for the little fella! I can't say that he was overly impressed although he did take one piece and then spent ages vigorously cleaning his beak :)

Each evening the hotel 'turn down' service leaves us this on our bed (Len's side):

A glass dish with two Hersheys chocolates in and a single long stemmed red rose. What tickles us most is that often they then carefully place the TV remote control alongside :)

And this will be us at tomorrow morning - look closely between the palm trees and you'll see our 8:45 am plane from today, just taken off for Bangkok:

Yup, it had been raining but now the sky is bright blue again.

I hope you enjoyed just a little peek at Thailand over the past couple of weeks :) See you soon!!

Di

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The day that the rain came down

And very welcome it was too if I'm honest :)

The other morning I woke up to a very watery sunrise:

A sign that the rainy season is on its way here - clouds on the horizon, moving in from Koh Phangan. But still so calm and very beautiful. Just the birds chirping to welcome another day.

We since had some rain, so refreshing and cooling, along with very sunny times too.

Earlier today we took another trip into Nathon, so much better than Chaweng where we went the other day - that place is a bit like 'Blackpool in a hot-tub'. I didn't take a single photo and after 14 trips to Thailand we finally decided that Chaweng is off the list for even a day visit :)

Today the rain really came down and, intrepid little explorers we are, that didn't stop our plans to go and say goodbye to Nathon until next time. We had huge hotel umbrellas but were scampering along in thin clothes as it was still so hot, managed to get totally soaked, 'plodged' through puddles up to our ankles and generally had a blast!

Ended up in our favourite bar overlooking the Port and I found that Hilda Ogden had been there already - photo taken more for UK friends:

Whilst sitting drying off over a beer and just watching the world go by a religious procession suddenly appeared. Not a good photo but do bear in mind I was wet, trying to scamper along the very uneven pavement without breaking my ankle yet AGAIN (once had to be flown home as a stretcher case from Tenerife and spent months in a wheelchair) and just did what I could:

A bit like a ceremonial barge, made of teak and being hauled by what seemed like about 60 people with very long ropes.

We then weebled our way through the back streets to the appointed place where our lovely taxi diver was waiting and this is just a little glimpse of a local dress shop - Armani NOT:

So, that for now is what we've been up to on 'teacher training'. And where are we right this minute? Here of course - on our lovely balcony and debating where to eat tonight:

That's only about a third of our balcony - if you ever, ever venture to Thailand then come here - Hansar Samui Resort and Spa, Bophut, Koh Samui. It's fabulous :) This is the bed - I lose Len in the night and have to check he's still there! :)

And this is the bath:

OK, it takes some getting used to having a bath in the middle of the room, but it's optional whether you use it- the huge walk-in shower is big enough for a Playground party :)

And this all happened because just ONE WEEK before we came, our normal place we stay at also in Bophut emailed to say 'tough luck we'll be closed for building work'. It's called The Waterfront, is in fact English owned by quite a pretentious couple and has outgrown its boots to the extent that even returning guests of a few years standing were dropped in favour of profit margins so they could extend their tiny swimming pool to a slightly larger one in time for more money when the high season arrives at Christmas :( Without walking up and down with a placard outside the place, I can only say it's best to strike them off your wish list. With our flights all booked we were in a real pickle - but I would now always recommend The Hansar well above them, they look like amateurs by comparison - just a shame we had the trauma to find out! Sorry for the rant, it was 'take it or leave it, tough luck' and so very unprofessional :(

But hey, didn't they do us a HUGE favour?!

Di
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Spooked me a bit

When we went out for Len's Birthday meal the other evening, word had travelled that it was a 'special day' to the local restaurant we really love - just a few minutes stroll from the hotel here. Talk about not having any secrets :)

We were led to a lovely candlelit table, overlooking the sea and immediately I could smell jasmine. The tablecloth had been scattered with jasmine flowers :)

But then came the really spooky part, one of the waiters appeared with a frangipani flower, tucked it in my hair and said 'Madam should wear a flower in her hair'. Had he been peeking at this blog? Did he know that my profile picture has been the subject of a few comments?

NOPE 'cos no-one here knows about the blog - it was pure intuition/coincidence or just good PR. I was too stunned to take a piccie of the lovely table but Len did whip out his camera and take this photo:

Sometimes things that happen do leave me with the shivers - and this was one such time :)

It's 'write up the Playground day' here and the gates re-open at midnight UK time :)

Di
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Would you like a little trip out?

Today we tootled off to Nathon, a place I like much more than Chaweng on Koh Samui. We're staying at Bophut, which has lots of shops but not the variety you find in Nathon. Chaweng deserves a visit for sure but it's much more touristy as well as more expensive.

We left the hotel mid-morning after waving goobye to these little guys:

They're the most common bird here, called Nok Kaews (pronounced Knock You's) - very cheeky and amusing to watch. I guess they're close to our own blackbirds in the UK.

We wandered along the road in front of the hotel:

And then came across another very common sight here - 'Spirit Houses'.

The house is intended to provide a shelter for spirits which could cause problems for the people if not appeased. The shrines often include images of people and animals and offerings are left at the house to propitiate the spirits. More elaborate installations include an altar for this purpose. You'll find them all over South East Asia and I truly would love one for home - but no way would the luggage allowance cope :(

We then went into Nathon and spotted this building up a side street, not sure if it's some sort of temple, not one I'm familiar with as Thai 'Wats' are much less scarey:

Then we had a good couple of hours wandering and bartering before doing as one should do when it's very hot and sticky:

Len, bless him, with an ice cold beer. He's a terror, always puts on a silly smiles for photos and I was threatening him at the time!

Yours truly complete with the 'lampshade' as Mary Mac called it :) And not a single slick of makeup - it's so hot it just slides off!

And what did we buy? Clothes mainly - these are a couple of dresses for me as I travelled very light 'cos all the shops at home already have their Winter stuff in now and Dumbo wasn't as well prepared as she thought :(

Jazzy huh? Swingy, light and very cool - ticks all the boxes.

That's it for today - tomorrow (15th) is Lens' Birthday so I need to wrap the gift I dragged all the way from the UK and write his card before we shower and go for an evening meal. It's a hard life, but someone has to do it :)

Di
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Would you like a little peek..........

............... at the view from here?

I took this at one end of our mahooooosive balcony - more like an outdoor room really with plenty of teak furniture, a day bed large enough for three folk to lie on end to end and even a ceiling fan. The island to the far left on the horizon is Koh Phangan where they hold the legendary Full Moon Parties and the next one is due on 19th October.

Think I'll just have an early night with a mug of cocoa cocktail or two and give it a miss though! 

Di
x

WOYWW - 180

Not much to see on my work desk this week - apart from a load of detritus shoved to the side. But, I did just this minute unpack this from my suitcase - innit cute:

It's a bracelet, made up of little painted 'jingle bells' threaded onto elastic. I spotted it on Sunday in a local Spanish market and could see potential if I took the scissors to the elastic - just one snip and there's be a load of brightly coloured bells for Christmas card embellishments :) Bit different to the gold and silver ones I already have - at 3 Euros it truly was a snip - and not something to wear as it is unless you want to be heard coming from a long way off!

To see what's going on in the world of sensible (and not so sensible) crafters - hop over to Julia's here. I'll be following just as soon as the last of holiday stuff is either put away or into the laundry.

Di
x

Par Avion

Or, Air Mail :) And that's hopefully us later today - flying back to the UK. I made this little Christmas card just before we left home:

I used:

- 4.75" x 4.75" square white card stock

- Penny Black's 'Par Avion' stamp, coloured with Pro Markers and then cut with a Sizzix die

- holly backing paper from the snippets folder

- sentiment by Craftwork Cards, layered onto an oval snippet of red card

- little piece of red ribbon from the ribbon box

A really quick offering today. The sun is shining brightly, we've just been for a long walk and 'the barman' is offering me a glass of wine here :) All is well with the world once again!

While we were out I took a few piccies:

This one is looking back across the Marina from the harbour wall - snort, to prove there's actually a blue and almost cloudless sky here right now :) The waves were lashing right over the harbour walls the other day so to go for a stroll round there today was a treat.

And, we also came across this little cutie - I didn't dare get too close as they're very shy little feral cats here and run away at the drop of a hat. In fact, he/she was there for well over an hour just dozing and soaking up the sunshine, curled up in a net from one of the trawlers. It obviously knows where it's well off and a lot of the cats here live off the bits of fish still caught in nets when they're set out to dry.

The wanderer returns - and, like a lot of people after a holiday, it's gonna be nice sleeping in my own bed tonight :)

Di
x

Up, up and away :(

This should post at just about the time we'll be flying over Spain on our way back home - providing I remember to actually publish it for Mr Blogger to do his scheduled post! This was just before sunset - looking out to the Marina the other evening:

'Hasta la vista' Estepona - for now!


WOYWW tomorrow - erm, there might just be a pile of washing dumped on my desk! :)

Di
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Do you eat it or not?

I doubt if you do eat this variety of Morning Glory:

It's so pretty and we've seen loads this week. I love the way that the centre of these really lovely flowers glow like a little light bulb :) They're quite easy to grow in the UK and I've had great success in the past from starting them off in the greenhouse - but it's so nice to see them growing wild.

The title of the post isn't as daft as it might seem either. Len and I go to Thailand quite often and over there they have a variety of Morning Glory which grows in water. The green parts of the plant make a gorgeous accompaniment (today's big word!) to a Thai meal - stir-fried with something like oyster sauce. Yummy!

It looks like the weather is changing a bit here in Southern Spain - within the past hour or so, from being like a mill pond, the sea is getting rougher and clouds are gathering. Good job that tomorrow is planned as just a 'mooching around' day and the dreaded packing of course, ready for an early flight on Tuesday. But we've been really lucky with the weather so far so absolutely no complaints on that score!

Shops here, especially the supermarkets, are full of Christmas goodies. You certainly can have a good traditional Christmas - decorations, lights, baubles, artificial trees galore, mincemeat, mince pies, Christmas puddings, crackers - the works! But something I haven't seen at home and absolutely love are little dried whole figs, just a dainty-ish mouthful - really delicious. With luck there'll be a chance to buy some more to take home.....I ate the box we bought already! Err, now I remember why our Mums used to give us Syrup of Figs!! :((

Must rush!!

Di
x

A walk and a loooong detour

On Thursday we decided to walk from the Marina where we're staying, along to Estepona Town itself. It's such a pretty place with lots of interesting back streets and the walk along the promenade is very pleasant. We wandered, had a lovely brunch, shopped a bit (someone got three shirts and I bought a teeny little evening bag sized purse for all of two Euros - who said that it's the women who can shop?!).

By now the sun was really warm (sorry!) and we moseyed back along the promenade to the Marina. The end was in sight when suddenly we were accosted by two beggars, women 'selling' carnations. Having had to firmly refuse (tales of purses being whipped out of your hand and run off with were rife in June when we were here) we realised our route back to the apartment meant having to run the gauntlet so Indiana Jones decided that a diversion was best. BIG mistake!

A lot of maintenance work was going on along our diversionary route and all tracks up the hill were blocked off. Indiana strode out in front whilst I brought up the rear, whining at intervals like Donkey in Shrek 'Are we there yet?'. Trust me, I truly thought we were going to end up in Gibraltar as each pathway was closed. However, we came across such a pretty bay I had to admit that it was worth the hike and after a long, steep trek up the hill at last we finally arrived back on track. This is the view from the top of the hill:

And, if you enlarge the photo, there's a headland of Southern Spain to the very right of the picture and just a little way to the left of that on the horizon, showing faintly through the haze, is Gibraltar - like a crouching lion. See, I knew we were on our way there!!

Di
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WOYWW 108

Nothing stunning on my desk right now, just a few bits and bobs I picked up in Spain. Oh boy, there doesn't seem to be one single craft shop near to where we were last week so in desperation I wandered into a small shop which makes flamenco dresses to order as I'd spied rolls of ribbon in the window. I got just a few bits of ribbon and some lace:

The sludgy brown grosgrain ribbon is gorgeous (ha, even though it was carefully joined about 30 cms from one end)! I don't blame the lady shop owner for the join, it looks as if it was done by the manufacturers but just suppose I hadn't wanted a join? She wasn't to know that I happily chop up lengths of ribbon for card making. Perhaps my pink nose and 'Turista' tattoed across my forehead made her realise I wouldn't be back to complain?! Hey, ho - at least it made me smile when I realised just now about the join! The red ribbon with hearts is perfick for Valentines Day and the cotton lace will be good for a Vintage look I think.

The Spanish flag ribbon (red and yellow) and the postcards are for a little project I have in mind. My OH recently dug out some photos from his youth, including holidays in Spain with a load of his chums and I'd like to do some layouts which will be a start of a scrapbook for him I hope. Watch this space :)

Finally, we did find out how the boat came to be wrecked (I posted about it a few days ago). Apparently there was a tremendous storm which just picked it up from the harbour itself and dropped it against the harbour wall - so much for the shelter of a harbour. There is no money for it to be salvaged so there it remains for now:

We got home very late last night, affected by flight delays due to the thunderstoms and a lightning strike at Gatwick.  So, hopefully I'll have time to hop round some blogs over the next few days - remember that all the fun happens at Julia's!! Ooooer, Julia is on her hols and has left things in the capable hands of Lady Lunch Jan - so many gorgeous materials and things she's making might have you rushing for your sewing machines!!!

Di
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A lazy Meditteranean day - and a recipe

.............for a lazy Meditteranean Chicken Pilaff!

Edit: Photos are courtesy of Tams, who made this and kindly sent me photos before and after the oven cooking bit - just like sunshine on a plate!!:

Lazy Mediterranean Chicken Pilaff

6 chicken breasts - preferably skin on
5 tbsp lemon juice (ie. juice of 2 lemons)
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp dried mixed herbs or Herbes de Provence
salt and pepper
1 small onion, chopped
4 oz sliced mushrooms
1 red or yellow pepper, deseeded and chopped
2 oz sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
18 small black olives
9 oz basmati rice, rinsed and dried
1 and a half pints (Imperial = 30 fluid oz, or 845 ml) boiling chicken stock


In a large bowl combine lemon juice with garlic, dried herbs and pepper and salt to taste. Add the chicken breasts and toss well to coat. Cover the bowl with kitchen film and marinate for 2 hours at room temperature or up to 24 hours in the fridge. Toss the meat occasionally.


Preheat oven to 400F/200C/mark 6. Grease a shallow ovenproof dish and scatter the chopped onion over the bottom. Cover this with the sliced mushrooms, chopped pepper, tomatoes and olives, and then the rice.

Remove the chicken from the marinade (keep marinade!) and heat the oil in a large, preferably non-stick frying pan - working in batches if necessary - over a low-medium heat for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until the chicken is lightly browned.

Arrange the chicken pieces in a single layer, skin side up, over the rice. Pour over any remaining marinade and the stock. Place in oven uncovered and leave undisturbed for about one hour or until the chicken is cooked and all the stock has been absorbed. Serve with a green salad.

OK, so I brought a photocopy of the recipe (in case the Spanish sun addled my brain even more than it is already) BUT, if you Google it then there are some very similar versions on the web so I did a big 'copy and paste' then tweaked it :)

My observations, for what they're worth, are - the amount of rice base is really more suited to four people and for ease I just make the full amount of the marinade for us two.Ooops, and I also make the full amount of rice base just 'cos it's easier and someone here loves this dish! It truly is like sunshine on a plate as I said above the photos - even back home we love it although a sunny evening does make it a bit more special. Or a Sunday lunchtime in the garden with family and friends round.

I couldn't find chicken breasts here with the skin one - how odd is that - but skinless ones worked just fine and didn't dry out and I didn't need to cover them at all with foil, which was my concern. The crispy skins do add to the dish though....apologies to any veggies, and of course BIG apologies to Margot and Harriet, Sandra's gorgeous chickens!!!

A mixed leaves salad goes just great with this dish - and garlic bread if you want to be a bit piggy :) The flat, stone baked garlic bread is the best I think.
 
So, that's almost the end of a lovely, and very relaxing holiday. We fly home late tomorrow so might well have time to go early to watch the fishing boats unload their catch in the harbour area in the morning. But, the best laid plans and all that........so this is a last image from here:

Now, why is there a gap there betwen the two boats - waiting for that wreck to be parked perhaps?

Think of us tomorrow - we flew BA and breakfast coming out was a cheese straw and coffee basically! Guess who'll be having a jolly good lunch before we pack ready to leave tomorrow.

Di
x

Mad dogs and Englishmen..........

........stay out of the midday sun! Well, mid afternoon sun really. Yesterday was a scorcher so we scuttled back here for shade and cool drinks after a troll round the Sunday market in the Marina area. All questions about the 'beached boat' were met with shrugs and raised eyebrows so I'm none the wiser about that prospective 'venture'. Just as well since it seems that so many folk would be hanging over the sides wearing a shade of delicate green around the gills if we did have a crafting convention!

So, I played with my watercolours, did some reading and then just relaxed before cooking pork tenderloin steaks marinated in olive oil (not too much oil you understand, enough so it doesn't dry out) and smoked paprika. With salad and new potatoes it was yummy. I used to drag jars of Spanish smoked paprika back home each year until I found it either in Sainsburys in tins (on the 'posh ingredients' shelves) and then in Morrisons in their ordinary herbs and spices range.jars. Being loathe to buy umpteen jars of herbs over here I just pop a couple of spoonfuls of whatever I'm likely to use (Herbes de Provence, Smoked Paprika, Chilli flakes - for the boss - etc). into tiny little zipped polybags. I'm a sad little soul who loves trawling round local markets and such buying local ingredients and then playing at being 'Delia Smith' in the kitchen most evenings rather than eating out every night. That way, to me, it's the best of both worlds and I love the challenge of a different kitchen. Oh, and the barman is also very good :) A great favourite is 'Lazy Meditteranean Pilaff' and although I won't have a piccie of the finished dish 'cos we had that the other evening I'll try to post the recipe on here. I know, it's a craft blog really but this truly is one to share!

So, yesterday afternoon this was my craft area:

And before Sandra asks what the yellow cocktail in the little plastic pot is - it's water coloured with yellow paint! Must admit, it could have been egg nog by the time I'd finished! The images are a couple of Tildas (never been a favourite of mine due to the lack of mouths, but they do grow on you I must admit), LOTV Bunny on Swing and LOTV Boy with Cricket Bat...I just love the look of guilt on his face). My mostest favourite one though is the one I did a day or so ago - it's a Ching Chou Kuik design, made by Sweet Pea Stamps and to see some fabulous results do hop over to Sue's blog. The images all need tweaking with other mediums once I get home - and the favourite one (called Red Hearts) will be twinkled up for sure. I did more or less stick to the colours that the Red Heart image packet showed but there are so many possibilities here and they really are a delight to colour.  I NEED more of these!

That's it for now folks!

Di
x

Another sunny day in Andalucia - and a boat!

Whoop, whoop - ship ahoy, avast ye landlubbers - 'Master and Commander' calling from Sunny Spain.

Yesterday I posted that we'd bought a boat - yippee, brilliant...'a life on the ocean wave' etc. etc.! It's really massive and I'm already working out where my crafty room will be - there might even be room for two craft rooms!! Also room for loads of visitors - interested?

Although there a few little things to sort out first. Nothing too major though dontcha think? It was a real bargain too:

 

In fact, they almost paid us to take it away. Bernie, eat your heart out for such a bargain - this is bargain hunting beyond compare :)

OK, so I jest (tee, hee...it isn't for sale) and I'm amazed at just how this boat landed up right where it is! If you look closer, it's on the inside of the harbour wall - perched precariously as if it just dropped in for a quick siesta. They don't have Tsunamis here and this is beyond me - it wasn't here last time we stayed so perhaps some local intelligence from the Cat and Dog Shelter ladies today might throw some light on the situation. If I find out, I'll let you know  - and if we win the Lottery and do buy a cruiser here I'll also let you know and we could have crafting conventions in the sun.....but don't hold your breath, not even for a nano second!!!

Di

x.

A lazy day in Spain and cat watching

Today has been a relaxing day, so late out of bed I'm ashamed to admit it, but hey, it is holiday after all! After lunch - so I was at least up, about, had my fix of coffee and showered before lunchtime - we had a lovely (long) stroll around the man-made harbour of the Port/Marina here in Estepona.

The huge boulders that it's made up of are full of cosy, shady nooks and crannies - plus the fishermen land their catch nearby. So, we always know what that means - feline residents! In some ways it breaks my heart to see cats and kittens living like this, especially as the parents often look quite worn out and ragged, often with cataracts. It's what they know though and they are tough little cookies which would hate being confined in a home in the UK.  Trust me.....I've often thought about it!!!We saw one mother with three kittens, one of which was kneading away at her and feeding. Further on I made a new little friend, who could have comfortably sat in the palm of Len's hand. Even though I stayed a distance away and just zoomed in - he/she was very happy after some while to pose for my lovely blog readers. And sent this messages - 'Hey Senoras/Senoritas, what do you think of me then? What do you mean, I have big ears?! I will grow into them - up yours mate Hola from Espana. Miaow!!!'.

I guess this piccie should be especially for my cat loving friends - you know who you are girls, Moira, Helena and Pauline to name just some! Tomorrow morning there is a weekly craft market in the marina and a group of English ex-pat ladies collect money for animal welfare. It's all very genteel and sweetly done - and I have a whole pile of euros in my purse to give them as usual. Their priority is to treat ill animals, rehome those they can and also spay those who just wouldn't settle into domesticity.


So that's my slightly bitter-sweet posting for today from Andalucia. Tomorrow I'll show you the boat we just bought!!! It's so exciting - we go to have a good look at it this evening :))

Oooer, I almost forgot, I won the random draw prize in A Gem of a Challenge too. Crumbs, it's all happening!


Di
x

Just a couple of flowers.....

....that I spotted whilst we were wandering aound the marina yesterday trying to decide which cruiser to buy. At the same time the band was playing 'Believe It If You Like'..........well, we can dream can't we :)?

Hibiscus of course - and so vibrant. But, I only wear already picked flowers in my hair so these are still happily soaking up the sunshine in their rightful place.

I hope the sun is shining down on you too today!

Di
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