Phil January

Following a Christmas and New Year at home, it gave me a chance to take Georgina to Melton to see her Grandparents.  She actually spent Christmas and New year in Italy, visiting one of her step sisters.  It wasn’t long before she was off back to London but we were giving her our bed settee from the caravan for her apartment so I stripped it down and drove her to London.  Being in South London near the shard, the only way is right through the middle from the start of the M1.  It takes an hour to get to the end of the motorway and then another two hours to travel the 10 miles through London.
No sooner had she gone back and we started our year with a holiday; it doesn’t get better than that.  I found a cheepie to Lanzarote which was all inclusive.

It turned out to be not the best of holidays as the food soon became a little samey and the quality of the produce wasn’t always the highest quality.  They did have pork loin and fillet steak carved by a chef now and then so it wasn’t all bad.  We always managed to find enough to put weight on so it couldn’t have been as bad as Claire made out and we only ate out one lunch time.

 The worst and most frustrating thing for me was that we paid for wi-fi and it was worse than unless unless you were nocturnal.  I guess that they had enough bandwidth for a large family so when several hundred people went online at the same time you couldn’t even get your emails.

 Still, because I couldn’t put as many blog entries as I normally do it means that you have more now for my end of month entry that you haven't seen before.

 To be honest, because we were all inclusive we didn’t go out or do anything to talk about anyway.  We had the type of holiday that most people would think as normal.  This gave me a chance to restart on my book again and for Claire to test out her new Kindle paper white.

 As our wi-fi didn’t work, we ended up putting most the blogs on at The Waterfront so I thought I had better show you a picture of it.

 At the end of the week, we had our longest walk right to the south end of Costa Teguise which took about 2 hours and there wasn’t much to see when you got there.  At least it was good exercise and the weather was nice and it also gave me a chance to catch up on some of my podcasts.

While we were there, Claire’s Kindle ran out of charge and she hadn’t taken her charger so we spent quite some time scouring the hotel collections so she could nick some paperbacks.  I found a book in a shop by JD Robb.  It should have been called Deskarati.  Talking of the Robb’s, Dan flew out to Australia to join Kylie and Tom flew out to Korea to join Youngja.  Good luck guys!

The other big thing that happened this month was that Sue went into hospital for her heart operation.  Quite a worrying time for everyone concerned.  Following her previous operation to remove a tumor from her ovaries they discovered that this tumor had damaged her heart valves.  Apparently your ovaries normally produce a protein called serotonin and a normal level is around 20mg per ml.  As cancer cells grow out of control and so overproduce whatever they normally make in the effected cells, Sue’s were producing over 1000mg per ml and so this massive overdose had buggered her heart valves.  Not the left hand heart valves that normally need replacing but her right hand ones that rarely require changing. 

 This meant that rather than having a more routine operation she had to undergo a much more complicated difficult operation that took 7 hours to complete.  Therefore she had to go to Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth hospital for this operation.  This wasn’t such a bad thing as its a really nice hospital where Claire and I had roast Lamb for lunch  mmmmm yummy.  And all followed by home made apple crumble and custard.  I also hear that the surgeons are pretty good too.

Although Sue was very weak when she first came around from the operation, her recovery was remarkable.  She was out of intensive care in no time and was only in the normal wards for three more nights and they let her come home.  Well done Sue; lets all hope that Sue finally sees the end of her terrible trauma's that have been going on for years now and she can, at long last, start to rebuild her life.  This might be a lucky one for you Sue.  Lucky 2013.

 

Last weekend, I managed to get down to stop with Steve in Loughborough.  Its about a year already since I went last time.  I should have gone the previous week but the snow made it a bit risky.  I started by driving to Melton to do a few jobs for my Mum and Dad and then drove over to see Steve around 4pm but he was still out for a drink with Melv so I joined them there.  It was great to see Melv again anyway and it saved us going all that way in the evening and gave us more chance for a pub crawl around my old haunts around Loughborough.  We popped in to Lynroys to see some other old friends Roy and Linda.  We have done this before but Roy has never been there.  This time he was and he had had his knee replaced two weeks ago and therefore was taking it easy.  This was great because he could sit with us and have a drink.  We ended up staying there all night until the shut at midnight.  It was great as they had a Rod Stewart tribute guy on called “Rud Stewart”.  I thought he was better than Rod is these days; what a brilliant night. 

Boy, we suffered in the morning.  Steve has done a great job doing his house up and is almost finished now.  It hasn’t been a quick job but its been done well.  Somehow I didn't take many pictures at Roy’s or Steve’s which is a shame.  I did manage to get a picture of the bathroom where I seemed to spend so much of my time in the morning.  You would have thought that after all these years of Claire doing the blog that I would have got the hang of taking pictures every time something happened.
Anyway, next month we have nothing planned at all, but early March we have a cheap cruise which I will tell you about later.  Have a happy February!

Spring & Surgical Stockings

Once again, things have been quiet so not sure that I have much to say or share.  I met up with Jan for lunch last Friday which was really nice because I hadn’t seen her in over a month.  We went to The Plough at Simpson as we usually do, mainly because of its close proximity to the OU.  Food was good but just a shame that we had to wait over half an hour for it to arrive.

Brian brought Sue home from hospital that same day, and at teatime, I took over some homemade soup that Phil had made.  Sue looked great, I had thought that the journey may tire her out but she looked really good.   Her voice was hoarse from the many tubes and she was a little breathless but otherwise good.  I didn’t stay long because it was her first night back at home after a 10 day stay in hospital.

On Saturday, I was back round to Sue’s as Brian had plans for the day, something he’d arranged before he knew Sue was going to be discharged from hospital.  Sue has to have someone stay with her for the first 4 days so she had me for the day on Saturday.  This worked out quite well because Phil went to Melton to do some jobs for his mum and dad during the day and he was then going on to Loughborough to spend the night with Steve.

Sue said she had slept quite well and I really do marvel at how well she is doing so soon after having major heart surgery.  It is astonishing really and if she carries on the way she is doing, it won’t be long before she is back to normal.  Sue has to wear surgical stockings for 6 weeks and she had to ask me to put them on for her.  I have never done this before and needless to say that I wasn't very good at it.  Sue was laughing which made her chest hurt and my laughing at myself didn't help the stockings go on.  But I got there eventually.

I did some hovering and a bit of ironing. Lunch was a bowl of soup and a roll and the afternoon was quiet.  Matt popped round at teatime and I did feel sorry for him when he discovered he had a flat battery on his car and also that his tyre was flat.  He had to jump start his battery and pump up in his tyre in the cold and dark.  I stayed to have dinner with Brian and Sue and stayed much later than I should of.

I changed our bed and then went to the gym on Sunday morning for a not very satisfactory work out.   I knew Phil wouldn’t be back before lunch and sure enough it was midday when he walked the door.  He had promised to take me to lunch and I really wanted to go to the Ship Ashore for their Sunday lunch but I could see Phil was suffering with a hangover so we went to The Giffard instead.  We both had the roast beef and it was truly disgusting.  Yes I know it was cheap as chips, but to me, my plate was almost inedible.  Never again.  It would have been nice to perhaps have had a walk along the canal as it was such a nice day but all Phil wanted was his sofa.  And so it was back to the flat for a ‘duvet’ afternoon.

For some reason we didn’t wake up till after 9am yesterday morning which is most unusual.  We both had slept like logs so we must have needed it. I really wanted and needed to go to the gym but there was no time.  Phil organised the lunch and I went to Tesco for some supplies.   It’s not often these days that Phil cooks, so it is nice when he does but I was a little concerned that the pork wasn’t cooked enough; it tasted okay and I wasn’t ill afterwards so I guess it was fine.  

After lunch was cleared away, I went to Sue’s to spend the afternoon with her whilst Brian took his mum shopping.   Sue looked tired and I think yesterday was a down day.  It says in her post op literature that patients will have highs and lows so this is normal.   The trouble is that Sue is like me and is not one for sitting down and doing sod all.  I could tell yesterday that she was bored and I do worry that only a few days at home that her convalescent is going to feel like a long haul but I think as her wound heals up and she can get out and about, it will get better.  I hope so anyway.

Changing the subject, Phil has booked us a holiday in March but he says that I am not allowed to blog about it.  And so my lips are sealed for the moment, but needless to say, as with every Phil & Claire adventure, there is a story to tell.

I feel this entry and indeed my last one is a little flat but that just about sums up January.  It is my worst month.  February for me fares little better but in March, with spring to be sprung, my mood improves.  Roll on........................

A quiet week

Probably like most other folks, I am fed up with the snow and the ice and sludge.  On Tuesday morning I decided to scrape my car and head for the gym.  Our cul-de-sac was like an ice rink but the main roads were fine.  The gym wasn’t very busy which was fine by me.  I had a reasonable work out then went home for an early lunch. In the afternoon, Phil & I went to the cinema.

Phil gave me a choice of 2 films, Django Unchained or Jack Reacher.  I find Quentin Tarantino films way too violent for me so I choose the Jack Reacher film.  I didn’t think I would enjoy it but actually, I thought it was a really good film and so did Phil.  After we came out of the cinema, we decided to walk to the open market to buy some fruit.  Boy it was bitterly cold outside and we very glad when we finally got back into our warm cosy flat.

I was back in the gym again on Wednesday morning and had a really good workout.  Just had time to eat a little bowl of chilli and rice and when it was time for Phil to drive me to the station.  I caught the 13.13 to Birmingham to see Sue.  It was snowing slightly outside and my train was just a couple of minutes late.  When I got to Birmingham New Street, I checked the board and there were quite a few trains to London Euston cancelled which worried me.

Sue was moved out of ICU late on Tuesday afternoon and onto Ward 306 which is a post op cardiology ward.  I found Sue in room 7 propped up in bed in her pink pyjamas.  Sue was in a private room, with her own bathroom and a great view.  I meant to take a picture but I forgot.  Sue was looking fabulous and I was amazed just how well she is doing.   She told me that morning she’d managed to wash her hair and the physiotherapist had even got her doing 3 minutes on the exercise bike.  Wow!  The best thing was that she was free of her plugs, she only had one box left which actually she had taken out later that evening.  I stayed a couple of hours and then said my goodbyes.

I was a little worried that my train would be cancelled but I was lucky the 5.30 pm was running and on time.   The London train before and the one after was cancelled I think due to signal failure as opposed to bad weather.  Milton Keynes station was bedlam with traffic.  Phil very kindly picked me up and we’d only been home a few minutes when Chris turned up outside to pick Phil for his Wednesday outing, an Indian restaurant in Stony.

Yesterday morning I did ASDA and the gym and when I got back I loaded my car and took our rubbish and my neighbours to the tip.  Our rubbish was meant to be collected on Monday and I have no idea when they will come to collect.  I checked on the MK Council website but collection information was not very clear.  Yesterday afternoon was a chance to catch up with domestics, boring but unfortunately necessary.

This afternoon I was meant to be going down to Birmingham with Brian to see Sue but Sue called last night to say that she may be discharged today.  Good job I hadn’t got round to booking my train tickets or cancelling my appointments.  Of course, this is good news but there is a little bit of me that is worried that this is tad too early.  Sue is doing great and post op she makes a good recovery but this is major surgery that she’s just had and I worry that once home she will overdo it.  There is nothing to do in hospital apart from R&R but it’s a different story at home.  

   

Mixed Emotions

My body clock has been a little crazy since we landed.  On Friday morning, despite awakening at half two the following day, I was wide awake at half three.  Not good. Phil had wanted to catch up with recordings so it wasn’t as if I had gone to bed early, well 10 pm is late for me so I was surprised and p****d off being up so early.  There was no choice but to get up for fear of disturbing the DH.

So got up I did.  On the plus side I was able to write my blog and do 2 hours of holiday ironing.  I got to the gym before 8 am and had a reasonable workout. I was in the changing room when I overheard a lady member coming into the changing room saying that outside it was blowing a blizzard.  I have a real fear of driving in the snow so I didn’t hesitate. I got dressed and without even drying my hair, I drove straight home.  That lady was so right and I was glad I eavesdropped; my journey home was a nightmare but at least I got back home safely.  

As everyone will know, it snowed all day in Milton Keynes, so we had the perfect excuse to stay indoors in the warm and have a duvet day.  We had pie and mash for our lunch with lashings of gravy then spent the afternoon watching movies and occasionally glancing out of the windows to watch the falling snowflakes.

On Saturday, Phil had planned to drive to Melton to do some jobs for mum and dad then go on to Loughborough to have a boy’s night out with Steve but after looking outside and checking the weather forecast he decided against travelling.  The only driving he did was to drop me off at Milton Keynes station.  I was booked on the 9.13 am train to Birmingham to see Sue; I was slightly worried as there were quite a few cancellations and my train was coming up as delayed but in the end I was only delayed by 20 minutes. Brian had told me about the Virgin train website and I was able to get a return ticket for £13 which I considered a bargain especially as I had a pre-booked seat.

I got into Birmingham New Street at half ten and was at The Queen Elizabeth bang on the dot of 11 which was when visiting started.  Sue was in bed and looked asleep but in fact she wasn’t asleep.  Her nurse told me that she’d had a rough night.  Bless her; I have never seen a patient attached to so many drips, drains and various monitoring machines.  Sue was pleased to see me but I knew she was struggling to talk so I told just her to rest and I would do the talking if she wanted. 

Poor Sue was feeling very sick and the nurse pumped her with a strong anti-sickness drug which did help a little. It didn’t help that I had sprayed myself with a fairly strong perfume which made Sue feel even worse.  I placed my chair as far away as possible.  I didn’t expect Sue to be jumping around because after all, she’d just undergone a very serious major surgery but it upset me greatly to see her in pain.  I stayed a couple of hours then squeezed her hand and left for the station with a bit of a heavy heart I have to confess.

It was bedlam at Birmingham New Street with many cancellations due to bad weather.  Indeed my train was cancelled but there was another fast train 20 minutes later and I was able to get on that.  I had intended on getting the bus back to the flat but Phil insisted on coming to pick me up.  Even though we had plenty of ready meals in the fridge, Phil fancied something home-made so he’d made a pot of chilli and rice.  I had this for my supper and very tasty it was too.   I don’t why but the cold weather makes the pair of us yearn for comfort food.  All very nice, but not very good for my NY diet.

When I got up on Sunday morning I was pleased to see that it wasn’t snowing so I decided to hit the gym.  Before I could go anywhere, firstly I had to scrape my car. This wasn’t easy as the snow was frozen, it took me ages.   I was just about to drive off when the snow started.   By the time I ummed and arrghed whether to chance the roads, it was coming down quite heavily so I decided to abort. I did walk down to the shop to get the papers and some milk but that was as far as I ventured on Sunday.  Harriet came round for lunch; she’s much braver driving than her mum in bed weather.  I cooked a lovely roast chicken with Yorkshire puddings, broccoli, roast spuds, carrots and leeks in cheese sauce.  Yummy.  And that was about it for Sunday, the tabloids, a snooze on the sofas and some crap TV.

Today Phil scraped the land rover and drove me to Birmingham to visit Sue.  Phil doesn’t do hospitals at the best of times and especially ICU but he wanted to see Sue very much so today he had to overcome his phobia.   Thankfully Sue was sitting up in bed and gave us a bright smile when we got to her bedside.  I was so pleased as she looked so much better than when I last saw her.  I was amazed when she told me that she’d some breakfast; she’d sat in her chair for a while and even managed a short walk around the ward, with the help of her nurse of course.  Apart from a quick bite in the restaurant we talked for 3 hours but we could see that Sue was getting tired so at half two when she was helped back into bed we both gave her a kiss and said our goodbyes.  Phil drives like a Formula One driver even in bad weather so we were back home at the flat before 4 pm.

The snow is very pretty and I like it when I can be cooped up inside our cosy flat but tonight I hope the snow melts away.  I really do want to get back to normal and more importantly I NEED to get back to the gym.  Comfort food and sitting on my backside for days on end is doing nothing for my soul, both inside or out, not to mention my morale.  I am a creature of habit and this is a girl that needs her routine.

Home SWEET Home

The wind died down and the sun shone down on us for the last day of our holiday so we were very lucky.  Phil wanted to see the 5^th beach in Costa Teguise and we had a 2 hour walk to reach it.  We didn’t stop when we got there, Phil took a few photographs and then we turned around and walked back to our hotel for lunch stopping off at The Waterfront for a well-deserved pint of lager.  I had taken my little laptop in the back pack so it gave me a chance to use the free Wi-Fi in the bar to post a blog and check my emails.  The rest of our last afternoon was easy; Phil wrote some more on his book and I read my Kindle on the balcony.  When the sun went down, I packed our cases and because of our early start the following day, we had an early night.

Our transfer pick-up was at 4.30 am and unfortunately I was in the wide awake club at 2.30 am disturbing Phil not long after.  We and our bags were in reception by quarter past four, which was just as well because our bus was early.  The bus driver didn’t have many pick-ups so we were at Arrecife airport in half an hour.  The airport was quiet but we spotted our check-in queue straight away, not only was it the only queue but it was very long!  Actually, fair play to Ryanair, it didn’t take too long to check in our one bag and just time for security and a cup of coffee and soon we were queuing to get on our plane, which thankfully, was on time.   We hadn’t pre-booked seats or paid for priority check-in so we were lucky to get our 3 favourite seats at the back.  Our plane left at 7am and we landed at Luton at half eleven.

The sight of snow on the fields and the cold air as I stepped out of the aircraft nearly took my breath away.  And there was me complaining about the wind and clouds in Lanzarote.  Give me the Canaries any day!  We got through customs and security in record time and the Central Car Storage mini-bus was there almost straight away after we left the terminal and walked to our pick up point.  I was very grateful for this because I didn’t have a coat and Phil only had a light weight jacket.  I have to say I was very impressed with Central Car Storage and will definitely use them again.  They are only 5 minutes from the airport and when we got to their premises at Kimpton Road, our car was defrosted and already to drive off.

The flat was very cold when we got home but it didn’t take too long to heat up.  Phil went to the shops to get milk and bread and also some fish & chips for our lunch.  Yesterday afternoon was unpacking and lots of washing.  I made a quick trip to Tesco and last night we watched a weeks’ worth of recordings of Celebrity Big Brother.  I had a stack of ironing but couldn’t face that last night so it’s on the list of jobs to do today.

Before I took my seat on the plane, I picked up a text from Sue to say that she was going down to surgery so I was very anxious all day yesterday waiting to hear how the operation went.  Matt phoned at 5pm to say that Sue was out of surgery and in the critical care unit but he didn’t know anything else.  I had a text from him at 7pm to say that the operation had gone as planned and that his mum was stable.  This was really good news.  Phil and I had planned to go and see Sue in Birmingham today and stay overnight in a hotel, but last night we made the decision not to go.  Mainly because Matt and Brian are visiting today and the Critical Care Unit only allows 2 visitors per bed.  And actually Sue, to my knowledge, hasn’t got anyone visiting tomorrow so it makes sense if I go down tomorrow to see her.

The first thing I did when I got up this morning was jump on the scales.  I hadn’t thought I had eaten very much on holiday but I have put on another 3 pounds.  This means I now weigh 8 pounds more than I did before Christmas.  This is really bad news and demands drastic action.  I don’t mind carrying a couple of extra pounds now and then but an extra 8 is really worrying.  I knew the detox diet before going on an all-inclusive holiday wasn’t really going to happen but now no more excuses.  Okay that’s me finished, right now I’m off to the gym.

Sun, Snow & Sue

Phil is insistent that I post a blog today, which is fair enough I suppose seeing he has gone to great lengths to write the last 3 postings.  However, we have done so little that I really don’t have the faintest of what to write.  In fact I can’t remember the last time we have had such a lazy holiday.  I have to admit that without the English TV channels I would be completely bored.  But this holiday week away was always going to be a chill out one mainly for Phil’s benefit.  All the many hours of phone calls and letters regarding Daphne’s estate had begun to take their toll, not to mention the nasty lying letters that he has to read from the FA.  No, this week, Phil has been able to read and even write some more of his book.

After reading great reviews on Trip Advisor, I had high expectations about our hotel and when we first arrived at Los Zocos, I wasn’t disappointed.   But on closer inspection, and after staying here for nearly a week, it’s not everything it’s cracked up be on the internet.  First up, it is certainly not 4 star accommodations.  The apartment rooms are okay but tired on the inside and out.  The internet connection is totally crap and they should not be making a charge for it.  The television is unreliable; some days are good and others not so good.  On the up side, the beds are comfortable, there is plenty of water and the staff are friendly enough.  But I really don’t think nomads like me and Phil are all-inclusive kind of people.

My main disappointment here at Los Zocos is the food.   Phil says you can always find something to eat from the breakfast, lunchtime and evening buffets and I cannot deny this.  The problem is the hotel uses cheap ingredients and this is evident in all courses.  I have some chopped orange and yogurt and a fried egg and French bread in the morning.  I would normally opt for the scrambled egg but this is like cold rubber.  Phil has soup for lunch followed by a salad and sometimes he will be brave and try something from the hot plates but I tend to just have the salad.  I pick at the hot meals but mostly have found them inedible.  The evening buffet is much of the same.  I suppose my biggest gripe is the wine; it’s red but that’s about all I can say for it. But overall, for the price that we paid for this all in week, we cannot complain. You get what you pay for.

The weather, although certainly nowhere near as cold as home, has been a bit disappointing from the start.  There has been a wind from day one which needs a cardigan in the mornings and it does get very chilly in the evenings.  Monday it was not very nice, we went for a walk and had lunch out and then stayed indoors.  Yesterday was even colder, I wore my leggings and a long sleeved cardigan with my scarf and I was still cold even inside the apartment.  We went for a walk into town just to see what was what.  Today there is no wind and it looks like we might have sunshine for our last day which would be nice but right now it’s too early to tell.  Still I must not moan too much about the weather I hear from the news on the telly that temperatures are below freezing and there is snow in several parts of the country.

I have read lots of books this week but I nearly had a panic attack when my new Kindle ran of charge and I realised I had brought my charger.  What a plonker; I’d brought my mobile phone charger and my electric toothbrush charger and various adapters but no Kindle charger.  It wouldn’t have been the end of the world entirely because they do have a selection of paperbacks in the pool bar but it isn’t a great selection.  Luckily when I went down for a drink and Phil a pancake from the snack bar, Phil asked the lady behind the bar.  Shirley found a young girl with a Kindle HD Fire complete with charger and so I was able to charge up my Kindle.  This will be handy for the plane tomorrow.

We did think about hiring a car today and seeing some of the sights but in the end we couldn’t be arsed. There is enough to do when we get back home so we figured we may as well take it easy while we can. I haven’t really seen enough of Costa Teguise to form an opinion but I would say that I think I prefer Playa Blanca in the south.  I don’t know why, perhaps because I have been there twice before and it is familiar. 

Since coming away I have been anxious to hear if Sue had gone into hospital.  After realising that she wasn’t going in for surgery in the first week of January, Sue was told to phone the Queen Elizabeth daily to see if they had a bed.  Sue finally got told they had a bed and Brian took her in on Monday afternoon.  I felt much better speaking to her before she went in on Monday and again yesterday.  We had thought that her operation would take place today but she has to have a few more tests today and she will have her surgery tomorrow.   Just as we will be boarding a plane, Susie Sue will be going into theatre.  I know what I’d rather be doing but unfortunately for Sue, she doesn’t have a choice.  Good luck SS, we wish you a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing you very soon.

NB: most of these photographs are Phil's.  I think you can tell which ones!! 

Shark, what shark?

Nothing much to report other than a total lack of internet.  I paid for wi-fi in our room for the week but its so poor its impossible to even upload one photo.  In fact I have only been able to read my emails on the first day (Friday) and today (Monday).  I have been unable to even log in the rest of the time.  So here we are back at the Waterfront so I can at least upload a few photo’s.  These are from my camera as I managed to buy an SD to USB convertor.  Again, this was a trauma.  The one I originally bought didn’t work on my mac book air so I had to take it back the next day.  Again, this one didn’t work so the next day I took my laptop in my backpack and revisited the shop.  When I first got there, the Indian guy that knew what he was doing wasn’t there so the other guy asked me to come back later, which I did.  He swapped it for their top of the range device with an extra cost associated with it; typical.  So, most of these photo’s are from our first walk south along the coast; see if you think it is prettier than the north walk. 

We haven’t really done anything much so far, mainly because of this all inclusive rubbish.  Because you have already paid for everything you are reluctant to go out and spend money twice.  However, on the plus side, it is nice just to relax and take things really easy sometimes.  Until this morning we haven't been waking up until around 8am. 

Our hotel (Los Zocos) is only around 3 or 4 minutes walk from the Playa Cucharas beach, with a shopping centre between us and the sea.  This beach is at the northern end of Cost Taguise so I guess they all speak with a bit of an accent. 

I think its a lovely walk around the different bays.  First, you get Playa Jablillo having walked around the Punta de Tope peninsula.  Next is Playa Bastian then Playa Ancla which is a bit more spread out.  Im not sure if there are any more beaches heading south because so far we haven't walked any further.  If the wind drops we do intend to walk this way again later this week. 

Every time we have a long walk, Claire needs to go to the toilet at some point, usually quite early on.  This walk was no exception, and she normally choses the best hotel that she can find.  This hotel is called The Coronas Playa not far from Playa Bastian.  While Claire was reducing their star rating, I took a couple of photo’s. 

Very nice too; I wonder if they do all inclusive?

We got to what we thought was the last beach, Playa Ancia and turned around to walk back. 

Somehow it always seems further on the way there, and not so far on the way back.  Everything does look different sometimes when going in the opposite direction.  Maybe I could take some new pictures next time going the other way? 

I took a picture of the outside of our hotel; not sure which way Claire is walking? 

 I also took a picture of our apartment looking from the kitchen area, before we had chance to mess it up.

Claire is really pleased with her new Kindle (paper white) which she got for Christmas.  She can even read it without putting the light on (if she can find her glasses in the dark).  Trouble is, she forgot to bring her charger so it is about to expire later today.  Good job I found a book in my backpack.  It was a gift fro Tom and Youngja when they got married.  She also managed to get a magazine or two from our reception.  Don't worry about me, I always bring far more than I could ever read in the time available. 

 We wanted to hire some push bikes but the weather got too cold and windy.  We did however, manage to rent a couple of canoes for an hour.  Claire was very brave going at this time of year, with the risk of falling in that freezing cold water.

One final one of our pool.  This is the pool near our bar that we know so well.  I have spent so much time trying to get this internet working that I have given up now.  Unless we come to an internet cafe, I wont be doing any more blogs until my normal end of month one.  Down to Claire now.  There isn't much to talk about anyway; happy holidays!

Where is everybody?

We got off to a flying start, everything went like clockwork.  As soon as we dropped our car off at Central parking, the bus took us to the airport.  Nobody around at the airport so we didn't have to queue to check in.  We were the only people going through security; normally you have to queue up around the cattle grid taking your belt and shoes off as you go, but not this time.  As security had nothing to do they had a really good go at me for their amusement.  Everything was searched thoroughly.  When we got through to the food hall part, Claire was the only one at the bar.  Likewise as we walked to the check in gate, nobody around.  We were the first in the queue at gate 3; well, the only ones at gate 3 initially.  The plane was less than half full and left on time.  We got the trumpet call to let us know that we had arrived on time and picked our bag up as soon as we got to the carousel.  We got to the transfer bus and left within 5 minutes and arrived at our hotel within another 15 minutes.  No queue at the hotel and straight off to find our room.  It was still light and warm.

Why are there no people around?  I guess that we are late enough to miss the Christmas and New Year holiday makers and nobody gets paid until the end of the month.  Everybody has overspent over Christmas and has no money left.  That must be why we got such a good deal on our holiday.  We will remember that for next year.

The hotel is fine and its nice to have a kitchen, even though we are all in.  We have a lovely balcony and a pool either side of our block.  Its a shame but I forgot my SD to USB convertor again.  All the photos that I took so far are on it and I cant get them onto my computer for this blog.  The second day I started using my phone camera so you will have to make do with those for now.  I actually, bought a convertor today at a camera shop but it doesn't seem to work so I will have to take it back after lunch.  Our first morning we walked to the beach and turned right (south) walking along for about an hour until we reached almost the end.  We must have counted 4 beaches and the book tells us that there are 5 so the other one must be the other way.  The second morning (today) we hit the beach and turned left (north) and seemed to walk past at least two beaches until we got to the end.  I think that it was prettier the first day, but you will have to wait for the photos before you can make your mind up.

The food in the hotel is ok but wouldn't win any prizes.  Probably just as well because we would be more likely to overeat when its free.  The beer is draught San Miguel which is great but they put the wine in large jugs so you can help yourself and they put ice in it which waters it down.  They do al the spirits, like gin and tonic, Bacardi and coke etc but Claire likes her wine.  Its only about €2 a bottle so we get one in for the room now and then.  They have BBC and ITV so Claire can keep up with her soaps in the week which gives me time to catch up on some reading.

Claire tells me that it has started to snow back in the UK so we left just in time.  If we have any luck then we might be delayed getting home until it gets a bit warmer again.  Its nice and warm here, although you need more than a sheet at night time when it cools down.  Because there are no clouds the heat just escapes once the sun has gone down.  I have to go now, its time for pre-lunch drinks in the sun by the pool.  Have fun in the snow back home guys!

Sorry about the delay posting.  We paid for the wi-fi for the week and can hardly get emails.  We are in a cafe posting this called The Waterfront.