Angela outside the Town Hall.
A Guiri by the Thames.
Angela looking glamorous for the rowing hunks by the Thames.
Captain of the coxless fours!
Henley
A day out by the thames. A visit to the posh town of Henley, home of the Regatta. Would Angela manage to get me in any shops? Not a chance! Well, only one or two...
Angela outside the Town Hall.
A Guiri by the Thames.
Angela looking glamorous for the rowing hunks by the Thames.
Captain of the coxless fours!
Angela outside the Town Hall.
A Guiri by the Thames.
Angela looking glamorous for the rowing hunks by the Thames.
Captain of the coxless fours!
Hangover in Reading
A great way to start the big semi-final day in Reading. A massive hangover! It is safe to say that it isn't a good idea to mix cocktails, lager, wine and god knows what else. So a trip into Reading for some fresh air and painkillers before the big kick off.
Angela feeling the effects of last night or a premonition about the result later.
Reading town centre.
London Street Brassiere.
The walk along the river. A notorious place where the local gangsters and drug dealers hang out. Hardly downtown Baltimore. They are even too polite to throw the Waitrose shopping trolley into the river. Proper posh!
Scenic views along the river just before it meets with the Thames.
Angela feeling the effects of last night or a premonition about the result later.
Reading town centre.
London Street Brassiere.
The walk along the river. A notorious place where the local gangsters and drug dealers hang out. Hardly downtown Baltimore. They are even too polite to throw the Waitrose shopping trolley into the river. Proper posh!
Scenic views along the river just before it meets with the Thames.
London Street Brassiere
A trip to Reading to see Angela. My very own private nurse. But she doesn’t come cheap. For services rendered, a night out in Reading. London Street Brassiere.
I arrived in Reading around 6:30ish. The perfect time for a post work aperitif. Except, it turned out to be a few more. No time to go back to Ange’s to get changed. Straight to the restaurant for our meal. With suitcase.
The staff at London Street were great. Suitcase sir? No problem. You want a Caipirinha sir? We have no Cachaca but we will make you something special. Don’t like the starter’s sir? We will make you a special Spanish tapas just for you. If you ever find yourself in Reading and want to treat yourself to a nice meal, I would highly recommend this place. If you are taking Angela with you, make sure you are on good terms with your bank manager.
Later, Angela, me and my suitcase went in search of some dancing. Then we realised that was a bit too ambitious so we went to a cocktail bar by the river. A few more Caipirinha’s, some dodgy vino and it was time to go home.
Guiri’s guide to skiing in Sierra Nevada
Have you ever been tempted to go skiing whilst staying in Nerja? Me too. Except I have never been skiing before. So I have no idea what to expect. No idea what equipment I’ll need. No idea where exactly you go skiing. No idea of the cost. Basically, I’m clueless when it comes to all things skiing in the Sierra’s. Well not any more. Here’s my Guiri guide to skiing in Sierra Nevada.
Getting There
The resort of Pradollano is less than 2 hour’s drive from Nerja. Don’t bother looking for directions to this place. In fact, you probably won’t find it on the map. It is simply referred to as “Sierra Nevada”. The directions start as soon as you reach the outskirts of Granada on the A44 Motril to Granada motorway.
"Sierra Nevada" is well sign posted from the Autovia.
I drove up at the end of March in fantastic weather. The only snow you see is on the tops of the mountain. Not a drop on the road all the way to the resort. However there are several indicator poles by the side of the road that means that travelling earlier in the season you might be well advised to take your snow chains.
Arriving at the village you come to an entrance for the underground car park. The cost for just under 8 hours was 16 Euros. If you don’t mind walking to the centre you might get lucky and find free parking to the left as you approach the first roundabout.
Ski Equipment
The only things I brought with me for skiing were a pair of waterproof trousers, a pair of ski gloves, a fleece top and a pair of sun glasses. I over did the “wrapping up warm” bit by wearing a vest, long sleeved pullover and scarf and hat. It might be sensible to take these things but you will more than likely be stripping off very soon.
The staff in the ski shop take care of everything.
Before tackling the slopes you will need to hire your skis, boots and poles. There are dozens of shops in the resort where you can hire these from. The cost is around 24 Euros for the day. The staff will ask you your height (in metres), weight (in kilos) and shoe size (European). You will then try on one of the boots before the staff will fit it to the skis and make various adjustments to ensure that the centre of balance will be correct for you.
Ski Lessons
If you are a complete novice like me you will definitely want to take at least a 2-hour lesson. This doesn’t come cheap. For one person the hourly rate is around 36 Euros. However, if you go with another person you will pay around 44 Euros between you. You will also receive a 20% discount against your ski equipment hire when you hire it from the school.
Lessons from a professional ski instructor a must for first timers.
Ski Pass
This is another big expense you will need to pay for your skiing trip. The “Forfait” is a credit card pass that you need to present when you board the cable car that takes you up the mountain. The rates depend on the time of season. Typically, weekends are in the “High” period and costs 42.50 Euros for the day.
Queue for the cable car.
You buy the ski pass from one of the many automated machines in the centre of the square. You will pay an additional 3 Euros deposit for the card. Make sure you return the card at the same place for your refund.
Other things
You are pretty much a captive audience when you get there. The restaurants and bars take advantage of this. Nearly 2 Euros for a cup of coffee. Over 4 Euros for a slice of Pizza. The chances are you are going to get de-hydrated and need some kind of energy drink. At over 3 Euros for a small Aquarius, you’d better bring your own.
The two-hour lesson gave me the confidence I needed to comfortable navigate the two easy “green” runs. These are severed by the moving escalators in tubes rather than the traditional ski lifts with your feet dangling down and all the worry of getting on and off.
The slopes open from 9am to around 4-5pm, depending upon the weather conditions. From December to February it is possible to ski at night, if the conditions are ok. The pistes are colour coded to signify the degree of difficulty. Green and Blue for the easy slopes. Red for the more advanced and Black if you think you belong to the olympic team.
Mid Life Crisis – Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep
The big 40 is looming large in the not too distant future. Time marches on relentlessly. Even the clocks spring forward to bring the big day closer. So what to do? Why not take a trip back in time. I wonder what was number one on the day I was born?
I really wish I hadn’t. The biggest selling single on the day I came to be was “Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep” by Middle of the Road. Thanks to pissed up Brits partying on the costas and Tony Blackburn, this song was propelled to the top of the charts where it stayed for 5 weeks. It unbelievably went on to sell more than 10 million copies world-wide. Sangria is potent stuff for sure!
The only thing more depressing was the following number 1 hit in the UK was seriously cool. To just delay my arrival by 21 days would not only mean the big 40 would be a little further away, my number 1 would be T-Rex’s “Get in on!”. I would also be a lion rather than the crab. There are no downsides to this. My life would have been a whole lot better! Thanks Mum and Dad. You have ruined my life!
Maybe I could cheat my past. What if I was born in the good ol’ US of A? I’d be on to a winner. The Billboard number 1 in the US was The Rolling Stones with “Brown Sugar”. Suddenly being American becomes a no-brainer. Who cares that England can’t play football. 40 odd years of hurt? Hello! I wouldn’t give a toss about football. It would be Grid Iron. And America always finish as world champions. That would be like TOTALLY AWESOME!
But before I could even look into becoming a US Citizen my fantasy came crashing down. It was a mistake. A typo on the poxy web page I had pinned all my hopes on. “Brown Sugar” was not number 1 from May 29th to July 11th 1971. No, Mick’s tune could only make in to June 11th. My number 1 was “It’s too Late” by Carole King. As good a tune as it is, it’s not the Rolling Stones. Not cool. You can stick your American football up yer arse!
So what to do? Search the world for a country that had decent musical taste on the day that I was born? As the wise sage Omar from The Wire would say, “Indeed!”. I could be a pommie basher. Good at sports. Decent weather and I do enjoy a good Barbie. Number 1 Down Under was the promisingly named group “Daddy Cool” with “Eagle Rock”. Check out the video. I think I have a winner!
But what about my adopted country? What did the music loving Spaniards buy with their pesatas back in the day? “Que Sera” by Jose Feliciano and they loved it. It was number 1 for 8 weeks from the 29th May to the 24th July. I could revel in “La Roja’s” victorious Euro and World cup wins. An added bonus is I don’t have to bother looking up the number 1 tune in Italy as the song is Italian. Can I claim the Italian World Cup win too?
Which to choose? It’s a tough call. G’day mate!
I really wish I hadn’t. The biggest selling single on the day I came to be was “Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep” by Middle of the Road. Thanks to pissed up Brits partying on the costas and Tony Blackburn, this song was propelled to the top of the charts where it stayed for 5 weeks. It unbelievably went on to sell more than 10 million copies world-wide. Sangria is potent stuff for sure!
The only thing more depressing was the following number 1 hit in the UK was seriously cool. To just delay my arrival by 21 days would not only mean the big 40 would be a little further away, my number 1 would be T-Rex’s “Get in on!”. I would also be a lion rather than the crab. There are no downsides to this. My life would have been a whole lot better! Thanks Mum and Dad. You have ruined my life!
Maybe I could cheat my past. What if I was born in the good ol’ US of A? I’d be on to a winner. The Billboard number 1 in the US was The Rolling Stones with “Brown Sugar”. Suddenly being American becomes a no-brainer. Who cares that England can’t play football. 40 odd years of hurt? Hello! I wouldn’t give a toss about football. It would be Grid Iron. And America always finish as world champions. That would be like TOTALLY AWESOME!
But before I could even look into becoming a US Citizen my fantasy came crashing down. It was a mistake. A typo on the poxy web page I had pinned all my hopes on. “Brown Sugar” was not number 1 from May 29th to July 11th 1971. No, Mick’s tune could only make in to June 11th. My number 1 was “It’s too Late” by Carole King. As good a tune as it is, it’s not the Rolling Stones. Not cool. You can stick your American football up yer arse!
So what to do? Search the world for a country that had decent musical taste on the day that I was born? As the wise sage Omar from The Wire would say, “Indeed!”. I could be a pommie basher. Good at sports. Decent weather and I do enjoy a good Barbie. Number 1 Down Under was the promisingly named group “Daddy Cool” with “Eagle Rock”. Check out the video. I think I have a winner!
But what about my adopted country? What did the music loving Spaniards buy with their pesatas back in the day? “Que Sera” by Jose Feliciano and they loved it. It was number 1 for 8 weeks from the 29th May to the 24th July. I could revel in “La Roja’s” victorious Euro and World cup wins. An added bonus is I don’t have to bother looking up the number 1 tune in Italy as the song is Italian. Can I claim the Italian World Cup win too?
Which to choose? It’s a tough call. G’day mate!
What will this be?
Forget the rising cost of oil. It's that other precious rare commodity that everyone will be worrying about in Nerja this summer. The parking space. With two prime locations off Calle del Almirante Carranza being bricked off last year, there was further dismay when the small parking area off Calle de la Fabrica was blocked off for "Obras".
What will become of this place close to the rio? It certainly won't be for parking. Any guesses as to what it could be?
Circles in the sand?
Another plaza?
Another play area?
What will become of this place close to the rio? It certainly won't be for parking. Any guesses as to what it could be?
Circles in the sand?
Another plaza?
Another play area?
Farewell Chanquete
The finale to the Carnaval is the burial of the sardine. Or in this case, the exploding of the sardine. The inflatable fish is taken down to Calahonda beach and blown to smithereens.
Frontline seat?
We had found a perfect spot to watch the fireworks on the terrace of Papagayo. However, when the funeral procession arrived we were soon moved out of the area on health and safety grounds. I thought this was Spain? The worlds gone mad!
Not the best view in the world!
Further away from the action than I would like, we still had a great view of the firework display. Impressive as ever. The explosions of the fireworks made the ground shake violently.
The view of the sardine was not great. The pall bearers raised their hats for the final farewell. And then “Boom”. The end of the Carnaval 2011.
Frontline seat?
We had found a perfect spot to watch the fireworks on the terrace of Papagayo. However, when the funeral procession arrived we were soon moved out of the area on health and safety grounds. I thought this was Spain? The worlds gone mad!
Not the best view in the world!
Further away from the action than I would like, we still had a great view of the firework display. Impressive as ever. The explosions of the fireworks made the ground shake violently.
The view of the sardine was not great. The pall bearers raised their hats for the final farewell. And then “Boom”. The end of the Carnaval 2011.
Carnaval 2011 Entierro de Chanquete
The end of the Carnaval. The end of the festivities. Appropriate then that the revellers mourn its passing. This is done by the burial of the sardine.
The Sardine is prepared for the procession.
Like the main carnaval procession, there are prizes on offer. One of those up for grabs is for the best "doliente". The person grieving the most for the passing of the sardine! Hence, most of the people joining the walk are dressed in black and shedding many a tear.
You can't have a decent procession through the streets of Nerja without the band.
Colourful dolientes.
Chanquete 2011 RIP!
The Sardine is prepared for the procession.
Like the main carnaval procession, there are prizes on offer. One of those up for grabs is for the best "doliente". The person grieving the most for the passing of the sardine! Hence, most of the people joining the walk are dressed in black and shedding many a tear.
You can't have a decent procession through the streets of Nerja without the band.
Colourful dolientes.
Chanquete 2011 RIP!
Carnaval 2011 - Jukebox
Still in the party mood we went in search of some live music. Nothing doing in Rey Alfonso so we headed to Cochran’s to see what was going on.
The party was in full swing. A band we had not seen before were playing called “Jukebox”. They played a mixture of well known rock covers in both English and Spanish.
Jukebox playing at Cochran's.
Hot tottie on the dance floor!
It was great fun and the atmosphere is much improved thanks to the no-smoking law. It always helps when the band is good. I would definitely go and see "Jukebox" again.
The party was in full swing. A band we had not seen before were playing called “Jukebox”. They played a mixture of well known rock covers in both English and Spanish.
Jukebox playing at Cochran's.
Hot tottie on the dance floor!
It was great fun and the atmosphere is much improved thanks to the no-smoking law. It always helps when the band is good. I would definitely go and see "Jukebox" again.
