December 23rd - 31st 2006
Written by Geoff Forster
Another lovely day. I took the dogs out for a walk into the campo.
I listened to Newcastle United cruise passed Tottenham Hotspurs to take all 3 points.
A good start to the day.
Jane's been trying on most of her wardrobe for tonight's fiesta in Café Bar Guayacán.
Our Border Collie Jake.
We went to Bar Barroso to start off the night.
Then on to Bar Andrés Sánchez.
This photograph is for Andrés girlfriend Verónica, who lives in Peru.
Good news is that she will very shortly be coming to live in Benarrabá.
Everyone is looking forward to meeting her.
On to Pub Bar Dami.
Dami was on good form and getting into the spirit of the festive season.
Dami had his nativity scene set up.
Onwards and upwards to Guayacán where the party is about to start.
This is Juan Jesús and Ivan. They are 'Malacai'.
(A Reverend Malacai contacted us last week about our El Gastor visit. He liked the photo's.)
Hope he likes having a band sharing his name.
Yolanda has gone for the Brylcream look with a quiff.
Flora and Jane start off the dancing. Malacai are only doing a sound check ... it's going to be a good night!
The bar was beginning to fill.
Ivan and Juan Jesús.
Diego and Yolanda. Diego was helping out behind the bar.
Cristina and Diego.
Flora and Bernardo.
A shameless plug.
Me and Platero.
Eva and Platero.
Our neighbours Cristóbal and Carmen's son, Adrian.
Mercedes and Javier's daughter, Carmen.
Flora and her English daughter.
They learn to party young in Spain. No need for baby sitters. Everyone will have fun but there'll be no bad behaviour so children are welcome. Besides her dad is Juan Jesús half of 'Malacai'.
Yolanda, Jane, Adelia and her youngest son Antonio.
Adelia's eldest son Francisco.
These girls partied hard. They danced all night.
This girl partied hard as well! Here she is going up for a prize from one of the JB Nightology girls.
The JB Nightology girls.
Jane and I both won T-shirts. Jane won a London shirt and I won an Amsterdam shirt.
Malacai played all night.
I'm not sure what this thumb kissing pose is all about but ... Feliz Navidad.
We got home ... I'm not sure at what time but at least we got home ...
Yolanda said people came in all night. The music was still playing at eight in the morning.
Busy times ... lots of good food and drink so no different to the rest of the year!
Jane and I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
We're having a few computer free days, it does tend to take up lots of my time so a bit of a break is needed.
Our cat 'Mota de Oro' was last seen on Christmas Eve at 09:00h. She didn't come home all day and night. Lots of searching ...
This is Daisy. She's 14. We brought her with us from the UK.
Our female donkey Rosie. Enjoying the Christmas sunshine in the orange and lemon grove.
We went out on Christmas Eve. The bars close early for a big family meal.
They then reopen for a late night party.
We were home before midnight and wished each other Merry Christmas.
Christmas day and no sign of Mota de Oro.
I searched all morning. Including the road. I was dreading to find her up there.
We had a lovely Christmas lunch.
Later we went out. There was a great atmosphere in the village. People singing and partying.
We were in Guayacan until late. Then Flora invited us to her house for a bottle of wine and tapas.
We got home around 04:00h. I took the dogs out for a long walk around the village, keeping my eye out for 'Motty'. No sign of her. We're really worried now. It's not like her to be out this long.
Still no sign of Mota de Oro. We're up late, but we're soon out looking for her.
Jane and I go out up onto the road again, fearing the worst. I go down onto the small track where we walk the dogs. We meet back at the house. Jane decided to go around the back of the house. I've checked here about five times in the last two days. No sign of the cat.
I was looking for Jane coming up the street to see if she'd had any luck.
She called into our neighbours hay shed. Out pops the cat from on top of some straw bales.
Had she been asleep next door for three days and two nights?
Here she is safely home. The cat who spoilt Christmas. A good title for a kids book?
We went down to Guayacan to see Yolanda. To tell her the good news about the cat.
We've been asked if Rosie can be used in the Three Kings procession. A TV crew from Andalucia's Canal Sur are coming to the village tomorrow to film a special dress rehearsal. They'll air the programme on the 5th/6th January 2007.
We'll have to put a star on her stable door.
A beautiful sunny day.
Today's Rosie's big day. So she's being cleaned and brushed.
We waited until 16:00h. for someone to come and put on the girth and blanket.
We walked towards the plaza. Jane and Val went on ahead.
Bad news. Apparently it has been decided the blanket and equipment won't fit Rosie she's too small. Unfortunately no one told us about the change of donkey.
So back home with the rejected Rosie.
We did go to watch the Three Kings performance for the TV.
The Three Kings and pages. Usually this is performed at 22:00h so a rare chance to photograph them in daylight.
We think this lady is an actress, the dark haired lady is our friend Mercedes.
They seemed to be playing bystanders chatting about each scene.
A change in the usual Three Kings performance ... I guess the director wanted to put his mark on proceedings.
The final scene was the traditional nativity setting.
It was 19:00h light was failing, so some spotlights were brought in.
The programme is being broadcast on Canal Sur some time on the evening of 5th January 2007.
We went home and had a turkey curry!
Another beautiful day. We're being spoiled with sunshine and blue skies.
A quiet day in the village.
A 'Money Plant' which we have on the entrada steps to the apartment is flowering.
It's very beautiful. A good plant for Spain as you can leave it out all year. It needs less water in Summer than most plants.
A quiet night in. Jane and I watched a couple of films on DVD.
'How to get ahead in Advertising' starring Richard E Grant and Rachel Ward.
Followed by a Catherine Cookson soppy story set in Newcastle, 'The Fifteen Streets'.
Sean Bean was in both. A bit part in the first and a supporting actor in the second.
We're up early and off to Gibraltar.
We called into the bank in Benarrabá before we left.
There's a market in Benarrabá every Friday. Nothing too exciting. Even Jane doesn't bother looking. It's the same stalls every week.
Mount Porón rising above Benarrabá.
It looked as if Jimena de la Frontera was enveloped in rising mist fro a distance.
As we got close we could see palls of smoke coming from a number of fires in the campo.
At this time of year a lot of landowners are clearing their bits of campo.
You are supposed to get a licence to burn. It is strictly controlled in some areas, less so in others.
It was quite grey around Gibraltar. We parked passed the pay and display, nearer to the beach where parking is free.
A short walk to the Border and we caught the Number 10 bus to midway up Main Street.
We then walked slowly towards the botanical gardens (my reward for all the shopping I'm about to have to endure).
We called into a church to see the Nativity display. I think it was The Cathedral of St. Mary The Crowned.
This house has a good display of Pelagonium's trailing over it's balconies.
The bay of Algeciras is always busy with ships and boats.
A flower associated with Christmas, a Poinsettia. It's bracts redden as the hours of daylight shorten. Quite often seen in Spain reaching up to three metres in height.
An emblem of Gibraltar.
An unusual Hibiscus with a spiral petal arrangement.
Succulents do well in the area. Aloe Vera in particular. Very striking at this time of the year.
Quite a few varieties were in flower.
I watched a Sardinian Warbler and a number of Chiffchaffs feeding on the plants.
Disappointingly the camera focused on the plants and not the small fast moving birds.
The Christmas tree in Casemates Square.
We had Cod and chips and a cup of tea. When in Rome ...
At times the sun did get out and we enjoyed some high temperatures 27F on one display we saw.
We went to Morrisons' to do some present shopping for the Three Kings.
Again a poor selection. The shop was full of plastic fizzy drinks bottles on pallets wrapped in plastic, which were looking ugly and blocking the aisles. No tins of Quality Street etc which we'd wanted. For a second time this Christmas customer services blamed Spanish delivery as the problem.
I hope Tesco's open up next door to them ... they might have to buck up their ideas if they had some competition.
Back in Benarrabá we called into Guayacán for refreshments.
We went out again later ...
We drove to Gaucín to buy seed for the donkeys.
In the old Convent there's a almost bare tree. The round seeds and remaining leaves were rustling in the wind.
Sarah a friend from Cortes de la Frontera called us to arrange to meet her and friends Domingo, Jim and Christina.
Christina, Sarah and Jane.
Christina.
Sarah and Domingo.
We had tapas in Café Bar Guayacán. Later we called into Pub Bar Dami, Bar Andrés Sánchez and Bar Barroso before making it back to Guayacán to say goodbye.
Domingo pointing out the festive greeting.
We enjoyed a good afternoon and evening in Benarrabá with our friends.
Later we had a good time with more friends in Guayacán.
Another lovely day.
We're both feeling a little under the weather today.
We fed the donkeys. Walked the dogs.
We cooked a fish dish with hake, prawns and potato on a bed of rice.
A very quiet New Years Eve, spent watching some terrible TV, drinking tea in the house!
A very short blog. We peaked a day early.