Thursday 24th March 2011, RDM and they’re leaving in droves.

It's a hive of industry around here, all the Ericks are either leaving or preparing to leave.  Washing awnings, ground sheets and generally tidying everything away.  Quiet a few of the regulars leave all the awning and windbreaks etc. in storage at the site, don't know the cost but it can't be that expensive and it's in the camp sites owners interest that they keep coming back.

This morning Rudi, his wife Ulrika and his accordion (good news)  left amongst a convoy of Kuebelwagons, a Panther IV and 3 Leopard II's.  Unfortunately they were held up at reception on two points, the rear vehicle was 16 cm out of line with the lead Panther IV and the motorcycle outriders had not turned up yet.  I'll miss Rudi, he often passed our pitch whistling the theme tune from “The Dambuster's” and “633 Squadron”, which you just could not reconcile with standard German humour.
Weather forecast is for unrelenting sun, blue skies and light breezes for weeks on end until the real heat comes with the summer.

Been a bit of confusion from the Brits who are going on the Bilbao ferry this week.  In the old days you could park overnight on the P&O dock and because the Brittany ferry leaves at 10:30 am and you have to be there 2 hours before, it is as important if not more because of the earlier sailing time, that parking is available.  Someone on one of the RV forums said that you could not park whilst the official Brittany web page states that you can.  So I sent an e-mail to them and a guy called Simon replied that overnight parking was not available, is Simon says then it must be true?
Sent him copy from his on site and wait for his reply.

Lady called Susan replied and basically said Simon was a complete arsoles and needed further training and that you could park overnight.
Went to Lidl (may God bless and keep it) for a few things and then walked across to the Tat market to get some cheap oranges but it wasn’t there!  Apparently it misses the 4th Thursday of every month, didn't know that.

Washed a bit of the MS.
Tricia so tired she had to lie down and take a siesta just like the rest of the Spanish types so at least she may be able to stay up and watch more than 10 minutes of a DVD tonight.
Doms, me 3-1, chicken stir fry and TW x 2.

Friday 25th March 2011.

Up early and SSS.
OK, sitting there in trap #2 minding my our business trying to pick the winners at Newmarket from a week old Daily Mirror.  Pointless I know but you check them on the internet to see how you've done.  Trouble is last week I had a treble up at York and it really pissed me off, could have been a millionaire!

Anyway, sitting there, in comes two obviously large Ericks, you can tell because they always drag their feet.  They occupy traps #3 and #5, then the party begins.
Don't know how much pickled sauerkraut they each had last night but they must have had a shit load of gassy German larger.  First to sound off was #3, followed almost immediately by #5 and then it almost became a competition, hell's teeth!  My door nearly came off it's hinges and the rubber tip came off my pencil.  Think “Deliverance - Banjo Duel”, only I could not detect much of a tune.  Trap #5 finished with a final flurry and then the sound of a small midget submarine being launched, and not to be outdone # 3 followed with a final rasp and something that appeared to sound like someone pouring a mixture of vegetable soup and porridge from a great height onto a hot griddle.
Had to take a quick shower to get over it.

Yesterday I began getting the brown rain streaks off the MS and will finish it along with the Truckasarus today.  SWMBO is threatening a wash day so it's going to all work today, TGIF!
I'm sitting here, it's 7:30 am, listening to Adele 21 “Someone like you”, Columbian coffee in hand and the sun is just rising over the pine and palm trees into a vivid cerulean sky, a light breeze fluttering the Bundesflagge next door, everything is so quiet, no car sounds, no motorways, no planes overhead and the slight background sounds of the Mediterranean lapping against the nearby shore; and all you poor bastids out there have got to go to work.

Heinz, AKA the Orange dealer, is starting to pack up his stuff, when asked when he is leaving he said 3rd April, bloody hell! That's TEN days away and has to be a record.  Normally the Ericks and the Dutch go for a three to six day preparing to leave campaign but this is ridiculous, I must have misheard.

Werner and Erika next door are leaving tomorrow so that's our afternoon sun back again, roll on the BBQ!

Doms, Tuna steak and veggies, last of series 3 of TW then bed.

Saturday 26th March 2011.

9 am and no neighbours to our west so afternoon sun here we come!
As I type Tricia is “doing her exercises” to the tune of  Paul Simon's “Graceland” album, rolling around on the floor and then using “stretch” type skipping ropes to strengthen her “pecs?”
Plan is to cycle into Aguadulce to get a large bottle of soy sauce? Don't ask.  Unfortunately I went for my first real walk yesterday, about four miles, for about 2 months because of the toes problems and my legs feel like rubber bands.

I don't think SWMBO likes the Germans much you know, little things like “Has that arsole (a not nice German) left yet?” probably is a bit of a give-away.  Mind she actually cried when Rudi left, who called her “Miss Sunshine”, but I think they were tears of joy as we would not have to listen to his accordion anymore.  Because so many are getting ready to go soon, the area around the MS is a like a mass production line and anything stationary is washed assiduously, nailed down or not, I get tired just watching them.  I'm sure that if I “accidentally”  parked the Navara next to their pitch it would get washed because it's dirty again and they are all on auto pilot and could not help themselves.
Lunch was a nice salad, well it started that way as I had added my usual jalapeños and spiced pickled onions to the crab sticks and then I put on some chillied mayonnaise which turned out to be hot BBQ source, quite an unusual taste that was.

Wash day again!

I've just realised, if we stay here until May we will have been on the same site for 5 months!  Which was not our plan at the outset but good or not this (RDM) is probably the best place to over winter in Spain.  Our first trip to Benicassim was 9 weeks and we thought that was a lifetime, I guess being used to 2 week vacations like most people, anything substantially over that is unusual and now we think saying in a place any less than 6 weeks isn't enough to get the “feel” of the place.
Doms, me 3-1 and what was left of the liver and onions with fried potato, TW and bed.
BST begins so the clocks go forward an hour tonight.

Sunday 27th March 2011, RDM and it's now officially summer!

Got up at 9am (really) 8am, breakfast and SSS preparing for our first official boules match with some of the Brits on site, didn't do that well though, must practice a bit more.
SWMBO went for a solo bike ride as I couldn't be arsed and anyway it was blowing a hooley, when she got back her hair looked like it had been dragged through a hedge backwards and she found a beetle in it!

Then lie around in the sun and read, still a bit windy thoughbut.  Found another author to read, Duncan Falconer, ex SBS and writes a good story, downloaded all his books for the Kindle at about £4 each, can't be bad.

The we treated ourselves to fillet steak and all the trimmings, sweet as.  Cribbage, a thin win for SWMBO and then serious 4 of TW and bed.

Monday 28th March 2011.

Forecast is for the next two weeks to be sunny, warmish (20°C+) no rain, and no wind, so that's good.
Today I've got to take the front passenger's wheel off as it has a slow puncture (again?) to check it out.  Then a cycle ride to Aguadulce for a large bottle of soy sauce and I will then be making a batch of beefburgers with my plastic beefburger maker.
I'm supposed to go up to Dave's pitch because Otto, yes unusually a German, is putting up a wind break for him, we were thinking about it but it's a heavy item to carry around so probably not and at €5/meter not really cheap.

There's more and more action as the Ericks prepare to leave, I reckon by the week end there will be no one in our calle, still showers and toilet will be all ours!
Cribbage, she won by a gnat’s arse, CCC for me chicken for her and TW, bed.

Tuesday 29th March 2011, RDM.

Cycle ride to the “green” towers hotel and back along the river bed, about five miles and I think I'm on my way to starting to lose the weight I put on during the broken toes time, probably got 10 kilos to get rid of. 
Bit of a shop at Mercadona and then some sun and reading.

Popped round to see Dave and his new awning, glass of wine that he forced on me as it being mid week I'm supposed to be off the juice.  Then the women convinced SWMBO that the Spanish washing powder worked OK with cold water, she will try it tomorrow but is not confident.

Battling Ludo, where we use every colour and it's gets rather fraught to say the least, she started to stamp her feet and swear in German so I knew she was getting upset and when I finally won wouldn't speak to me except, “I'm not playing that sodding game again!” or words to that effect.
Short five mile cycle again and then the day was over?  Where does it go?  It's not that we get up late, even SWMBO gets up before 9am now.  Light evening also take some getting used to as when it got dark we knew it was time to eat, soon it will be evening BBQs, lovely!
Doms, her 3-2 after a magnificent come back by me but to no avail, she won on ignorance as usual.
The ends are blank and two and she's sitting there with two blank, I've got three doms left and taking an age trying to figure how to play off as she obviously has not got the two blank, so I play the blank six to be followed by six five and five four, she plays the two, I go ballistic!  She's just used up 3 minutes of my life valiantly trying to work out what to play and she can play both bloody ends!  “Oh, I didn't notice it was the last two”.  Toss-pot!

Dinner, pizza covered with extra hot CCC, her stir fry chicken, me not speaking.
TW and the bed, I read, badly, until 1am.

Wednesday 30th March 2011, RDM and cold wash day, should be interesting?

Well it worked and the whites are white so SWMBO, much that it goes against all tradition, will now use cold water washes, I still have to do the bloody filling and emptying thoughbut.
13 miles cycle to Roquetas town in search of a cheap gas bottle for our planned tenting trip to Granada in a couple of weeks time, called in at the information office and they actually could help and directed us to a ferreteria (blacksmith/hardware store) which sold camping gas.  A 1 kilo camping gas cylinder was priced at €75 inc. the regulator, bloody hell, forget that!
Then reading in the sun and in SWMBO's case falling asleep.

Hake and chips, doms, me 3-1, TW and then bed after reading a bit more of Duncan Falconer on the Kindle.

Thursday 31st March 2011, RDM and unfortunately with the heat comes the bloody mossies, damn!

Yes the little sods are starting to appear and we've got to switch the various anti mossie machines on at night aswell as a quick spray with the rather pleasant, for a change, mossie spray.
Today it's tat market day and the plan is to cycle there and buy one of the excellent roasted chickens along with a bag of Churros (like an elongated Yorkshire pudding that the locals dip in liquid chocolate, ugh!), take a salad and go for a picnic on the beach behind the coastal fort in Roquetas. 
There is definitely going to be a mass leaving of Germans come the week end, quite a few are leaving most days and it locks like all our local one in our calle will be gone soon.
The plan became an ex-plan when Dave and Elaine called to tell us that the market, for some inexplicable reason, was not extant, no roast chicken, no picnic, SWMBO was crestfallen and could hardly console herself.

So we cycled up to the roast chicken shop in El Parador, yes there is one, and ordered chicken for tomorrow at noon for another planned picnic.  Then went on to complete a 20 mile run via the outskirts of Vicar and the far side of Roquetas coming back via the beach.  Passed through what appeared to be a new town with an unfinished road, it was bumpy but fun I guess.   I was completely cream crackered at the end and had to lay in the sun, not even the strength to read, for the rest of the afternoon, non BAWD or not I'm having a beer tonight.  Thermometer is showing 25°C and no breeze, don't know if I can put up with this.

Truckasarus ready to load up

Cacti bloom in RDM

 

Aquadulce port

Coffee time

The 20 miler town with no name

20 miler coming back

20 miler natural park entrance

Thursday 10th March 2011, RDM and they are still here.

(Long blog due to flying home and internet problems)

Miserable weather so it's driving to various plazas and a trip to Almeria to see the castle and the cathedral.  Then SWMBO finally got into the very typical Spanish restaurant at the top of the town, that she had been asking to visit for the last two years, very nice and €10/head.  Evening we played cribbage, we won, a few bevies and then bed, us into our sleeping bags.
When SWMBO is in the company of other women and shops are at hand, she usually goes into “buying” mode.

Today she bought a blouse.

Alan went for a cycle ride on my recently SWMBO cleaned bike, brought it back full of mud but his only complaint was that he got some dirt on his shoes.

Friday 11th March 2011

Still not good weather so we went for a 80 miles drive to Cabo De Gata and to take in a few camp sites, which turned out too small.  Had a fantastic shellfish soup in a small fishing village called San Jose, they had a mixed paella. 

San Jose

Cabo De Gato

Info office, natural parque

Called in at an Information centre right in the middle of the “Park of Natural beauty”  and I must admit I was impressed.  There was the usual information about have the region was formed from a geological view and the  pictures etc. of the flora and fora of the area were impressive.  Alan took a particular interest in the stuff on Bonelli's Eagle, a raptor with a wingspan of 1.6 meters, and spent the rest of the drive looking to the sky to no avail. Weather not improving much.
Evening, couple of beers in the restaurant with Alan, games of cards after, carne con tomatoes, calamari and deep fried onion rings in batter.

Cabo De Gata NP

Today she bought a dress.

Saturday 12th March 2011.

San Jose for lunch

The Swans at lunch

Up early and drop them off at the airport for their 10:50 am flight, no problems.
Back to the MS and start the clean up, putting things back where they belonged, airing the sleeping bags and generally washing sheets etc.
So normal washing, filling and emptying.  No more shopping as we want to use up everything as we will be leaving the MS with no gas of electric.
Weather brightening up, what a surprise.  Played Doms, watched a film with Bruce Willis, no he was in it silly, then back in our bed again, comfy.
Today she bought a shirt.

Sunday 13th March 2011.

The shops were closed, Mrs Swan had gone, she bought nothing.
The cleaning of the car, bikes and MS didn't happen because it's now wall to wall blue sky and sun, 22°C and rising and we both just cannot be bothered.  I'm going to cycle to the Spinnaker pub to watch the 6 nations England v Scotland rugby match at 4pm, SWMBO's staying with the MS as she can't be arsed and anyway finds it boring watching rugby while I try to tell her the rules and what's actually happening.  Good grief!  Didn't Italy just go and beat the bloody French 22 – 21, barely bears thinking about if you're French.  If England win they only have the Irish to beat next week and the will have won “The Grand Slam”. 

At 3:30 pm I peddled off to the Spinnaker, alone because she decided to stay and shower and clean a bit,  England won 22 – 16 and a very good match it was too, couple of beers (€7!) and cycled back OK, the beach was quite busy.
Doms and I was beaten badly, pizza, a single episode of TW, then early to bed.
We will be hosting that match back in Forest Row, flying out on Tuesday.  Lift from Dave here at RDM and good old reliable Claudio is picking us up from Gatwick.  Can't wait to get my hair cut.
Monday 14th March 2011 and ready for the off.

Up early and by the cringe did it rain most of the night, not hard but constant and luckily by this morning it had stopped and was now sunny and drying out.  Thank God I didn't wash the car as I promised SWMBO as even more brown rain fell and all the Ericks have been up early to wash their cars for the 3rd day running.

There have been a lot of people leaving and the empty pitches continue to grow in area and judging by the Ericks around us we may on our own when we get back in a weeks time.
They take about 4-6 days in the process of leaving, cleaning awnings and green pitch coverings and the day before they leave they are parked in the calle so they just drive off the next morning,
We have decided to disconnect both gas and electric, why pay for something when you're not using it?  OK we are still paying for the pitch but at €8/night for a secure pitch is fine by me.

So we have to eat every in the fridge and freezer.  We started yesterday and that was OK because there was lots to chose from and we managed to have nice meals.  Today we have to get through, 1Kg Chilli con Carne, chunk of cheddar cheese, 2 pizzas, crab sticks, 2 large baguettes, a pan of vegetable soup, a cabbage, frozen peas, a cuddly toy, 4 pints of fresh milk, 2 ice cream chocolate lollies, 2 pints of ice cream, 4 carrots, 3 large potatoes, I pack of corned beef, 1 pack of ham, some large mushrooms, a whole salami and a part eaten jar of mayonnaise.  There's also an avocado and some red and green things in the bottom of the fridge that could be left over peppers.   I also have to squeeze 12 oranges.
We do not intend to purposefully leave anything, the diet is out of the window! 

Oh and there's a bottle of Fizz, 2 pints of red fighting wine and innumerable cans of Steinberg, at 5% and 6%, but that's a standard BAWD anyway so no problems there then.
Made up some corned beef sandwiches for the plane, hers with Branston pickle, mine with Branston and English mustard.

Tuesday March 15th 2011.

Got up, got ready and Dave and Elaine turned up at our door and exactly 8:30 am as promised.  30 minutes later and we were at Almeria airport, through customs and hustling and fighting everybody to get first in the queue.  Plane was very nearly full but we had a spare seat, well up until 3 minutes from doors closed and a guy hurries in sits down and sleeps for the whole journey, must have been having a last desperate fag because he stunk of cigarette smoke.

After about 30 minutes flying, “Where's my sandwich?” “Er...I don't know, I've got mine”.
I have explained before but just to reiterate.  When SWMBO travels, she eats.  Some switch gets pushed inside her and she must eat,  pies are her staple but anything in bread or a crust round it will suffice, if she doesn’t get fed,................. well it hasn't actually happened yet, because I'm still alive, but it would not be a good thing, a very, very bad thing, blood, guts and general mayhem would occur I can assure you.  So imagine the seen;  I'm sitting there (within her reach) and I've got a corned beef half baguette (with mustard) and she's got nothing, bugger all.  A small but very violent scuffle took place.  “I thought you didn't like mustard?”  Her reply?  “Mmmmmmph.”, but she was content, I sucked a mint.

Landed 30 minutes early and Claudio was there waiting in his cramped four seater Porsche, I asked if he could bring a better car next time.

Dropped us at our home in Forest Row and the first person we meet is our new lodger Ashleigh or “Ash” to his friends.  Tall, dark, slim and young and within seconds SWMBO had worn out her drool gland.  House was remarkably clean and tidy, mainly because everything had been either chucked in the garage or our bedroom.  Cleared the bedroom but there was no hope for the garage and it will have to wait for July when we get back for summer.

SWMBO started to get the house “Mum” clean and I fought with the mountain of mail.  Since I still have not got round to having my dividends paid directly into the bank, there were some very nice surprises which will top up our savings no end.
Heather and Adam turned up and so we all trooped off to the Khans Indian and had a curry, both “kids” earn more than me but guess who paid?
Bed no TW.

Wednesday 16th March 2011, Forest Row, UK.

Dropped Adam off at East Grinstead train station and his Yaris is sounding like a bag of hammers, the gearbox is definitely shot.  Took it round to our local garage and after a test drive, Paul the owner said, “Don't get in that again, mate!”  Reconditioned gearbox is about £450 fitted, but as the car has actually done 155,000 miles, don't think it will be worth it somehow.  Back in the day, a 1.3 litre engine managing over 100,000 miles was unheard of.

So when Adam got back we ended up having a mild argument about him getting our Porsche 924 and finding a blind and deaf person to buy the Yaris.  Apparently as it had a long MOT it could be worth £400 - £500 on Ebay.  Ash was listening and was bemused that Adam wanted to keep his POS instead of riding around in a Porsche?
Adam said he would think about it.
Dentist for SWMBO and haircut for me.

Thursday 17th March 2011.

SWMBO had a haircut and we both went shopping for the Ireland v England, expected English Grand Slam victory dinner with the usual suspects on Saturday.

Friday 18th March 2011.

SWMBO to “Sanctuary” with Heather.  This was a Christmas present to Heather and guess what?  SWMBO gets to go with her!  Heather also bought SWMBO tea and cake at The Ritz and guess who went with her?  I'm going to get Adam a Karting race next Christmas.

Fixed Dyson cleaner that had had it's power cord ripped out, don't ask.  I had to take the whole thing to pieces and it was fitted together using “Torx” headed screws, which is not either Philips or blade shaped screws.  Trouble was that they were set “deep” and my Torx screwdrivers could not reach them.  So I thought I'd ring Alan Swan, Director of Air Engineering and ex-engineer (not) himself.
“Hi, Al, didn't really want you, I wanted to speak with and engineer”.  “Ha Ha, OK what do you want?”  Went on to explain the situation, “Must be a clever bit of a vacuum cleaner that if you need a torque screwdriver!”  “It's not a torque screwdriver Al, it's a Torx screwdriver”, and I explained the difference.  “Never heard of them!”   As I said, engineer!  Hah!  So he went and got somebody who knew about these things but it turned out they couldn't help and eventually sorted it by using a combination of Allen keys and mole grips.  It now works, saving £200 and I now know everything about Dyson vacuums!

Stayed in sober in the evening waiting to pick up SWMBO and Heather brought her home instead, I'd lost 3 hours precious supping time!

Saturday 19th March 2011, Six Nations Rugby.

Spent the day preparing food, Irish beef and New Zealand lamb that had been looked after by an Irish Shepard (as Tricia made out anyway), and making sure there was enough booze for the celebrations to come.
BUT.
We lost badly to a much better Irish team which put a dampener on the whole evening.  Went round the pub with the guys and we all just stood there, beers in hand, saying nothing and just staring into space.  Meal was good though and everybody left fairly early.

Sunday 20th March 2011.

Sunday Times and coffee in the conservatory, marvellous!
Then family Sunday roast with Heather and Olly.
Down the pub to play pool with Adam, couple of beers then bed.

Monday 21st March 2011.

Made an attempt to clean some of the garage by taking all the bottles and cans and general crap that has built up since Christmas, to the local tip, but I still could not see the garage floor.
Evening, down pub to play pool with Adam again and he, for the first time actually won.  Mind his MO is just to hit the balls as hard as possible and working on the fact that there are six pockets, they might eventually go in!

Tuesday 22nd March 2011, 4am alarm to fly back to RDM and home!

Adam gave us a lift in the Yaris to Gatwick, which incidentally Olly is going to take off our hands for £400, so Adam has reconciled to drive the Porsche.
Left England in warm balmy sunshine and it's overcast and bleeding freezing here!
Mercadona for a “big” shop as the fridge, being left off, was completely empty. 
Game of Doms, I lost, fish and vegetables, G&N for memswabe, B&W for me as it was an artificial BAWD, everything back to normal regime tomorrow.  She fell asleep half way through Avatar, early to bed for both of us.

Wednesday 23rd 2011, back in sunny Roquetas, no hold that, make it windy and pissing down with rain, instead.   What's that all about then, bloody warmer and generally nicer in the UK and it's March for heavens sake!

Managed a short walk to get the things we had forgotten on Tuesday and SWMBO went for a cycle ride in the afternoon while I stayed and did “important” things on the PC.
More rain and wind.

She managed to fall asleep again half way through “The Bourne Identity”, with Matt Damon, no silly he was in it.  Mind I had beaten her rather badly at Doms 3 S, and a large meal of liver and onions did not help either.

Thursday 24th March 2011 and guess what?  Yep, raining all night and hanging on in there this morning, so our cycle ride to the “Tat” market may wait until next Thursday. Ho hum.

Day out in Almeria

Finally, lunch in Almeria

Almeria meets the Swans

They shop!

Internet has been up and down since we got back and as, when you add pictures, a post can take a fair time and non consistent internet is a no go, so until OK will not post.  God knows when this will see the light of day.

Monday 28th February 2011, forecast says rain, but no rain?

The last day of February!  Swans over here soon, and then we fly back, then 3 more weeks and we move on up to Benicassim and we will be back in the UK in no time, where does it all go?
Mike dropped round with some books and newspapers but really for a cup of coffee and to get away from Irene for a bit, he stayed two hours. Hey ho, what else are we doing then?
Today I got duped into a 12 miler, supposed to be a short hop to the supermarket but oh no, “Let's just go here, let's just go there”, etc.  First Aguadulce and then Roquetas and the supermarkets were all shut because the Spanish had slipped in “Andalusia” day, where did that come from?  The place is teaming with Spanish and their BBQs and their kids and their kites, why can't they just push off and leave us Brits, sorry Germans, alone?

Standing there getting the bikes ready and Rudi comes over, points to my bike computer and produces his bike computer and then explains in fluent technical German why it's not working.  As I couldn't help I made gestures that he might as well just shove it up his arse, then, he pops back into his caravan and comes out with a tube of preparation H, how did he know?

One of the German motorhomes left this morning and Henk (Dutch), who leaves in a weeks time has started cleaning and packing, do a thorough job these people you know.

As we are going back soon and I'm still worried about getting the bus to the airport I thought I would sound out some of the Brits on the site as to giving us a lift.
“Hi Bob, how's it going?”  Usual replies and I manage to ask him if they, a group of about 6 Brits in nearby pitches, ever fly home and how do they get to Almeria.  “Oh yes, give each other lifts to the airport”.  “Yes, taxis are expensive and me and Tricia are flying on the 15th”...........Long pregnant pause.  “You know you can get the bus?”  Thanks for nothing, mate.

Doms, I won, dinner and one episode of TW and then she's so knackered she goes to bed at 10 o'clock, stayed up and read, end of day.

Tuesday 1st March 2011

Up relatively early and because it's due to rain here, off to visit some camp sites down Malaga way to maybe use next winter instead of being here for so long.  240 mile round trip and found one about 30 miles from Malaga that we can get on and looks OK, €270/month.  Stopped for lunch on the way back and made the mistake of both ordering mushroom soup, you see, Spanish soup no matter what flavour they claim it to be, is just salted water with lots of MSG in it, so was this, €10 for two soups, bread and coffee. Mind we had a view of the Mediterranean and Tricia fancied the waiters.
Back in time to insure the rig and go shopping at Mercadona, fun filled day.
Diesel is now €1.27/litre and rising, still cheaper than the UK but up from 83 cents 2 years ago is getting a bit silly.

Exciting game of Doms, me 3-2, one TW and a great stir fry but I put probably too much chilli source on my bit, see below.

Wednesday 2nd March 2011, brrrrrrrghhhh, bloody cold this morning, down to 6°C.
Unfortunately due to last night's chilli, the cold did not really bother me until I was actually in trap #2 and blowing on my hands to keep warm, what the Ericks thought I didn't really care. 
Now we have these great big green refuse bins out side the toilet/shower block and every morning on my way to SSS I take the MS's full rubbish bin, now in a plastic bag, with me.  Unfortunately this morning, in my haste, I threw my washing bag in there instead and ran into the shower block.  My next thought was how was I to clean my teeth with the skin of an avocado and would two used teabags and the remnants of a tin of baked beans pass muster as shower gel?  Retrieving my shower bag would have been easy had the refuse bin been full, it wasn't, therefore climbing into the bin in my flip flops and my extra loose shower shorts proved something of an eye opener for some of the female Ericks returning from their ablutions.

So when I got back, due to the cold, the gas fired heating went back on, been off for two weeks, gets into March and it's on again.  SWMBO wouldn't get out of bed until 10 o'clock until it “warmed up a bit”.

Cycled down to the “Guerilla”, which is a 25 foot plastic kids slide at the end of the beach and basically marks the tourist bit of Roquetas, coffee and then back, 12 miles.  Bit of sun and read and then when the few clouds come over at about 4:30'ish, drove up to the Decathalon” sports shop and bought two sleeping bags.  Reason?  Swans are coming and with the temperatures in single figures at night both of us will need more than just a sheet, sleeping on the MS sofa bed etc. as the Swans will have our nice 14 tog double bed.  €25 each and after SWMBO tried one when we got back, she wouldn't get out of it again.
A fry up including liver, egg and tomatoes, lovely.

Dominoes, a lesson learned.  SWMBO has been getting pretty good of late but last night I realised that it must be just down to luck and she really isn't taking full account of what doms are being played.  2 all and in the 3rd and final game it's “4” on one end and the penultimate “1” on the other, so she plays the last “1” and of course any right thinking person on the planet will be thinking, “OK she obviously has no 4's as she taken the last 1 off”.  I've got double 4 and can see the game is mine for the taking, she plays 4/6!!!!!  We are both knocking and she wins on the count!!!  There then ensues a “small” argument where I'm shouting and swearing about the last “1” and she is saying “I didn't know it was the last 1?”  How can I ever play again against logic like that, I give up, I really do.
I had to go for a long walk and a fag to calm down.
Two episodes of TW and then she goes to bed and I read, don't think I will be able to sleep tonight.
Thursday 3rd March 2011, and it's getting colder.

Gas furnace was on for two hours this morning before she would even peek out of the duvet and it was only the sound of breakfast being prepared that actually got her moving at all!
Cycle to Roquetas and back via the beach, clouds rolling in and the wind is picking up. 
Met Dave and Elaine, just arrived last week and were here last year, on the way back and subtle as I am, I asked if he had a caravan or a motorhome, “A caravan” was the reply and shortly after we have our lift to the airport, result!  Invited them round for coffee later on today to cement the arrangement.  So of course when we get back she goes into cleaning mode, hoovering mode and shouting at me mode, because we are going to have guests.   Coffee with Dave and Elaine and what a nice couple they are, no telly like us and have a similar lifestyle.

Booked ferry from Bilbao to Portsmouth for 21st June, £470 with a outside cabin, leaving at 10:30 am so we have to camp at the port the night before.
Heinz, next door, and a few friends are having a party of some sorts and as it's 1 o'clock, the wine is starting to flow.  Guess what the main ingredients of the lunch are?  Yep, sauerkraut, bockwurst and a boat load of mustard.  I hope it's a going away party.
No doms I wouldn't play.  Roasted chicken and two episodes of TW then bed.

Friday 4th March 2011.

Washing day, say no more.  Shopping at Mercadona later.
Gas ran out this morning, so another stint of just over a month/bottle and probably needed a new one before Mrs Swan, who doesn't do “cold”, gets here, so the heating will probably be permanently on.
If I wear slippers for too long they begin to smell a bit, don't know if it's just me, but there it is.  So every few weeks or so I wash them.  Of to SSS this morning and thought, what about just wearing them in the shower, kill two birds with one stone (what does that mean?).  So did just that and as SWMBO is washing and there's no room to peg them on the line I stand them on the foldable metal boot cover of the pickup to dry.  Finishes off the filling and emptying of the tanks, fixing the now leaking flat hose that some stupid German bint ran over on her bike while I was filling up, and having a nice cup of coffee after that.

Off to Mercadona to get the shopping, it's about a mile and a half of semi rough terrain and we get there and as Tricia is going to get the trolley I look at the back of the Truckasarus and there's a pair, sitting together mind, of still wet black slippers.  How they stayed on I'll never know.
Back in the MS and it's cloudy and miserable out there, NPDJY (not pissing down just yet) but close.  So it's ironing for her and writing this and reading for me.

Hell's teeth!  God it's gone over all black!  Bit of T&L and now it's raining.  Funny thing is it's 18°C  inside the MS but it feels so cold, because it looks so miserable outside, that we've put the gas heating on again and started on the the Fizz (it's only 6pm).

Because we are getting up early on Sunday to go to the the Farmers Market near the airport in Almeria, SWMBO has declared tomorrow (Saturday) be re-named Sunday because there is no way she is going to miss her chucky eggs at the week end.  Does that mean I'll know the score between Sunderland v Arsenal before it happens?

Going to be a long night tonight as she will want to play dominoes and I can't bring myself round to it because of how the last one ended, I mean how can I actually demean myself by playing what turns out to be a complete idiot?  Taking off the last dom when you can play the other side, how can I try to predict what a complete tosser like that will do, that's what the game is about man.  I mean Doms isn't exactly life and death, it's more important than that, isn't it?   It formed the very core of our evenings entertainment (SWMBO has sworn not to involve herself in any other evening activities until I have installed two more forward stabilisers and have had a overhead mirror, in the shape of Raphael Nadal, fitted above the bed?).

So back to cribbage or ludo, extra episodes of TW or will she subject herself to a short, distance based, Open University course on the finer points of Domino tactics and strategy.  If she obtains a good pass or a credit I may start her with a single hand of fives and threes. Otherwise I can see a separation coming up, of course she'll get the house and the MS, I'll get the Truckasarus and the tent.  What she'll do for breakfast on Sunday (or Saturday mornings) I can only guess at.

WRT that Nadal fella, I don't know what she sees in him I really don't, I offered to wear tight underpants that can ride up into a permanent wedgie but she says that's not it at all.  Maybe it's because I'm not left handed?  I would give my right arm to be ambidextrous. 
Chicken and veggies followed by the final two episodes of series two of TW.  No Doms, I'm still in withdrawal.

Saturday (AKA Sunday) 5th March 2011.

Eggs and soldiers when she finally arose at 10:30am after explicit instructions the night before for me to “get her up” at 9am.  I had more chance of moving the Titanic by hand than achieving that and the simile is not far off.  Probably due to the large portion of Fizz she had the night before.   Then of course just to get at me again, it's bloody washing, again! 

I don't know what the Ericks actually think when they see me endlessly emptying the 45 litre waste hog, trailing up and down time and time again, have we struck an artesian well under the MS?  Constantly filling the fresh water tank because of the repeated rinsing of the washing that she does. 
Mind, when I think about it, it's a good thing because my Mother didn't think rinsing clothes was that important. In my teens I can remember suffering from a perpetual case of “Dobies itch” and was always wearing my jeans out around the crotch area.  Didn't know what caused it, or that such a thing even existed (it does, look it up) and so I was always embarrassingly scratching my cojones, you can even see me doing it on our wedding video.  After living (if you can call it that) with SWMBO for a while, it just disappeared and it was not until years later I discovered what it was.
Bit windy today so I don't think there is going to be any cycle rides, stay at the site and read I guess.
It's 4pm, not nice outside and she drops the bombshell.

“Any chance you can drop me at the Grand Plaza so I can have a look in the shops for a few hours, on my own like?”.
She might as well have said, “Give me all your money and a lighter”, for all the difference it will make. 
“I'm not going to buy anything, just have a look round the shops”.  She knows I don't do “looking for nothing in particular”, kind of shopping. 
“So why are you opening and clearing out my wallet?”  “Well, you never know.”  Famous last words, I never will.

I man shop.  Need a jacket, go to jacket shop, buy jacket, come home and that's it.  No need to look in a tie shop because I came for a jacket, easy.

I must admit though, in our other life she used to spend hours wondering round the shops in Tunbridge Wells and not come back with anything, I have learnt since that this type of female behaviour is standard and in army terms she is just carrying out a “recky” for a future date.
And I always get the run around like all us men do.  “Is that new?”  “No,!  I've had it ages”.  Yes she has, she just hasn't got round to wearing it yet, it was new when she bought it a month ago.
So I drops her off, comes back and prepares the dinner of chilli con carne and rice, well chips for me, types a bit of the blog and checks the football scores.  We drew at Arsenal, what a great result!
Newcastle got beat at home to Everton, oh dear how sad.

Went back to pick her up and she's carrying bags!  Now remember she took all my cash, well all the folding, important stuff anyway, and the first thing she said when she got in the car was, “I had to use your credit card as well”.  I very nearly drove into one of the underground car park stanchions on the way out, can't remember driving back, I was still in shock.  We get in the MS and she starts taking her clothes off and I'm thinking, either this is pay back time or she has got something REALLY expensive.  No, it's just to start trying on the clothes she has bought, damn!

Apparently she needed a re-up on some Lancome “Hydra Zen” moisturiser, comes in a little jar and costs, get this, €1,000/litre, no, no that is not a typo, a €1,000/litre.  OK she only buys 50 ml but I can get Plutonium cheaper than that if I ask around.  My God, it's even more expensive than petrol.  An anagram of Lancome is CLEAN MO, which of course stands for CLEAN ME OUT!

So my part of my “wardrobe” is going to get compressed even further, so what's new there then John?
Doms, I won 3-0 but her heart was not in it, chilli etc., two mediocre episodes of TW then bed, slept well, wine and beer helped.

Sunday (the real Sunday) 6th March 2011.

Up early and off to the farmers market which I'm afraid was just like any other market, full of tat clothing and actually not much in the way of fruit and vegetables?  Bought some oranges, mushrooms and strawberries, which were all a bit cheaper than the supermarket but if you add on a gallon of diesel to get there, hardly seems worth it?

On the way back SWMBO insisted we stop at a dreary café for a coffee, it was so crappy she didn't even take a picture, which is a first, coffee was OK though.
Then back to get the bedding into the on site industrial size washing machine at a cost of €4 a go, so the Swans have fresh clean bedding.  She proceeds to put the liquid detergent into the correct receptacle and also in the bit for the conditioner, result foaming final spin, the Swans will go home with an undiagnosed case of Dobies itch.

Also a good result on the internet front, managed to persuade “Scary Spice”, that's SWMBO's name for the guy on reception, to extend the internet at the same rate until we leave, only saves €12 but what the hell, and he did!
She's really getting into, visitors are coming, cleaning mode, fridge has just got a good seeing to and  in the middle of doing it has found that we have a self de-frosting fridge.  We often used to notice water in the fridge and wondered where it came from, she has found the overflow container at the top, which was full and blocked, so one less thing.  Then it's going to be the cooker, the cupboards, microwave, carpet, bookcase, chairs and table and anything else that she can get a cleaning cloth to.  She even starting cleaning my trainers and I'm still in them, still, only another two days of this and then she'll start all over again just before we fly to the UK as a “leaving clean”.

I remember once, many years ago when the kids were all grown up, sorry silly me, that's actually never going to happen.  Anyway, she was now at a loose end, hadn't worked for 16 years and was wanting to go back to some kind of work.  She used to be the PA to the MD at Rolls Royce (aero engines) in the north east, earning twice as much as me, so quite an important job. 
So we are walking along in Royal Ashdown Forest and she tells me she's managed to get a job.  “That's good Pet, what is it?”  “Cleaning other people's houses”.  Now I'm not a snob but this was a little too much even for me and I basically went ballistic (think Boycie in Fools and Horses) and told her there was no way she was cleaning houses, especially with a Porsche and a Mercedes in the bloody drive.

The rain is coming

Basically she had lost her confidence and wanted to do something she enjoyed.  Considering the last time she had typed was on a manual Olympic typewriter (did you know that “typewriter” uses only the top row on a keyboard) and she had missed electric ones and now they were using PC's, so you can understand her uncertainty. 

So she went to a temp agency and four weeks later had mastered Word Perfect and was writing pivot tables in a 20/20 spreadsheet. She ended up as a project manager with Capita.
She still likes to clean thoughbut. 
Doms, me 3-2, Stir fry with prawns, TW the bed.

Monday 7th March 2011

Lots to do today for the arrival of the Swans tomorrow.
Clean everything again, clean the car and the MS.  Shop and get new coffee mugs as SWMBO managed to break two while cleaning yesterday.  We were going to buy a wind break but as the weather for their stay is going to be cool and wet, I reckon we wont be outside much.  Last year they came early April and it was nice and warm.

So basically just stayed around the MS sorting stuff out moving clothes out of cupboards for the and stowing lots of stuff in the hold.  Bought a table cover and clips (useless), a spare 10 M hose and connectors because with all these nuggets cycling over my water hose it's only a matter of time before it's US, leaking in 4 places at the moment.

Washed and leathered the Truckasarus, inside and out, they'll not notice you know.
Doms, her, Pizza, 2TW and early doors to bed.

Tuesday 8th March 2001

Final clean round and dust up and off at 9:45 am, their plane is on time.
Arrived OK and back to the MS and the usual prawns and garlic butter.
Pat decided that we should have some money for their stay and gave it to SWMBO.  Meanwhile Alan's telling me about it and I say to him that if he buys the beer and wine, we'll tell Pat to keep it.  So he spends €30 on the booze but Pat still insists and gives the money to SWMBO, I don't know this yet.  More later.

Lie down in the sun and then chicken and general drunkenness for the rest of the evening including a bottle of wine from Rudi.

Wednesday 9th March 2011 RDM con Swans

Pissed down last night.

RDM pre rain

"Farmers" market

Me and her slept OK in the sleeping bags and everybody was up and about by 9:30 am, breakfast and then we drop the girls off at the mall and I take Alan for a drive around the area, few cups of coffee and back to pick them up.  Of course SWMBO has found reason to buy a dress, Pat has bought a blose and as we sit  having a coffee SWMBO tells me that Pat has insisted we keep the money.  So I tell Alan thanks for the money, thanks for buying the beer and a special thanks for providing the the cash for SWMBO's dress!  He is very happy at this outcome, NOT!

Typical Swan pose

Swans arrive

And get down to it

RDM in the warm