Back to Spain

Hello there -

Better late than never I suppose - we're having so much fun here we thought we should share it

It was a very warm evening when we arrived at Malaga almost 24 hours after we had left our home in Walnut Grove. We went straight to El Molino in our hire car where Nick and Amanda were closing down their Friends week with a birthday party for Josh. It was great fun chatting and relaxing over a glass of wine, and we went back at about midnight to unload our suitcases only to find that there was no water, and boy, we really needed a shower, but that, apparently, was not meant to be….. read on tomorrow!

Sept 3

So we found a full kettle of water and managed to clean our teeth, get a quick lick and a promise, and crashed out. Saturday morning – we woke at about 6 and started unpacking, The re-learning curve was beginning -  have to make a note to always have scissors to hand when we have breakfast outside in the courtyard, so that we can cut a bunch of fresh, very sweet, grapes from the vine above us. We went over to the Mill for coffee and. Nick has phoned about the water for us. They say it will be back on soon.

So now we’re off to shop for the weekend and it’s hot outside

Get back and, miracle of miracles, the water’s on. Quick salad lunch and I make a quick dressing with a handful of fresh-picked from the courtyard -parsley, tarragon, basil with some grainy mustard, salt, pepper, honey, cider vinegar and a good splurge of tangy extra virgin oil. We sit and enjoy the shade in the courtyard, under the vines, looking out at our two laden orange trees and the distant view of Fuente. Washing up – have to take care with the solar hot water when washing up as it’s too hot, but it’s free hot water from now on! Then we take a great and luxurious shower together after an hours’ zizz. I think we’re settling back in.

Sept 4

All our figs seems to be ripe now and most of them had fallen before we got here, giving the ground a heady, sweet smell, so we must work hard and pick the rest as we’ll need some for photographing for the cookbook.   This is the day for unpacking and trying not to turn the ( immaculate when we arrived) house into a tip. We’ve been enjoying sleeping in the cooler downstairs bedroom and we’re both wishing that we had the pool already installed as it’s still very hot today again. So today it’s a simple roast game-hens and potatoes for lunch and a snack for supper. Courtyard cinema tonight with the family- so it’s The Jungle Book I’ve just been informed by Josh.

I will carry on with this diary asap and hopefully put some photos in - at the moment they are too high in pixels to put in.

So, All the best from Lari and myself

Mike