We are having a great time! The house is fairly organised, our huerta is yielding vegetables (first lettuce with rocket today), Cam and Jo have arrived and we have enjoyed a great village fiesta to watch Spain beat Paraguay. Tonight we will go to the bar in Pitres to watch the Germany match and hope that Spain wins! Our language skills are improving and we feel less blitzed at 3pm than we used to!
On the 27th we met up with Andrew in Trevelez, on his BMW, plus many other Spanish motorcyclists. He has kindly set us on the path to get the Suzuki re-plated, taxed etc and if we can do this ourselves we will, then the other machines. It does sound complex and a bit bureaucratic however. The burro, our little c90 donkey, is absolutely brilliant for shopping and nipping out to eat. Ideal for the Alpujarras.
Some neighbours have moved in for much of the summer with 2 lovely little girls, Claudia and Lianna. Claudia is the eldest, aged 5, and has been teaching me some Spanish - about my level!! She is very appealing and thinks I am lucky to be called Linda (linda - pretty…). While the football was being relayed in the square, she and the other youngsters ran about and played, with small babies being tossed about when Spain scored! Later on the bigger girls (aged about 25!!) danced to a video/karaoke/dance routine - by now about 2am - and we all joined in with some sort of rain dance. Great fun.
It’s interesting which clothes, brought from England, are getting worn and which are staying in boxes or the cupboard until cooler weather. We need our biking kit but have abandoned proper gear when we just go to the shop; I hardly ever put on jeans (too hot) or shorts (legs are too old and brambles too common) or anything with long sleeves. Preferred garments are either my blue working overalls (baggy, practical, not too hot) or a little dress bought in a Break shop for £2.50 (thin straps, no creases) or a pair of green linen trousers that make me feel elegant. And we do wear hats on the land, at all times. Steve looks just like a local peon especially with axe in hand.
We are eating masses of fresh fruit and veg and only cook a proper meal at night. After a long day we enjoy cheap red wine (cartons are 53 centimos in Al Campo in Motril) diluted with unsweetened fizzy water. Probably not the most sophisticated choice but we never said we were fussy! We have made about 3 litres of green walnut wine (locally picked walnuts of course) so here is the recipe:
Go and get your walnuts now! Collect 8 good-sized ones while they are green and still soft(er) than they will be by August/September. Then you will need:
1 cinnamon stick, halved down its length
1 vanilla pod, halved in the same way (use a sharp knife and mind your fingers)
7 oz caster sugar
1.75 pints robust vino tinto
4 fl oz dark rum or brandy
Wash & dry walnuts and cut into small pieces. Wear rubber gloves unless you want stained hands for the next 4 weeks…Place in a large sterilised glass jar with the cinnamon & vanilla. Cover with the sugar, wine and rum/brandy. Seal the jar tightly and leave for 6 weeks, shaking the jar lightly every so often to make sure the sugar dissolves. When ready, strain the liquid through a coffee filter paper or some muslin into sterilised bottles and seal tightly. Keep in a cool, dark place - drink at Christmas or when the cold nights arrive!
SPAIN WON THE SEMI-FINAL!!! ROLL ON SUNDAY - OUR LITTLE PLAZA WILL BE PACKED OUT!!!