Month: January 2016

Sunday Sevens #16 31.1.16

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Earthquake excitement  We awoke on Monday morning to hear that there had been an earthquake in the Straits of Gibraltar in the early hours of the morning. It turned out that there were several in actual fact (last I heard there had been 160 aftershocks!). Despite being up several times in the night to tend to a poorly 4 year old the whole drama passed me and the rest of the Postcard household by! Friends described their beds shaking and the rush to make sure their kids were moved away from windows, social media in Gib was humming with the excitement of it all, we didn’t notice a thing!!

Whoops spoke too soon 

 Last week I crocheted the last row of my Cosy stripe blanket and then began sewing my ends in. On Tuesday I had a few quiet moments out on the balcony and thought I’d begin my border… I looked on the Attic 24 blog for the instructions only to discover that when I’d transcribed the order of the coloured rows into my notebook (way back in 2014 – I’m not a fast worker ;-)!) I’d missed off the last 15 colours – that means another 30, yes 30, rows!!! It’ll be a while before I get to crack on with that border after all!!

#7000 challenge 

 One of my Instagram friends @bonnies_little_crafts has set herself the rather grand goal of making and collecting 7000 little crocheted hearts in time for the Yarndale yarn festival in September. Her intention is to give visitors to the festival a heart each as a welcome gift to her home town of Skipton. In previous years I have sent woolly offerings to Lucy at Attic 24 (one of the founders of the festival) for exhibition displays, so although I have failed to attend myself, a little bit of me has made it over to the Yorkshire based festival of woolliness in past years. One day I would love to go, as I have seen all the lovely pictures posted by crafty bloggers who have been already, and it looks amazing. As I have spent a large chunk of this week sitting on the sofa with poorly children I thought I’d hook up a few to send off to Skipton. If you want to have a go at making some little hearts to support the #7000 challenge, look up @bonnies_little_crafts on Instagram for more details.

Instagram photo challenge 

 I have really enjoyed taking part in the #30daysofcraftiness photo challenge this month. It has forced me to think a bit more about the photos I take and encouraged me to take photos I wouldn’t ordinarily capture. The photo above is for day 28 and the title is ‘quote’. I didn’t want to just use a Google image of an inspirational quote or cat picture (ref: The Lego Movie) so had a go at making my own. And it’s true – I get grumpy when I haven’t been near a crochet hook or needle or paintbrush for a while, to me crafts truly are my therapy!

Stormy night 

 On Friday night we had a belter of a thunderstorm. The rain and thunder had been forecast, so it wasn’t a surprise but the intensity and noise was really quite unsettling. Living in an old building with original wooden sash windows which are a little past their best, we almost felt like the roof was coming in on us. The windows and floors were rattling with the noise and the brightness of the lightening was off the scale. Thankfully it was late in the evening so our two youngest were tucked up in bed and oblivious to the storm. As the storm had taken out our TV signal, No 1 son sat up with me colouring. It was a nice way to spend quite a dramatic hour or so!

Calm after the storm 

 Looking at this, it seems hard to believe that less than 12 hours before the lightening was splitting the sky and the thunder was rattling the chimney pots! What a beautiful way to start the weekend – hello Saturday!

Med Steps in the sunshine! 

 After 6 days of poorly children, we are all healthy again (touch wood) and I managed to escape to do the Med Steps yesterday afternoon. It was hard work because it had been over a week since my last trip up AND it was warm. The sun made it absolutely glorious though, the butterflies were out, the gorse bushes were flowering and just look at the colour of that sea! I also had a first – I saw a Barbary Partridge for the first time. He was too quick for me to photograph though so you’ll just have to make do with this picture 🙂 .
Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series which was created by Natalie at Threads & Bobbins.

Not much strolling getting done this week

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  Illness has struck the Postcard household this week so therefore there won’t be a Stroll around Gibraltar until next week. I have been housebound with two small patients who’ve been rather under the weather. I have gone a bit stir crazy at times but it’s not been all bad, I managed a bit of crochet in the sunshine between Calpol administration and cuddles. 
At the weekend, I read an intriguing review of the book Castles in the Air by Alison Ripley Cubitt on the  Rough Seas in the Med blog. As I was stuck on the sofa trapped under fever-stricken children I decided to give it a go and downloaded it to my device. It was an excellent read, I managed to finish it in 24 hours which those in my book group will know is pretty rare for me these days. If you’re interested in reading an account of expat family life (far more glamorous and exciting than mine I hasten to add) I would highly recommend it.   

  I escaped the apartment this evening for a short walk (my sanity depended on it), I walked along to Rosia Bay where Nelson’s ship HMS Victory was brought after the Battle of Trafalgar. There were no big sailing ships there tonight but a few big tankers were bunkering in the bay (the floodlights belong to one of them). The lights in the distance are the Spanish port of Algeciras. Oh, and I found some more steps…. 

 

A stroll around Gibraltar: No. 2 Steps, steps, steps…

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  You may have noticed that recently steps have featured heavily in my posts, mainly because of my intention to compete in the Med Steps challenge coming up this spring. Well that got me thinking and do you know there are an awful lot of steps around Gibraltar? It might have something to do with the fact we live on a flipping great big rock and there is a lot of gradient going on! 

 Another reason for steps is that they take up a lot less space than roads and for many people they are the only way to access their homes, particularly in the pedestrian reliant narrow lanes and passages of town and upper town. 

 The steps here can be a real challenge, especially in the rain (which can make some of them very slippy) and in the hot summer when slow and steady is the order of the day. 

  If you are a visitor to Gibraltar, you don’t need to venture far from the main consumer attractions of Main Street to be faced with steps a plenty. 

 You might think, so what? What’s the big deal? A flight of steps is just that. But no, they come in so many shapes and sizes.

There are big ones… 

 

Small ones… 

 

Shallow ones… 

 

Steep ones… 

 

Unloved ones… 

 

Named ones… 

   

Anonymous ones… 

 

Ones with ramps to help us parents with prams… 

 

Floral ones… 

     

And colourful ones… 

 Yep there are definitely a lot of steps here, it’s a wonder folk round here join gyms to be honest! Right I’m off for a lie down after all that climbing ;-)!

 

 

 

Sunday sevens #15 24.1.16

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Processionary caterpillars  At this time of year we see this interesting phenomenon – the march of the progressionary caterpillars. They are pine caterpillars which live in pine trees (as the name suggests) and when they are on the hunt for food they head off for a walk to the next nearest pine tree in a long line. They are not as cute as they appear though as they give off a poison in the hairs on their backs which can cause irritation to humans and be very dangerous to animals. A good friend of mine almost lost her family dog after she tried and eat one of these. Anyway, these were taking a walk across one of the paths in the Alameda Botanical Gardens last Sunday and Mr Postcard took the photo for me.

Med Steps challenge update  I only managed one trip up the Med Steps this week but I am very pleased to say that I reached a huge personal milestone and did the double. I managed to climb them twice in one hour and forty minutes. I’m very pleased with that effort and delighted that I have overcome the hurdle of being able to do it more than once. I am still a long way off managing the five times required for the Med Steps challenge but I’m closer to achieving it than I was this time last week!

Curtain no 1 finished In my home furnishings class I completed my first sample curtain this week – a rod pocket curtain. Here it is in all it’s glory. Next stop a tab top version…
Meet the newest member of the Postcard family  Please allow me to introduce you to our newest family member. He’s cute, fluffy and doesn’t say much. We’ve only ever kept goldfish before now, so we’re on a steep learning curve with bunny.  He’s going to be a ‘house rabbit’ as both our balcony and patio get a lot of direct sunlight so we worry it would be too hot for him to stay outside permanently. He’s currently residing indoors in the biggest cage we could find in the pet shop but we are hoping to make him a bigger ‘run’ so that he can stretch his legs without us having to watch him constantly. So far his trips out of the cage have seen him making bee line for the edge of rugs and electric wires for a bit of a nibble! It feels so mean to keep him locked up but there are too many hazards for him at the moment to let him have free reign. Any tips on indoor rabbit keeping you can share would be gratefully appreciated. You may be seeing more of him…🐰

Skirt number 2 underway Two weeks into term and my second skirt is coming together quickly in my dressmaking class. This time it’s a corduroy gathered skirt. Its pockets, seams & zip are done. Bring on the waistband, gathers & hem :-). I shall do a big reveal once it’s completed (and if I’m happy with the finished article 🙂 ).

Star struck
I got a little bit star struck this week. I posted this photo on Instagram of me darning in my endy bits on my Attic 24 Cosy Stripe blanket and just look at who liked it… only Lucy from Attic 24. Oh my word – how exciting is that??? I told Mr Postcard and Number 1 son, their reaction to this momentous bit of news was total bewilderment…. Well I was chuffed anyway!

Watercolour door

 Well folks, the cling-film came off and it left me with nice textured stripes on my door. I’m not sure how happy I am with the whole picture but it was just a practice. I cannot take any credit for the techniques or the composition, as I mentioned last week, I was copying an exercise in a Jean Haines book called Atmospheric Watercolours (it’s based on a building in Venice). I would love to try painting a real Gibraltar doorway and I’m just gearing myself up for it!

 

That’s all from me this week for Sunday Sevens. I do hope you have had a good week and are enjoying a nice weekend. Sunday Sevens is a blog series and I’m linking with Natalie at Threads & Bobbins. Have a great day! 🙂

 

Sunday sevens #14 17.1.16

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‘Materials’  
Over on Instagram I’m taking part in a 30 day long photo challenge (#30daysofcraftiness). On Monday the theme was ‘materials’. It was such a gloomy, wet & windy day I chose rainbow bright yarn, fabric, paints and buttons to cheer myself up. I thought I’d share them with you!

Home furnishings WARNING: bland photo alert!

 Monday also meant the start of a new course for me. Home furnishings this time. We’re learning to make curtains and cushions (the proper way – rather than making it up as I go along!). This photo shows the mess I made of my side seams on my sample curtain – turns out I’d sewn the top and bottom by accident and I had to unpick them and start again! Such a shame as they were rather neat…

 Med steps training I’ve only managed one trip up the steps so far this week, I’m hoping to fit another one in this afternoon. Thursday was a stunningly beautiful day and as I set off at 10am the sun was already rather hot making it harder work than my previous recent attempts. These seagulls were taking in the view of the Bay on my descent.
 

Dozing apes

 On my way back down from the top of the Rock I spotted these two large apes having a snooze on the bonnet of a car. I felt like having a lie down myself after that big climb!
Watercolour class  Oh how I have missed my painting these last few weeks over the Christmas break. My class restarted this week and my word it was utterly fantastic to sit down and get totally immersed in something calming and peaceful. It’s been a bit hectic for us lately and my head has been so busy with lots of thoughts about what I need to do and where I need to be etc etc. I really loved it! The above painting will hopefully resemble a doorway once it’s finished. The cling film on the wet paint should create a stripy effect on the door. I’m following a technique in a Jean Haines book (which my teacher has) to create a very loose impressionistic style.  Time will tell if I achieve it!
 

Tulips I treated myself to a bunch of these beauties this week at the supermarket- aren’t they gorgeous?
 

New flower Out on our balcony yesterday afternoon  I was having a bit of a potter and I lifted a leaf to find this lovely surprise hiding underneath. I do love these lilies, they were a gift from a friend who lives across the border in Spain. I have tried growing them several times from the corm or bulb but with limited success. This Spanish clump though has never let me down. 

I hope you have had a good week, thank you for stopping by to visit 🙂 . Sunday Sevens is a weekly blog series created by Natalie at Threads & Bobbins.

A stroll around Gibraltar: No. 1 Balconies

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Gibraltar’s a pretty special place, unique in so many ways. A slice of Britishness on the Med, within sight of two continents. One of the mythical Pillars of Hercules which stood either side of the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. It’s a melting pot of cultures, religions and styles with a rich history dating from the Neanderthals to the Phoenecians, the Battle of Trafalgar to World War II and beyond. As many of you lovely visitors to my blog aren’t from Gibraltar and perhaps have never visited, I thought I’d share a few aspects of the Gibraltar I love with you. Today I’m looking at balconies:

  South District

For a place where the vast majority of people live in apartments, outside space is incredibly precious here in Gibraltar. Balconies for the lucky few who have them, are a very precious bit of the outdoors attached to their homes. Our family is lucky enough to have a balcony, which is effectively our ‘front garden’ (British readers will get what I mean – I’m sure), it also works as a space to dry laundry and a place to just ‘be’ especially on a warm evening with a cool glass of vino in your hand. 

  Irish Town

Of course, balconies can take many forms including late twentieth century concrete ones and the glass and chrome of the last few years, but by far my favourite are the Colonial style wrought iron balconies which can be found around the Rock.

   Governors Street

If you walk around town with your head down or just look around at eye level, you are sure to miss some absolutely stunning architectural beauties. They have such charm and grace, almost reminiscent of New Orleans. 

These green beauties can be found on Main Street where thousands of shoppers, commuters and tourists pass daily, how many of them have actually looked up and noticed they’re there?

 Main Street
  Main Street

These days a lot of this style of balcony are no longer ‘outdoor spaces’ being enclosed by glass and absorbed into the internal buildings. I still think they look beautiful though.

  Market Lane

How about this for some ornate glazing?!

  Main Street

Look a whole street of them!    Georges Lane

Check out that stained glass…

 Main Street

What a façade!
  Main Street

And another…

  Main Street
  Main Street (again)

These beautiful examples are just a small selection of what you can find here. Some are in a better state of repair than others. I just hope they are preserved for many more generations to enjoy. I just can’t get enough of them! 

This balcony is perhaps the most photographed in Gibraltar. Most days as you pass, you find tourists standing across the road taking pictures. It truly IS a front garden!
  Main Street (next door to Kings Chapel)

So you’ve probably guessed I am a huge fan of balconies, perhaps because I am a huge fan of gardens and this is as close as many people get here. They are so beautiful and romantic and so unlike anything you would get back at home in Blighty. 

I hope you’ve enjoyed this short jaunt around the place where I live. I’ll have another stroll around Gibraltar for you soon. Thank you for stopping by :-).


Sunday sevens #13 10.1.16

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Passing it on

I, like many crocheters was taught by my Mum and Gran. They also taught me to embroider, sew and knit. As a mother of 3 boys I didn’t think I’d have the opportunity to pass these skills onto the next generation, but to my pleasant surprise I was asked by Number 1 son to teach him cross-stitch several years ago and he made a small picture for his room. Since then, at various times over the course of at least 2 years, he has asked me to teach him to knit. I haven’t been too successful so far, and as is the way when you are young and keen, he has very high expectations (like being able to knit a whole scarf for himself within a day). So far our yarny adventures haven’t been 100% successful. 

In the run up to Christmas I spotted a knitting loom in our local knitting shop and thought perhaps that could be the answer for him. It appears that if you put it down and forget about it for several weeks or months between sessions it should remain intact and not all slide off the end of a needle (as has been the case for us before). At last I had the time to work it out and get him started. This is it so far, it is rather loose (not sure if that’s what’s supposed to happen). Perhaps using chunky wool would be better? Although the lady in the shop said DK would be fine. Anyway he seems to be enjoying it this far lifting the loops of wool over the pegs with a little hook rather like one of those knitting dolls I had as a child. Any advice anyone could give me on this would be greatly appreciated!

Cavalcade  Tuesday of course meant the Cavalcade in Gibraltar (see my previous post for more on this), but it marked the end of the Christmas festivities and really the end of the Christmas holidays for me and the boys. We had a lovely afternoon – we went to see the Peanuts Movie, had a quick dinner in Kings Bastion Leisure Centre (where the cinema is) while dodging an almighty downpour and then met up with Mr Postcard to watch the floats and bands go past. A lovely end to our holiday together.

Med Steps Challenge 

 The gauntlet has been thrown down and I have been set a challenge for 2016 – well until May 2016 anyway. Regular visitors to my blog will have heard me mention every now and then, the Med Steps (or Mediterranean Steps to give them their proper title). It’s a footpath which winds up the Southern and Eastern sides of the Rock of Gibraltar to the summit and is a route I walk fairly regularly to try and keep fit. There’s a contest twice a year which involves walking/running (for the super fit) up the steps and back down again 5 times (yes you read that right) 5 times in the one day. A couple of friends who I have done the steps with in the past have decided to have a go at the challenge, and I am considering having a go too. Thursday marked the first day back at school here in Gibraltar and therefore, training began for us. We managed it… once, in a time of 31 minutes from Jews Gate up to the top. I have heard of much faster times, but for a first training session and after a month of virtual inactivity and perhaps just a little overindulgence over Christmas, I don’t think it was too bad. How on earth we will manage to do it 5 times in a row, I have no idea but I’ll keep you posted on our progress!

Cosy stripe blanket progress
I reached a big milestone this week. I finished the stripes of my Attic 24 Cosy Stripe Blanket. It was begun in November 2014 as a CAL (crochet-along) and over the course of a month or two, crocheting several rows each week, it was due to be finished at the end of the year (2014 that is). I so admire crafters who can knock out several blankets a year, I even saw one crocheter talking recently on Instagram about the fact she had completed 60 – yes 60!!! blankets last year. Well I’m afraid I’m a bit flighty and get easily distracted and like to have multiple crafty things on the go at any one time so I tend to be a one blanket a year (make that 14 months) kind of girl. Now to darn in all those pesky endy bits and crack on with the border!
  

Mr Potato Head lovers – look away now…

  ….I think he may have exploded! Now I’m sure I said ‘put all that away before bedtime’ but perhaps I was just talking to myself. Do you ever get the feeling no one’s listening to you???

Colourful start to the weekend 

 Yesterday morning we had a real treat outside our front door – double rainbow in the Bay. How beautiful!

Colouring for grown-ups 

 I’ve had loads of fun this weekend playing with one of my Christmas presents, a grown-up colouring book. I had been a bit dubious about the claims of relaxation and mindfulness relating to such activities but I’ve been convinced. It’s not the best effort so far but I’ve had fun doing it!

Sunday sevens is a weekly blog series created by Natalie at Threads & Bobbins.

We 3 Kings … Gibraltar Cavalcade 2016

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 The Three Kings Cavalcade on January 5th marks the end of the Christmas festivities here in Gibraltar. In it’s 59th year, it still draws the crowds out on a wet January evening.  

 There were fewer people out this time than our previous experiences, perhaps some had been put off by the torrential downpour which started an hour or so before the scheduled start of the procession. That worked in our favour as it meant little people didn’t get squashed nor did they need to be hoisted onto shoulders to watch the passing floats (hurrah for that says my back!). Thankfully the rain stopped in time and me stayed dry too. 

 One of the staples of Cavalcade is the handing out of thousands of free sweets. Previously it was traditional for those taking part to throw sweets from the passing floats, the result being that you often got pelted by boiled sweets and toffees hurled by over enthusiastic kids. Which is kind of fun, but also kind of dangerous. With Health and Safety in mind, last year (I think) the decision was taken to stop the throwing of sweets and instead hand them out at the start of event. So along came Minions, Disney Princesses and Ninja Turtles scooping buckets of jelly sweets and chocolates out of the back of a pick-up truck!

Cue a blurry photo of one young man’s stash. When his hands were full, another sweetie distributer stuffed a load into the hood of his coat!   
  

Next came the Gibraltar Regimental band:  
  And a few familiar faces, though I don’t remember Yoda being taller than a Storm  Trooper!  
Now for the main event: the first floats contained the three main men, Balthazar, Caspar and Melchior: 

    
 Apologies for the blurry photo! This year, the Kings had new floats, last year and for many years previously they rode on artificial ‘camels’ which looked rather uncomfortable. Once upon a time, I believe, real camels were shipped in for the event. 

The Cavalcade is always on 5th January, the day before Epiphany. This was a completely new experience for us when we first arrived from England but across the border in Spain this time is incredibly important as it’s when Christmas presents are given and received, not on 25th December.

  Hot on the heels of the Kings came Miss Gibraltar 2015, who’s just back from the Miss World Competition in China. 

 Then came the community floats. This year 8 were entered. The majority were created by community groups like Scouts and youth clubs but this year a family entered their own float in support of the event. The one above featured the nativity and was put together by St Bernard’s Church.

 These Sumo wrestlers and their comedy dancing raised giggles from the crowd, they were jigging to the beat of these ninja drummers:   A dragon was tamed too! 

Ninjas were obviously a key theme as right behind was 1st/4th Scouts having a Ninja Turtle pizza party.  
The floats meet at Casemates Square earlier in the evening in order to be judged. There are different categories and prizes available.  

Inside Out was the theme of this family float. Then the procession was punctuated by a pipe band. 
 They played Christmas carols and had really funky glowing drumsticks. 

 The 75th Anniversay of the Evacuation of Gibraltar was marked by this float: 

 And Peter Pan and the Disney film Up were inspiration for these. 

 A local laser shooting company brought up the rear of the Cavalcade.

 And that was the Gibraltar Cavalcade over for another year. Thanks to the organisers and the weather for giving us a great evening out.  

 Time to head home and start getting ready for school beginning again on 7th. 

New Year in Andalusia

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I hope you have had a good start to 2016. We headed a few kilometres along the coast from Gibraltar into Andalusia for New Year. We were blessed with beautiful weather as you can see from the pictures, and it is a really beautiful place. The above photo was taken at Nueva Andalucía on New Year’s Eve.    The two big (and rather obvious) differences between Gibraltar and it’s closest neighbour are space and greenery. When 30,000 people live in such a confined strip of land it can get quite intense sometimes. I do love Gibraltar but having grown up a few miles from rolling countryside and with a front and (small) back garden, I find I need to get away every now and then.  

 
We stayed in an apartment in the hills above the bustling town of Puerto Banús. The seaside town is famous for being a millionaires’ playground with it’s marina full of posh boats and posh cars. Apart from a meal at the Hard Rock Café and a quick look at the shops we stayed away from the razzmatazz though and did our own thing. We woke on New Year’s Day to the most glorious weather and decided to get a bit of fresh air and walk along the coastal path towards Marbella.  

 We weren’t the only ones who chose to stretch our legs that afternoon. There were people walking, scootering, roller-skating, cycling and Segway-ing along the wide promenade.  

 I was happy on foot but our two youngest sped off on their scooters to burn off a bit of energy. Their destination was this bridge across the Rio Verde. The summit in the background wearing a cloudy hat is Sierra Blanca. 

It’s a great bridge, perfect for scootering. It’s wide and smooth so you can go fast, is made of wooden planks so it makes a great noise as you fly across it and has a great slope to zoom on giving your Mum palpitations as there’s a flight of stairs at the end! 

 It’s set in great surroundings, the Rio Verde on one side. Where sea birds were enjoying the calm waters. 
 And the sea on the other side. 

 Beyond the river the beach stretches on towards Marbella. Even though it was the first of January there were some people basking in the winter sunshine.

 Our walk ended here as hungry children demanded food so we turned around and headed back towards town. We have promised ourselves we will return and walk further next time. 

  

January 2nd brought with it rain and cloud – we were so glad we’d made the effort to have our walk in the sunshine when we did. We explored a market which appears in the streets around here each Saturday.  We have managed to get caught up in the market by accident a few times in the past when trying to drive through these roads. This time though, we were on foot and ready for a mooch about.  

 Apart from some nice plant stalls and a few artisan craft stalls in the grounds of the bullring we were a bit disappointed with what was on offer. 

 There were thousands of fake designer handbags and sunglasses to choose from as well as cheap toys and a few electronics. I’m afraid it wasn’t at all what we had hoped for. 

 After the anti-climax of the street market we decided to regroup and try an alternative outing so we hopped into the car and headed east along the coast to Benalmádena and the Butterfly Park there.    Standing high on a hill and in the shadow of a stunning Buddhist Temple, we found the Butterfly Park. It didn’t disappoint.  

 From the moment we arrived we spotted them. Bigger than the palm of your hand and in every colour of the rainbow. I’ll let the photos tell the story here…    

      We listened to a talk by a member of staff who told us about the life cycle of the butterflies and moths there and showed us the most amazing array of cocoons and newly hatched butterflies.       Then came the fun part… Firstly our littlest got to feel a cocoon (and it’s metamorphosising inhabitant moving). Then he got to have a sleeping moth on his hand…  …then we all did. That was a big step for me as,although I love the beauty of these creatures, the idea of having one on my skin was erm not really my cup of tea. But I couldn’t leave being the only one not brave enough to try it – so I did. Yay me!  

 There were other creatures there too, this big lizard and a wallaby, both of which wander freely about inside with the visitors. We really enjoyed our trip and would recommend it, although for a family of five it cost €42 so it wasn’t cheap. It was a lovely tranquil place. 

 Once our visit was over we couldn’t help but go across the road to admire the amazing view west over Fuengirola.  Today we packed up and headed home, we were given a pretty send off with a rainbow by the side of the motorway.  And we were soon home… Ah there she is! Our lovely Rock.  Until next time, thanks for stopping by 😊. Thanks also for all the likes and lovely comments, it’s great to hear from you.
  

Sunday Sevens #12 3.1.16

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Moody weather

 At the start of the week, as we watched news coverage of the terrible flooding across the north of England we were still basking in pretty mild but cloudy weather. My heart goes out to those affected, with family and friends in Manchester, Lancashire and Yorkshire I have followed the news and hoped that all of their homes have stayed flood free. So far, I’m pleased to say they have, although one friend went 36 hours without power and the flood waters came into her cul-de-sac but stopped before reaching her place. How awful for those who didn’t escape the effects. The above photo features a Royal Navy ship leaving Gibraltar during a rather oddly coloured sunset on Monday. 
Rain comes to Gibraltar   
Back in October we had a pretty wet spell ourselves which brought with it a rather dramatic landslide  this post has the details. Back then I discovered my wellies had perished and sprung a leak over the summer so I ended up wearing flip-flops with my waterproofs. I got one or two odd looks and comments that it was obvious I must be English (not local) as I’m a bit mad. After a week or so of splashing about in flip-flops I went crazy and bought some posh wellies – to much ridicule from Mr Postcard along the lines of  ‘this is Gibraltar not Glastonbury’. Then the rain stopped, for two months, until Tuesday. I unwrapped my new wellies with relish and jumped in a few puddles (you’re never to old for that I reckon!).

Commonwealth Park looking festive  I was lucky enough to be able to sneak out one evening and watch the new Star Wars film. I can’t do it justice, so won’t give a review – I liked it, a lot. En-route to the cinema I took a stroll through Commonwealth Park. I’ve driven past at night and seen the lights but this was the first time I’d seen it up close. I thought it looked fab.

Hard Rock Café, Puerto Banús  
We escaped and dashed along the coast for a few days over New Year.  First night found us at the Hard Rock Café where the kids were bemused at the old fashioned rock music playing on the screens. No 1 son asked whether Oasis had been in the charts when I was growing up! The previous night he had watched a TV programme about the 1950s and thought the music in that was from my youth… not much difference between that and Oasis. How do their brains work when it comes to recent history?!

Year’s end in Nueva Andalucía 

  We were blessed with beautiful weather over new year, and found a peaceful spot little to recharge our batteries. Well, it was peaceful before we arrived ;-).

New Year’s Day walk 

 The glorious weather continued into January and on New Year’s Day we went for a lovely walk along the beach footpath from Puerto Banús towards Marbella. We had long sleeves on but there were some people in trunks etc sunbathing on the beach… on January 1st… in the northern hemisphere, can’t get my head round that!

I was so brave!!! 

 After the entire Postcard clan had posed for photos ‘wearing’ moths at the Benalmádena Butterfly Park, it looked as though I had to overcome my reservations and have a go too. I’m not great with creepy crawlies in general and while I loved watching the butterflies fliting about us on our visit, the thought of having one ON me was a big deal! I’ll have many more photos about this in my next post…

Sunday Sevens is a blog series featuring seven photos from the past seven days. It was created by Natalie at Threads & Bobbins pop along to her blog to find out more. Thanks for stopping by 🙂 and Happy New Year!