SOLD Subject to Contract

What with the news breaking early on Monday morning, about the terrible insane killings of such young people in Oslo, I know I haven’t got the right to complain but you know what, it hasn’t been a good week.  The radiotherapy has really started to play havoc with Phil’s bowel and it isn’t just the frequency of going to the loo but the horrible burning pain and discomfort inside. Monday and Tuesday were particularly bad days. And well, as for me, I’d like to think I was suffering in sympathy but this week I have had really bad PMT.  And I mean REALLY BAD.  I feel like everyone in the world is against me, and I them, it’s horrible.  Luckily I don’t suffer every month because but it’s getting more frequent.  I am also worried about a lump I find this morning at 5am whilst reading in the semi dark so as not to awake Phil.  One thinks breast cancer straight away but I don’t think so, it’s more in the armpit area rather than my actual tit itself so I am sure it’s nothing, probably just hormones.

As I said, not a great week but once again, a busy one and we don’t seem to have stopped.  After getting off the loo on Monday morning (that’s Phil not me by the way) we left for Melton Mowbray and got to Phil’s mum and dad for around 10am.  The house and the garden looked lovely but I hadn’t realised that for the last two weeks that they’d been working themselves to death to get it ready for the agent. The pair of them looked absolutely knackered.  I already knew that it was big thing putting their house on the market but I really hadn’t realised how seriously they were about it.  It’s sad, they don’t want to move but they know at 80 and 90 that at some time they will need us. I printed off some bungalows from the RightMove site and will try and squeeze in viewings over the next couple of days and then if any of them our suitable; we’ll get Phil’s mum and dad down next Sunday for lunch and arrange second viewings.

Tuesday was another bad day; poor Phil was suffering with getting up in the night several times, not to mention a loose bowel but we managed to get to B&Q at 7am to hire out the Rug Doctor.  We got this back to the flat but first Phil had to fit the kitchen blind which turned out to be another ‘saga’.   He tries very hard I know but sometimes he doesn’t listen to my advice and it all goes wrong.  And this time it did go wrong; the mental plinth didn’t allow the screws to go in so in the end Phil had to take out all the fixings and do as I said in the first place and fit the blind on the outside.  This involved lots of huffing, puffing, swearing and “oh my gods” and “bloody nightmare” and in the end I had to go to the gym to get away.  After DW I met HH at ASDA to get her a few bits and pieces for the flat and then it was back round to Caldecotte to see how Phil  was getting on.

After ASDA Harriet also came back to the CF to inspect but really didn’t seem that impressed.  By this time Phil had got on well with the carpet cleaning and he’d done a good job.  The carpets came out clean but the pile is a bit depressed (bit like me really, down-trodden and flat) but they are at least clean and if sometime in the future, we decide to do the loft extension then we will replace all the carpets.

Wednesday was removals.  I went to the flat early and left Phil to sleep in; he’d had another bad night, tummy troubles up and down to the loo, he’d got up in the middle of the night and when I was awake I managed to persuade him to come back to bed to and sleep, which thankfully he did.  With the flat all to myself, I was able to do some tidying up and cleaning jobs and I also got the lino up in the bathroom.  Phil had to go to the dentist and came round to the CF afterwards.  He fitted carpet in the airing cupboard which wasn’t an easy job but then again, nothing in this flat has been easy.  We went to DW for a Jacuzzi and then back home after that to wait for the Nigel-the-bald-man-with-van to turn up.  We opened the garage and got all the stuff ready to go to the CF flat on the drive but unfortunately Nigel was late and it was gone half two by the time he pulled up.  Never mind, there was only a leather sofa, a mattress and some bedroom units to take so it didn’t take long to load up. 

Nigel and his son George soon got the stuff up the stairs in the CF but oh boy the sofa was a big problem.   I did wonder beforehand whether it would actually fit, because haven taken off the glass doors and measured, we already knew that the doorways were slim.  Our leather sofa isn’t massive but it is a 3 seater and it was a real struggle to get it into the lounge.  It got wedged in the bedroom, then wedged in the bathroom and at one point I rather thought we’d have to give up and take it home but bald man and son persevered and after taking it down the stairs and turning it round and then taking it back up again for one last try, it was forced in.  We paid Nigel and then had to lock up and head for NG for Phil’s zapping with hardly any time to spare.

Phil was ready for a pint when he went out with the boys on Wednesday night and judging by his mood on Thursday, he’d obviously had several.  I tried to bite my tongue and ignore him because on Thursday we had lots to do.   Phil in his hung­­-over state was a reluctant worker but I coaxed him into action and he put the old glass doors in the Land Rover and we took them to the tip.  Our plan was if they fitted in the Land Rover then we could go to Wickes and buy new doors, which is what we did. Back at the flat I got Phil to put feet on the IKEA bedroom units which was a long and tedious job and because they are not that high you can’t see them.  Phil’s last job of the day was to fit the door in the bathroom.  He hates hanging doors but he stuck at it and its now half hung.  Okay it needs a bit of plaining and the handle and the lock need to be fitted but at least now it’s not just an open gap.

Whilst working at the CF yesterday we received a couple from Michael Graham to say that the lady that viewed on Wednesday had put in an offer on our house of £220k.  Phil rejected this and another offer came back at £225k.  Again Phil rejected this and he eventually negotiated an offer of £227.500 to include leaving some fixtures and fittings.  Namely, all the light fittings, all the blinds and curtains; the fridge/freezer in the kitchen which we inherited with the house when we brought in, the old fridge/freezer in the shed which Phil has had for over 20 years, the dishwasher and my lovely Italian cooker.  The cooker rather upset me I have to admit but then Phil reminded me that the cooker space is an unusual size and the new owner may struggle to find an oven to fit.  And also I’d forgotten that we had to have the cooker feet especially made. 

So that’s it, we’re on the move but where to god only knows.  I know it makes sense to release the capital from this house so we can move on to other projects but I will be sad to leave the cul-de-sac.  We have been lucky and in the current recession we have made a tiny profit.  Not much, just enough to pay the agent and the legal fees.  We brought the house for £210k we spent £10k on renovation and we made £10k by renting it out for a year so we’ve pretty much broke even with a bit extra for expenses.  I can’t lie, the thought of moving feels me with utter dread.  After downsizing a few years ago and getting rid of all of our stuff, somehow we have built it all up again.  How did that happen?

Last night I looked at rentals in the local newspapers.  Rentals are not cheap and it made me realise that our flat rental prices are quite low in comparison. I scoured the paper but I couldn’t see anything suitable for us to rent at a reasonable price.  For PLAN B, we are thinking of buying a static caravan at Billing Aquadrome.  We could do this up and put all of our ‘stuff’ into storage.  The trouble is, we have to move quite quickly because the lady that has offered on our house is already in rentals and wants to move quickly.  We’re not quite sure but we think she doesn’t need a mortgage which means we could be out of here in just a month.  OMG!  My stress levels are going through the roof and I could tell by my palpitations that my blood pressure is high again. 

Oh well, life with Phil is never dull and I suppose I would be bored if it were any different.   No I take that back, I can do boring, boring is good.  If a house move isn’t daunting enough, we’ve got a boiler that has packed up in the flat down the road and on Monday the Cranfield flat becomes vacant which means not only will I have to sort that out and make it ready to market but I’ll also have Mad Betty to contend with who won’t give me a minutes peace.  Well actually she’s not Betty anymore because she’s changed her name by deed poll to Emily. 

I mustn’t complain, life could be worse. The good news is that we've almost finished work at the CF flat and at least it’s the weekend. 

A quiet one in the Krause House

We had a relatively quiet and uneventful weekend so I am not sure on this July Monday morning that I have much to write about; but I am up early so I’ll give it a go, just don’t expect much.  As planned, we had a very busy day on Friday, we went as fast as we could but still didn’t manage to do through all of the jobs on the to-do-list.   After finishing at the flat we just had enough time to go to DW for a Jacuzzi and a shower before making our way to NG for Phil’s zapping.  Amazingly, the Luke Radiotherapy Unit was empty.  Literally, there was not a soul sitting in the waiting room. This was good news because it meant that Phil was seen to straight away and we were also a little worried about the traffic with it being schools out for summer.  There was no need to worry, traffic was fine and we were back home in record time.

I’d invited Sue round and the plan was to walk to The Giffard for something to eat.  But it was lashing it down so Harriet kindly offered to drive. The pub was packed, we normally go at lunchtime or late afternoon and it’s been quite a while since we’ve been in the evening.  I have to say I like it better in the daytime.  Harriet came with us for a meal, which made a nice change; I don’t think she was comfortable being out with us ‘rents’ but it’s the end of the month and she’s broke.  We had some pub grub and a couple of drinks and then it was back home.  I don’t think Harriet was spotted out by any of her friends so she was relieved.

Phil was up most of Thursday night so when we got home, he more or less went straight to bed to read and Harriet, Sue & I had a girls-party-night in.  Which was fun but too much wine and bed at midnight meant a very thick-headed muzzy Claire on Saturday morning.  Oh well, you only live once and it was nice to get out for a change.  There is only so much of watching ‘Homes Under the Hammer’ that a girl can take.  Phil went to the flat to work at 7.30am, he was bright eyed and bushy tailed because he hadn’t over-indulged but it was nearer to 9am by the time I got to Caldecotte. We’re at the stage of doing finishing off jobs at the CF; these aren’t strenuous but they do take time.  We worked for a few hours and after getting showered at the health club, we went to what used to be the Old Beacon in Bletchley for lunch. It is called the ‘Inn on the Lake’.

Both Phil & I used to go to the Beacon years ago but of course now it’s all changed.  The new owners said that they moved into the pub in January and have only been open for 2 months.  The menu was good, lots of fish choices and an unusual choice of pies but it wasn’t cheap.  I am guessing the new owners are trying to pitch themselves at better than your average inn.  Our food was good but not outstanding but I liked the décor of the pub, the service was friendly and efficient and nice views of the lake.  The exterior of the pub isn’t very pretty and being stuck on an industrial estate didn’t do it for me, but I’m glad we tried it.

Saturday afternoon was lazy and quiet with Phil watching the German Grand Prix qualifying.  I feel asleep on the sofa and we were both not late to bed.  Unfortunately poor Phil didn’t have a very good night and was up and down to the loo at all hours. He was really suffering but we were still at the flat by half eight.  There wasn’t much I could do so I scooted off the gym and left him to get on with it.  Poor boy managed a couple of hours and then came home and went back to bed. Phil had planned on treating me to lunch at the French Partridge in Horton but I'd checked on TripAdvisor and it has received some negative reviews so we decided not to go.  There didn't seem much point with Phil not feeling well so I decided to cook roast lamb and chicken with all the trimmings. Harriet was out but came back for lunch and thankfully Phil was feeling a little better so he came down to eat. The rest of the afternoon was lazy, Grand Prix, Sunday papers and quite relaxing all bar a house viewing at 2.30pm which rather interrupted our slobbing.   They only viewed for 5 minutes so I don’t think we have a sale.

It was nice to see some sun yesterday and I got out the sun chairs and Harriet & I sat out for a while.  Not for long though, as she got a phone call inviting her to a BBQ and I went in because Phil wanted me to watch a film with him.  Again it was early to bed and I am pleased that Phil had a good night and is feeling much better this morning, which is a big relief.   Today we are having a day off from the flat and are driving down to Melton Mowbray to spend some time with Phil’s mum and dad. 

It’s been a while since we’ve seen them and I’ve also arranged a local estate agent to come round and give them a house valuation. They want the valuation to know how much they would have to spend in MK but they don’t want to put their house on the market until they find something suitable to buy. A slightly back-to-front way but we must respect their wishes. I don’t know if they will ever relocate to Milton Keynes, at the end of the day, it has to be their decision and it’s a big one.  We just want to do right by them.

Works still in progress

It’s been pretty full on since we got back from Majorca and our feet don’t seem to have touched the ground.  That’s okay I guess, payback for our weekend away and at the end of the day, we should be grateful that we are still alive and kicking.  To be honest, I probably wouldn’t have it any other way, I function better when I’m on a project, and I’m not good with time on my hands.  

On Tuesday we were in Tesco’s at Kingston at half seven and then after shopping for supplies, we took the car to Fast-fit to get the tyre puncture repaired.  We had to wait a while but they have a nice waiting room with fresh coffee and biscuits and daily newspapers so at least Phil didn’t complain.  It took a while to get the car back and we had just enough time to put away the groceries before leaving to go to Northampton General for Phil’s zapping.  It went okay but he had severe pain when he went for a pee afterwards.  We drove home and Phil dropped me off and then went to the CF to do a few bits.  I didn’t go with because I had all the washing to sort, not to mention the cooking and loads of catching up to do.  Phil didn’t sleep too great on Monday night so he only did a few hours at the flat and then came home to crash out on the sofa.  I did the ironing and caught up with soaps and we both had a pretty early night.

Phil went to the flat fairly early on Wednesday morning so he could let in Snake the plumber and his helper Dave.  Snake is a great plumber but he’s really busy and I’m guessing that he did us a special favour by fitting us in.  I took myself to the health club for an espresso workout before going to the flat.  By 2pm, Snake had Dave had plumbed in the kitchen sink, fitted the new kitchen taps, plumbed in the new washing machine, replaced the hot and cold elements in the emersion heater and fitted put new sink taps and bath taps plus a sink waste and a new shower head in the bathroom.  With fixing the electrics Phil made shower pump miraculously so our plumbing problems are now sorted.  We now have a fully functioning sink and hot water.  Wow!

Yesterday was a busy day with an early start despite Phil’s hangover.  Phil headed off to the CF at half seven and I went round to Christine’s flat in Downs Barn.  Her tenant has left and I almost forgot that I promised Christine that would make her 2 bed flat ready for sale.  I’d gone on Tuesday to do an inspection to see what needed doing.  The tenant had left it very clean so there wasn’t much to do.  I just rejigged the furniture and on Wednesday after raiding my airing cupboard I went and made up the beds.  It only needed a bit of staging, new mats and towels in the bathroom, some pictures on the walls, a vase in the fireplace, a new washing up bowl and a new mat for the entrance hall.   Yesterday I painted the second bedroom, unfortunately it needed 2 coats but only took me a couple of hours and it looks ten times better.  I am going there this morning to rehang the bedroom curtains but that’s me done.  Fingers crossed for a quick sale.

After finishing at Downs Barn I went over the CF to help Phil.  He was just finishing off the tiling around the kitchen window and what a good job he’d made.  From the kitchen Phil moved to the lounge and fitted the new electric fire.  This wasn’t easy as he had to find a way to feed the way through the fireplace surround which meant he had to cut off the moulded plug and feed it through the cavity and then put on a new plug.  We didn’t have spare plugs so he had to cut one off the extension lead and fit that.  We got there in the end but like all things with this bloody flat, it hasn’t been easy. With the tiling all done, we were able to have a good clear up and wash down.  I have been itching to do this for days and I can’t tell you how much happier I felt when it was all done.

Our last job at the flat was to put all the rubbish out for the bin men and then we went to DW for a Jacuzzi and a shower.  Afterwards we got petrol at ASDA and then made our way over to Stony Stratford to view a bungalow for Phil’s mum and dad.  The bungalow was a complete mess, it needed new bathroom new kitchen, you name and it needed replacing.  I reckon it would 20k and 3 months’ work to turn it around.  Phil was keen but I wasn’t impressed.  I thought it was at £170k for a 2 bed semi-detached was overpriced. 

After the viewing we made our way straight to the hospital.  Phil had a double appointment as he had his review.   It seemed a bit funny without Dave & Janet there; Dave finished his treatment on Wednesday and we swapped numbers and will no doubt, go over to see them on their boat which is currently moored at Stoke Brurne just by The Navigation.  After his zapping yesterday, Phil came out with a long face.  I asked him what was wrong and he said that Steve, his favourite radiographer, wouldn’t be treating him any more as he was going back to university.  Oh dear.  I can’t believe Phil took a photograph of Steve and team whilst he was lying down on a table with his pants down!  And besides that, I thought mobiles were meant to be turned off.

Today we are back in the Caldecotte flat.  We both a ‘to do’ list which is as long as you’re arm but we can almost touch the finishing line no are itching to cross it.  Even if we work really hard we will not be finished today but the aim is to grout the tile, put up the kitchen window strips and the blind, sand down the switches and sockets, seal the kitchen sink, sort the bathroom and pack tools in the Land Rover to take home.   We also need to go to Ikea, B&Q & ASDA.  We hope to clear the decks so that tomorrow we can hire a Rug Doctor and clean the carpets throughout the flat.  We are really hoping that a clean will bring them up but if not we, will have to replace.  

I feel exhausted when I think of all the jobs to do today but its sounds worse than it actually is.  I shouldn’t complain; we have had a short week and we tend to take it easy over the weekend.  Phil will be putting his feet up and watching the German Grand Prix, I am hoping to go to the gym and on Sunday, Phil says he’s taking me somewhere special for lunch. 

Too Much Information

We enjoyed our Majorca weekend even though I suffered from the effects of my radio therapy treatment. Things started out well with lots of leg room so that I could get stuck into a good book in comfort. No problem with the flight; we picked our car up but really struggled in the dark to get going. To start with I couldn’t get out the car park as I had overshot the machine where you put your ticket in to open the barrier and several cars had backed up behind me; even if I could have found reverse gear in my little Smart hirecar. Claire came to the rescue by running back with the ticket; trouble is I gave her my boarding slip the first time which was also in my shirt pocket where I keep all my important documents. Finally we escaped but the satnav was still trying to calculate the route from Giffard Park to our final destination in Majorca as there was no satellite reception in the car park. Claire couldn’t sort it out in the dark and I needed to get the window holder out from my bag so that I could see the screen anyway so I pulled into a garage. Finally got on the way; trouble was that the garage exit took us into the capital city rather than on our natural route out of it. Once we had finally got going on our proper route the satnav started bleating; complaining that it was running out of battery. Another stop required to get the cigarette lighter charger out my bag. Another problem; the charger socket didn’t seem to work however hard we twisted and turned the connector in the socket. We know that the lead worked as we had tested our new satnav out at home before coming away. I decided to continue for as long as the battery would last and if we got really stuck we could always get our laptop out and plug the satnav in to help us out. Although it kept complaining, the satnav didn’t run out of charge until about 5 miles from our hotel but luckily, ours was the first one that Claire spotted. By this time it was 11.30pm and the food from our all inclusive hotel stopped at 11pm but the bar was still open until midnight so we took the receptionists advice and left our bags with them and headed off for some relaxant. I think we managed to get our monies worth in that 30 minutes alone and we even managed to stack up a few extras at the end to take up to our room with us.

By the time that I had got to reception to pick our bags up the two ladies that had looked after us had gone home and had been replaced by a night man who had no idea where our bags were. After ages of looking we finally found them in what looked like a locked telephone box and I could join Claire on our balcony before she had polished off all our bar extras. Straight to sleep for a well needed sleep but I still managed to wake at my normal unearthly hour but somehow managed to slip onto our balcony with my riveting book for a couple of hours without disturbing Claire. I hadn’t realized how interesting dust could be.

I woke Claire with a kiss and we headed downstairs for a very substantial 5 course buffet breakfast. I exaggerate a little; it was probably more like 8 courses. However hard you try; when faced with all inclusive it’s impossible not to try everything on offer just to make sure you are not missing anything. We waddled off to the coast in our little Smart Car which is great; it has a fabulous aircon system, a huge sunroof and a semi-automatic gearbox. However, don’t get one if you intend to carry more than a set of golf clubs in the boot. We even struggled with a backpack each. We parked up and had a very pleasant walk along the cliff road that lead to the overcrowded beach. Very enjoyable, all the same and we even managed to work up an appetite ready for lunch; trouble was lunch didn’t start until 1pm and it was only 10am. Next time I will leave Snow White to sleep a little longer.

I’m not sure if it was the amount of food that I ate or the amount of beer that I managed to consume but the effects of my radio therapy had really kicked in and I suffered badly. Every time I went to the toilet, which seemed to be all the time, it felt like I was passing radio-active waste. In actual fact, if you think about it, I probably was. The most powerful reaction in the universe is anti-mater annihilating with real mater, turning completely into energy; heat energy. Thank goodness for my liquid paraffin. By the time the day was over, my bottom was throbbing with pain continuously and it felt like I was peeing razor blades. Time, I felt, to stop taking the laxatives prescribed by the hospital. I spent the rest of the day laying in a darkened room learning all about dust but somehow, this experience didn’t stop me making a pig of myself at the restaurant and bar again that evening. However, I suffered so badly that night that I haven’t had an alcoholic drink since, and it wasn’t because of a hangover this time. Isn't it funny how when something is on your mind, you seem to hear related subjects everywhere you turn? What should we hear being played on the radio but that Johny Cash song, "Ring of fire".

I felt a little better on Sunday and was more careful what I ate and also drank copious amounts of water all day with the occasional coffee that we had at the Sunday Market we visited. I still managed to eat plenty that day so I guess that it must be the alcohol more than the food. I thought the food at the hotel was quite good; not first class but nice all the same; especially if you were selective in your choice Claire. I overheard a child asking her Mum why they had a lot of food that she wasn’t used to and didn’t like. Her mum told her that it wasn’t only English people that were staying at the hotel there were other nationalities that are used to different food to us. I guess that she was right; we spotted plenty of Germans, especially at 8am when the sunbeds first became available. There were also plenty of Welsh people and even Scottish so you have to accept the odd haggis, deep fried mars bars, lashings of sauerkraut and leeks. Don’t you just hate it when people stereotype other nationalities? I can’t imagine what they could possibly say about us well behaved Brits. If we can’t sort out this racist problem, then nobody can.

I managed to read 2 books, The New Scientist and the first unit of an Earth science OU course while we were away, all in one weekend; it must be a record for me. However, Claire managed to read her 5 books and another 2 that she had swapped in the hotel reception and still leave time to earwig on every conversation around us. I am really enjoying learning about geology in preparation for the next chapter of my book. In previous chapters I have been underlining the bits I want to remember in pencil and then typing them out when I have finished the book into a small text file before erasing all the pencil marks in the book. This seems to take forever so this time I decided to take advantage of the camera on my i-phone to photograph the relevant sections. This is still a pain, but so much quicker and easier than my previous method. However, now I have just copied all these photos into a subdirectory I realize that it will take me forever to go through it all again to tease out the relevant bits from all these pictures. Sometimes, it is possible to have too much information.

Our flight home was also great as we were given seats at the front of the plane with lots of leg room. As we only had hand luggage we expected to be out of the airport in no time. Wrong! It was the worst cue that I had ever seen for passport control even before luggage pick up that we didn't have. Even worse than imigration in the USA in the 1980's. I thought that if you travelled within EU contries it was supposed to be like a bus trip with only minimal customs and passport control? No wonder we don't use the buses anymore.

Oh, and we had a puncture in Claires car even before we got out of the hospital car park when we got back on Monday and it was raining. The spare was one of those small wheels, just about big enough to get you to a garage.

This little piggy goes to market

I couldn’t get a Wi-Fi connection on Saturday but it wasn’t for the lack of trying.  In the end I gave up but went down yesterday morning to try once again; I fiddled around on my laptop and turned off my firewall and ‘Bingo’ I got access and was able to publish my blog and check emails.   I don’t really have that much to write home about today, but once a blogger, always a blogger and you have to fill a need so I will try and do my best to entertain you.  But don’t expect too much!

We indulged in the buffet dinner on Saturday and went outside to the pool area for a couple of drinks and to people watch.  As I’ve already mentioned, there is a diverse of cultures staying at Canarias Park, but the bulk of the English tourists sound like they come from the north of England.  Not there is anything wrong with that, but we did sit and watch a Scottish middle aged woman who’d obviously been on the spirits all afternoon, drink and flirt with another Scott bloke and embarrassed herself terribly.  It was amusing to us but I felt quite sorry for her hubbie and her son who must have been about 12 years old.  We stayed to hear the first karaoke song and it was so bad we decided to go to bed.  Phil read his book but yours truly went straight to sleep, out for the count.  The sun combined with the wine and a seriously lack of shut eye for the past few weeks was all it took.

Phil slept well on Saturday night; the karaoke party didn’t keep us awake which was pretty amazing seeing as we have a room that faces the bar and the pool area.  Phil said he only had to get up 3 times in the night to pee but I didn’t hear him once.   On Sunday, after such a long sleep, I was awake by 6am and probably disturbed Phil.  I took my laptop down to post the blog and do a bit of surfing and we were in the restaurant for breakfast by 8am.  Breakfast is open from 8am until midday which is fine but I’d rather they opened a bit earlier.   I’ve brought our travel kettle so I was able to have a cup of green tea (shit tea) at half six but although I’d also brought some Tetley teabags, I didn’t have any milk so was unable to have a proper cup of tea.

Before we’d left home, I’d read about a Sunday market in Felanitx, only half an hour away in the car and easily managed Phil to drive me there.  We’d pre-ordered a picnic to take with us and the plan was to visit the market then to stop somewhere on the coast on the way home on the beach.  But it didn’t pan out that way.  Does it ever?  We found the market easily, parked up and walked round.  At first I thought the market was small and only a handful of tents but it was extended beyond the square and was massive.  I was really glad we went, there were lots of authentic Spanish products as well as the fake stuff that you always find.  We brought fake belts for Phil and a pair of fake designer sunglasses each and we also stopped for a cup of coffee in a posh café, which although was lovely, was a complete rip off.  Still, the ambience and the atmosphere were fabulous so it was worth the price.

As I said earlier, we had planned to partake off our picnic on the beach but Phil’s bottom was dodgy and actually so was mine, so we thought it best to head for home.  By this time it was almost midday and we ended up eating our baguettes on our balcony.   Phil would have been happy to stay on our balcony for the remainder of the day but we don’t get the sun until mid-afternoon so I coaxed him in to going to sit down by the pool.  There were no sunbeds available, these are all bagged by 8am and I can’t be doing playing this game so instead we sat at a table near to the bar.   We read and basked in the sun and I was a little surprised when Phil said he wanted to go in for lunch at half one.  Lunch, I said, I’m stuffed but I went along anyway.  Actually I was really full up with the French bread and Phil said so was he, but he managed to wolf down 3 or 4 courses anyway.

I wouldn’t deny him, because after all we are on holiday but there is no doubt that the more food he eats then the more his tummy hurts as well as his bottom.  It is such a shame, that the one weekend we chose to go away, that the side effects of the radiotherapy treatment start to kick in.  He has really suffered this weekend and I intend to do some research into his diet as soon as we get home.  He has still another 4 weeks to go so why suffer unnecessarily.

The remainder of the day was uneventful. We read our books, basked in sun then went down for an early dinner.  We had one drink at the bar after dinner but then it was straight to bed and lights out by 10pm.   We're now off for breakfast and then its time for these 2 little piggies to head get on the road and head for the airport.   It's been great to get away for the weekend but the time has flown by.

  

Sun, Sea & Sangria

We had a busy morning on Friday, our departure day, but we managed to get everything done that needed to be done before going away.  Phil got his early morning zapping done at NG then managed to get his hair cut in Wolverton and also managed to book an appointment at the dentist before going over to Caldecotte to check up on the glaziers.  I also had stuff to do but somehow we managed to meet up at midday and went for lunch at the carvery at Shenley Church End.  It was just a shame that a sleepless night and an almost back to back session of radiotherapy played havoc with Phil’s bottom so he wasn’t feeling too great.  Plus for some reason his cold had come with back vengeance so it wasn’t the best start to our mini-break.

Sue picked us up from home and very kindly took us to the airport around half two’ish.  Traffic was a bit stop start with the road works and it took her nearly an hour there and back.  There was no rush for us because we’d left enough time but it’s always frustrating for the driver when Luton is so close.  We were flying with Monarch which was the first time with this airline since our 36 hour delay back from India in November but I’m pleased to say outward bound yesterday that it was all good.  Check in took 5 minutes, we’d cleared security and customs in about 20 which gave us plenty of time to buy a paper and Prett sandwiches and chill out in the bar.  Poor Phil’s nose was streaming and he was a bit miserable to say the least and his mood didn’t improve when it was announced that our flight was delayed. 

The delay turned out to be only 30 minutes and was no big deal.  An extra drink in the bar and when we finally boarded we were over the moon to find that we had been allocated exit aisle seats with not only extra leg room, but no one next to us on the third seat.  A very nice surprise especially given the mood that Phil was in.  The flight passed quickly, some reading and some red wine and soon we were landing in Palma.  In spite of the delay, the flight landed the same time as it was scheduled, so that was good.  We didn’t have any luggage in the hold so straight through customs and off to Gold Rentals to pick up the car.  This was easy but not so easy getting out of the airport and finding our bearings with a sat nav which thought it was still in Milton Keynes. It took about an hour and half to reach our hotel; it wasn’t easy in the dark especially because the cigarette lighter for the sat nav didn’t work and the sat nav died just as we got into Calles de Mallorca.  A few arguments and a few cross words mostly due to tiredness but luckily I spotted the sign for our hotel and we parked easily.

By this time it was 11pm, just time to throw our bags at the concierge and go check out the all-inclusive bar that closed at midnight.  We had a few wines then got our bags at closing and crashed out, we were absolutely knackered.  Needless to say Phil was up with the lark with his toilet problems but he was thoughtful and went out to read on the balcony whilst I slept.  When you arrive in the dark there is no chance to suss out the surroundings but I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised this morning.  In case anyone is interested, or wants to check it out, we are staying at Hotel Canaries Park in Callas de Mallorca.  We have no internet access or our room which is where I am drafting this blog from, so sorry can’t provide a URL.

Some of the web reviews about this hotel haven’t been great but whilst I wasn’t expecting anything great, for a 3 star all-inclusive establishment, all is fine.  I guess I was expecting something like the programme ‘Benidorm’; Phil hates this programme but I loved this series with a passion but actually there is no comparison.  Don’t get me wrong, it has its similarities, but our room is clean and spacious, as is the hotel, the tourists are a good mixture of English, German, Dutch and French which means that it is not, all ‘kiss me quick’ tattoos and union jacks.   The all-day buffets of lunch, breakfast and dinner are NOT fine dining but if you are selective, you can eat well.  Breakfast was good, lunch was a little predictable and I can’t believe I pigged out on crap like pizza, pasta and white bread.  I never do this at home but I was tired today and in need of stodge, comfort and carbs.  I can’t comment on dinner because we have tried this yet; at the time of writing, it’s mid-afternoon. If I carry on eating and drinking like I have done thus far this weekend, I am sure I will have put on half a stone by the time I return home.

This morning after breakfast, we drove towards the sea, parked up at a hotel then walked down to the coast.  I was glad we drove half the way because the walk to the sandy cove beach took an hour there and back.  The weather is beautiful, clear, bright and sunny with temperatures of 28 Celsius.   It’s been a chill out day today so nothing exciting to report I’m afraid.  In a minute I’m going to have to take my laptop to try and publish in a hot Wi-Fi zone by reception then I guess we’ll grab a free drink, have dinner and maybe stay up for the Karaoke;  or maybe not.  Never say never as they say; the mode for this mini-break, is just go with the flow.  Sometimes that’s the best and only way to go.