March 17th 2020: Coronavirus Day 3

Just a point of clarification...it isn't actually day 3 of the pandemic...just day 3 of us biting the bullet and self isolating.   Of course, that's been overtaken by national events and now everyone is socially distancing.  Some silly man on TV news last night, downing his pint at the pub, said he was still going to go out!  I wonder how long it will be before police are on the streets sending people home as they have been doing in Italy?

Here are the headlines today.

Guardian online 17th March 2020

Our day started with a bang!  Literally!  I was lying in bed, slowly coming to the surface when there was an enormous crash from downstairs.  Cautiously we crept down, expecting to find a burglar with a broken neck or a tree through the window.  No, it was a picture cord that had given up the ghost.  It lay face down on the carpet, amazingly with glass intact.   We retired back to bed with a restorative cup of tea and wondered..,was that a metaphor?

It's only 8.47 and already I've been exchanging lots of emails with friends in the walking group. We've realised that we can't walk as a group but they are a lovely bunch and so I'm encouraging everyone to get on Skype so that we can meet virtually on our usual walking morning.  Am also trying to set up a book club Skype group so we can talk about the book on book club day.  Sadly, we won't be able to eat cake together!

Etty and banana! 

Pearl in the park

Laura is sending us lots of pictures of Etty who has just started on solids!  They are making us very happy!   

What is not making me happy is that the online grocery sites have crashed!  I just managed to get a slot for a Waitrose delivery and was about to start filling my 'trolley' when it disappeared.  No doubt when it comes back on the slot with have gone! (It had!)

It's 10.25 am and I still haven't had any breakfast.  Too much tapping on the laptop!

It's good to see that Pearl is still getting out to the park.  We had a WhatsApp video call with her today and she did some fancy dancing for us!

Our neighbours, both doctors (and now working from home) and younger than most in the street, have started a What'sApp group and offered to help with shopping and essential errands.  It's a great idea. With two doctors, a nurse, a health visitor and a virologist on the street we should be OK!  We all signed up to the WhatsApp group and I gave the doctors some of the addresses they had missed.

So, my day got off to a slow start but I managed to begin cleaning the kitchen.  Two shelves and a dresser have now been cleared, dusted and re-organised.  I decided to clear out a couple of cookery books I don't use and some of my less successful pots from the pottery class.   I put them in a box and left the box at the bottom of the road with a sign 'Help yourself'.   I shall be curious to see if any have been taken. 

Saxlingham Nethergate

After lunch we drove to Saxlingham Nethergate, not far outside Norwich and took a walk which lasted 2 hours.  It was a beautiful day, warmish and the countryside was empty apart from about 3 dog walkers to whom we gave a wide berth. The planned walk was longer than I thought so we cut back along a lane to rejoin this lovely sandy path before re-entering the churchyard for a sit-down!

Graveyard

Back home we treated ourselves to tea and orange cake and had a surprise Skype call with Abe and Saul. 

Had a telephone conversation  this evening with Ros with whom I share a cleaner.  We decided between us that it wouldn't be right for her to continue to clean for us as the advice is not to let people in to your house.  We watched the news tonight.  Rather gloomy both at home and abroad and continued to be amazed at the number of people who don't seem to be taking this seriously.

So far have managed to get three of the book club signed up to Skype!

March 16th 2020: Coronavirus Day 2

Day two of our social isolation.  

We got up late.  I wonder if that will become a feature of our closed in life?  After the usual chores and admin., we deep cleaned the utility room!   It was really satisfying to take everything off the shelves, the surfaces and the floor and give it a good going over!  Our very nice cleaner has gone off to visit her family in Poland.  Poland has now closed its borders and we're not clear if she will be able to get back to the UK.  Our plan is to do one room each day!

Had a long telephone call with a neighbour, Kate, with much discussion about what we should and should not be doing.   We decided that when the weather permits we should get together (at a distance) in each other's gardens.  

Lunch was a healthy salad with butter beans, red onion, tomato, cucumber, red pepper, lettuce, tuna and garlic with a balsamic dressing.  

After much deliberation I decided to accept an invitation to tea with a friend in the next street.  We sat a safe distance apart and the virus was a hot topic, but not the only one.   We also talked about our shared veg. plot and the seeds to be planted for this year.   When I got back I dug out some courgette seeds and will start them off tomorrow.

Quite some time today was taken up with a debate about walking in a group.  It was suggested by one of our regular walking group and there was considerable enthusiasm.  That is until the news this evening.  The prime minister, for once with a straight face and no gags, announced new measures to control the spread of the virus.

"Everybody in the UK has been asked to stop non-essential contact with other people and avoid all unnecessary travel. This is known as social distancing."

We got a video clip of granddaughter Etty trying out cucumber today and a sad string of messages from her mum Laura who is not looking forward to life at home with a baby and no clubs, outings etc.  We are all going to have to work hard at adjusting.   I've started by cancelling my meeting with a friend, Miriam, for coffee and replacing it with a Skype call.   Tomorrow I'll try and set up book club on Skype.  

Lovely sunny day today.  Soon we'll get out the garden chairs and tables so that we can sit in the garden and enjoy the sun and fresh air as much as possible.   

Also, made an orange cake!  

15th March 2020: A new chapter: Coronavirus Day 1

It's been a while since we went to Cadiz and put anything on this blog.   Christmas has come and gone and we were looking forward to Spring, holidays and family gatherings when the Coronavirus pandemic made life suddenly rather serious and depressing.

BBC news 15.3.20

I'm not writing here about the virus as it's in every newspaper, online, on TV and radio worldwide.   The news at lunch time was sobering.  Over 70s (that's us!!) may be asked to stay at home for 4 months.  It's difficult to imagine the impact on the very old and the lonely, or indeed how Peter and I will shape our lives if this happens and over such a long period.

We went to the cinema last Friday and had dinner with our cinema club friends.   It may be the last such outing for a while.  We were prompted to start thinking about protecting ourselves and so have opted for 'social distancing' - basically keeping away from other people.  It started yesterday.  So far the virus has affected us in the following ways:

• Peter has had meetings cancelled and his 2 trips to China are off for the foreseeable future. More 'phone calls and conference calls are planned.
• Son no. 1 and partner cancelled their trip away and we are not now going to London to look after our granddaughter Pearl.  His business is in jeopardy as so many of this clients are in the restaurant and entertainment industry.
• Our son who's in the advertising industry may find looking for work more difficult. 
• Our trip to Nantes for my birthday will be cancelled as the French museums and restaurants are now closed and what's a holiday in France without those? 
• My birthday lunch with friends may be cancelled as the restaurant, a new French bistro in Norwich, is tiny and we wouldn't be able to keep our distance sufficiently.
• I've done an online shop and bought a few extras, but have followed the advice and not stockpiled.  We are assured that there is enough food if people shop normally.  Anyway I have cupboards full of stuff and it will be a good thing to go through them and use them up even if the best before dates are alarming!  
• This morning the delivery man put the groceries on the door step, as requested, and stood a good metre away.  
• I've already got chapped hands from washing them so frequently - which reminds me! 

For the future:

• The family gathering at Easter/Passover may have to be cancelled. 
• We may turn down the invitation to supper at a friend's.  We haven't really got our heads round not seeing people! 
• We're worried about not seeing our youngest grandchild who is only 20 minutes away.  Should they come round? 
• We'll make more WhatsApp, telephone and Skype calls as it will be important to actually talk to people rather than text (which is a very poor form of interaction in my view and leads to all sorts of misunderstandings!). 
• I've ordered more bread flour! 

On the brighter side:

• We may read more
• We'll have time to clear the loft and do some decorating at the Southwold house
• I'll be on top of the gardening
• I may talk to friends every day!  

So, today we got up late.  Ate homemade bread for breakfast.  Took in the online grocery order, did a load of washing.  Went for a walk at the university.  Talked to a friend who lives round the corner. .  Tried to talk to friend in Italy. Rang brother in law. Exchanged chat on WhatsApp with my cousins and second cousins one of whom lives in Hong Kong.  Had lunch. Went down to The Plantation Garden (here's a link if you don't know it) to put some money from the sale of guide books at my talk last week into the box for the treasurer.  Made chicken soup. Wrote the blog and then did a pile of ironing.   Watched the news - twice! 

Cadiz at last: Day 4

172 steps!! 

We arrived at the Tavira Tower for our tour and were told to climb to the top where the tour would start!   There are 172 steps as a notice at the top announced and it seems that Tintin had got there before us!  The views from the top were quite something.  On the third floor is a camera obscure and we were treated to a demonstration and views of Cadiz.  We saw people walking about and washing flapping on the roofs!  It was an interesting experience.

Cadiz

Cadiz

Rooftops and towers

 We found a cafe near the market where we sat and enjoyed a coffee and people watched.  We remarked on the number of wheel chairs in use, also mobility scooters, grandmas pushing prams and young people taking old people for walks.  Then we headed for the cathedral and paid our 5€ each for an audio guide and religiously (!) toured the cathedral.

The main altar

Some impressive silver work

Another short stroll to a square we've been to before and an examination of menus in the various restaurants there.   We decided on a beer in a modest cafe and then had some tapas - langoustine salad, potatas bravas and meatballs in sauce putannesca.   Then back to the apartment for a rest!

Refreshed, we spent a while packing up and then went off in search of supper.   We cruised round the restaurants on the Plaza de Mina and chose a cafe with tables on the square which looked well patronised and had some slightly different dishes on offer.   We had tortillas de camerones and a tomato and burrata salad for starters and Peter ordered a grilled sole for his main and I ordered the chicken and chorizo paella.   After the starters, Peter's sole appeared but my paella didn't.   When we could catch the waiter's eye, which was some minutes, during which Peter had almost finished his sole, it turned out that he hadn't actually placed the order for the paella.  Much apologising, but that didn't help and I had to resort to choosing something quicker off the menu as the paella takes half and hour.   I was very disappointed!

In the morning our taxi was very prompt and we were off on the start of our journey back to Norwich.  A good break.  Very relaxed and an interesting town with lots of people watching opportunities.  Friendly people too.  We wouldn't rate it very highly on the food front though.  Too many restaurants serving the same dishes and a lot of fried food.   A good place for a winter break - it was very hot when we were there. 

Cadiz at last: Day 3

Another late start!   This is the most laid back holiday, what with late starts and long siestas!  

Inside the museum

Still hot outside, though maybe a tad cooler than yesterday.  Our first stop was the Cadiz Museum, just around the corner from the flat.   Cool and quiet inside with a small collection of fine art, modern art and archaeology.  The museum is arranged around an open courtyard.   Made me feel slightly vertiginous!

Corrugated cardboard

Coffee stop

A dog/man chained to a TV!
a metaphor for our times...

We spent about an hour there and then headed across the Plaza de Mina  for coffee.  We stopped to buy a fan for Laura (spoiler alert, if you're reading this Laura!)   From there we walked to the Tavira Tower, but the map was misleading and we wandered about not quite finding it at first.  Eventually we stumbled on it.   Can't see the camera obscure without being on a guided tour, so we've booked ourselves on the tour for tomorrow morning - I couldn't face the climb up the tower today!   Then to the nearby central market, where we bought our rolls and two oranges, and back to the flat for lunch.  Simon What'sApped us so we had a long chat with him.

A little later we went on a short shopping trip for shoes for Peter (unsuccessful) another couple of fans (the choices are not great) and two bottles of Manzanilla sherry, which we are re-developing a taste for.   Then back to the flat to drop off the purchases and enjoy another glass of our host's wine and some tortilla chips before heading out for supper.  

The restaurant Casa Lazo

After much research we chose a busy looking place not far from the market, Casa Lazo.  We were amongst the earlier diners (at 8.30pm) but it soon filled up.   The waiter had all the dishes in colour on his phone!   It wasn't a sophisticated menu but we enjoyed calamari and octopus as starters with our sherry, then cod in a tasty sauce with a few limp chips for main course with a glass of white wine.  Deserts were non existent but we had some ice cream thingy straight from the packet!   We'd forgotten there was an ice cream place just round the corner!

The remains of the octopus

Cod in sauce

Cadiz at last: day 2

Looking down on the lobby of the block of flats

We got up fairly late, understandably, and had a frugal breakfast of cornflakes and banana and a cup of tea.  After much consultation of maps and newspaper cuttings, and taking the advice of Pablo, we walked up our street to the sea and then along the front where the path circles the 'nose' of Cadiz!   It was hot and the humidity was high, the sea was sparkling and clear and the sky was blue!

No idea what kind of tree this is

We admired some amazing trees, and some topiary.  We searched for a coffee stop but rejected the large modern Parador with its trendy furniture made from pallets, in favour of a bar, Quilla, that had been recommended for dinner in the evening.
 

Pallet furnitu

Topiary and blue sky

The waiter was a little surly, but we had two coffees and a much needed glass of water.  From our seats we could admire the sandy bay and the beach covered in bodies, with more bodies standing about in the shallow water.   There were also a lot of boats moored.  The shallowness of the beach and the fact that people were just standing about and not swimming, made it less of an attraction for us.

Central market, Cadiz

We turned inland along Rosa and headed for the central market where we admired the fish!   We decided on a light lunch and a siesta so we bought two freshly made sandwiches, some plums, a bottle of Coke Zero and a packet of corn tortillas.   Armed with these we threaded our way back to the apartment through the narrow streets.   After lunch we checked out a few restaurants and Peter rang and booked at Codigo de Barra, which has got good reviews.   Stand by for food pictures!

The Cathedral

Royalty at the Cafe Royalty!  

After a long siesta, catching up on reading and emails etc., we sampled the wine our host had left for us with some corn chips before setting off on an evening saunter before supper.  We went down Calle San Francisco which was lively and had a mixture of shops.  At a large square we turned right and found the even larger square in front of the Cathedral (which was closed for the evening).  On the steps a bride was having her photo taken and appeared to be undressing!   We moved on from the hot square to a shady street which took us to the plaza where our restaurant was located.   At first we were dismayed to see that the restaurant showed no signs of life, but we had time to spare so we went to the Cafe Royalty for a glass of sherry and admired the decor.    Through the window, Peter kept an eye on the Codigo de Barra and we were relieved to see that just a few minutes before our reservation time of 8.30pm the restaurant sprang to life, the tables were laid on the square and all was well!

We went over and sat down and the meal began!  We started with another sherry, and some tortillitas de camerones - shrimp fritters served with a pink mayonnaise.   While we were enjoying these we were presented with what looked like two olives in olive oil.  Turned out they were a surprising explosion in the mouth of icy green shell and something tasty inside.  We also had a glass of some kind of warm meat broth with a piece of dried jamon balanced on the top.  Our waitress explained that this represented the first tapas when some king (?) had asked for his glass to be covered to prevent flies falling in - I think that was the gist of the story.   Then our starters.  Prawns in sherry for Peter, in a froth of something delicious and unidentifiable.  Sweetbreads for me.  Small, rich and very tasty.   By now, beginning to regret the bread we had been dipping in the olive oil, we were feeling quite full and had to find room for our steak and mashed potato!  Actually, the steak was not that good.  The flavour was fine, but there was too much gristle.  The red wine was good though.  We consoled ourselves afterwards with a shared cold soup of mango with cardamon ice cream.  And threaded our way home.

Sherry

'Olives'

Sweetbreads

Prawns in sherry

Steak

Cadiz at last! Day 1

When we last tried to get to Cadiz in February, we were thwarted by high winds creating havoc at Amsterdam airport and after a day in the lounge we aborted and returned home. When we checked up on our flights this time, we found that the ground staff at Amsterdam were striking between 8 and 10, the very window between our arrival and departure for Madrid!  When we landed at Amsterdam, we sat on the tarmac looking at the aircraft steps tantalisingly near but not attached.  The captain was humorous and promised coffee, but not for everyone as they only had 72 cups!!  Just when we were wondering how they were going to decide who went without, the two bus drivers who were waiting, took matters into their own hands and moved the steps themselves. The aircraft door opened and they got a round of applause!

From Amsterdam we took a flight to Madrid and then a yellow bus to the Atocha train station and got our seats in first class for the 4 hour train  ride to Cadiz, travelling through a dry, brown landscape peppered with olive trees and vines.

Atocha station

View from the train 

Our Airbnb host Pablo was waiting outside the apartment building and took us through the essentials. The apartment is in an old building built round a covered courtyard. 

The courtyard 

Waiting for tapas

The apartment is spacious and white!  Our immediate excursion at about 8.45pm  was to Carrefour for milk and cornflakes!  The narrow streets were busy with amblers and  the squares alive with little footballers!  We returned our shopping to the flat and headed to the nearest square for supper and  a glass of wine.

And then home to bed!  We had been up since 4.0 am