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Ramblings in Retirement

December 2007

RAIN, RAIN.

It has been a strange month this year in that we have had more than our fair share of RAIN! After starting the month with sunny skies and warm temperatures, by mid month, it started to pour down and continued off and on for the rest of the month until the last few days of the year. In one way it has been beneficial in that the reservois are now well topped up.

NO BRRMM, BRRMM.

The new car has not arrived! Ordered in late July, we have been waiting an waiting whilst the delivery dates kept changing. I was offered delivery on the 22nd December however registration takes about a week so it seemed pointless to register the car in 2006 when in only 3 days it would be a 2007 car and not affect the book value by several hundred euros. The new delivery date is mid January. When we ordered the car in July we were full of enthusiasm and excitement, now I keep looking at other models and options, hopefully the excitement will reappear when the car actually arrives.

MATES.
Our friends from Tortosa paid us a visit and we spent a great weekend together. On this occassion We were able to show them some of the local sights and scenery.

They must have loved it, for a couple of weeks later, they popped in again on their way back from Malaga for a surprise. We have made tentative plans to join them in a visit to Andorra in the Spring so I better get saving up as no doubt some heavy shopping will be on the cards.

FIT as a BUTCHERS DOG.

As I have quit my membership of the golf club (now playing as a day member), I have diverted my cash rersources to joining the gym in Denia. I am determined to keep fit and to trim my Christmas excesses without resorting to heavy dieting. The gym has the very latest equipment (although I needed help in getting some pieces started, it's odd how something as simple as a running machine needs to be programmed with every statstic before it will start)! The gym also has a sauna, hot tub and large swimming pool. I am confining my early days to circuit training as the initial experience has proved strenuous enough for now.

CHRISSY BREAK.

At Christmas we decided to go off and explore some more of Spain. We opted for Teruel a town in the Aragon Region. We received our "Amigos" membership card for the Parador Hotel chain and took advantage of one of their Christmas offers at the Teruel Parador. (you may recall from earlier Ramblings that Penny and I have stayed at other Paradors as we like the amience, standards and antiquity. The Paradors are a state run hotel chain where they take over buildings of architectural interest and turn them into hotels, thereby preserving and maintaing their heritage and history and structure whilst enabling the public to enjoy them also. Many Paradors are ancient castles or monasteries or similar type buildings. I do not know how profitable the chain is, but I admire the inspired way they have preserved the historical interest of old buildings (just imagine a similar state run hotel chain in the UK, using the old stately homes currently run by the National Trust).

DONDE ES?

Anyway, back to our mini holiday, the new road system around the town of Teruel is not recognised by my SatNav so it kept telling me I'd arrived when the car was in the middle of a dual carridgeway! My command of the Spanish language is good enought to ask for directions but not quite up to scratch when receiving them so we had several circular trips around the town. Eventually, we pulled over to a couple who were walking at the roadside, Lo and Behold, not only were they English, not only from Yorkshire, not only lived in a town just 15 minutes from ours in Denia but also were taking a mini break in the Parador just like us, Spooky or what! Actually, they were a lovely couple and we enjoyed their company over drinks and having meals together.

INFO.

Teruel is situated in Aragon and is on the main road from Valencia to Zaragoza, the town is on a plateau (which averages 1250 metres high, almost as high above sea level as Ben Nevis), There are two ski resorts nearby but they are the preserve of the Spanish and do not "benefit" from the influx of ski tourists. We visited the ski centre at Valdelinares but although there was some snow on the ground there was not enough for skiing.

Frozen River
















Iciclefall!








FAMOSO.

There are two things Teruel is famous for:
Teruel Jamon, this is a gourmet serrano ham and much prized, a mouthful tells you why.
The Mudejar architecture. Mudejar is a term given to a unique style which arose in the 12th centuary when Muslims, Jews and Christians lived in harmony. (no, this is not a joke, it did happen, once). The building style reflected the fusing elements of their different cultures and many of the structures are protected as UNESCO World Heritages Sites since 1986.

Torre San Martin, Teruel





ONWARD and UPWARD.

On Christmas Day we travelled north west to the walled city of Abarracin (actually the size of a small town, but it did have a cathedral).

Walled City of Abarracin











View of Abarracin from road














The Catherdral of Albarracin














Narrow Cobbled Streets

The town is a beautifully preserved mixture of steep cobbled streets lined with charming houses. Albarracin was the only Moorish village in Spain to be handed over peacefully tothe Christain armies during the centuries long battles to oust the Arab invaders.

BRRR.

On Boxing Day the temperature was -4 degrees at the Parador when we set off and later, after a bit of shopping in Valencia, it had risen to 22 degrees, and no, it wasn't because I was all hot and bothered spending money!

For AULD LANG SYNE



Our New Year Celebrations are now a delightful routine, lovely meal, especially nice wine, DVD movie then on to the naya with a glass of champagne to toast the New Year and watch the firworks along the coastline.

Penny and I have had a difficult year in 2006 with Penny travelling back and forth to the UK for the Angina problem but we are confident all that is behind us now and we look forward positively to a great 2007.

Penny and I wish you all a Happy, healthy and prosperous NewYear