Tuesday 30 September 2008
Walking in the Fragas de Eume
We went for a walk through part of the Fragas de Eume on Sunday - the Eume bit being the name of the river - on google earth or maps look for Pontedeume and follow the road from Chao de Ombre into the valley and you will see roughly where we went. I remembered to switch the video camera on every now and then, it was fairly warm around 28 C so good to be in shade some of the time. The river is so clean and blue it reminds me of meltwater rivers in Norway or the Alps. There are a lot of natural trees in the Fragas but the eucalyptus are making inroads there too - they are a real menace and the government seem to be realising they are both a valuable crop and a pernicious weed.
Friday 26 September 2008
strange sand on the beach at vilarrube
Weird what sand and water can do ...
And
how something the right way up can look upside down....at least it does to me.
And
how something the right way up can look upside down....at least it does to me.
chastnuts and azafran
Just up the road towards Vilarrube a little way there is a tiny ermida - that sounds like it might be a hermitage but it is a little chapel with enough room for about 10 people inside and some great chestnut trees outside.
Not sure what the boys wre puzzling over here; maybe the creaky tree overhead.
Just starting to be ready we gathered enough for a small feast in a few minutes.
Scattered in the grass are hundreds of saffron flowers, they also grow wild on the moors near here.
Not sure what the boys wre puzzling over here; maybe the creaky tree overhead.
Just starting to be ready we gathered enough for a small feast in a few minutes.
Scattered in the grass are hundreds of saffron flowers, they also grow wild on the moors near here.
Saturday 20 September 2008
Cedeira again and lots of talking
We headed off to Cedeira at 3 pm and despite it being a baking 30 C and the seafront beach for a town the size of Penzance there was plenty of room. There are nicer beaches but being able to drive onto the sand to drop all our baggage off is a real attraction and I forgot to buy bread in the morning so we did some shopping too.
Jenny took her first trip in the Sea Eagle kayak although, because we were all in it, we have no photos of the momentous event, we paddled out a few hundred meters and drifted about off a little reef watching bass and mullet chasing hundred of little tiny fish. I think she enjoyed it as we ended up talking about doing a trip down the Canyon de Sil next year.
Sam gave the boys a surfboard on Rowan's birthday and this a the first time it was trialed - they loved it and Cal managed to balance really well on it standing up, not easy as it is a narrow low volume board and there were no waves.
Rowan took a more casual stance hanging loose most of the time perfectly off balance and totally in control - we will try it in some waves next time.
We had been home about 5 mins when the folk who gave us the chicken and potatoes - Carlos and Victoria knocked on the door with a mother who they kept saying was mad and a friend from mexico who could speak English and his girlfriend and their very young daughter and Carlos and Victoria's two children Carlos an Cristien and I dont think I have ever heard so much talking at such a loud volume and such a speed. The mother did not stop talking at all not for a second and neither did anyone else really it was mayhem but we learned some Spanish and they learned some English and there might be a meeting at the local cooperativa possibly for dads and children from all different places either having a reunion or making freinds for the first time and it is either being recorded by TV Galicia for a saturday morning TV show or they sit and watch TV during the meeting and it might also be for mums we are not really sure and we don't know when it is or maybe when it was but it was all very interesting and took a lot of telling and brought home just how important it is to learn some more Spanish. We learned a lot about local families and how hard it was living here in the past and they can't quite work out why we want to live in Galicia - England seems to be a dreamlike aspiration for many people as a place to go and live and make money. I didn't shatter their dreams we said the climate here and the friendliness of the people was mostly what attaracted us which is true and went down well. English is the language of success and they all want to learn it - sounds promising for us.
Jenny took her first trip in the Sea Eagle kayak although, because we were all in it, we have no photos of the momentous event, we paddled out a few hundred meters and drifted about off a little reef watching bass and mullet chasing hundred of little tiny fish. I think she enjoyed it as we ended up talking about doing a trip down the Canyon de Sil next year.
Sam gave the boys a surfboard on Rowan's birthday and this a the first time it was trialed - they loved it and Cal managed to balance really well on it standing up, not easy as it is a narrow low volume board and there were no waves.
Rowan took a more casual stance hanging loose most of the time perfectly off balance and totally in control - we will try it in some waves next time.
We had been home about 5 mins when the folk who gave us the chicken and potatoes - Carlos and Victoria knocked on the door with a mother who they kept saying was mad and a friend from mexico who could speak English and his girlfriend and their very young daughter and Carlos and Victoria's two children Carlos an Cristien and I dont think I have ever heard so much talking at such a loud volume and such a speed. The mother did not stop talking at all not for a second and neither did anyone else really it was mayhem but we learned some Spanish and they learned some English and there might be a meeting at the local cooperativa possibly for dads and children from all different places either having a reunion or making freinds for the first time and it is either being recorded by TV Galicia for a saturday morning TV show or they sit and watch TV during the meeting and it might also be for mums we are not really sure and we don't know when it is or maybe when it was but it was all very interesting and took a lot of telling and brought home just how important it is to learn some more Spanish. We learned a lot about local families and how hard it was living here in the past and they can't quite work out why we want to live in Galicia - England seems to be a dreamlike aspiration for many people as a place to go and live and make money. I didn't shatter their dreams we said the climate here and the friendliness of the people was mostly what attaracted us which is true and went down well. English is the language of success and they all want to learn it - sounds promising for us.
Our House - Carrizos
People keep asking what the house looks like so here are some more pictures starting with the front bit.
Outside in the drive is a large granite table and seats, we have just planted a bouganvilia to grow along the wall and some ginger plants that seem to thrive out here and there are a couple of young vines trying to establish there too.
The far end painted white with external steps used to be a carniceria. The shutter is down but there is a big window there.When we bought it the owners had stopped their butchery business and started to convert it to a larger building so the grey bit is just a half finished room that one day will be linked through. Neither of these bits look very wide but the house is quite deep front to back so it is a fairly good size and it is on a slope so the rear is two stories...but only at the carniceria end. The gap is a set of external steps that lead up to a huge attic above the bungalow bit. We keep thinking we might rent the bungalow out for a few weeks in the summer and live in the other bit.
Next pic is of the rest of the front, if you imagine it joined onto the previous pic the two windows on the right of the bungalow are our living room. The window left of the front door is the boys bedroom. and there is a garage on the far left.
Round the side you can see some of our trees and a bit of view. We need to put some big windows in the west wall really.
And here are some more of the trees and field. The trees shade us from the evening sun but also provide shelter from the west wind in the winter and will be a valuable crop in about 10 years with luck.
Looking at the back you can see the read window of the carneceria on the left upstairs that has the best views of the valley, I hope that will be my office fairly soon. Then there is a small opening in the grey bit upstairs that will be a larger window one day and below it a huge opening leading into an open plan downstairs area that use to house a tractor, hens and lots of rabbits but has our caravan and some hay in it just now. We hope to put a huge glass door / window across the opening and make it into a big room one day...and move the 6 huge gass bottles that you can see behind our lemon tree and the snowbirds pen and put a big window there too.
The only inside pic I have so far is of the kitchen that is small but well equiped.
The rest of the house is a jungle of boys toys - will be photographed in one of those few minute gaps between tidying up and new toy avalanches.
Outside in the drive is a large granite table and seats, we have just planted a bouganvilia to grow along the wall and some ginger plants that seem to thrive out here and there are a couple of young vines trying to establish there too.
The far end painted white with external steps used to be a carniceria. The shutter is down but there is a big window there.When we bought it the owners had stopped their butchery business and started to convert it to a larger building so the grey bit is just a half finished room that one day will be linked through. Neither of these bits look very wide but the house is quite deep front to back so it is a fairly good size and it is on a slope so the rear is two stories...but only at the carniceria end. The gap is a set of external steps that lead up to a huge attic above the bungalow bit. We keep thinking we might rent the bungalow out for a few weeks in the summer and live in the other bit.
Next pic is of the rest of the front, if you imagine it joined onto the previous pic the two windows on the right of the bungalow are our living room. The window left of the front door is the boys bedroom. and there is a garage on the far left.
Round the side you can see some of our trees and a bit of view. We need to put some big windows in the west wall really.
And here are some more of the trees and field. The trees shade us from the evening sun but also provide shelter from the west wind in the winter and will be a valuable crop in about 10 years with luck.
Looking at the back you can see the read window of the carneceria on the left upstairs that has the best views of the valley, I hope that will be my office fairly soon. Then there is a small opening in the grey bit upstairs that will be a larger window one day and below it a huge opening leading into an open plan downstairs area that use to house a tractor, hens and lots of rabbits but has our caravan and some hay in it just now. We hope to put a huge glass door / window across the opening and make it into a big room one day...and move the 6 huge gass bottles that you can see behind our lemon tree and the snowbirds pen and put a big window there too.
The only inside pic I have so far is of the kitchen that is small but well equiped.The rest of the house is a jungle of boys toys - will be photographed in one of those few minute gaps between tidying up and new toy avalanches.
Thursday 18 September 2008
4 hen names, school and my job.
I forgot to mention the names of our two new hens - Ginger and Flappy, they joined Kate and Poppy a week or so ago and settled in fine unlike El Pájaro De la Nieve who is a feisty girl rather like a yorkshire terrier she will take on anything. She almost escaped today - I had to do a bit more wing clipping and got pecked in the process but now she can only do a floppy spiral so I don't think she will get out of her pen again.
We managed to get to the local school - cosy with a total of 7 pupils, rather warm inside but very friendly staff and the children seemed nice too. Rowan liked it but Callum is adamant he is not going to go. We have to go to the Junta de Galicia in Ferrol to register before they can start and the English speaking person is only there on a Tuesday so the boys have a few days holiday to go yet.
I work running a degree programme at Anglia University and our students start back on Monday - I am really looking forward to it, the last few weeks have been filled with planning and resource making which is ok but I much prefer the working with students bit..its a totally online work focused, inquiry based approach so I spend my days in online community spaces facilitating a great bunch of students on theirjurney towards self improvement. My cohort are one semester away from graduating..exciting times.
We managed to get to the local school - cosy with a total of 7 pupils, rather warm inside but very friendly staff and the children seemed nice too. Rowan liked it but Callum is adamant he is not going to go. We have to go to the Junta de Galicia in Ferrol to register before they can start and the English speaking person is only there on a Tuesday so the boys have a few days holiday to go yet.
I work running a degree programme at Anglia University and our students start back on Monday - I am really looking forward to it, the last few weeks have been filled with planning and resource making which is ok but I much prefer the working with students bit..its a totally online work focused, inquiry based approach so I spend my days in online community spaces facilitating a great bunch of students on theirjurney towards self improvement. My cohort are one semester away from graduating..exciting times.
egg
Jubilations we have our first egg from the brown hens, I went out to think about making some nesting boxes and there it was still warm with all of the hens inspecting it as if it was something alien. One egg between two boys doesn't work unless it is in a pancake so we are off to make a mix. I think so far the egg has cost around 45 euros but the cost should drop as we get more :-)
At last an answer to a universal question - the chickens definitely preceded the egg in our experience.
At last an answer to a universal question - the chickens definitely preceded the egg in our experience.
Wednesday 17 September 2008
The Snow Bird and some gas
Bianca did not last long as a name - she now has the grand title of "The Snow Bird" and she is a really feisty princess. We should really be going for Spanish names but 'El Pájaro De la Nieve' does not exactly trip lightly of the tongue...hmm it does sound grand and almost Quixotish though and is perhaps a rival to Dulcima de Toboso on the beauty front.
I think we have a gatito (kitten) ariving soon; it is black and in its current home sleeps curled up with the eggs in our friends' henhouse - any guesses as to the likely name ? I think it might begin with B.
The boys are giving serious consideration as to middle names for all of the birds....naming things really is important to them just now - what wonderful ages to be - just 5 or almost 6.
We ran out of gas on sunday, have been ringing the gas man's number for a couple of weeks and getting a constant engaged tone so I finally had to check the address out in google earth and wend my way to the depths of Ferrol on Monday where amazingly enough I drove straight to the right place and even found a parking space not far off. A man arrived manyana de manyana to sort our new contract and on my proud rendering of "No hay nada gas" he became rather concerned and got busy on the phone and within 20 mins a lorry arrived with three full cylinders and just as I was getting lost in a mire of galego/castillian banter a lovely lady by chance chose that moment to knock at our door and introduce herself - a neighbour from not far away who speaks excelent English, and galego and castillian i think so phew confusion difused and clarity resumed and we breathed a huge sigh of relief..then realised a power surge had damaged our oven and the microwave now does a great lightning storm ...ah well life goes up and down doesn't it..the computer is thankfully ok .....upward and onward.
I think we have a gatito (kitten) ariving soon; it is black and in its current home sleeps curled up with the eggs in our friends' henhouse - any guesses as to the likely name ? I think it might begin with B.
The boys are giving serious consideration as to middle names for all of the birds....naming things really is important to them just now - what wonderful ages to be - just 5 or almost 6.
We ran out of gas on sunday, have been ringing the gas man's number for a couple of weeks and getting a constant engaged tone so I finally had to check the address out in google earth and wend my way to the depths of Ferrol on Monday where amazingly enough I drove straight to the right place and even found a parking space not far off. A man arrived manyana de manyana to sort our new contract and on my proud rendering of "No hay nada gas" he became rather concerned and got busy on the phone and within 20 mins a lorry arrived with three full cylinders and just as I was getting lost in a mire of galego/castillian banter a lovely lady by chance chose that moment to knock at our door and introduce herself - a neighbour from not far away who speaks excelent English, and galego and castillian i think so phew confusion difused and clarity resumed and we breathed a huge sigh of relief..then realised a power surge had damaged our oven and the microwave now does a great lightning storm ...ah well life goes up and down doesn't it..the computer is thankfully ok .....upward and onward.
Monday 15 September 2008
Bianca the new hen
We visited the local school to see about our boys attending but missed it by a few mins however the folk over the road invited us in for coffee and we left 20 mins later with about 30 kg of potatoes, 30 eggs and a new white hen now called Bianca. They warned us to keep her solo as she had not had her beak trimmed so would peck others in the cage - we don't do caging hens so we thought she might be ok outside with ours but nope despite being half their size she tried it on and was then mobbed by our 4 so she is now in the old temporary enclosure while we wonder is she a he and think out what to do.
Here is the luxury outdoor run somewhat shaded by the eucalyptus.
Our 4 little red hens and some white feathers.
Bianca hiding in her temporary hut.
Our 4 little red hens and some white feathers.
Bianca hiding in her temporary hut.
Friday 12 September 2008
more birthday
Doh ! the camera got forgotten for much of the day, friends came round and we visited our neighbours up the road who have a wicked sense of humour and take great delight in lacing my coffee with brandy when I am not looking then laughing at the wobbly Englishman. They are lovely but only speak Galego - I wish I could understand what they are saying.
Candels are great for playing with ...
and for blowing out
Rowan did breakdancing with Stanley and a lemon
Lorenna did looking very cute for the camera.
Candels are great for playing with ...
and for blowing out
Rowan did breakdancing with Stanley and a lemon
Lorenna did looking very cute for the camera.
Thursday 11 September 2008
Rowan's Birthday
Rowan is cinco anos today, Power Rangers and dinosaurs were on the agenda again and baloons of course and that smelly stuff in a tube that makes baloons. Pancakes for breakfast and his "bestest day ever" so far.
Rowan has only been out of bed less htan a minute and he is tearing the paper off the first one.
Callum gets a couple of presents as well.
Lots of bits in that box that make into...
..a megazoid eventualy
Callum blowing up the smelly stuff baloons.
We are off to Moeche market in a few mins - more photos later.
Rowan has only been out of bed less htan a minute and he is tearing the paper off the first one.
Callum gets a couple of presents as well.
Lots of bits in that box that make into...
..a megazoid eventualy
Callum blowing up the smelly stuff baloons.We are off to Moeche market in a few mins - more photos later.
Gardening
Yesterday we had a lot of fun in the garden playing with water and building a barbecue area.
Jenny is getting to grips with weeding - weeds grow at an incredible rate here. Callum managed to fit himself into a bucket of water and Rowan made muddy puddles.
We found half of a lareira (fireplace) in the front garden and the other half in the depths of downstairs, they are made of a serpentine kind of stone and weigh a lot.
A lot of hacking and some van power and they are now reunitied and our barbecue area is starting to take shape.
There is still some digging and seating to sort but we are getting there.
We had a trip into the hills the day before, I think this is looking down on Covas.
Jenny is getting to grips with weeding - weeds grow at an incredible rate here. Callum managed to fit himself into a bucket of water and Rowan made muddy puddles.
We found half of a lareira (fireplace) in the front garden and the other half in the depths of downstairs, they are made of a serpentine kind of stone and weigh a lot.
A lot of hacking and some van power and they are now reunitied and our barbecue area is starting to take shape.
There is still some digging and seating to sort but we are getting there.
We had a trip into the hills the day before, I think this is looking down on Covas.
Monday 8 September 2008
More kayaking and some fungi
Kayaking
Yesterday we found a really easy place to launch kayaks at the quiet end of Praia Magdelina at Cedeira, you can drive onto the beach and unload next to the water and explore some safe water or paddle round to the beautiful beaches and esturies at Villarube or head out to between the gap in the distant hills and into the open sea.
Fungi
On the edible fungi front so far we have found some lovely chantrelles larger and tastier than anything I ever found in the UK , lots of boletus, although I am only confident at identifying a few boletus variaties so we have not eaten may yet. Just over the road from our house the pine trees have no shortage of Sparassis Crispa.
This is a fungi I had never tasted but is now a firm favourite; I cooked some last night by gently frying in butter - it has a distinct and delicious nutty flavour, As far as I am aware ther are no poisonous fungi that look anything like it so it seems a fairly safe find. The photo is of a fairly young one (now consumed) but they can grow up to be many kilos.
Yesterday we found a really easy place to launch kayaks at the quiet end of Praia Magdelina at Cedeira, you can drive onto the beach and unload next to the water and explore some safe water or paddle round to the beautiful beaches and esturies at Villarube or head out to between the gap in the distant hills and into the open sea.
Fungi
On the edible fungi front so far we have found some lovely chantrelles larger and tastier than anything I ever found in the UK , lots of boletus, although I am only confident at identifying a few boletus variaties so we have not eaten may yet. Just over the road from our house the pine trees have no shortage of Sparassis Crispa.
This is a fungi I had never tasted but is now a firm favourite; I cooked some last night by gently frying in butter - it has a distinct and delicious nutty flavour, As far as I am aware ther are no poisonous fungi that look anything like it so it seems a fairly safe find. The photo is of a fairly young one (now consumed) but they can grow up to be many kilos.
Thursday 4 September 2008
Waterboys and outdoor girls
The boys love being in the sea, the Faro end of Valdovino has had some perfect waves for playing in recently.
Kate and Poppy have moved into different temporary accomodation, this time they are outside and they are a lot happier, as you can see the garden is getting a little more organised but not a lot.
The hens are named after the boys' big sisters who are all grown up and staying in the UK. It is three weeks today since we arrived and we are all begining to miss the folks back home. With school about to start the boys in particular are feeling a bit lost for friends and getting a tad naughty despite telling us that living here is just perfect. They are still telling us they are not going to school in Spain ..time will tell.
Kate and Poppy have moved into different temporary accomodation, this time they are outside and they are a lot happier, as you can see the garden is getting a little more organised but not a lot.
The hens are named after the boys' big sisters who are all grown up and staying in the UK. It is three weeks today since we arrived and we are all begining to miss the folks back home. With school about to start the boys in particular are feeling a bit lost for friends and getting a tad naughty despite telling us that living here is just perfect. They are still telling us they are not going to school in Spain ..time will tell.
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