Birthday and Visit to Majorca
November started as October had finished - with no time to go to fitness classes! Monica fell over at the weekend in Maidenhead - dropping Marcia off from their trip to Tulloch, so she had been driving for 10 hours - and was in hospital in Slough with a broken hip, which had been pinned. I went over to see her - what a nightmare it was trying to park in the hospital car park, with lots of vehicles going round and round waiting for someone to come out of a space. In the end I gave up and came out intending to park on a road somewhere and walk, and was extremely lucky to find a space in the long layby outside. A two-hour slot which suited me well. Monica seemed to be quite cheerful and well and was already able to walk slowly down the corridor on someone's arm to use the facilities.
I had lunch with Len and Janet on 1st Nov - we met at Paddington station (torrential downpour thankfully easing as we left its shelter) and went to the Ask Italian Restaurant just a couple of minutes walk away. We hadn't met up for nearly two years and we had a good catch up - 4 hours and two bottles of wine.
On my birthday I went walking with Maryanne, Mary and Kath Firman. I was a bit worried about Suki as she was still limping, but she seemed to cope. We met at Maryanne's house and walked from there to Coleshill and back - just over 8 miles!
We then had a light lunch of quiche and coleslaw which Maryanne had prepared, followed by a huge victoria sponge which Mary had made.
Lee and Emma turned up in the evening to stay for the week and look after Suki (and Mike). Lorraine also turned up as I was giving her a lift to Stansted the following day. We set off at 8.30 prompt to drive the 1 hr 20 to get Lorraine there in good time for her 10.15 check in, only to be delayed by 45 mins on the M25 by an accident. In the end Lorraine rushed through departures and just had time for a coffee and croissant before dashing for her flight (the transfer shuttle wasn't working which didn't help!). My flight was an hour later so I had plenty of time to check in and mooch round the shops. My journey was straightforward and as enjoyable as is possible on a Ryanair flight! When I got to Palma I got a message from Lorraine that she had missed the bus and was waiting for me in the airport. So we went to the transfer office and she was able to pay for a place on my transfer bus. Unusually it was a large coach with quite a lot of people on it (most times I have had a taxi to myself!) so we had a long tour round the streets of Palma and Portals nous dropping people off at hotels before we finally got to Magaluf.
I was very impressed with the hotel, which had been redecorated since my last visit. Reception was light and attractive, and the rooms had been painted and looked fresh and clean with new curtains. But the best bit was the beds - which now had mattress toppers, sheets that were big enough to tuck in, and duvets instead of scratchy blankets. The old bedspreads had disappeared too. They were so comfortable, and I had a great night's sleep every night - which is unusual for me.
Lorraine walked back up to meet me after dropping her case off at her apartment, and we walked round to Aldi where Amanda was waiting for us. We got some shopping and then Amanda took us back to her apartment where we had pizza from Aldi for supper - they were very good!
I had a lovely week - it was great to see everyone again. The kids were lovely and I received quite a bit of attention from Bethany which was unusual but nice. The weather was lovely and warm and sunny, except for Friday when it rained a lot. Amanda had started a new job at the beginning of the week so was only around from about 7 pm each evening, but Lorraine was not working so I met up with her each day for a coffee - and sometimes tostados. I tended to have breakfast on my balcony, then spend a couple of hours each morning cross stitching, then go out for a walk and meet up with Lorraine for the afternoon, finishing up at Amanda's for the evening. We had take away Thai and Curry on a couple of evenings, and Sam made a delicious cottage pie one evening! At the weekend Sam looked after the kids on the Saturday while the 3 of us went to Fan (the new shopping centre in Palma) and indulged in several hours of retail therapy. In the evening we went to Hacienda for a lovely meal - I had an excellent rump steak followed by Tiramasu.
On Sunday we went to the restaurant in Portals nous where Lorraine works, for Sunday lunch carvery. I walked there - one hour 4.5 miles - and then got a lift back with Amanda. I was a bit early so I walked down to the port, which was very attractive.
It was a bit dark in the evenings for walking to Son Ferrer although I did manage it once with Lorraine (who hadn't walked it before). We also went by bus one day, which was a new experience for me.
All photos https://photos.app.goo.gl/zLZhEs7S8XvsFsaS9
Leanne produced this lovely collage on Ollie's birthday
I had lunch with Len and Janet on 1st Nov - we met at Paddington station (torrential downpour thankfully easing as we left its shelter) and went to the Ask Italian Restaurant just a couple of minutes walk away. We hadn't met up for nearly two years and we had a good catch up - 4 hours and two bottles of wine.
On my birthday I went walking with Maryanne, Mary and Kath Firman. I was a bit worried about Suki as she was still limping, but she seemed to cope. We met at Maryanne's house and walked from there to Coleshill and back - just over 8 miles!
We then had a light lunch of quiche and coleslaw which Maryanne had prepared, followed by a huge victoria sponge which Mary had made.
Lee and Emma turned up in the evening to stay for the week and look after Suki (and Mike). Lorraine also turned up as I was giving her a lift to Stansted the following day. We set off at 8.30 prompt to drive the 1 hr 20 to get Lorraine there in good time for her 10.15 check in, only to be delayed by 45 mins on the M25 by an accident. In the end Lorraine rushed through departures and just had time for a coffee and croissant before dashing for her flight (the transfer shuttle wasn't working which didn't help!). My flight was an hour later so I had plenty of time to check in and mooch round the shops. My journey was straightforward and as enjoyable as is possible on a Ryanair flight! When I got to Palma I got a message from Lorraine that she had missed the bus and was waiting for me in the airport. So we went to the transfer office and she was able to pay for a place on my transfer bus. Unusually it was a large coach with quite a lot of people on it (most times I have had a taxi to myself!) so we had a long tour round the streets of Palma and Portals nous dropping people off at hotels before we finally got to Magaluf.
I was very impressed with the hotel, which had been redecorated since my last visit. Reception was light and attractive, and the rooms had been painted and looked fresh and clean with new curtains. But the best bit was the beds - which now had mattress toppers, sheets that were big enough to tuck in, and duvets instead of scratchy blankets. The old bedspreads had disappeared too. They were so comfortable, and I had a great night's sleep every night - which is unusual for me.
Lorraine walked back up to meet me after dropping her case off at her apartment, and we walked round to Aldi where Amanda was waiting for us. We got some shopping and then Amanda took us back to her apartment where we had pizza from Aldi for supper - they were very good!
I had a lovely week - it was great to see everyone again. The kids were lovely and I received quite a bit of attention from Bethany which was unusual but nice. The weather was lovely and warm and sunny, except for Friday when it rained a lot. Amanda had started a new job at the beginning of the week so was only around from about 7 pm each evening, but Lorraine was not working so I met up with her each day for a coffee - and sometimes tostados. I tended to have breakfast on my balcony, then spend a couple of hours each morning cross stitching, then go out for a walk and meet up with Lorraine for the afternoon, finishing up at Amanda's for the evening. We had take away Thai and Curry on a couple of evenings, and Sam made a delicious cottage pie one evening! At the weekend Sam looked after the kids on the Saturday while the 3 of us went to Fan (the new shopping centre in Palma) and indulged in several hours of retail therapy. In the evening we went to Hacienda for a lovely meal - I had an excellent rump steak followed by Tiramasu.
On Sunday we went to the restaurant in Portals nous where Lorraine works, for Sunday lunch carvery. I walked there - one hour 4.5 miles - and then got a lift back with Amanda. I was a bit early so I walked down to the port, which was very attractive.
It was a bit dark in the evenings for walking to Son Ferrer although I did manage it once with Lorraine (who hadn't walked it before). We also went by bus one day, which was a new experience for me.
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| Breakfast on the balcony |
Walking to Palma Nova
The new hotel swimming pool - with alarming leak! It has been leaking since it was built.
Lorraine had only just moved into a new apartment, which is a holiday let during the season, and spent a lot of time during the week deep cleaning it and clearing it of the rubbish etc which had amassed. She had virtually finished by the time I left
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| Before |
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| After |
Leanne produced this lovely collage on Ollie's birthday
