I will watch a TV series in Spanish – I haven’t managed to finish a series in Spanish but I have started Chicas de Cable – a drama about the phone operators in Madrid in the 20s – on Netflix and I intend to finish it and watch the second series that has just been put on.
I will read at least one book per month – The main purpose of this was to make myself read more generally throughout the year, which definitely worked, but there were a few months where I ended up reading nothing which I hope I am able to rectify next year and ensure I don’t go quite as long without reading.
I will read a book in Spanish – This didn’t happen. I bought myself and Agatha Christie novel in a second hand bookshop in the hope that if it was something I would probably read in English I would feel more encouraged to read it in Spanish but that didn’t work. I read 2 pages of it a few weeks ago before bed and then forgot about it again, maybe I’ll finally get round to reading it next year but we shall have to wait and see.
I will see more of Spain – In a way this did happen, inadvertently, but it did happen. While living in Spain I got to see more of Galicia and in October I finally visited the south of Spain on a family holiday to Granada. I’m hoping that next year I am able to visit some friends in Spain before they leave in May and see a little more of the country I have called home more than once.
I will try to be more adventurous with foods – cooking and eating. – The one thing I can take away from 2017 is that I now eat raw tomatoes which was bound to happen at some point and it probably shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise that they were introduced to my diet on toasted bread rubbed with olive oil.
I will spend less time on my phone. – In order to tackle this one I had a 2 week cleanse from social media in August that curbed the use of my phone. However, I have definitely found that recently old habits have begun to creep back in so I am planning another break in the New Year.
I will try meditation. – I downloaded headspace early on in the year and completed the free 10 day trial but didn’t feel that it helped enough to fork out for the premium.
I will watch more sunrises. – Not as many as I would have liked but this will be an ongoing challenge for the rest of my life.
I will become more confident in my ability to speak Spanish while continuing to improve it. – I definitely found towards the end of my time in Spain that I had become a lot more relaxed about my Spanish especially around my flatmate and the teachers I worked with at school.
I will try not to get too caught up with money – as long as I have the money to pay for my rent and survive I will be fine. – Ugh, money. I’m not sure whether this will ever be entirely possible but I was able to save enough to visit New York and not have to think too much about money while I was there.
I will take just as many, if not more, photos and try to actually finish a scrapbook – Anybody who has ever spent any time with me knows that I still take hundreds of photos but I am yet to finish a scrapbook.
I will appreciate just how fortunate I am to have the opportunities I have – “2017 has been full of ups and downs” is a phrase I’ve seen everywhere for the past few days as people reflect on the past 12 months. It’s likely that most people feel the same way. 2017 has been absolutely insane for the planet but everybody has those little things that make that insanity more bearable; whether it was a holiday, an engagement, a birth or just more good times with the people you love. Here’s hoping that 2018 is full of more of the good times and less of the bad news and that everybody is able to enjoy the little things that make life great.
Although I was on holiday for the last week of July I didn’t manage to read as much as I had originally hoped. I took 4 books with me, bought another 4 in charity shops in the first few days yet still only managed to read half a book. I did, however, listen to an entire book with my family while driving around Northern Ireland. Prior to going on holiday we decided to borrow some audiobooks from the library and despite 2 of them being duds that we couldn’t listen to for more than 15 minutes, one was glorious.
Emma Kennedy – Shoes For Anthony
My Dad picked this after a number of the books he had reserved did not arrive in time and as he and I had both read The Tent, The Bucket and Me – and loved it – he thought this would be a good choice for our long car rides. He wasn’t wrong. The book follows a young boy Anthony who lives in a small mining village in Wales during the Second World War. The audiobook is read by Emma Kennedy herself and it was a joy to listen to, especially – and this came as a surprise to me – the accents. By the end of the story we were close to taking it into the house so we could continue listening to it. We had guessed one of the twists but we did not anticipate the turn it was going to take, nor did guessing this take anything away from the joy of listening to it. Shoes For Anthony would be an excellent read but I would definitely recommend getting a hold of the audiobook if you can!
As you avid readers may have realised, I didn’t post last Saturday. As I had posted late the previous week, there wasn’t much to talk about last week so I decided to wait until I had left Spain to do a more lengthy post with all of my adventures with my family after they arrived on Saturday. After my last class with Primary last Tuesday, one of the teachers asked me to head to the Headteacher’s office where I was greeted by all the teachers I had worked with over the 8 months that I working in CPI Panxón. They thanked me for everything, I thanked them for everything and then they gave me an absolutely stunning ceramic necklace that is typical of Galicia.
I left the school with a full heart and tears eyes.
My last day passed very quickly as I only teach for two hours, both with the same class and then I was gone. I spent just over an hour in Panxón on the beach, watching the waves for the final time and eating some excellent ice cream. In the evening Katie and I decided to go for one final crepe-nesday and invited Leyre to join us. We all went for savoury and sweet crepe which were delightful before heading back to the flat where Katie packed for her trip to Barcelona.
I spent Thursday and Friday doing some preliminary packing and cleaning but mostly just lay in bed watching more Brooklyn Nine-Nine. On Friday evening I met what was left of the group for drinks. It was great to see most of them before they left and I left just after 12 as they all headed down to Churruca to continue their drinks.
I got up on Friday with the intention of meeting my parents at the airport. Their flight was delayed so I had a lot more time to sort myself out before heading for the bus. The first bus I had to take was late meaning I missed the bus into the airport. I waited for the next one and managed to make it with 5 minutes to spare – and after a quick catch up with Jennie who was meeting her boyfriend before setting off to do El Camino – my parents and Auntie Ailsa arrived. We picked up the hire car and drove back to the hotel where they checked in and we went out for some lunch. We then walked down to the port where we had a few drinks before walking back to the hotel for a nap before tea.
We decided on a tapas tea with a few glasses of wine/beer before I walked back to the flat.
We decided to drive up to Santiago on Sunday morning which turned out to be both a great and awful idea – it was heaving as there were tonnes of people there for Mass, a bike race and a fun run. We headed straight for the Cathedral but on entering realised that we had just walked into the beginning of a service so after staying for about 10 minutes we decided to leave, have a walk around and return when it was easier to have a wander around. We went for some coffees before walking to a park where I had hoped to go on the Ferris wheel but it wasn’t running. We then went for some lunch where we were treated to dinner entertainment from a group of drummers who were parading through the streets. After an ice cream we walked back to the Cathedral where we were able to walk around properly before we walked back to the car.
We then drove on to Ezaro which is one of the endings for the Camino and we were treated to amazing views and it made me realise just how much I was going to miss Galicia. We drove back to Vigo along the coast and after a small rest headed to La Tagliatella for tea – more excellent pasta and prosecco sangria.
My school had asked me back to the school so on Monday we drove there for the final time. I took them on a tour of the school and we met the teachers and some of the students before walking down to the beach for coffee and churros. We then drove to Monteferro where we enjoyed the views over Baiona before driving there for a wander and lunch at the Parador. The lunch was expensive and not as nice as we would have hoped. We drove back to Vigo along the coast via Tui before my Mam and I packed up all of my stuff. As it was my Dad’s birthday on Monday I had booked a table at Casa Marco which is no.1 in Vigo on TripAdvisor. I was apprehensive about finding something I would want to eat but everything was incredible. We started with a pineapple soup with jamón pieces which was an absolute delight – and I don’t like pineapple. Mam and I then shared a chicken and apple salad that was scattered with nuts and covered in a honey and mustard dressing while Dad and Ailsa shared a filo pastry parcel that was full of beef and mushrooms in a bechamel sauce. I then had veal with apple and banana, Mam and Dad had veal with a cheese sauce and Ailsa had hake. After our mains I caught the attention of a waitress and asked them to surprise my Dad with a candle even if he didn’t want dessert. He ordered a cream cheese dessert which was accompanied by the entire restaurant singing happy birthday in Spanish – I had a mandarin sorbet with cava that was incredible.
We also washed all this down with 2 bottles of Albariño and in the end the meal was only 1 Euro more expensive than our lunch in the Parador where nobody had had more than 2 courses, we hadn’t had any alcohol and the food was nowhere near as good.
We got up quite early on Tuesday and after breakfast we drive to Praia de As Catedraias which is on the north coast of Galicia. Unfortunately I had totally forgotten to look up tide times so we arrived just as the tide was starting to rush in so after a quick walk along along the beach we walked back up and had some lunch in the cafe. As Dad had a nap to rest for the drive back to Vigo, we walked along the coastal walk for some better views of the cliffs and luckily it was an absolutely beautiful day.
We drove back to the hotel where we all packed up as much as of our stuff as we could before heading out for tea. We had hoped to go for crepes but I hadn’t realised that Creperie Bretonne don’t open on an evening on Mondays and Tuesdays. Katie joined us and we headed out for more tapas and despite a minor chorizo incidents- fat spurting all over Mam’s white top – we had a lovely evening. Katie and I then walked to La Fondue where we met up with Sienna and Aisling before heading back to the flat to sleep.
Katie joined us again for breakfast and after saying goodbye we were on our way to the airport for the end of my time in Vigo. I had an absolutely incredible time, met some amazing people – hopefully some will be friends for life – drank so much good wine – as well as some bad wine – and ate some excellent food. Ya te echo de menos Galicia.
Saturday saw the cheesiest evening of the year with this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Katie and I ordered pizza, cracked open a few bottles of wine and settled down to laugh at this year’s competition – and Graham Norton’s catty commentary.
As usual, it was full of some absolutely mad performers and yet again the performance that won was nowhere near my favourite of the evening.
I spent Sunday sorting some of the things I need for New York like applying for my ESTA and buying some dollars. I then spent hours looking at restaurants for places to eat while I’m there for the week and continued adding to my to do list. The whole thing has made me very excited and I can’t believe how quickly it has come around.
As I was off school till Thursday I tried to make the most of the beginning of my week. I met Katie Cav and Sergio for breakfast – at a place that is opposite where my Mam, Dad and Auntie Ailsa will be staying in a few weeks – before heading up Gran Via in search of some good juice or a smoothie. We ended up at Sesamo where I had an excellent orange, carrot and ginger juice before we walked to the Castro and read in the sun – excellent way to spend a Monday afternoon.
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As Katie Cav was also off on Tuesday we decided to take a trip to Pontevedra as I hadn’t been yet and she had been a few times so knew where to head. We took buses from different places hoping that it would be the same bus but I ended up on the 1hr 10 minute bus that avoids the motorway instead of the 25 minute route. When I eventually made it to Pontevedra we began our trip with a smoothie that was nice but the balance of fruit to yoghurt was off making it unnecessarily creamy. We then walked further into the old town for some lunch. The whole thing became one seriously confusing ordeal which ultimately ended in an insanely cheap lunch of wine, croquettas, ribs and chips for €4.40. We then walked along the river before heading back to where we had had the smoothies for cocktails and an excellent kinder Bueno waffle – dreamy.
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We took the bus back to Vigo where Katie and I had tea before heading to a bar just off our street to meet up with a group of the other auxiliares. The bar didn’t have wine – no idea why, this is Spain – so after ordering a classic huge G+T, we sat down to chat for a while before starting a game of ping-pong – which I lost.
This was quickly followed by a game of table football – which I lost – before a game of doubles pool – which Jennie and I won!
Katie and I woke up early-ish on Wednesday morning and headed to the airport but we were there over an hour earlier than necessary so we drank €4 orange juice and used our language learning apps. After about half an hour we began to notice the airport was getting very busy. It turned out the Madrid football team were flying in a few hours later and the people of Vigo were fully committed to seeing them. Fortunately there was still a little space by the arrivals door and Roisin arrived before the team did.
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We took a taxi back to the flat where we had lunch before walking to the Castro where we had a walk around, listened to the music blasting from one of the cruise ships in the port and went on the swings and see-saw at the park.
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We dropped into Supercor – as it’s the only shop that is open on festival days – where Roisin and I stocked up on cava and snacks for the evening. Once back in the flat Roisin and I watched old SMTV:Live clips before she and Katie napped and I made brownies. I then made salsa and fajitas before making sure they both weren’t still sleeping 2 and a half hours later. We enjoyed fajitas and cava before having a throwback/musical sing-a-long.
Unfortunately, I had to work on Thursday morning. Fortunately, it was only for 2 hours. Unfortunately, I wasn’t really needed for either class. Fortunately, it meant the classes were easy – can’t really complain. I was back in the flat by 12 and after some lunch of croquettas we took the bus to Samil. It was pretty windy so after Katie took the bus back to the flat, Roisin and I moved into a bar for some cocktails. We must’ve been waiting for about 40 minutes but when they eventually arrived they were stronger than any cocktail I’ve had in my life.
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We took the bus back to the flat, got changed and started walking to Creperie Bretonne for crep-ursday – Sofia was in Portugal on Wednesday and as this was our penultimate week we decided to switch days. The owner was working and was unwilling to give us more than one filling while still getting the deal – hopefully he’s not working next Wednesday. Aisling joined us as well and after Roisin and I recreated an old photo we walked to the old town for drinks.
A few drinks turned into multiple glasses of wine and singing Disney and Les Mis songs in the corner of Taberna A Mina before Katie and Roisin lost over a tea cup terrier. We went to meet a few others in another bar but after some really bad wine we left after one drink.
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On our way back to the flat we decided to grab some food, as it was nearly 3 o’clock, everything was closed but McDonald’s. We had to go through the drive-thru which meant one guy had to deal with nonsense babbling from Katie as she ordered – a chicken sharing box which was not what she wanted. We quickly ate once back in the flat before going to bed.
It took us a while to get up on Friday morning but once we were awake we got dressed and headed to the bus station to take a bus to Santiago de Compostela. We all spent most of the journey napping and on arriving, realised Roisin was getting hangry so stopped at one of the first places we came across for some food. We stuffed ourselves with burgers/chicken/pork and chips before realising it was 4.05 and Katie had to be on the 5.00 bus back to Vigo. We power-walked to the cathedral – 10 minutes inside, 10 minutes outside – snapped some photos and began walking back to the bus station.
We made it with 5 minutes to spare and very quickly fell asleep on the bus back. Once back in the flat Roisin packed up her stuff before we spent the evening watching the beginning of 22 Jump Street and the first half of Les Miserables with Katie.
We got up at 8.30 on Saturday morning, quickly dressed and headed to the bus stop – via Froiz for some croissants – and made it to the airport in plenty of time. After buying some souvenirs we said our goodbyes and I took the buses back to the flat. I spent yesterday napping and watching Brooklyn Nine Nine before Katie and I met the group by the port for some drinks. They had been out for a while but we had a few G+Ts, Katie had some croquettas before we headed home to eat tea and go to bed.
After an awful night’s sleep because of my cough I have spent the day in the flat watching more TV and beginning a new book. Tomorrow is the first day of my last full week at work and I am still in complete shock at how quickly the time has flown. Only 17 days left of my time here and I am determined to fill it as much as possible.
My cough was unfortunately not a 24 hour thing and has been growing ever worse since I published my last post on Sunday. It also means I have done little but the bare minimum this week meaning that this post is likely to be my shortest and dullest to date but I am committed to finishing this year having published a post a week, so here we go.
The weather this week started out very warm but humid so instead of being able to enjoy the heat, it was vastly uncomfortable and I couldn’t wait to be inside. On Tuesday evening it took a turn and has been nonstop heavy showers since interspersed with thunderstorms- great.
Due to the bad weather – or just because I am a TV addict – I have watched a few series on Netflix this week that have been excellent. I would highly recommend Dear White People, Lovesick and Master of None – New York, I Love You is one of the best episodes of any programme I’ve seen in ages – all excellently written, funny, emotional.
School this week has been fairly ordinary although I have taught a few more classes alone with teachers being away but they’ve been fine – neither drastic nor perfect classes. On Wednesday the primary classes had a breakfast to promote having a healthy, balanced breakfast. By now, I knew not to expect anything small but they outdid themselves once again.
There was fruit, yoghurt, pancakes, cereal, bizcocho, biscuits, fruit and vegetable juices, tortilla, fried eggs, cheese and of course jamón. It was excellent and massively improved my Wednesday morning.
I am off school until Thursday and Roisin arrives on Wednesday morning so more exciting things to come in next week’s post.
I woke up earlyish on Sunday morning as I had to pack before heading out and wanted to make krispie cakes. As I walked down the stairs I began spotting chocolate eggs in odd places around the hall. It became clear when I walked in to the living room that my dad had prepared an Easter egg hunt around the house after I had mentioned that I had told the students at school about the Ines we used to have when we were younger. I woke Niall up and we split to cover more area as we used to – Dad had even hidden one in the microwave and one in the egg bowl as he always used to – a morning well spent. I then made the Easter nests – with shredded wheat – and finally remembered to use the Beatrix Potter cake cases I had bought 4 years ago in the lakes.
After we were ready and dresses, my mam and I drove to my Grandma’s to say goodbye before we set off to my Auntie Fiona’s and Uncle Dave’s with my Dad for an Easter BBQ. Despite the rain we had a lovely afternoon eating lots of delicious food, watching Heidi on her Easter egg hunt, catching up with family and, of course, drinking prosecco.
I had to get up at 5 on Monday and Dad drove me to the station to catch my train – and start the first part of my day long journey back to Vigo. It was one of those days where nothing went badly but nothing felt like it was going as smoothly or as well as it could have. I had managed to buy a First Class ticket for only an extra 5p but I got on and found that there was no one on board which meant I couldn’t take advantage of the complimentary cups of tea. I didn’t have much time once I was through security so grabbed a Boots meal deal and headed to the screens to wait for gate information. The flight passed quite quickly after I spent it watching more Skins and managed to doze off. I had booked a ticket for the 6.00 bus but as the plane landed 5 minutes before the previous one I decided to see if I could catch it. I raced through the airport only to find the bus was still waiting there but was already full. This then meant I had 4 hours to wait in the airport and spent it watching the IT crowd and trying trying not to fall asleep. I was back in Vigo by half 9 and quickly showered before sitting down to watch the final episode of Broadchurch – so intense – and was asleep by half 11.
My alarm going off at 7 came around way too quickly but luckily my classes haven’t been too taxing. Lots of talking about our Easter breaks with secondary while Primary prepared for the students from Manchester who arrived on Thursday evening. The weather has also continued to pick up so I’ve been back at the beach enjoying my breaks with my book.
Wednesday saw the return of crepe-new day after a week’s hiatus and it was glorious. I met Sofia before at her flat for some wine and a catch up about our Easter. Ingrid then joined us and we walked to Creperie Bretonne where we all enjoyed excellent crepes. We then ventured back to Sofia’s for more wine and we chatted while Sofia played the ukelele – dreamy.
Although Fridays are my day off I was asked to go in and help with the welcoming of the children from Manchester and their parents. I took the bus into school and waited in the main hall while it filled up with all of the students from Primary – they each performed a song in English to welcome the group from Manchester. After they had all performed I was asked to translate a welcome from Antonio, the teacher I work with in lower Primary for music – easy Spanish translated into English not too bad at all. It was then that I was asked to translate a thank you from the English headteacher which is where it all started to go a bit wrong – I have no idea what overwhelmed is in Spanish and I’m pretty sure little of it made sense. After that I accompanied the parents on a tour of the school – which included a history of the school and Panxón, most of which I didn’t know – to translate from Spanish into English. The school then held a big breakfast during break time for year 5 and 6 students and all of the visitors which included jamón, cheese, churros and crepes. After break I had to watch over the students as they gave a tour of the school to the English children before they went for lunch and I went home. I spent the afternoon watching more of the IT Crowd before I went out to meet Tierney for a drink. It was lovely to catch up and after chatting about movies for a while we decided to head back to my flat to watch something. We ended up watching About Time – after a mare trying to watch Sleepless in Seattle – but had to cut it short before both of us fell asleep.
I’ve spent this morning finally sorting my room out again – tidying, changing sheets, etc. – before Katie and I went to Carrefour for a food shop. We had lunch after getting back – I had an excellent curried chicken empanada- and then I sat out on the balcony for a while to enjoy the sunshine. We plan to watch Fantastic Beasts this evening before hopefully having an early night.
And now, this is it, the last leg of my stay in Vigo. The next time I fly home it will be in June and for good. The last 7 months have flown and I can’t believe how close we are to the end and I will no doubt be spending the next few weeks trying to squeeze in everything I’ve been wanting to do all year – 46 days till I’m flying home and only 20 teaching days left. Time really does fly when you’re having fun.
On Sunday despite not setting an alarm I was awake by half 8. I spent the morning watching the West Wing marathon on Sky with my Mam and Dad before we were joined by Karen and Gordon for a glorious roast pork dinner followed by chocolate pudding – gravy is the definition of home comfort food. We were then visited by Rebekah and Mamie and after lots of cuddles we spent the evening catching up on more TV.
I had a very relaxed morning on Monday and had a bath in preparation for the wedding while waiting for Mam to return from work. Once she was back we set off to the Metro Centre in search of shoes. I eventually settled on a pair of sandals in New Look and we treated ourselves to lunch in Carluccio’s – both our starters were excellent but main courses were disappointing. After some more prep for the morning we settled down to watch Broadchurch – this series has been excellent and has kept everyone on their toes since the first episode – before an early night.
I woke up on Tuesday and after throwing all my stuff into bags headed to Emma’s parents’ house to start getting ready. The other bridesmaids, Beka and Vicky, were already there and preparation was in full flow with hairspray filling the living room. We quickly opened the prosecco and the morning passed quickly and with little stress as Beka had planned everybody’s timings for hair well leaving me with hours to do my make-up – which only takes me about 20 minutes max. After a few disasters with tights and a mini photo shoot in the conservatory, we were sat in a Morris Minor – that matched our dresses perfectly – on our way to Healey Barn. Emma arrived a little after we did with tears already in her eyes and I knew then it was just a matter of time before I started crying myself. The tears started not long after I had walked down aisle and turned around to watch Emma walking down the aisle – it was at that point that the music from UP had the change when Ellie finds out she can’t have children – and I was gone. I spent the rest of the ceremony crying which only seemed to get worse after she officially became Mrs Terrington and I kept turning to Beka saying I couldn’t believe she was actually married. My hand was shaking as I signed the register and my eyes are definitely red and tear filled in the photo of the bride and groom with the witnesses, but I wouldn’t change anything about it. The rest of the day was filled with Pimms, afternoon tea, excellent speeches, sore feet, lots of photos, so much laughter and dancing including Emma and I dancing to Wilson Phillips – Hold On a la Bridesmaids and absolutely loving every second of it.
The day was perfect and I am forever thankful for such a gorgeous friend as Emma is and to be part of hers and Lee’s special day.
I woke up quite early on Wednesday but after struggling to walk to the toilet on my now crippled feet I decided some more time in bed was the only plan of action and spent the morning watching Sky Disney and waiting for anyone else to arrive home. Once my Mam was back she drove me to Emma’s parents’ so I could collect all my stuff from the day before and after chatting to her mam for a bit I caught the bus to Newcastle to meet Hannah for crepe-nesday. I dropped my film into Boots and we ate glorious Nutella crepes with smoothies and had an excellent catch up.
Thursday passed quite quickly in a TV, film and wine filled blur that always makes me realise quite how little time I have at home but was definitely needed and enjoyed.
I finally got my haircut on Friday morning after months of saying it was necessary – so many split ends, so dry – but had to wash it as soon as I was back in the house after she had dried strangely leaving me looking like one of the lads from Hanson. Mam and I then drove to meet my Grandma, Grandad, Rebekah and Mamie before walking to the Burrow in Flint Hill for lunch which was lovely. After more cuddles with Mamie after lunch Mam and I drive home where I packed my case for the weekend before having a little nap. My Dad then drove me to the station and although the train was fairly busy I had a seat booked and passed the time watching Skins and listening to music as the sun set. Else was waiting for me at the station when I arrived and after stopping off at Sainsbury’s for some food, we spent the evening eating pizza and drinking gin and tonics.
The weather looks like it is going to be absolutely glorious today but as of yet we don’t have any solid plans but the chances are alcoholic drinks will be involved at some point.
Saturday was finally the day for the long awaited hen party for Emma. It was a surprise for her but the celebrations began at Crook Hall where we had a tipsy afternoon tea booked. Once we were in the room and everyone was seated we were all given a prosecco and canapés were placed around the table. We were then given the choice of 3 cocktails which were served in teapots and the afternoon tea was brought out – absolutely beautiful ginger cake and brownies.
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When everybody had finished eating we played a few games, including one where we were separated into 2 teams and had to create a wedding dress from tissue paper. After everybody had had their fill of cakes and cocktails we walked to the Boat Club in Durham where a table had been reserved and we continued with plenty more cocktails and a few more games. As we had been drinking since 1, by 8pm everybody was tired and began to leave. After the last person had left we – the bride and bridesmaids – took this as a cue to head back to the hotel where we ordered a takeaway while watching American Pie.
As we had stopped drinking early enough and had had a relatively early night, we all woke up without hangovers and after breakfast we were all ready for a day of relaxing. We packed up our stuff and checked out of the hotel and Emma and I walked to the Oxfam book shop to pick up a book so we would have something to read while sitting by the pool – I have left my book at home as I’m not sure it was the best buy but Emma made an excellent decision with Bridget Jones Diary. Once back at the hotel we all had a swim before relaxing at the side while waiting for our massages – glorious hot stone massage that made my back feel more relaxed than it has in years, I blame it on my bad posture. After we had all been pampered we left and headed home where I had a roast dinner waiting for me which was an absolute delight. I watched some TV with my Mam and Dad before heading to bed.
After waking up on Monday morning I moved downstairs where I spent the morning watching the Oscars – what a dramatic ending – before getting ready and walking to finally meet the newest Dwyer – Mamie Joan Cathryn.
She is absolutely tiny and absolutely adorable! I then spent my evening with Emma watching The Boss – Melissa McCarthy is a queen – and it was lovely to be able to chat with her properly.
Tuesday was the long awaited Pancake Day and I met Gordon in Newcastle and we went to Blake’s and had lovely American pancakes with bacon and maple syrup
– ratio of bacon to pancakes was a bit off but the pancake were delicious – before wandering around Grainger market to get some loose tea for my Grandma. I got home to find that my Mam was watching Mamie so I got to have more cuddles. Once they had left Mam and I cracked open a bottle of pink fizz and I was able to catch up on more TV.
As my birthday is next week I’ve been given most of my presents this week and they have been glorious. I got a BFG mug that is as big as my head
and the Office box-set from Gordon, Charlie and Chocolate Factory bedsheets from Emma, a literary listography book from Niall and VIP tickets to see BoyzLife – Brian McFadden and Keith Duffy – over Easter with my Mam from my Mam and Dad – feeling very fortunate and lucky for excellent friends and family.
On Wednesday I spent the morning catching up on 4 weeks of Call the Midwife – and bawling my eyes out – before going out for lunch with Rebekah and Mamie. The rest of the day was spent curled up on the armchair in front of the fire watching more TV and drinking more wine.
I finally got round to watching Hunt for the Wilderpeople on Thursday morning and it was absolutely excellent – heartwarming, funny and the scenery shots are glorious –and I would highly recommend it. I then walked to see my Grandma and after seeing Aodhan dressed as Harry Potter for World Book Day my Mam and I went to the Metro Centre – I had wanted to go to TKMaxx for a Red Nose Day t-shirt but was disappointed with the designs this year. Mam was able to get a book she’d wanted for a while and I was able to spend half an hour walking around Waterstone’s which is always a joy. We then bought M&S ready meal curries – amazing – and after a detour via Emma’s and Rebekah’s for final goodbyes – and a quick game of FIFA – we went home.
I woke up at half 6 on Friday and after a lot of stress regarding Liverpool Lime Street being closed and having extra changes to deal with, my Dad eventually bought me a 1st class ticket from Huddersfield to Liverpool South Parkway meaning that I didn’t have to stand for over an hour – and I got a cup of tea and some cake. I only had to wait for a minute for a bus at South Parkway and security was dead meaning that I didn’t actually lose all that much time. The flight was fairly uneventful – managed to get a window seat with extra legroom after waiting till Thursday evening to check in – and we landed on time – and no applause this time. I then had to wait for a few hours for my bus – it wasn’t too bad as the airport has free Wi-Fi that is good enough to stream Netflix – which ended up being half an hour late but got us back to Vigo only a little late. I took a taxi back to the flat and very quickly got into bed but found it a little more difficult than expected to sleep.
I’ve spent this morning unpacking my case, eating squashed hot cross buns and listening to Ed Sheeran’s new album. The plan is to head to Baiona at about 2 for some fiesta but I’m not entirely sure what’s happening. I’m hoping I don’t end up too hungover tomorrow as I have to make a presentation about the UK tomorrow – yay…
This week has been another week where not a lot has happened but I feel like I’ve been pretty busy. In the end we decided against Pontevedra and were pretty happy with the decision as it did continue to rain all day. Katie’s friend, Naomi was here at the weekend and after they braced the wind and rain to visit the Castro we all settled in to watch Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates. After all the trailers for this film I was very much on the fence about whether or not I was going to enjoy it but after lowering my expectations – despite Anna Kendrick and Aubrey Plaza being in it – I enjoyed it. After tea, Katie and Naomi went out for a drink while I filled my hot water bottle and retreated to my room to watch The Office.
On Sunday I woke up and realised quite how much I still had to do in order to complete my Galentine’s cards and get them sent out on time. So while the rest of the flat went out for breakfast I got down to work and made another 2 throughout the day. I also started making a presentation on Valentine’s Day for my 5th and 6th Primary classes which was anything but fun but at least there was a presentation to show. For tea I made a big pasta bake – which did me for tea all week, joy – but cooked the pasta in the sauce and added some breadcrumbs on top of the cheese and it was amazing – if I do say so myself.
School this week has been a little odd. I’ve done classes at different times because of exams, I’ve had to start a few classes by myself for the same reason and towards the end of the week the classes were in their classrooms rather than in the computer room which has thrown me slightly but I got through them alive – but a little more tired than normal.
After school on Wednesday I managed to get all my Galentine’s cards sent off to different places around the UK and one to the US and left the post office feeling pretty good – as I said in my other blog, there is no downside to Galentine’s. For crepe-nesday we headed to Creperie Bretonne at our usual time but the man who usually serves us was nowhere to be seen making us a little nervous about the crepe+1 ingredient and a drink deal – the guy usually still gives us the deal even if we have more than one ingredient. I settled on just Nutella but felt it was lacking something without the usual addition of coconut. In the end we could have had the 2nd ingredient as Katie still got the deal with her Nutella and Salidou combo. Lesson learnt.
On Thursday evening Katie and I decided to stay in and watch a film. After scrolling through Amazon Prime and Netflix we chose The Hundred-Foot Journey and it was an absolute delight. My Mam bought me the book when the film originally came out but I never got round to reading it and had put off watching the film until I’d read it. I’m so glad I decided against that and just watched it as it was exactly the kind of film I wanted to watch; a little heart-breaking, comedy, beautiful main characters, Helen Mirren and so much glorious looking food. It’s on Netflix and I would 100% recommend it to EVERYONE!
The thing I love most about 3 day weekends every week is that it gives you the day to sort your life out so that you can then just enjoy the weekend. I got up on Friday and while Katie went to the gym I did the Davina DVD I have and then met her on Urzaiz so that we could go shopping. Katie was looking for a dress for a 21st Birthday she is going to next week and I was looking for a pair of trainers. We were both successful in our endeavours and I also decided to treat myself to a dress and a shirt in H&M. Once back in the flat we had lunch before going to Eroski to do our food shop for the week. I then made my meal plan and started looking at what I want to do on my upcoming trip to New York in June – honestly as much as physically possible. After tea we watched some TV before heading to bed.
This morning I have done Davina again – I had completely forgotten how hard the aerobics section is but I did it – and have to make a presentation on Notting Hill Carnival for 5th and 6th Primary so they can compare carnivals in the UK to the one in February in Spain. Siempre presentaciones.
New Years Eve went down just as expected. We spent the day watching Drunk History before getting dressed and getting drunk. I drank most of a bottle of Durham Gin Winter Fruit Cup while Briony and Else made it through nearly 3/4 of a 1l bottle of Bombay Sapphire. We were drunk. We played Rotten Apples – like Cards Against Humanity but not quite as brutal – and some wolf game that I only half remember.
We saw in the New Year with prosecco while singing along to Robbie Williams – joyous. It was then decided that we’d go out to a club where somebody had written “what is this place?” on the bathroom door which pretty much summed it up. I also found a message I’d sent to Roisin in the morning which simply said “The walls are sweating, I want to go home” – not the Juan.
We all woke in the morning feeling dreadful, unsurprisingly. I made it downstairs to the couch at about 11 and that is where I stayed till it was time for bed. Briony and Vicky made an excellent breakfast which I inhaled before having to lie back down again and watch TV for the rest of the day. Sony TV channel came through with excellent films – Matilda followed by Jumanji- before we ordered Chinese and watched Hercules. Vicky went to bed early while we stayed up to watch Sherlock – “byeeeee” – and then ended up watching Geordie Shore before we headed to bed. Else and I struggled to sleep so lay for a while laughing at the disaster that was 2016.
On Monday Else and I got up, showered and packed ready to head home. After some breakfast and cups of tea we set off for the station where we both managed to gets hugs off Briony before she left us to get our trains. My train was before Else’s so she waited with me and we ended our festive time together with a proper Erin and Else hug – cuddles are glorious and should be given generously. I spent the train journey watching more Black Books after a disaster with an M&S wrap – Caesar sauce on my scarf and then managed to put my arm in it, soz to the guy who was sat next to me. My Dad picked me up from the station and we went home to watch TV in front of the fire.
I spent most of Tuesday catching up on Planet Earth before booking flights to New York in June to visit Cat who I lived with when I was in La Rioja in 2013/14. I then got ready and headed to town to meet Hannah for tea. We went to George’s Kitchen which was glorious – chicken in a basket followed by doughnuts and candy floss-
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and had an excellent catch up. I also put a black and white film into Boots that I had started over the summer in Ireland and finished on NYE – something about film will never get old for me, beautiful photos and the excitement of waiting for them to be developed.
I woke up on Wednesday and after watching half a series of This Is Us – excellent series with Milo Ventimiglia and Mandy Moore in, definitely worth a watch – I used up the sausages my Dad had bought especially for me and made a big batch of sausage rolls, some with a caramelised red onion chutney in – joyous. When my Mam arrived back in from work we settled down to watch My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 followed by Call the Midwife – absolute emotional rollercoaster as it always is. After tea I went to Emma’s for a proper catch up over a Bailey’s which was a delight.
On Thursday I had to go to the dentist – very good oral hygiene, props to the electric toothbrush. Karen picked me up after and we went straight to the cinema to see Moana – absolutely glorious film, heartwarming, emotional and excellent songs – and had some lunch before meeting Gordon and heading home. Mam and I then went to say goodbye to Grandma, Auntie Mitzi and cousins before we went to the New Plough for tea. I went for belly pork with chips, roast carrots and parsnips and gravy
– glorious last meal at home. Mam and I the finished the evening by finishing a bottle of Baileys while watching Erin Brockovich.
I woke up on Friday with my nervous travel tummy in full flow and after getting dressed my Mam took me to the train station. My train was fortunately very empty and pretty quiet meaning that I spent the majority of it dozing and listening to Jack Savoretti. I had originally planned to get a train and bus across Liverpool but as I wasn’t feeling 100% I went with a taxi instead to take away some of the nerves. I arrived at the airport in good time, got through security, had some lunch and headed to the gate. We were ushered onto the plane quite quickly and I was moved into the emergency exit row so gained a load more leg room. We were then told the flight was going to be delayed due to a technical issue with the stairs – at one point they told us it was going to be delayed further as the technician was coming from Manchester. Fortunately we were only delayed for an hour and the flight passed quite quickly as I read Little Women and listening to the Moana soundtrack.
I arrived not long after 5 and after a mare with the E-Passport reader, I was able to collect my bag and wait for my bus. The bus arrived late and packed but luckily as I had bought my ticket in advance I was one of the first on the bus at the airport and was one of very few who managed to spend the entire trip with two seats to myself. I arrived back in Vigo on time at half 9, jumped in a taxi and after inhaling some noodles and soy sauce I went to sleep.
I woke up this morning still a little achy but unpacked my bag and went to Eroski for a few bits. I tidied my room and then have proceeded to spend the entire day in bed watching Big Fat Quiz of the Everything and Twister – I am my father’s daughter – until Katie messaged a little while ago asking me to pop back to Eroski so she has some food in when she gets back late this evening. The last two weeks have flown and I can’t believe it’s back to school on Monday and that I only have 5 months left in Vigo. Here’s to filling them with excellent experiences with glorious people.
erinrachelsmith 