Life in 2020
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Within a day of returning from Malta we went to a special dinner at the Dauphin
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| 6 wines were supplied by a Valencia bodega. Once it started, the food was great. Bert & Caterina were welcoming hosts |
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Then on January 21st we went to the Opera in Valencia
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We sorrowfully said goodbye to Lausanne Ted, purchased on 1/1/1973- he had become just too frail. And there was a rockfall down the road |
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Margaret & Sally came to stay for a few days at the start of February
Valentine's Day was celebrated at the JBC
Then the following week we went to Berlin for 5 days
An AGM was held on 29/2/2020 at JBC: Maria stood down and Pat took over the Presidency again
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Fraser presenting flowers to Maria |
Chris Batt & Pat in the kitchen |
2 delicious soups for lunch afterwards |
A 3 day visit to the Serra de Montsant, Catalonia in late February
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Paichi's men cleared a bit of greenery! |
Then the world turned mad and we were put in strict Lockdown here in Spain from the 14/3/2020 due to the worldwide spread of the Coronavirus, Covid 19 : unable to leave the house other than to go to the supermarket or chemist, and then only one at a time . We were the only house occupied of the 14 in Media Luna.
Planned breaks: in Asturias, later in March, for a 10 day Intensive Spanish course; Malta for 2 weeks over Easter: from Lisbon to Dublin on the Silver Cloud in May: and, finally, St Petersberg in July - all abandonned
Eventually, even though Coronavirus had still not been defeated, interprovincial travel was allowed again on June 21st- alias Lockdown 99 or the New Normal 1- and the following day we travelled to Asturias for a 10 day Spanish Immersion course
I subscribed to Bernard Magee's new website ( for £12/ month) , which went live the last week in June. Our Javea bridge Club, JBC, reopened for twice weekly games on 8/7/2020, but, for me, there was too great risk of catching Covid19 there, so I just continued to play online
Come New Normal 45- otherwise 4/8/2020 - we set off for Carcassonne enroute for our annual visit to Gaynor's & Vic's
Then back to Moraira for the rest of a somewhat hot August, doing a little genealogy, lots of Online bridge and taking lots of dips . Met up with Maria several times for a coffee- taking advantage of David's enforced trips to Javea to visit the dentist!
Also met Nick & Marcela for coffee
A helicopter spent a day taking loads to and fro from Moraira carpark to over near the Torre . Then Ted came to dinner on a harvest moon night
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David celebrated his birthday at Le Dauphin
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And we had lunch with Brenda & Bill at 'Food at the Republic' in Denia . . .
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Carol introduced us to Bites & Bubbels, a new Dutch cafe near her house. We met there several times for breakfast or tapas and David and I took to going there by ourselves as an extra outing each week
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We then discovered a good new restaurant - well, actually one that had changed owner - Amante : the food was good, the position and vista superb, and we felt really safe from the virus in its fresh air. So we visited every 2or 3 weeks, once with Carol
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A pirate ship off Moraira !
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One Saturday we went back to the Michelin starred Casa Pepe in Ondara- we had been there once many years previously
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Then we were invited to a delicious lunch, along with Maria & Carol, at Daniel's and Genevieve's, just down in San Jaime
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After lunch we had a delightful tour of his garden |
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Daniel & Genevieve |
Carol, Daniel, Genevieve, Chris |
Carol, Daniel, Chris |
Met up with Ted for lunch ( he breaking a lifetime habit!!) at Sensatez, where they, reluctantly, served him a vegetarian meal!
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We visited Tula, another Michelin starred restaurant, in Javea on November 15th- we had booked it a month earlier, this being the first availability
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With my pool swimming halted after November23rd- water temperature under 18 degrees- the occasional walk was added to the calendar
Played bridge a couple of times with Chris, Kjell & Carol in Carol's old house in Moraira: it was great to be social again, but, despite wearing a mask and there being zero cases of Covid inMoraira, I did worry that I might be taking an unnecessary risk
Then got a huge Christmas present when Carol loaned me all her Christmas decorations from 2019- we had never been so well decorated, not that we has spent Christmas in Moraira since about 2010!!.
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Meanwhile she decorated JBC clubhouse in 2020 mode
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We walked to Casa Marco for lunch one windy Sunday - an additional lunch day, but how could |I refuse as it involved a walk !
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Sunday December 6th, Constitution Day here in Spain, saw yet another "gasto de dinero" in Moraira on fireworks!!
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The gardeners eventually pruned the rubber tree next to the shower, whilst someone? was taking a lot of photos from up above us!
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I finished knitting a 'Sloppy Jo' for Jessica - the first knitting I had done for about 25 years ! Had Christmas Tapas and mulled wine with Carol & Paul before they went back to England for Christmas
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Mid December we met up with Bill & Brenda again for an outdoor lunch at Amante
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Then our last visit to Vespa's before Christmas: as usual their yummy Burrata and Tiramasu.
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Met up with a slightly dispirited Ted just before Christmas. Then on a sunny, cold & blustery Christmas Day, we had an invigorating coastal walk from Bassetes beach to Fustera beach, with a welcome coffee at Cafe Mandela at the latter. before the walk back. Then mulled wine and a mince pie before a light lunch followed by Christmas pudding and a good brandy cream. For the evening a duck breast accompanied by a bottle of Chateau Latour 1969{ slightly past it's best: it had not gone into the 2012 auction of the Corisande Manor wine cellar due to a damaged label!!)
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Sometime a bottle of Chareau d'Yquem snook in !. The magnificent duck platter is conveyed to the table |
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Lots more coastal and campo walks continued until well into the New Year
The Boyzz enjoyed a chocolate log tren which tasted even better than it looked and lasted many days !
My 'Christmas present' was a long awaited email from Stephen banishing my long held worries that he was jobless and had been deprived of contact with Oscar!
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Photos from Jo and friends
Jo with her birthday cake and then at Christmas, with Yvonne |
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Manuelita's house in Texas- difficult repairs during the pandemic that ravaged there this year |
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