NorthDownMuse

Out like a lamb

It's nearly a month since I returned from Spain. This photo from Plaza de Espana didn't make it into earlier blogs b/c Eddis sent it to me after the holiday. Where was I? So, cold weather when I returned 19 March followed by an incredibly

Granada tres

Another rainy morning. Eddis and I took the hop on hop off train (it's actually a series of bus carriages tied together). We made our way down to the river I visited yesterday, but first we drove through a forest surrounding the Alhambra, where I snapped this gate.

Granada dos

We started the day walking in heavy rain with our guide for a 30-minute orientation to the main sites. Once released, Eddis and I went into a shop for tea and pastry. We came out into more rain and spent some time in the lovely Corte d'Ingles department

Granada una

Today was Alhambra day. We began in the house and gardens of the architect Generalife (gen-ur-ul-LIFF-AY), which sits above the Alhambra palace. Then a guest house, also outside the palace walls. Although my uptake of info has slowed, I believe Alhambra was built 1000-1300ish? The Catholic monarchs' battles against

Seville

Our guide pronounces this sah-VEE-yah. Before we visit Seville, a quick snap of Loja (lo-HA), where we stayed for four nights while exploring the Iberian peninsula. I took this early one cold morning when the fog was trapped. I've done a pretty severe edit of my photos or

Cordoba

We began today crossing a Roman bridge over the Guadalquivir river. Which is very swollen because, after three years of drought, Andalucia has had nearly six months of rain. It is a largely agricultural area – we have passed miles and miles of olive groves – so this is good news for

Antequera

On 12 March I flew with my friend Eddis to Malaga to begin a week's holiday in Andalucia, a region spanning the south of Spain. I had to use a week's holiday before 31 March and this is the holiday I booked a bit last minute,

3 weeks, 3 topics

It has been three weeks since the last entry. I am currently in Spain so I don't have access to my wall calendar to remind me what I've been up to. I can recall, however, three things I've done other than work and walk

Daph in the gaff

On 3 Feb. I went to Almost Home animal rescue near Moira, a 45-minute drive, to meet Daphne, a wee springer who had been there since August. I spent the next week fortifying my back garden so it would pass muster as a secure garden. Easier said than done with

A month of Sundays

Today is the fourth Sunday since my last post. I am amazed that I wrote a daily post for several years. What on earth did I write about? I guess in the early years here there was so much to get on top of, a learning curve with lots of

At a trot

The new year is off at a trot for a variety of reasons. But first, while in the US, my critter sitter sent me the below, just to keep my heart melted when the weather turned frigid: In our final week, mom and I had a second luncheon for more

A Quiet Christmas

This post will gloss over four weeks. I'm in West Virginia so I don't have my office wall calendar (old school, I know) to jog my memory as to what I got up to during the first two weeks of December, before I left for the

A dramatic Thanksgiving

I returned from Madeira with less than a week to go until Thanksgiving. I had already invited three friends, two of whom I was eager to have meet, given a common interest in working with asylum seekers. Then I invited two neighbours, one of who is new to the street.

Fun in Funchal, 6

Today was a leisure day on the Travel Department itinerary. I had my leisure day yesterday – exploring Funchal. Today I did a second levada hike. Above is the Risco waterfall, which is pronounced Reesh-ko. We hiked into the Rabacal valley. There were I think 19 people on this hike, again

Fun in Funchal, 5

Today was maybe my favourite day. I skipped the half day tour again and explored the city. I wanted to take the cable car up the mountain but every time I went the line was a mile long – once those cruise ships disgorge their thousands of passengers, Funchal is at

Fun in Funchal, 4

Today we toured the most magnificent garden of the week, the Monte Palace Garden. There was a Portugese mining magnate, didn't catch his name, who made his fortune in South Africa and Brazil. This is what he did with a chunk of his money. There is a series

Fun in Funchal, 3

The Travel Deparment offered a half-day tour today of two small gardens, which I decided to skip in favour of a levada walk. We started in Quiemadas park, where this house features. First thing I saw on the 13 kilometre hike was a Brazilian spider flower. The levadas are man-made

Fun in Funchal, 2

Today we drove up to the third highest peak in Madeira, got out of the bus and walked the last 100 metres. The thing was, we were in thick cloud, so we saw nothing. But at least I hadn't spent 4 or 5 hours hiking up to the

Fun in Funchal, 1

I arrived in Funchal, the main city on the island of Madeira, around 1:30 pm on Friday, 15 Nov. After a light lunch, I went for a walk with Iain, our tour guide, and most of the 23 other guests on the trip. We walked along a promenade near

Two weeks

Since I last wrote, Americans have elected a new president. I feel like Americans vote more like people in developing countries than citizens of developed countries. If all you care about is getting a better job, food or a roof over your head, you will overlook any number of incriminating

BIAF

I have been to five Belfast International Arts Festival events in the past week but want to start with leftover Minor Foursomes party photos. The captain of the team is called Wee Lynn. See if you can figure out which is she. She brought me the loveliest flowers and two

Minor Foursomes

Healing is progressing. Not in a straight line, but progress overall. In the weeks since the accident, 30 people have helped or offered to help, half of them golfers. I find that extraordinary. Below is my fourth bouquet, from neighbour Fiona. On 11 Oct. I took the Glider for 30

9 lives

If a cat has 9 lives, i wonder how many I have. I think a fair few more. On 28 sept. I took my fourth ambulance ride to A&E. Is that excessive for a 62 year old? i dont know. But when i add a lot of near

Glen

Saturday morning, 21 Sept, my old friends the Renzis arrive at my house and, after a brief tour, we set off for Donegal. We had a lovely beach walk for starters then, after a Guinness at the Glen pub and fish tacos in Downings, we settled in our wee cottage

Royal County Down

I spent Friday to Sunday (13-15 Sept) at the Irish Open, held at Royal County Down Golf Course in Newcastle. I was one of 22 volunteers from Shandon who manned the 13th hole over five days. There were 10 positions on the hole and we rotated through them, keeping things