Bien Buenos Aires

Oh no no no time to blog, but this is a FABULOUS place.

My Spanish is getting better.... better enough for me to read the words on my expensive dress I bought in bloody high street London, KAK expensive dress, has in gold writing a little phrase.

A little phrase that up until now I had not even noticed. With my new extensive knowledge of Spanish , I can now translate the phrase, the phrase written in gold embossed writing on my dress. It says "Estoy como esta cabra."

Translation

I AM LIKE A GOAT

I can now never wear this fecking dress again

Goat my ass

Shopping

Jumbo is the name of the Pick 'n Pay/ Sainsburys/Asda whatever.

(why? is not Spanish? No elephants here)

Different names, different food, different prices...kak cheap...jeez!

I have never seen such fabulous meat.

Amiga Jane's hubby made a fabulous meal, Lomo and Bifi de Chorizo, was the best meat I have had for years. Or maybe ever.

San Pedro de Yacacucho is the most wonderful wine on the planet. Officially. (Will take some home for The Hubby)

We ate by candlelight. Not for the romance, more for the power failure.

The market. Tegre, Porto de Frutus, fabulous stuff, leather, knives, good food,Toffee apples covered in popcorn (?). The weather was great and we had a wonderful time.

So much to tell... but too busy to blog!

Lunch at O' Farrells was fabulous.....see pic, yummy yummy

I had dinner at Miranda's with Wedding Mark and Pato (mi favorito de Argentina Amigos)....and got all the way there and back in a Remis with my ever improving Spanish. Amiga Jane's house number is Mil trescientos ochenta, wasn't too sure where the Barrio was, but as soon as I recognised the area, I said Circa! Circa!

Stupid driver got the idea eventually. Even though I could say whole fecking number of house, driver (woman ) could not read numbers. Cost me at least an extra 5 pesos . Less than 1 pee I think.

Carajo!

Hair by Xavier......................

Hair done, massages done...good for go...

Look out Buenos Aires, las chicas are in town!

Ola

Muy Muy Bien here in Buenos Aires.

I am staying with Amiga Jane in her lovely lovely house in my own special room full of photographs and memories.

We have not quite finished talking yet, but have done many other interesting things here in Argentina. We both still know all the words to all the songs from 1970-1980. Amiga jane can still sing beautifully. I still can't. Amiga Jane has learnt to play paper toss on the itouch, and we are experts in Argentinian wine appreciation.

Iberia

Never Iberia again. 20 hours door to door. 2 movies on the plane . Taking of Pelham 123, and bizarrely, Maverick, which they showed twice. That was it. Screen in the middle, no individual screens. Nearly starved to death. Ate what I thought was fish (ordered it in Spanish) Was quite ok for fish, but was actually chicken as I found out later. No wi fi. No radio. Drinks trolley totally inadequate.

Am taking sleeping pills on the way home.

All worth it though when we came in to land.

en route to Argentina

Unbelievably , it is cheaper to stay overnight in an hotel near Heathrow than take a taxi from across the water where we are. When I say hotel, it was actually a pod. The bathroom was 1m X 1 and a half , in this space was a shower, a loo and a basin. For SA readers, smaller than a Formula One.

It was a bit claustrophobic, and I was by myself (the hubby being in Dublin) . I was also totally neurotic about missing my flight, so hardly slept a wink.

I thought that if I died in the night, it would not be good, for many reasons

I was wearing only socks (couldn't be arsed to unpack and mess up my suitcase.)

I had a pizza and a kit kat for supper

My reading material was 2 really crap magazines (worse than You magazine) that a woman on the tube gave me, and a Joanna Trollop book.

What kind of an impression would that give at all?

country wisdom

I read in Enid Blyton books that where grow nettles also grow dock leaves which can be used to soothe the nettle stings. It is true. And they do. And nettles sting like a bitch.

Can you imagine?

I have zero words to add to this picture.

Beer mats 2

In case you can't see the writing....it says

"Mum , please don't go out for a cigarette, I'm scared you're going to die"

They take smoking kak serious here.

Wee Carrie

This is the littlest member of the Clan. We were in a pub.Beer mats have many uses.

Lovely Cottage

This is the real cottage, it was wonderful.All the mod cons , yet still in a field. Not in a village, just a row of 3 cottages and a few more being renovated, and that was it. I loved it. I loved seeing my cousins after all these years , we had a fabulous time and got trashed every night. Managed to survive sharing a room with MOTHER without smothering her in the night.

Nearly didn't get there seeing as I didn't understand a word the train person was saying so went past my stop. But, in this fabulous first world country, at the next stop I got off, waited 10 minutes for another train and was back where I should have been. Even out in the mielies, the train system is great.

Everyone in Yorkshire of my age is called Susan. Is very odd.

Clan Cottage

Was a bit worried when we rounded the corner and everyone said 'There it is!'

However, this is a very old Methodist Chapel next to the Cottage. Phew!

Rain Stick

The Rain Stick was missing and I was quite devastated, but it was rolled up in a Persian carpet that we had left in storage. Innovative way of packing it, but worrying seeing as it was absent,never mind, is safe now.
On the theory that in the southern hemisphere, the Rain Stick brings rain, it follows that in the northern hemisphere the opposite is true. Lovely Niece Sam and I turn the Rain Stick at night to ward off the rain. So far it is working well. We forgot one night but I quicky turned the Stick the next morning and the rain cleared by lunchtime. The night before last we forgot again, and was too late...rained all day. Last night we had a prolonged ritual...was lovely sunny day today. This only works for London. Has no effect on The Hubby's weather in Dublin, or MOTHER in Scotland. I am concerned for The Gathering Of The Clan week. Is Far Far away from London. Do I take the Rain Stick with me and leave Lovely Niece Sam to a wet week? Will The Gorgeous Son have to work in the rain? Will the Stick work out in the sticks? Who knows these things? Why is life so complicated? It is a burden being responsible for the weather in London.

Gathering of the Clan

Indeed yes, we have one, and we are gathering. I am summoned. Summonsed? Anyway I am going. Miles away up in the country to a place I have never heard of where there probably is no internet. (taking dongle just in case)
Worried about weather. Worried about accomodation.' Cottage' means different things to different people. Worried about how actually rural this will be.
Will we have to kill our own food? Or will there be a Sainsburys?

Internet Shopping again

Have got the hang of this now. Sweep through like expert. No more one apples. No more 6 punnets of raspberries (was nice, good mistake)
Every now and then I am taken by surprise. Type in Toilet paper. No such thing. Are toilet ROLLS.
Tomatoes also problematic. Type in tomato. Get tomato sauce, tomato puree, tomatoes tins, soup,packets...type in veg, get every other veg in the world. Type in fruit...also no tomato. Tomato is a SALAD. Who knew?? Got it now.

Country Weekend

How much better can it get ?

Weekend Retreat

Littlecote House.......it was so lovely. I took the Hubby there for a Romantic Weekend seeing as he had been slaving away in Ireland for 11 days in a row. This has got to have been one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen in my life. Rich in History, Haunted, Kak Old, but with a spa, swimming pool and jacuzzi, gym and beauty treatments. This is where King Henry met Jane Seymour. There is a Roman Orpheus Mosaic, and the very last remaining Cromwellian Chapel (pictures available on request)
There also was a fabulous live Motown Show, a gourmet meal, a king sized bed, a flat screen TV and a dvd player . Fencing, archery, croquet, cycle hire..... Anyway, it was almost perfect.The only teeny weeny little problematic area was that the hubby and I were about 35 years younger than 75% of the guests. On our departure I remarked to the taxi driver that he was lucky we could ambulate ourselves into his taxi, he laughed like a drain and said obviously nobody had told us this was called "Waiting for god House"
No, nobody told me. It was not in the brochure. In fact, in the brochure, everyone is YOUNGER than us. There were not pictures of people in wheelchairs, people with oxygen cylinders and people who were, I kid you not , more than 100 years old.
Still and all, we all know what romantic weekends are for and that was just fine. We missed breakfast and all the staff were either SA or Polish. So, all good.

LLoyds TSB

I always wondered what TSB stood for, now I know, it stands for The Stupid Bank.
Was a lovely day, sunny ,warm, I walked the 500 miles into town listening to my itouch thingie, happy as a lark...popped into the Antiques Road Show, went to the market and bought a vegetarian meal, spinach and beans from an Ethiopian stall, (well yes, of course vegetarian..it is Ethiopia after all ) Was very nice BTW.
Happily walked into LLoyds The Stupid Bank for my Pre Arranged appointment, and that is when my happy day ended. Eventually the manager asked me to leave and I said no and he, being 13 years old did not quite know how to make me leave. So I stayed and called head office on my cell phone and then marched off. I stopped and bought a diet coke, a cherry diet coke and a lemon diet coke (its a bugger not smoking when you are cross) then STOMPED the 5 hundred miles home, after 100 miles I realised I had left my brand new cell phone and my oyster card in the Cafe . Or whatever they call them here. Corner shop or something. So I stomped back and they happily gave them back to me. Amazing. Cheered me up no end. Went to the Antiques Road show again, and took the bus home. The Bus crashed into the pavement and the doors wouldn't open. I was beyond caring and just turned up my itouch. By the time it was my stop the doors were working . The other people were very cross. Couldn't hear a thing. I love my itouch.