Morning a year on

We were all sitting at the front of the boat watching Cantabria appear on the horizon this time last year full of trepidation and excitement. Today we have to go to hospital to get Rowan's blood text results, he has not developed any secondary symptoms so we are hoping he will be fine. It was Bindle's birthday yesterday and they slaughtered lambsheep ready for a party tonight so we will be heading over to rioforcadas later hopefully for some jamming and other fun and games. It really has been wonderful having friends nearby with out our friends at rioforcadas and Samozas I don't think we would still be here. Learning the language has been way harder than we ever imagined - it is a bit of a catch 22 in that to learn Castilliano and Galego well you need to be out here - to be able to settle in out here you need to be able to speak the languages. We have been a bit too insular really although the locals are really friendly it got reather embarasing spending much of every conversation saying no etinedo no etiendo. We are geting there slowly although it is still really easy to misunderstand people.

We all stood outside about 12.30 laast night watching ice fragments burn up some lovely long trails from the meteors arcing across the sky and a few bright flashes - well worth it. Reminded me of a night years ago back in Cornwall when I saw a shooting star that just got brighter and brighter then appaered to land a couple of fields away - never did find any bits though.

Hens are doing well, still providing more than enough eggs although snowbird is doing being broody for three weeks every three weeks. The garden is flourishing, most days we have meals that are 80 -100% home grown. Summer has been warm but a bit grey at times although no where near as bad as last year in Cornwall still all the locals say they have never known a winter like the one we just had or a summer like this one..I think that is what they said last year too. Climate change is just an acepted fact here - planting and growing patterns have changed considerably over recent years.

best get off to hospital ...back later with some photos of the garden etc.