These days, Santa Cruz de la Palma is a bit of a backwater. But three hundred years ago, it was the third biggest port in the Spanish Empire. In the 19th century, it was still a major port, and many of the inhabitants waited anxiously for a ship bringing their merchandise, letters from family members who’d emigrated to Cuba or Venezuela, or the loved ones themselves, as passengers or crew….
New Year Goals
Christmas is finally over, so I suppose it’s time for New Year resolutions. Every year for about ten years, I’ve resolved to lose weight. And every year I get heavier. So it’s time to try something different. Last year I tried a new approach to writing fiction, and it worked really well. I set myself a daily quota, and once that was achieved I relaxed and gave myself permission to…
Just finished reading “The Heretic”
This is only the second Bernard Cornwell book I’ve read, and I loved it. OK, so it wasn’t particularly deep, but I was rooting for the hero and the plot zipped along like an express train, which is just what I wanted. The hero is Thomas, an English archer tootling around France in 1347. Since this is during the Hundred Years’ War, it’s not the healthiest place to be. He’s…
Happy New Year
And a very happy new year to both my readers. I’m still feeling very tired, but after three and a half days at home, the muddle’s receding. The house is cleaner and tidier, most presents have been bought, and I’ve even got a couple of extra meals cooked and frozen. A friend made it over from El Hierro just in time for new year, so I actually took time off…
Happy New Year
The Spanish celebrate New Year in a big way. A lot of people wear evening dress – the the sort of thing I associate with Glyndebourne Opera. I’ve usually gone to a big family party, but this year we went to see Santa Cruz. At midnight, they have fireworks. (To be honest, this year it wasn’t as good as usual. I think the town hall are worried about money just…
Holy Innocents Day
Today is Holy Innocents Day, which is the Spanish equivalent of April Fool’s Day. Last year I got my friends in Franceses This year they got me. They came to visit on Christmas day, and poor Theresa got stung by a wasp, just below her eye. Of course it’s a terrible place to get stung, and it swelled up like she’d been thumped by Mike Tyson. So when I phoned…