Traditionally the chestnuts ripen in time for the Fiesta de San Martin (Martinmass)on November 11th. This year they’re already falling from the trees, which I suspect is one more sign of global warming. I picked a few to try a still life, just for fun. The bowl is a replica (from ancient Babylon, I think) that I bought ages ago from a museum catalogue.
Yesterday I had another group to show around the William Herschel Telescope. I had to drop my son off at school at 8:30, and be at the residencia for 10, which didn’t quite leave enough time to make it worth going home. So instead I went straight up the mountain, and had fifteen minutes to take photos at Los Andennes, where you get a specatcular view into the Caldera. From…
Today we went to see our friends in Franceses. It’s the first time my husband’s been there, and he was impressed at what they’ve taken on and how much they’ve done so far. They’ve now almost finished their entertainment room, and it looks great. I’ll have to sort out some “before” photos to post. It’s going to be a lovely house when they’ve finished, but of course they have a…
This morning I went with Helen and Theresa to try to sort out paperwork, seeing as Theresa has just started her first job in Spain. I thought we’d manage the tax office, and maybe Social Security. To everyone’s surprise and delight, we got Theresa registered for tax and social security, Helen registerd for Social Security too (no translation of wedding certificate needed) and we even managed to set up a…
Today was my son’s first day back at school. He wasn’t at all keen to go, because last year he had a personality clash with his teacher, and in Spainish primary schools, you keep the same teacher for two years at a time. But this year he’s been moved, oficially to even up class numbers. But I suspect that I’m not the only one who felt a change would benefit…
I thought the guiding work had dried up, but I was asked to show the Herschel to a group of German amateur astronomers on Saturday. To begin with, it was embarassing. They already had a guide with them who a) spoke German and b) had guided people around telescopes in Hawaii and Chile and c) had done a heck of a lot of homework on the Internet. So I welcomed…