Articles by Keidi

You are currently browsing Keidi’s articles.

Visiting The Medical Centre In Spain

August 8, 2010 in My Life by Keidi | No comments

Yesterday morning I woke up with incredibly itchy eyes, so itchy in fact that I couldn’t refrain from rubbing them hard time and time again.

As it was Saturday and the Doctor’s isn’t open at the weekend, I had no choice but to go to the emergency section of the medical centre, which is open 24 hours, every single day.

I arrived at about 10.30am and there were already loads of people waiting around to be seen by the doctor on duty. The lady behind the desk gave me a ticket with the number 55 on and I took the last remaining seat.

But the system is a little ridiculous as there’s nothing to tell anyone what number they’re up to, or who goes next. That’s achieved by having to ask everyone what number they have until you happen to find the number before yours. Then you must keep a close eye on that person before you to make sure they take their turn at the right time.

It really is a hugely confused method and a little too stone age for me!

When it comes to certain things Spain is still a little ‘behind’ the UK and many other European countries and I awwait the day when they catch up.

Eventually, after around two hours of waiting I was seen by the doctor, who looked into my eye with a torch, applied orange coloured eye drops, then gave me a prescription.

She diagnosed me with conjunctivitis and now I have to apply eye drops three times a day. It’s already clearing up so at least the drops are effective…!

The Dangers Of Living In Spain

July 26, 2010 in About Spain by Keidi | No comments

Something a little negative today, but serious all the same.

When you decide to move to Spain it’s difficult to think of the dangers. All you have in your mind is the sunshine, the cheap booze, the sea and the lovely beaches. But like any location, there are always certain things that you should be wary of.

Throughout the hot summer months people enjoy swimming in the sea, but unfortunately on windy days the sea can get very rough. On these days it’s more likely that people get in trouble as they’re taken out to sea by the strong undercurrent.

It’s usual to hear regular news of people drowning at this time of the year. Just the other day I heard that a five-year-old boy had drowned in the sea just across the road from my apartment.

Apparently his Mum looked up and he’d vanished. It took 30 minutes for a man to find him, face-up on the sea-bed. Miraculously he was brought around, but he coughed up a lot of blood and unfortunately he died the next morning in hospital.

It’s all too easy to forget about safety when the sun is shining and the family are having fun on the beach, but drowning in the sea is definitely one of the perils of living in Spain.

I often hear of small children drowning in private swimming pools here too. As many pools don’t have safety nets over them, toddlers are able to walk straight in without anyone noticing until it’s too late.

So if you plan to move to Spain, or if you already live here, please be aware of these safety issues and keep a very close eye on your children.

Thanks for reading

Keidi x

Trip To The Botanical Gardens In Malaga

July 11, 2010 in Places To Go by Keidi | No comments

If you’re looking for somewhere to spend the day with your family this summer then I’d recommend the La Concepcion Botanical Gardens, close to Malaga City. I spent some time there recently with my sister, brother-in-law and family

If you’re a tree fan you’ll be in your element, but those who prefer flowers may feel slightly disappointed, as trees definitely rule the roost! There’s even a special section called ‘Around The World in 80 Trees’ featuring 80 trees from across the globe. If you actually stop at each tree and study it, then you can see how they look different from ordinary trees.

I was certainly in my element at the gardens, mainly because of the abundance of frogs. I make no secret of the fact that I simply ADORE frogs. Not in the way that I’d like to plant wet ones on their cheeks (although if they turned into handsome prices I might consider it….), but simply to watch them be. They jump around from lily pad to pond without a care in the world…what a life hey?! The froggys were also the highlight of the day for my two nieces, Charli and Leoni. They loved playing ‘spot the frog’ then throwing small twigs their way to scare them into jumping (teehee!)

Our little clan involved five adults, two children, a buggy and a wheelchair. This meant we could only stick to certain areas and we couldn’t go gallivanting beyond the trees, or up steep hills. But the children had great fun riding on the back of the wheelchair while Daddy pushed them along, and the buggy proved a great storage system for heavy bags.

We visited the gardens on an especially hot day so the sprinkler water system proved a real treat as we all ran through it to cool down…and there were plenty of stray lemons to quench our thirsts!

But the best part of all was when we saw a tree dedicated to my magazine, The Sentinella. Yes, the ‘centinela tree’, which towered above most of the other trees in the gardens. It’s ashame they mis-spelt it, but hey, it’s the thought that counts!

It’s also worth noting that there are picnic benches in the gardens and a delightful café serving drinks, snacks and a selection of light meals. And do check out the gift shop, where you can purchase cute little memories of your day.

For more info including directions visit their website at www.laconcepcion-ayto-malaga.es, call 952 252 148.

Keidi x

Tags: , ,

Watching The World Cup In Spain

July 4, 2010 in About Spain, My Life by Keidi | No comments

Never in my life have I experienced such passion and excitement amongst the Spanish people as the other day when they got through to the semi-final of the World Cup for the first time in history.

We all know the Spanish people are passionate by nature, but…wow…this is enough passion to knock your socks off (and your shoes for that matter)

The World Cup result so far is a huge achievement for the Spanish people and it shines out in the atmosphere everywhere I go, especially for a few hours before and many hours after each Spain match kicks off.

The done thing is drivers beeping their horns as they pass anywhere that dons a Spanish flag, or where there are a group of people.

After their victorious match against Paraguay, which qualified them for the semi-finals, the beeping and screams of delight continued until the early hours of the morning. For a moment I thought they’d won the whole competition….I can’t wait to see what happens if they do. It’ll be a mammoth party for a good few days I’d imagine!

Since England were knocked out I changed sides and bought a Spanish flag to attach to the side of my car, just to make sure I fit in with the locals.

Now, I just have to hope I can keep the flag after Wednesday’s match against Germany, who won their last two games with four goals. Come on España…you can do it!

Tags: , , ,

Spring Time = Allergy Time!

May 8, 2010 in My Life by Keidi | 1 comment

As I write this my nose is stuffy, my eyes are watering, my head is cloudy. Cold? No, allergy!

The middle of May and the weather in Spain has now improved ten-fold. The olive trees are in full bloom and flowers are opening left, right and centre. For allergy sufferers the combination of this sudden rise in temperature, coupled with the thriving foliage is a right pain in the jacksy!

For me, mornings are the worst time of day. From the moment I wake up until somewhere around midday the allergy doesn’t leave me alone. It constantly nags away at my eyes and nose. I wish it would get lost and never come back.

Sometimes, when it’s really bad I take an antihistimine, but the drawback is that I then feel groggy and tired for the rest of the day.

I also try to beat it by consuming a daily teaspoon of the local honey. Not only is honey great health-wise, but it’s also said to aid hayfever. I think it does help to some degree, but I’d need to turn into Winnie The Pooh and eat a jar a day for it to have a really notable effect.

Anyway I better dash as I’m in the midst of a sneezing fit and I need tissues!

Keidi x

Tags: ,

Spiders!

April 18, 2010 in My Life by Keidi | No comments

A few months ago I remember having a conversation with some friends about spiders and how since I’ve lived in Spain, I haven’t seen many around.

In the UK I lived on the second and top floor of a block of flats. I had beige carpets and at least once a month I would see HUGE house spiders running across the floor. Absolutely petrified, I would then have to catch these spiders, usually by placing a glass over the top. Even this would take a great deal of courage as I have a serious phobia about spiders!

Often people would come to visit and I would have to explain why there were spiders sitting under glasses in the middle of the carpet…I was just waiting for someone else to pop by and dispose of them for me!

So living in Spain I thought my days of finding and catching spiders were long gone.

However, just recently I noticed a couple of spiders around my apartment. Only small ones compared to the giant house spiders in the UK, but spiders all the same!

Thing is, I have now discovered a few more little spiders lurking around, so I knew there must be a mummy and daddy spider too. Today was a real ‘Bingo’ moment, as I found the mummy spider in my bedroom. I’m too scared to do anything about it though, so it can stay there until my boyfriend is next over…

In the meantime, I’ll thank my lucky stars that at least even the mummy spider isn’t very big!

Thanks for reading
Keidi x

Tags: ,

Supermarket Shopping In Spain

April 6, 2010 in My Life by Keidi | No comments

Today I did my supermarket shopping, which probably sounds like a monotonous task, but I somehow managed to make it fun :)

There are four main supermarkets all within a few minutes drive of my apartment, which is great as I have a choice and I never get bored with the same old food. There’s a Mercadonna, a Supersol, an Eroski and a Lidl.

I go supermarket shopping once a week. This usually always occurs on a different day, as I’m opposed to routine. My whole life in the UK revolved around routine, so now that I’m out of it, I want to stay out!

The supermarkets here in Spain are quite unvaried compared to those in the UK, and the choice on the shelves is fairly limited, but then again there are some wonderful olive variations and incredibly cheap wine
;-)

The price of the food isn’t a whole lot different here than in the UK. My supermarket bill here comes to around 40€ a week (for one as a I live alone) and I always remember that in the UK it came to about 30 pounds.

Most of the supermarkets have no English range, but Supersol and Eroski do have a small international section.

The items of food I miss most from the UK are pickled onion monster munch, ambrosia custard and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, but there are English foodshops around where these kind of items can be purchased.

Now you’re probably still wondering how I managed to make my shopping expedition fun today…Well, I played ‘race’ with someone who entered at the same time as me, AND I won; they were way too slow bagging their mandarines!

Welcome to my world…:)

Keidi x

Tags:

Semana Santa In Spain

April 2, 2010 in About Spain by Keidi | No comments

Easter weekend in Spain and suddenly the residency of my apartment block seems to have grown substantially. The next door neighbours arrived yesterday together with what seems like three generations of their family in tow.

My peaceful evenings have now been replaced by heated Spanish conversation (this usually involves five conversations at once, all screaming over the top to be heard), a wailing baby, a yappy dog, plus various bangs coming from the kitchen. I’ve never known any cupboard to be opened and closed so many times!

To be honest I can’t wait for the lot of them to clear off so I can enjoy a bit of peace and quiet again! No doubt they’ll disappear on Easter Sunday as the school holidays finish here in Spain then, unlike the UK where kids get two weeks off at Easter.

Easter in Spain is known as ‘Semana Santa’ and as the Spanish are so religious that they take it very seriously. In the towns and cities there are lots of processions (known here as tronos) every day in the lead up to Easter Sunday. Huge statues of Jesus Christ and Mary are carried along the streets coupled with beating drums and morbid music. Some people actually pay to carry the statues, as it’s considered such a priveleged task. Many people follow the processions barefoot and holding candles, as a sign of respect to Jesus Christ.

The Spanish do not celebrate Easter with chocolate eggs. They do not exchange any gifts either. They do indulge in treats though, before, after and during the processions.

What never ceases to amaze me is that the national news is completely taken up with these processions, showing the statues as they pass through the major cities of Spain. To me once you’ve seen one you’ve seen them all. And as they use the same statues every year surely its the same for them. I don’t see what the ‘news’ angle is, but then maybe that’s just me!

Thanks for reading & happy Easter…

Keidi
X

Tags: , , ,

The Weather In Spain

March 30, 2010 in About Spain by Keidi | No comments

Spring has arrived in Spain!!

Today I caught my first proper whiff of the warm weather and sunshine, since way back, in October 2009. I found myself thinking dreamily about lying on the beach with an exotic cocktail in my hand…And I can’t wait to replace my white, ghostly look with a glowing, sun-kissed tan.

The winter has been so dreary and dull this year that just one glance of the sun is all I needed to recharge my flagging batteries. It has rained so much these last few months that Lake Viñuela (the lake local to where I live) is full to the brim and where there once only dry riverbeds, there are now strong flows of water.

And all this sunshine is just in time for Semana Santa (Holy Week). The famous religious processions for what Spain are famous, begin on Thursday right the way across Spain.

I’ll write some more about them on Friday.

Until then…:)

Keidi x

Tags: , , ,

Moving To Spain?

March 28, 2010 in Uncategorized by Keidi | 1 comment

Hello, I’ve been a bit naughty lately in that I haven’t written any blog posts on here for more than a month! But here I am now…:)

I’ve titled this post ‘moving to Spain’ because recently I’ve been checking out various expat forums and one thing I’ve noticed is that despite the economic doom and gloom here, there are still lots of people who would like to move to Spain.

And I can’t say I blame them.

But most need to find a job in Spain to support their families. Now that’s where things begin to get a bit tricky, as there aren’t many of them around at the moment, even for the Spanish.

I hate the word JOB…It conjures up all kind of nasty images, working like mad for some smug boss, only to just about manage to pay the bills each month.

A good option for expats moving over here is to start their own businesses. Many make a good living doing something they know and enjoy…although you might want to reconsider if you’re thinking of running a bar!

So, wannabe expats…I’d advise not letting the thought of finding it hard to get a job put you off following your dreams. Where there’s a will there’s a way!!

Anyway, that’s enough for me for today. The sun is out, so that’s where I’m heading now…

Until next time 

Keidi x 

P.S. Remember, if you’re thinking of moving to Spain then do check out my book, Sol Searching – A Fun-Filled Tale Of A Modern Girl’s Move To The Costa Del Sol…It may help you avoid the mistakes that I made!!

Tags: , ,

« Older entries