Natalee!

that we are already living out here, makes for a much easier transition. Relocating abroad can be daunting, let alone having to do it on your own. We are more than happy to have her here. Actually it will be good to have a female influence around the house. Three guys living together can be rather

SOHO Mar

The next day we went into Alicante. The sun was out, as is usual after a day of rain and it was another hot day.  We went to do some shopping in Gran Via, which is East of Alicante.  Natalee had to get some bits and pieces and Gran Via has some British shops as well as Carrefore!

Dunbars

After a warm, sunny afternoon, we got home at about six in the evening and got ready to go out in the. Natalee wanted to meet the locals and see a few of the bars around and about in GA. Mandy had given me a few days off, so it was the perfect time to have a few, well quite a few drinks, chill, relax and enjoy the evening!

A lot of the medication you can only get on prescription in Britain, you can buy over the counter, even at a fraction of the cost.  Jamie paid 3€ for pain killers and antibiotics.  With prescription charges in The UK, it would be five times as much.  That's a big difference when you are on a budget!

Big Al's

After Dunbar´s was closed we went down to Big Al's in Masa Square, near The GA Centre.  I have to say she is a great character and I had a fabulous night, with some great people.  The people here really are 'salt of the Earth', honest, upfront and to the point, just as it should be.  I haven´t experienced such honesty in a long time

Natalee arrived in Spain on 5 April, at Alicante Airport.  She had been planning to come out for a while now. The employment situation in Southampton isn't great at the moment and like us she has decided to give it a go here and Spain.  Moving abroad for the first time can be hard, so the fact

like a 'Lads Holiday' at times, which is great, but we do tend to forget that there is a house to upkeep and I feel sure Natalee will remind us of that fact!

It was raining hard when Natalee arrived,  Actually it was torrential rain, something Spain rarely gets, so it was quite apt that it was pelting in down when the plane landed.  In fact as Natalee said, although it was raining in The UK when she left, it wasn´t as bad as here.  Not a great first impression, but at least it was only one day.  

It does of course rain in Spain, usually only for a few hours and a maximum of one day, it then just seems to get hotter than ever, so actually it is quite nice to experience some bad weather from time to time.  Not too often though!

We drove back into Alicante, where we spent a lazy afternoon at SOHO Mar, our favourite restaurant and bar along the coast.  SOHO Mar is a trendy modern establishment, which over looks the marina and the large pirate ship restaurant in Alicante.  It is a little more expensive than usual, but to be honest you are paying for the location, the ambience.  The staff there are wonderful, attentive and always at hand.  Personally I don´t mind paying extra, for the right service!

Jamie came out with us, although at the moment he is in quite a lot of pain.  One of his teeth is growing into another, so he is waiting for an operation in a weeks time.  Jamie left early when the pain just got too bad.  He has been given some of the strongest pain killers I have ever seen.  You can even buy 1000mg paracetamol over the counter here.  

We spent the evening at Dunbars, with Zoe and Mandy.  I decided to splash out and get some expensive red wine.  I say expensive, but even that was two thirds cheaper than in The UK.  Alcohol, eating out and even supermarket shopping is so much cheaper over here!

and it is refreshing to be around people like that.  It can be a bit disconcerting, after what we had been through, but in reality, you just have to move on from the past and trust that those people in your future will be good ones, that is all that matters.

New Me!

I've been looking at 'Timehop' photo´s from a year ago. They keep popping up in my inbox from time to time.  The more I see them, the more freaked out

I get.  I don´t actually remember a lot about that time, as  readers of all my blogs are well aware.  A lot of the time one just blocks these memories out, but whatever the reason is, it can be quite traumatic seeing them!

If you look at the two photographs above, you can see just how different I look. What a difference a year makes.  When you go through difficult times and come out of the other side, it really can make for life changing decisions, like moving to Spain, as well as life changing, life enhancing and life giving changes.  To go through, what we did and not change, would have been a big mistake.  

​In my view, there has to be something to gain from adverse times.  I am not talking monetary or the like, but 'life gains', learning experiences and not repeating the same mistakes.  The trusting nature I used to have was part of the problem.  I took people at face value, well no more.  I am stronger, certainly more worldly wise and not taking shit from anyone!

​Well that's a happy note for me to end on, well for me anyway!

​Peace and love, always!