This week was spent working on my website & preparing to leave to go on my cruise from Barcelona to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. My holiday started on Friday, Brazil here I come.
Week 45 of 2023.
Monday, 6th November.
I woke up at around 7 am & got myself a coffee. I sat at my computer doing some work on my website stopping at around 8:30 am. I then got on my disability scooter & went to the doctor's surgery to get my regular blood test for my INR levels. The receptionist was new & after taking all my details asked me to sit down & wait. About 5 minutes later she asked me if I could go back at 10 am so I went to Cafe Espressarse to have a coffee & a tostada.
I sat & read my Kindle whilst I had my breakfast before going back to the surgery. When I walked in the receptionist checked me in again & the nurse called me in. She walked towards me brandishing a bottle of alcohol & some wipes, looking at my leg. The receptionist hadn't understood a word I had said, even though I had used a translation service & showed her the translation on my phone. The nurse quickly realised the receptionists' mistake & told me that the receptionist had told her my leg needed treatment. The nurse was very good, listening to me when I told her which vein to get the blood from, & she managed to get it the first time.
After having my blood test I went to my cousin Jills to pick up my spare key but when I got there, no one was in apart from two people working in her garden. They told me the owners were out so I messaged Jill & told her about the people in her garden but as I didn't get a reply, I left. I went home via the Economy Cash supermarket to get a couple of bits of shopping to see me through to the end of the week & then went back to my apartment.
I got in & did some work on my computer & at about 12:15 pm my cousin Jill messaged to tell me they were back. I got back on my disability scooter & went back to Jills' house to collect my spare key from her. I didn't stop at Jills´ house but I did go to Dia supermarket on the way home to get some butter that they hadn't had at Economy Cash earlier.
The rest of the day was spent working on the photos for my Chinese photo albums on my website, including a new album from when I went to see the Sichuan Opera & Folk Arts performance in Chengdu.
Tuesday, 7th November.
I woke up at about 8 am & got a coffee before I continued working on my website. At around 10 am my neighbour Liz knocked on my door & we walked along to the Buena Vista restaurant for a tostada & a coffee. We sat talking until around 11:30 before heading back to our apartments.
Once again the day was spent working on the photo albums for the Chinese section of my website & I added photos for the welcome ceremony we attended in Xián & a few photos for the tea-drinking ceremony we went to in a Chengdu park.
Wednesday, 8th November.
Today I woke up at around 8 am again. I don't know why but I remember when I was young I played a Dungeons & Dragons type game called the Bards Tale. I Googled it today & discovered that it had been made available in a box set with the next two games in the series for €12.49. It had always helped me kill time & as it was fairly cheap I bought it & put it on my computer & my laptop.
The game was a great distraction from working on my website & I played on it all day, stopping to watch the Arsenal vs. Sevilla football match on the television match tonight. Arsenal played very well tonight & won the game 2-0 to stay at the top of the group they are in, in the Champions League. I put some washing in my washing machine to work overnight & went to bed as soon as the game had finished.
Thursday, 9th November.
I woke up around 7:30 am today. I put away the washing that had been done overnight & did a few jobs around the apartment & threw some recycling rubbish out. At 10 am I went to Buena Vista restaurant with Liz. This morning I had a medium-sized English breakfast with a coffee. We sat talking until around 11:45 am & then went back to our apartments.
When I got home I printed off all the paperwork I would need for my holiday, my flight tickets, hotel bookings, cruise details, excursion details & train tickets. I then packed all the electrical leads I would need to charge my various electronic items, my camera, phone & laptop before sorting all my medicinal tablets out ready to take with me on holiday.
Again just to kill time I played the new game on my computer until around 8 pm & then I went back to the Buena Vista restaurant for something to eat. I don't normally eat out so much but I had slowly finished off all the food in the apartment before I leave for my trip to Brazil tomorrow.
After eating my Chicken Korma curry, which was nice but needed to be warmer, I sat reading my Kindle for a while before returning back to my apartment & going to bed.
Friday, 10th November.
I had set my alarm to go off at 7:30 am today, but as normal when I set an alarm, I woke up before it went off. I got myself a coffee, stripped the linen from my bed & put it in my wash basket & sat at my computer to check any messages I had.
After finishing my first coffee, I had a second one before cutting off what little hair I had. This is my holiday cut & won't be touched again until I get back from holiday. I then have a shave & a shower & pack my case ready for June to pick me up at 1 pm. Once I've got everything ready I walk along to Buena Vista restaurant for a cooked breakfast. My neighbour Liz meets me there & we chat until around 11:30 am & then walk back to the apartments.
Once in I pack the last few bits I need, water my plants & wait for June to message me that she is on the way & that my journey to Barcelona would be starting.
Saturday, 11th November.
Today I woke up in Barcelona & joined the ship the Costa Favalosa for my cruise to Brazil.
Sunday, 12th November.
Today I woke up in my cabin onboard the Costa Favalosa cruising towards, Cadiz.