In week 30 of 2025, I took another trip to Murcia, this time to see the fantastic Lionel Richie. My mate Dave went back to the UK after a short visit, and I took some time to rest after his visit.
๐Monday, 21st July.
I woke up around 8:00 am, got up, and got myself a coffee. I sat at my computer and checked for messages. As I sat there, I heard Dave stirring in the spare room. I got Dave a coffee and continued working on the Wordle puzzle.
At around 9:15, I left Dave in the apartment, got on my disability scooter, and went to the health clinic to have the dressing on my ankle changed. As I arrived at the nurses' room and before I even sat down, the nurse called out a name. That person wasn't there, and I was called in to take their place. The beautiful nurse carefully removed the dressing and cleaned the wound. She redressed the wound and made an appointment for me, and I left, going straight back to my apartment.ย In total, from the time I left my apartment to the time I returned, my trip to the nurse had taken only around 30 minutes.
Dave said he was happy to walk to go for breakfast before we met Martin and Dave at the office. I had told him how far it was, but I don't think he heard me or realised how hot it still was outside. I had to slow the super-fast Sharky mobile down to a snail's pace as I led Dave through the roads that gave us the best shade and kept us a bit cooler. I showed him my old house in Los Narejos and said hello to the lovely Irish people whom I had sold it to many years ago, who now live there full-time. We arrived at Cafe 16 for a late breakfast at around 11:40, 70 minutes after leaving home. On the odd occasion, I walk there; it takes me around 40 minutes, but Dave's amble took us an extra 30 minutes. In the disability scooter, it usually takes around 15 to 20 minutes. Dave, you will never get a speeding fine. Unfortunately, when we arrived, it was closed. It appears that it has stopped serving breakfast.
We went around the corner to the Cornerย Bar, sat outside, and were quickly served. We both had a small English breakfast and some water. I was a bit nervous whether I would be able to eat it because of the violent acid reflux reactions I had had the previous weekend. Dave wolfed his breakfast down, and I slowly nibbled at mine. I enjoyed it and was glad that I did not react to eating it. As we finished our meals, Martin walked over to us with Aria. Aria hugged me and told me she had missed me. Martin then took her across to the office to wait for us. I paid our bill, and then Dave and I went across to join Martin and Aria.
We were soon joined at Pizzeria la Sombre by Dave, Sean and Vicky. Sean and Vicky didn't stay long before they left to meet someone at another bar. Dave, Dave, Martin and I sat talking and were joined by Terry. We all sat chatting until just before 2 pm. Rosa, one of the waitresses, ordered a taxi for Dave so that he wouldn't have to walk back to the apartment in the heat of the full sun. So he wouldn't have to wait around for me to get back, I left on the Sharky mobile straight away. I arrived before Dave and immediately turned on the air conditioning in the apartment. I was beginning to wonder what had happened to Dave when there was a knock on my door. When I opened the door, it was Dave, and he was asking why I hadn't buzzed him in. He told me that someone else had buzzed him into the apartment block. I quickly pointed out that he hadn't rung my doorbell and that the people who let him in were probably the people who lived in the apartment he had been ringing the doorbell for.
After I had left the office, Kate arrived and told Dave that she could take him to the airport later, so at least he didn't have to sit around waiting for a taxi and worry about it being on time. We spent a few hours chatting until Kate arrived and took him to the airport at around 5:30 pm.
I sat cooling off in my apartment. I still felt a bit rough after lastย week's gout, acid reflux, and probably too much sun. As I watched TV, I got a message from Dave; his flight had been delayed for 90 minutes. I just hoped for him that it would take off and take him home safely. It was great seeing my old friend after so long, and we had a lot to catch up on. I watchedย TV until around 10:30 and then went to bed.
๐Tuesday, 22nd July.ย
I had a blood test this morning and had to be at the health clinic early. I got up at 7 am, got a coffee and got ready to leave. I left at around 7:45 a.m. on my disability scooter and joined the queue of people waiting to enter. The door opened at 8:00 a.m., and I was soon inside, sitting and waiting to be called for my blood test.ย
A lady whom I had seen the last time I had a blood test sat next to me, and we chatted while we waited for our blood tests. She and her husband have been here for around 5 years, and I guessed she was originally from Scotland or had spent some time there due to her accent. The blood lab is quite poorly run in the way it calls people in, and it generally boils down to rude, pushy Spanish people barging their way past everyone else for their blood tests. While the infirm and people who can't hear their names over the loud Spanish din sit and wait for the area to quiet down, it takes about 20 minutes at most to be seen. I am happy sitting and chatting with my new friend. When I go in, I am seen by a man who appears to be either drunk or doesn't know what he is doing.
He pricked my finger with a needle and then began squeezing enough blood out to feed a family of mosquitoes for hundreds of years. He then tried mopping the blood up with the electronic finger-prick reader instead of letting the blood be drawn into it. The reading failed, and he had to redo it. He repeated what he had already done, and I now had two pin pricks being squeezed, and he was smearing blood all over my fingers in an attempt to mop up enough blood for the test. It again failed, and he had to try a third time. The rest of the queue had by now all been seen, and I was still waiting for the idiot to get a proper reading. He didn't prick my finger again; he just squeezed it so hard that it went numb and had spread blood all over my finger again. This time, he allowed the machine to draw the blood in, and he got a reading. It was no surprise to me to see the blood reading was spot on, but I was in a bit of pain where he had squeezed my finger so hard to get blood. When I left the room, the lady I had been speaking to outside had waited for me to see if I was okay. She told me that he had butchered her fingers previously and had used a needle to prick her finger to get blood instead of using the pinprick machine. We went outside together, said goodbye and said we would probably see each other at our next blood tests. I made a note to myself to avoid the phlebotomist I saw today at my next test.
I returnedย to my apartment and got myself a bacon sandwich. At about 11:30, I left home on my disability scooter and went to an ATM to withdraw some cash, and then continued to the Mercadona store to do some shopping. I only bought a few things, all of which were salads. I bought two for today and one to take with me when I go back to Murcia tomorrow. I then continued to La Sombre Pizzeria, where I met Martin and Dave. I got a bottle of water and sat chatting with them till around 1:40 when I left and went back to my apartment.
I spent the afternoon watchingย TV and playing CIV VI on my computer until the England ladies vs Italy ladies semi-final started. I watched the entire game and was worried that England would be knocked out when Italy held a 0-1 lead. It was that way until injury time, when England equalised. They played well in extra time, and with only seconds left, they scored again from a penalty and advanced to the final. It was, of course, courtesy of two goals by Arsenal players,ย Michelle Agyemang and Chloe Kelly. Well played, ladies.
๐Wednesday, 23rd July.
I slept very well last night and woke upย around 7:30 am. I felt better than I had for about two weeks. I got a coffee, did the Wordle puzzle, and just after 9:30, I went to the health centre to get the results sheet from yesterday's blood test. I was pretty pleased with myself when I managed to ask the lady behind the desk for the results in Spanish, without needing to look at my phone translator for help once. She must have understood because sheย received my results sheet, handed it to me, andย informed me that my next test would be on August 12th. I left the clinic andย returned to my apartment, worried that I wouldn't make it, as I noticed how low the battery level was.
I made it back to the apartment, put my disability scooter in the garage, and then went to my apartment. Iย had a bacon sandwich for breakfast and enjoyed a pot of Oolong tea with ginger. It's not my favourite tea, and I want to finish the tea leaves off before I buy myself some new ones. After breakfast, Iย worked on my website before taking a shower and getting ready to return to Murcia to see Lionel Richie tonight.
Lionel Richie Concert Photos.
These photos are from my trip to see Lionel Richie, when he was in concert in Murcia.
Click on any image to see a larger version of the image with a description. Use the navigation below the thumbnail images to see the previous set of images, the next set of images, or the previous or following photo albums.
๐Thursday, 24th July.
At about 10:30, I arrived back in Los Alcazares and walked to my apartment from the nearby bus stop. I was home a full five minutes before I was scheduled to board the busย from Murcia earlier, and I felt lucky that the bus driver had let me on the earlier bus. As soon as I got in, I got a coffee and had several bacon sandwiches. After breakfast, I worked on my website and edited some photos until around 1 pm. I was so tired after my exertions yesterday that I sat in my armchair and had a siesta for an hour.
I felt much better after having a sleep for a couple of hours, but was sad to see on the news that Hulk Hogan had died in Clearwater, Florida. I had met him at his bar many years ago and found him to be a warm, friendly man who welcomed me to his establishment.
I spent the rest of the day resting my legs after doing so much walking over the last few days. It was good to stay out of the heat for a while, and I slowly began to recover from the walking and heat I had done and suffered with recently. I checked my Euro lottery ticket online and noticed that, though I had won a small prize, the prize hadn't been added to my account or registered as a win. I tried to find out why, but was unable to. I would have to check again after Friday's draw to see if it had been added. I noticed that the sports channels had announced another signing for Arsenal, Cristhian Mosquera,ย whom they had bought from Spanish Club Valencia and who was born in Alicante, a short drive from my home in Los Alcazares.
I went to bed quite early tonight at 10 pm. I hoped I would fall asleep quickly, and I did.
๐Friday, 25th July.
I woke up around 6:45 am and lay in bed until 7 am,ย then got up. I made myself a pot of Oolong and ginger tea and sat at my computer to check my messages. I tried to do the Wordle puzzle but failed miserably. Just after 9 am, I left my apartment, and because I hadn't charged my disability scooter, I walked to the health clinic to see the nurse.
I had to wait for around 15 minutes after I got to the clinic, and the nurse seemed a bit worried that the wound on my ankle had scabbed over. I always thought that it showed it was healing if it scabbed over, but she didn't like the look of it and called another nurse to take a look as well. After they both examined it and felt around the wound, she cleaned it,ย applied cream, and covered it back up before instructing me to return on Monday, when she would recheck it and reapply the dressing.
I left the clinic and walked home. It had rained overnight, clearing the air and sending the temperatures plummeting to around 29ยฐC. This made walking a lot easier and felt good. It made me realise how much the high temperatures and humidity had been affecting my breathing recentlyย and how it hadย impacted my general health. The sun was slowly forcing the clouds to leave, but I hoped it wouldn't get too hot again so that I could go for a walk again this afternoon.
When I got home, I saw that I had left half the pot of tea I had made earlier and that it had gone cold. I poured it into a mug, added a lump of ice, and drank it as homemade iced tea. I pottered about the house for a while before having lunch. It was announced onย sports news channels that Arsenal had finally agreed a deal to sign Viktor Gyokeres, and it appears they will finally have the striker that all Arsenal fans have been calling for for years.
This afternoon and evening, I spent my time watching TV and playing CIVย VI. It was lazy, but I felt much better for it. I went down to the garage and put my disability scooter on to charge just after 11 pm, and then returned to my apartment and went to bed.
๐Saturday, 26th July.
I woke up feeling refreshed and rested at about 7:15 this morning. I got up, stripped the linens from my bed and theย spare room bed, and put them in the washing machine, setting it to run while I watered all the plants on my balcony. Then I took my tablets and walked around the apartment picking things up from the floor so that I could set my robot vacuum running. It has been so long since I had the apartment tidy enough to use it, due to all the large boxes of stuff I have been sorting through. It is at least now tidy enough for it to run, even if the apartment still can't be classified as neat, it is a start.
I checked my email and noticed an email from Euroย Lottery. My win on Tuesday had been credited to my account. They must do it once a week for online tickets. Unfortunately, Tuesday's small win wasn't joined by a big one on Friday.
Once the robot vacuum had finished the bathroom, I took a shower and then went out on my disability scooter to do some shopping. On the way to Mercadona, I stopped at the Tipsy Thistle restaurant for breakfast. I had a small English breakfast and a coffee. It tasted great, and I was pleased that my acid reflux didn't flare up again. The tablets I have started taking again seem to be working their way back through my system.
After breakfast, I continued to Mercadona. It was packed when Iย arrived, full of people following their partners around and generally blocking the aisles. I got what I wanted, including, for the first time, gluten-free bread. Afterย speaking with my friend Dave last week, I have decided to try it out to see if it helps alleviate my acid reflux, bloating, and potentially aids in weight loss. I went straight home with my shopping, put it all away and sat down to rest for a while.
The floors in the apartment felt cleaner underfoot now that the vacuum cleaner had finished, but the floor does need a good mop. I don't think the robot vacuum, although it has a mop function, will clean the floor properly, so I will goย old-school and clean it with a manual mop, a bucket of soapy water, and old-fashioned elbow grease. Not today, though, maybe tomorrow, first thing when it's cooler.
I turned the TV on, put my feet up and tinkered with my laptop while I waited for my bed linen to finish its wash cycle. I watched a film called No Address, it was brilliant and I highly recommend it. When it ended, I took the bed linen out of the machine, remade my bed and the one in the spare room, and then put some more washing in the washing machine. I then sat and watched another film, Mr Burton. It was about Richard Burton, and although I knew a little about Richard Burton, I wasn't aware that he was born Richard Jenkins and the circumstances of his name change. The film was terrific and the story fascinating. If you get a chance to see this film, watch it.
Once the film had finished, I had a salad for my supper and removed the washing that I had set running in the washing machine, put it away and then watched a little moreย TV before going to bed around 11 pm.
๐Sunday, 27th July.
I slept well last night and got up around 7 am. I got myself a drink and took my regular tablets before checking my computer for messages. I then went on to the Premier League's Fantasy Football website to start picking my starting squad for the upcoming football season. There was a new section on it, allowing you to design a new club badge for your football team. I made one which I hope shows the Arsenal canon logo, in the new away blue colour for their kit, sitting on a sandy beach to show that I live on the beach.
I then put a load of towels in the washing machine to clean before starting my genealogy research. As usual, when I do research, I lost track of time. I stopped around 1 pm and got myself some lunch before continuing. By the time the ladies' European Champions Final came on the TV, I was ready for something else to eat, and I got myself some sandwiches, using the gluten-free bread I had bought to try out. I can't say it tasted very nice, but it wasn't horrible either. It did, however, feel a bit dry, but strangely it didn't feel heavy as I ate it. I didn't have any reaction to the bread at all, unlike my usual response to bread. This could be because I have started retaking the omeprazole. However, when eating regular bread, I always feel a slight discomfort, which I didn't experience tonight.
I watched bits of the football in between doing more family tree research, but stopped with about ten minutes of extra time to go. As anyone who has watched the England team knows, they leave it late or take it to penalties. Tonight, it went to penalties again, and they beat Spain 3-1 in the penalty shootout, with Arsenal's Chloe Kelly scoring the final winning penalty once again. It was great to see them retain the European Championship, which they won when it was last played.ย
This week's exercise.
This is the exercise I managed this week.
Walking is measured by the steps taken.
| Monday. | Tuesday. | Wednesday. | Thursday. | Friday. | Saturday. | Sunday. | Total. | Average. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2657 | 2394 | 7956 | 4444 | 4454 | 3554 | 1728 | 27187 | 3884 |
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