I woke up this morning to the sound of heavy rain and decided that running along the boardwalks on the beach was not for me today. So I reset my alarm for a little later and went back to sleep. Clearly my comments yesterday on how lucky we have been with the weather put a hex on it. By the time I got out of bed it was not raining quite so hard, although I had to mop up a small puddle where it had rained in through the ever so slightly open window during the night. Our window looks out towards the estuary and is exposed to all the wind and weather from that very open direction.
I decided to pop out before breakfast to buy a couple of things at the small supermarket (the Blue Egg - Ovo Azul) down by the casino. As I set out I thought that maybe I could have run after all as the rain had almost disappeared. When I left the supermarket, however, it was just starting to rain properly again. Two minutes later it was torrential - what the Galicians call “la tromba”! It’s not far from the Blue Egg to our hotel but by the time I got back the rain was beginning to soak through even my waterproof coat. My leggings were soaked and my new goretex trainers - guaranteed waterproof according to the chap who sold them to me - were also wet through. I had to change my leggings for trousers and find a dry pair of socks.
Last year we were in a hotel at the other end of town. This year we are close to the centre, practically next door to the playing venue, so at least we should not get too wet walking out to lunch at a nearby restaurant if the rain continues. It’s pretty much forecast to stay all day on and off but tomorrow we should be back to sunny periods.
Yesterday we lunched at the Caçarola 1 restaurant, a few minutes’ walk away, making use of one of the dinner tickets provided by the chess organisers, giving Phil the right to a substantial meal for €12.50. I had a mixed salad and a glass of wine, adding maybe €5.50 to the bill, and once again we shared stuff out between us. It’s not that we are cheapskates looking for the cheapest deal but rather that we find the generous portions usually too copious for us. Today we’ll probably return to the Caçarola 1, as it’s so close. I might be adventurous and go for a crema de mariscos (shellfish soup) as well as a salad! Live life to the full and have fish soup and shellfish soup whenever you can!
On the subject of Christmas, I read yesterday that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine has decreed that its followers can celebrate Christmas this time on December 25th, instead of waiting until their traditional January 7th.
“For centuries Ukrainians have celebrated Christmas on 7 January, the date on which Jesus was born, according to the Julian calendar.
But following Vladimir Putin’s invasion in February, the Orthodox church of Ukraine is allowing its congregations for the first time to celebrate Christmas on 25 December, in a move away from Russia and towards the west.
The issue of when to celebrate Christmas has been a matter of longstanding debate in Ukraine.
The church has traditionally observed Christmas on 7 January, at the same time as the Moscow patriarchy, which has blessed Putin’s war. Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox church, is a prominent Putin supporter and has said Russian soldiers who are killed will be cleansed of all their sins.”
It’s amazing how a religion that asks us to love our neighbours has always ended up getting involved in blessing wars or indeed waging wars! I doubt this bit of virtue signalling will change matters.
So it goes!
I’ve not ranted about the non-benefits of Brexit for a while. So here’s a little cartoon which made me smile.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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