My dear Family & Friends, 3 November
What I forgot to mention last week was that Lucia and I have booked ourselves a long weekend in Portugal in mid-December. One of the factors which influenced our decision to move to England was the opportunity it would afford us to flit off to anywhere in Europe for a weekend at a moment’s notice. Of course it doesn’t really work like that in the real world. Work constraints mean it’s difficult to find the time for Lucia, and kennelling for our four animals at £30 a day can easily double the costs. We were also really disappointed that Thomsonfly, the airline wing of the travel company, has cancelled its service from Coventry Airport. That makes Birmingham airport our nearest alternative.
It was while I was researching the airlines and services out of Birmingham airport on the Internet that I discovered some flights to Faro and back (allegedly) for £4,99 each way on Monarch Airlines for the weekend in mid-December. I called Lucia straight away to check that she could take a day or two leave, and then my sister, Barbara, to find out if we could stay with them for the weekend. Then I booked the flights. Now let me say here that this the one instance when I am entirely in favour of state intervention. The advertised price for the return fare was £10, but this excluded “taxes” which came to another £45 each. Then we had to pay another £6,50 each way to put a bag in the hold; that is, the bag’s journey was more expensive than my own. Then Monarch popped on another £5 credit card “charge”.
Don’t get me wrong; it’s still cheap for the 2500km journey each way. I just don’t think these con artists should be allowed to advertise prices which aren’t “all-in” rather than the misleading bullshit which they splash on their websites. From my own searches, it seems that Easyjet and Thomsonfly are the only “discount” airlines which advertise all-in prices; all of the others are almost certain to add layers of costs to the advertised price.
As to the week, the big event was the snowfall on Tuesday. Apparently this is the first time it has snowed in October in The Midlands since 1934. (See pictures in the usual spot at http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/llewellynijones.) It was also the first time that our dogs and cats had discovered snow up close and personal. I don’t think Edgar was quite convinced at first that snow could be fun. He’s the sort of dog who normally objects to big rain drops and wet grass. I loaded them into the back of the CRV after I’d finished the ironing and took them to Victoria Park in Leamington. Edgar did not want to get out; I had to grab his collar and yank. The first couple of snowflakes to land on his nose really bothered him, but then he discovered that it was quite fun to chase them. I soon had both dogs chasing after snowballs. Then a few more dog owners appeared out of the gloom and a great big game of rough-and-tumble ensued as the dogs chased after one another. There was even a three-legged dog who could move faster than most his four-legged friends I’ve come across. I would have stayed longer, but I got cold. By the time I got the dogs to the car, Edgar had a look that seemed to say “why spoil the fun now?”
Back at home, I tried to get the cats into the spirit of the occasion by picking them up and putting them down in the middle of the garden. I don’t think they felt quite the same way about the snow as the dogs. In fact, I’m fairly certain they were quite upset with me for disturbing their equilibrium as they tried to find their way out of the cold, wet stuff with slow, giant, clown-like steps.
On Wednesday the sun was shining bright and by Thursday the snow had all melted.
Then on Saturday we had one of Lucia’s cousins from London, Barbara, and her husband, David, around for lunch. I cooked my favourite Portuguese chicken and rice dish again which had everybody going back for seconds. I’m going to have to come up with another dish for guests soon.
In the evening Lucia and I went to the annual bonfire and fireworks display at Warwick racecourse. It was pleasant enough, if a bit cold at first. Then it began to drizzle just as the bonfire of wooden pallets was lit. The drizzle turned to rain and we took shelter behind a wall waiting for the fireworks. Now anybody who has studied a little bit of physics will know the percussive force of an explosive bang is likely to cause even more rain. So it was that it rained harder and harder as the fireworks lit up the sky. I dashed off to one of the mobile food vendors halfway through the display to buy a polystyrene plate of chips (which I smothered with tomato sauce) to keep us warm. We made a dash for our car along with two or three thousand other people as the reverberations of the last bang died away.
Still, I enjoyed the display. I loved fireworks as a child, and I still do. I love the smell of cordite and gunpowder, and sparklers are guaranteed to bring a smile to my face. We were particularly spoiled at our home in Pin Oak Road in Cape Town which gave us a ringside seat for the many fireworks displays in the V&A Waterfront. The display in Warwick couldn’t match up to the grand displays we witnessed in Cape Town, but still I loved it.
Love, light & peace
Llewellyn
What I forgot to mention last week was that Lucia and I have booked ourselves a long weekend in Portugal in mid-December. One of the factors which influenced our decision to move to England was the opportunity it would afford us to flit off to anywhere in Europe for a weekend at a moment’s notice. Of course it doesn’t really work like that in the real world. Work constraints mean it’s difficult to find the time for Lucia, and kennelling for our four animals at £30 a day can easily double the costs. We were also really disappointed that Thomsonfly, the airline wing of the travel company, has cancelled its service from Coventry Airport. That makes Birmingham airport our nearest alternative.
It was while I was researching the airlines and services out of Birmingham airport on the Internet that I discovered some flights to Faro and back (allegedly) for £4,99 each way on Monarch Airlines for the weekend in mid-December. I called Lucia straight away to check that she could take a day or two leave, and then my sister, Barbara, to find out if we could stay with them for the weekend. Then I booked the flights. Now let me say here that this the one instance when I am entirely in favour of state intervention. The advertised price for the return fare was £10, but this excluded “taxes” which came to another £45 each. Then we had to pay another £6,50 each way to put a bag in the hold; that is, the bag’s journey was more expensive than my own. Then Monarch popped on another £5 credit card “charge”.
Don’t get me wrong; it’s still cheap for the 2500km journey each way. I just don’t think these con artists should be allowed to advertise prices which aren’t “all-in” rather than the misleading bullshit which they splash on their websites. From my own searches, it seems that Easyjet and Thomsonfly are the only “discount” airlines which advertise all-in prices; all of the others are almost certain to add layers of costs to the advertised price.
As to the week, the big event was the snowfall on Tuesday. Apparently this is the first time it has snowed in October in The Midlands since 1934. (See pictures in the usual spot at http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/llewellynijones.) It was also the first time that our dogs and cats had discovered snow up close and personal. I don’t think Edgar was quite convinced at first that snow could be fun. He’s the sort of dog who normally objects to big rain drops and wet grass. I loaded them into the back of the CRV after I’d finished the ironing and took them to Victoria Park in Leamington. Edgar did not want to get out; I had to grab his collar and yank. The first couple of snowflakes to land on his nose really bothered him, but then he discovered that it was quite fun to chase them. I soon had both dogs chasing after snowballs. Then a few more dog owners appeared out of the gloom and a great big game of rough-and-tumble ensued as the dogs chased after one another. There was even a three-legged dog who could move faster than most his four-legged friends I’ve come across. I would have stayed longer, but I got cold. By the time I got the dogs to the car, Edgar had a look that seemed to say “why spoil the fun now?”
Back at home, I tried to get the cats into the spirit of the occasion by picking them up and putting them down in the middle of the garden. I don’t think they felt quite the same way about the snow as the dogs. In fact, I’m fairly certain they were quite upset with me for disturbing their equilibrium as they tried to find their way out of the cold, wet stuff with slow, giant, clown-like steps.
On Wednesday the sun was shining bright and by Thursday the snow had all melted.
Then on Saturday we had one of Lucia’s cousins from London, Barbara, and her husband, David, around for lunch. I cooked my favourite Portuguese chicken and rice dish again which had everybody going back for seconds. I’m going to have to come up with another dish for guests soon.
In the evening Lucia and I went to the annual bonfire and fireworks display at Warwick racecourse. It was pleasant enough, if a bit cold at first. Then it began to drizzle just as the bonfire of wooden pallets was lit. The drizzle turned to rain and we took shelter behind a wall waiting for the fireworks. Now anybody who has studied a little bit of physics will know the percussive force of an explosive bang is likely to cause even more rain. So it was that it rained harder and harder as the fireworks lit up the sky. I dashed off to one of the mobile food vendors halfway through the display to buy a polystyrene plate of chips (which I smothered with tomato sauce) to keep us warm. We made a dash for our car along with two or three thousand other people as the reverberations of the last bang died away.
Still, I enjoyed the display. I loved fireworks as a child, and I still do. I love the smell of cordite and gunpowder, and sparklers are guaranteed to bring a smile to my face. We were particularly spoiled at our home in Pin Oak Road in Cape Town which gave us a ringside seat for the many fireworks displays in the V&A Waterfront. The display in Warwick couldn’t match up to the grand displays we witnessed in Cape Town, but still I loved it.
Love, light & peace
Llewellyn
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