Misfortunes

On 21th, that's two days ago, I was supposed to take a plane at 16:55. Due to the poor weather conditions my flight was cancelled and I had to return home from Gatwick. I was waiting for a long time because they delayed my flight twice and I had to be waiting about three hours from my expected departure hour. I barely slept 5 or 6 hours because I got up early to get another flight before than other people.

Theorically I was lucky 'cause I found a new one in the same day. So I did my packing again and took the train to Luton. As the traing went further I realized the amount of snow was increasing gradually...But I tried to keep positive thoughts. I arrive 4 hours before my gate closes, plenty of time for nothing because as I arrived they told me in the information counter my flight was cancelled. Funnily the information screen was wrong and then I came back home again.

Below, some snowmen in the exit. Some sarcasm...

Fortunately I could see a wonderful sunset when returning home in the train.

There're few double-decker buses in Gillingham... The adventures have not ended yet, I have to walk around 15 minutes until aproach my house, and all the streets' ground were covered in a thick icy layer, so most people were walking on the road. Really dangerous but the unique solution to avoid fall down and break your teeth.

A great day

It has been more than I could have expected in my best dreams and I don't know how to show you my gratitude. The food has been delicious (better said yummy) and I was deeply surprised with all that wonderful presents.

I'm going to miss all of you so much although I know I'm going to see you soon.

I've tried some new things such as Minced pies with raisins inside, Abbie and Paige don't like them at all and they were fooling about, but in my personal view they are nice. Funnily, I thought it was made of meat and not fruits.

They have given me a fluffy and cosy robe, a lovely cuddle teddy bear, a pyjamas so cool (Graham family), and a pair of sox, some sweetes, a box with assorted bathroom stuff (Gregory family). I was open-mouthed when I've seen the huge carton bag in front of my eyes.

Afterwards, Abbie and Paige have been singing and dancing to me four songs, it's been a nice detail. They have sung the last one song without any music and it has been lovely. But I'm afraid it's going to rain heavily tomorrow...Probably...

They have liked my Spanish omelette and I hope they haven't thrown it away because it supposed to be my dinner...

THANK YOU SO SO SO MUCH

On a side note, I'd like to add that they liked their presents, the clock is on the chimney in the living room and abbie has painted her fingernails.

Minced Pie

Never say goodbye

Dreamy multi-colured palette of the Earth,
a skilled faceless painter makes the leaves
change their colour magically and paints
the chimney-pots in a pure white tone.

The bells of the old church are pealing loudly
while the raindrops are slidin' in my window
slowly, gracefully, tuneful, like dancers in a icy
wonderland of illusions.
A farewall is arriving, silently...

IT'S SNOWING !!!!!!

A winter's tale Yesterday the fields were
only grey with scattered snow,
And now the longest grass-leaves
hardly emerge; Yet her deep footsteps
mark the snow, and go On towards
the pines at the hills’ white verge.

Rochester's historic catalpa tree

Rochester's Catalpa forever heels at the foot of England's second oldest Cathedral, founded in 640AD by Bishop Justus. Under the twisted and time-wrought boughs of this beautiful tree one has the sense of being embraced in a living history. From Dickens to D-Day, the tree has seen it all.

"I think it looks like a big friendly spider waiting to climb

the Cathedral." Sasha Patel, Aged 6

"I remember being a very young child when we got caught in torrential rain on the way back from the market. We headed for shelter under the Catalpa and I can still recall the feeling of being safe - looking up into the gnarled branches and wondering if the tree could talk! As an adult, there's still a certain magic and mystery that surrounds this tree and I'll always consider it a friend."Miss. T. Ree

"It makes me sad when I see the tree because the wooden pole looks like a walking stick. It's a very old tree and we should help it."

Jaffa Cakes

Jaffa Cakes are a popular type of cake in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Jaffa Cakes consist of three layers: a sponge cake base, a layer of orange flavoured jelly and a coating of dark chocolate

And the cause of everything is that which we call God. To know God and to live is the same thing. God is Life... What am I? A part of the infinite. It is indeed in these words that the whole problem lies. The essence of any religion lies solely in the answer to the question: why do I exist, and what is my relationship to the infinite universe that surrounds me? .. It is impossible for there to be a person with no religion (i.e. without any kind of relationship to the world) as it is for there to be a person without a heart. He may not know that he has a religion, just as a person may not know that he has a heart, but it is no more possible for a person to exist without a religion than without a heart. (Leo Tolstoy, 1879)

Victoria Sponge

The Victoria Sponge cake is eaten throughout the UK, and owes its name to a past monarch.The Victoria sponge cake was named after Queen Victoria, who favoured a slice of the sponge cake with her afternoon tea. It is often referred to simply as sponge cake, though it contains additional fat. A traditional Victoria sponge consists of jam sandwiched between two sponge cakes; the top of the cake is not iced or decorated.

Dense Fog

There's a tick foggy veil on my face
that doesn't let me see any brigthness,
my feet drag the damp autumnal leaves,

laying on the greyish ground,

in every deep step I take forwards.

Weaving delicate and fragile

spiderwebs in the deepest part of my soul
I feel the sewing needles, but
I won't look back.

Blurry silhouettes in the distance,

giant trees and huge phantoms of the past,

the rain will clear up the canvas of my life
and I'll begin a new painting at last.

Drawing with a steady hand on the

white paper a new path through the
greenish woolen fields of life,
I won't look back.

'My way will be where my feet are, where the wind takes me'

Gema

Cornish Pasty

Cornish dialect ode to a pasty
I dearly luv a pasty,
A 'ot 'n' leaky wun,
Weth taties, mayt 'n' turmit,
Purs'ly 'n' honyun,
Un crus be made with su't,
'N' shaped like 'alf a moon,
Weth crinkly hedges, freshly baked,
E always gone too soon!

The origins of the pasty are largely unknown, although it is generally accepted that the modern form of the pasty originated from Cornwall. Tradition claims that the pasty was originally made as lunch for Cornish tin miners who were unable to return to the surface to eat.



In modern Cornwall the pasty industry has become a significant earner with wide varieties of pasties being made by pasty shops all over Cornwall. The traditional recipe however remains the same potato, onion, turnip (Swede), skirt beef (pasty beef) salt and pepper, being the main filling ingredients - short crust pastry being the normal covering.

There is an old Cornish saying that ' The Devil is afraid to come into Cornwall in case he is made into a Saint or put in a pie ' (not put in a pasty as is often misquoted).
Pasties are still very popular throughout Cornwall, Devon, Wales, North East England, other parts of the United Kingdom, Ireland and Brittany. They are also popular in the northern United States. Pasties in these areas are usually hand-made and sold in bakeries or sometimes specialist pasty shops.

The word "oggy" in the popular Cornish rhyme "Oggy Oggy Oggy, Oi Oi Oi" is thought to stem from Cornish dialect "hoggan", deriving from "hogen" the Cornish (Kernewek) word for pasty. When the pasties were ready for eating, the bal maidens at the mines would shout down the shaft "Oggy Oggy Oggy" and the miners would shout "Oi Oi Oi" meaning yes, or all right.

Pasty superstitions
A popular superstition throughout Cornwall is that a crust of the pasty should be left uneaten. Cornish miners would discard this last crust in order to appease the "Knockers", the spirits of dead miners believed to haunt the tin mines. Sailors and fisherman would likewise discard a crust to appease the spirits of dead mariners. These crusts were usually snapped up by seagulls, popularly held in West Country superstition to be the souls of dead mariners

Life's short, seize the day

It's not long till I come back home...Just a few days and ¡Violá! I think I'm not gonna be able to do all things I'd like in a week, but I'll try to squash my time as much as I can. I'll be flying home on 21st (Winter solstice), I'll keep on my mind good memories about this date from this year on and wipe out bad ones forever and ever and ever. It's getting colder gradually, I hope it's snow when I'm in here...I'd be amazing! I feel good this morning, it's cold but it's sunny. I love sunny days in England!

Metal Jacks and Rubber ball

After we were playing with our own rules (that's dropping the red ball inside cat's water plate and hitting the ceiling) , Abbie's mum explained us how to play this unknown game. You have to catch as many jacks as you can while you are bouncing the ball so it's an ability old playground game. I don't know why i have the strong believe Abbie is going to lose the small jacks soon...or the other possibility is Scrappy eats them!

As time goes by...

I've been living for nearly 2 months here and I still cannot believe it! I need to buy a warm coat (the thing is to find one cheap and nice) urgently cause the weather is getting colder day a day. Sometimes, the wind has such a strength that it's truly hard to walk, I hope don't fly away and turn into GemPopins. Unbelievably, today it's being a sunny day!

Life is fine! Fine as wine! Life is fine! ;)

Scotch Egg

"A Scotch egg consists of a shelled hard-boiled egg, wrapped in a sausage meat mixture, coated in breadcrumbs, and deep-fried. Scotch eggs are commonly eaten cold, typically with salad and pickles."

Finally I decided to try one and i cannot wait to repeat now. It reminds me of croquetes because of the flavour. I've seen a package consisting of small scrotch eggs and it could be eaten like a snack every time. It could be funny to try an ostrich egg aswell

Fireworks (31/10/09)

We were having dinner at Peige's on Friday. There were lots of food (mainly junk food), there were burguers, sausages, baked potatoes, baked pasta, cakes, etc. I tasted a new sauce made of lime and chilli and It was really spicy but i really liked it and i decided to have my potato with it. After dinner we were outside and there was a kind of wood stove in the garden and we were playing with sparklers , we had lot of fun. We were to see the fireworks on Saturday night, i was impressed 'cause there were lots of people in the street. It was amazing, there were lots of stars in the dark sky.
Estuvimos viendo los fuegos artificiales en una especie de campo de fútbol, aunque estaba muy oscuro y no sé a ciencia cierta donde fuimos, sólo se que era la primera vez que estaba allí ya que tuvimos que andar mucho hasta que llegamos. Había muchísima gente por todas partes, en los pubs, en las calles, y había muchos puestos vendiendo espadas de colores y ese tipo de cosas para los niños y los borrachos! Era la primera vez que veía fuegos artificiales tan de cerca y la verdad es que fue espectacular.

Poppy Day

The poppies that you see people wear,

Are there to show you they still care.

We open our hearts so that we can share,

A moment of silence, and offer a prayer.
To all the soldiers who died saving our country.
Yesterday was Remembrance Day (also known as Poppy Day, Armistice Day or even Veterans Day), there were many soldiers selling poppies along the High Street. Poppies are sold every year as an act of remembrance to fallen soldiers at wars. The price of each poppy is based on charity, and there were lots of different stuff such as stickers, plastic bracalets, pins... All the gains are destined to the Royal British Legion's funds. I saw lot of people wearing one in London's tube, but according to the BBC it's an important event across the whole country (although it's not the only one, of course). They keep one or two minutes of silence at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month (11:00 am, 11 November), as that marks the time (in the United Kingdom) when armistice became effective.

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Guy Fawkes Night (5th November)

Yesterday was the Guy Fawkes Night or shorter Bonfire night, an anual traditional celebration across the country. According to the historical origen, there ware a local group of Catholic conspirators who attemping to blow up the Houses of the Parliament in London with the intention of assassinate King James I of England and VI of Scontland and most of the Protestant aristocracy during the State Opening. This fact is known as Gunpowder Plot and it took place in 1605.
On this date, fireworks are displayed and people build bonfires on which traditionally guys are burnt, although nowadays this practice is dissapearing. There're lots of traditional food, such as:
toffee apples, jacket potatoes, potato pie, parkin, bonfire toffee, and so on. But we had for dinner fish and chips, susages and mushroom & chicken pie. I could see the fireworks on the news and hear them.

And at the end this is a traditional song that i've found, it goes:

Remember, remember the Fifth of November,
The Gunpowder Treason and Plot,
I know of no reason
Why the Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, t'was his intent
To blow up the King and Parli'ment.
Three-score barrels of powder below
To prove old England's overthrow;
By God's providence he was catch'd
With a dark lantern and burning match.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!
And what should we do with him? Burn him!

A new path

I've discovered the place where i want to live (better said, i've confirmed that i want to live here) and i have to start with my future plans. I'll take a lot of decisions about how i want to spend my free-time here (that it's no too much). It doesn't easy to start from scratch, but undoubtedly is an unique experience that i want to include in my life. It's important to progress, and learn to have brave enough to fighting daily to fulfill all your goals. And that's exactly what i'm going to start doing right now.

If you stand very still in the heat of a wood
You will hear many wonderful things;
The snap of a twig and the wind in the trees,
And the whirr of invisible wings.

If you stand very still and hold to your faith
You will get all the help that you ask;
You will draw from the silencethe things that you need,
Hope and courage and strength for your task.
P. Strong

Engineering works

Some lines of London's tube are suspended due to engineering works and there's a bus service operating between the stations, but this is familiar to me... It's the same nightmare that in Madrid a couple of months ago but more tedious because all the lines are or are going to be under construction ( this is what i understand in the messy webpage at least) and the tube is considerably bigger. I had to change three times of train! They claim: we are transforming the tube, COOL!!! , but it looks to last nor one month neither two..In fact it looks that it's going to take longer.
But that's not all, There're train delays in national rail aswell but i'm not sure if it's due to engineering works or it was just a stroke of bad luck. I had to be waiting for half an hour to next train because of mine was first delayed 15minutes and finally cancelled. The height of it is that i was running uphill along the endless street while the rain's drops hit on my face (specially in my eyes i saw all blurry!) When i arrived to the station, there was a lovely family buying a tickets to London and they were more lost than me so the ticket clerk was explaining the prices and possibilities...
To make a long story short... I'm fed up with the transport of Spain and of England.

Hectic Monday

Another sunny and delightful day begins, the sky is clear of clouds, all it tainted in a celestial blue. It's quite cold despite the deceptive brightness. I consider myself lucky 'coz i'm enjoying a really nice weather during my first month here, so i can't complain at all. There's no any sound in the street, just silence, just peace. I can see the trees' top from my window. This silence helps to thinking better and you can find yourself. But i think i'm gonna break this harmony and turn on the radio, i need music to finish my tasks (I need energy!!!) , this is just a short rest.

The children have started school today after last week off, but they look so happy and excited running through the green school's gate that is opened by the man who wears green clothes every single day.

So there i go (too many things to do today!!!)