The General Election

                                                                   The road to Jacarilla

Hi there readers, I haven't posted for a couple of weeks due to being in Spain, it's good to be back.....well, good to be back posting as opposed to being back literally.

When we first bought our property some 10 years back, people would ask: 'will you move to Spain permanently one day?' And the answer was always the same, categorically not!

I've always loved England, the changing seasons, our culture; proud, strong and polite, our green and pleasant land and our history. However, as time has passed I have begun to love my Spanish home more and more. The Spanish way of life and culture differs enormously from that in the UK, in my village of Jacarilla, community, culture and social life remain very important and for me it has become a safe haven away from the hustle and bustle and chaos of Britain.

Today is the general election and to be frank I feel no patriotic fervour. We have ricocheted from one disastrous government to another for as long as I can remember with none of these career politicians really caring about the average person on the street. We have lost our communities, we are beholden to the fat cats and corporate chains, our agriculture and small businesses are being squeezed, we have an obesity epidemic yet little food education, our Drs and nurses are being worked into the ground and we routinely have to wait for 2-4 weeks to get an appointment with a GP. Yet still, our politicians claim expenses and lead gilded lives, far removed from reality they glide from their beautiful London properties to their country piles regardless of whether they are right or left wing.

As a nation, we have been caught on the treadmill, we frantically work to buy bigger houses and better cars, we have eschewed community life, swapping it for social status and 'stuff.' We have become insular and cold.

Spain boasts good weather nearly all year round, which is an advantage,  consequently people spend a lot of their lives outdoors, and it makes them more outgoing, more expressive, the Spanish have a reputation for being warm and welcoming (like the climate!)

A recent poll conducted by Lloyds TSB revealed that British Expats in Spain were amongst the happiest in the world, with the quality of life and the cost of living scoring well. British people have embraced the rustic charm, the culture, the epic coastal scenery, the scorched countryside and the fiestas and religious traditions, not to mention, raising the act of relaxing, not always neurotically being on the move, but being at one with simplicity.

What strikes me most is that Spanish people are far less materialistic and don't hanker after pointless 'stuff'. They know how to enjoy themselves without spending lots of money. Longing for more and more possessions and buying social status is outweighed by their love of social life and simplicity. They live 'smaller' and do without many of the luxuries we deem so important, consequently they aren't as competitive or neurotic.

I guess I'm showing my age, but warmth, timelessness, siestas, rustic food and quietude are the things I want in my life. Being in Jacarilla is like a parallel universe, no gridlocked traffic or ugly superstores on my doorstep, people actually talking and gesticulating in bars and restaurants, as opposed to being glued to their phones or tablets. Children playing on the beaches and swimming in the sea (the Spanish still allow their children to wear costumes rather than those awful head to toe burkini swimsuits we are so intent on making our children wear on the two days of sun a year we get in England!)

And of course, the Spanish aren't cut off from the origins of the food they eat, therefore it is far from the pre-portioned,  pre-wrapped, processed food we rely on. Like it or not, in Spain, an animal killed for eating will be used in its entirety, nothing is wasted, on this last trip I saw a family heartily tucking in to pigs trotters. I have written several times before about menu del dia but it still fascinates me. This meal normally consists of several courses with a bottle of wine per couple for around 8€ a head!

              Primer plato: normally nuts, sausage or ham and salad with alioli and bread

                    Segundo curso: often a stew made with leftovers such as lentejas

                                   Plato principal: this can be either a fish or meat dish

                                         Postre: this will either be a cake, ice cream or fruit

            The meal always ends with a coffee and often a complimentary liqueur

                                                         A typical village restaurant

Traditionally on Sundays and public holidays families will eat some variation of paella.

Dining at a beautiful beach location, it beats walking around shopping precincts, buying 'stuff' and eating in chain restaurants, a favourite past time with us Brits.

'What is the meaning of life? That was all - a simple question, one that tended to close in on one with years.'
- Virginia Woolf (in - to the lighthouse.)

Love Donna xxxxxxxxxxx