from our own correspondent

[teafortwo]

Old thread...
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/2423/576865?ts=1222265998268&msgid=12499051

New thread...

to be created below!

Enjoy!

Good luck TheMadHouse.

I'm sure the Spaniards have a saint they would pray to or offer something to in this situation, but I don't know which one.

So, I'll just cross my fingers for you.

themadhouse - hope everything goes well for you and a speedy recovery. take care.

Hope all goes well TMH!
All the best for a speedy recovery.

Good luck TMH. Wishing you a quick recovery.

FOOC Japan
Today, March 3rd, is Hina Matsuri, or Dolls Festival and is a festival for girls. Most households with daughters will display a set of hina dolls and eat a special sushi dish, with clam soup and various sweets (often with a peach theme, as according to the old Japanese calendar, March 3 was when the first peach blossom came out).
Well, we have a three tiered set of dolls, not quite as gorgeous as the ones in the photos above. The dolls signify the emperor and empress, and their various court musicians and ladies. I usually make the chirashi-zushi dish, which is vinegared rice with various toppings of raw fish, prawns and vegetables. DD is 11 and still enjoys setting up the dolls and helping me make the sushi. Her grandfather also sends a box of sweets for her and DS to share. She is always a bit peeved though, because today is not actually a holiday, so she only gets a day off if March 3rd falls on a weekend.
There is also a Children's Day (May 5th) and that day IS a bank holiday every year.
I think the reason they have various days for children, is that traditionally, Japanese people don't really celebrate birthdays, and so it was nice to have a special day for boys and girls.

Sounds like a lovely festival RoseofTheOrient .

Here in Galicia we've got a new Regional Government! On Sunday the region went to the polls, and voted out the power sharing PSdG and BNG (Socialist Party of Galicia and Galician National Block) in favour of a full majority for the PP (Popular Party), which is the right wing party in Spain.

Galicia has always traditionally been right leaning (General Franco was born here), but in recent years the PP has failed to gain enough seats to have a majority. The two parties of the left then joined together to keep them out. In the wake of a bit of corruption from the other side the PP managed to get 3 more seats so they now have 4 years of power.

The first headline grabbing act the new president took was to put the official, brand spanking new, top of the range Audi up for sale, saying that in times of Crisis the President does not need such a car!

I of course cannot vote here in these elections, which annoys me, particularly because the Spanish state has allowed emigrants and children of emigrants to continue voting in Spain. So some person in Venezuela, who's never set foot in Spain, can vote in its elections, but I, who live here and pay my taxes here cannot. European immigrants are only eligible to vote in municipal and European elections. DH jokes that I'll have to take Spanish nationality...

Roseoftheorient that sounds like a fabulous festival.

Cies - I don't understand why you can't vote. I'm pretty sure that we can vote in our local elections because we've had voting papers through the post. But maybe they were for the General Election. I'm not very good when it comes to things political or financial. I know it's dreadful & old-fashioned but I leave that sort of stuff to DH because it interests him and he understands it.

As usual, we didn't "do" Carnival this year. However, I was going to go and take some piccies so that I could show you all but unfortunately the whole family was struck down with the dreaded lurgy again that weekend so sorry!

The Government have a new scheme going at the moment. If you have an old car that you are going to scrap and not get any money for, you can apply for an interest-free loan to buy a brand new car as long as it's eco-friendly. One of the teachers here is going for it. However, as you would expect, he's on a mission to hunt down all the correct paperwork & obviously take his great-grandmother's inside leg measurement to the correct office before it can be agreed.

Soph73 I too can vote in my local elections (i.e. for the Vigo mayor and council), but not in the regional ones (for the Xunta de Galicia). This is what I was told when I went to the Census Office and concurs with what other ex-pats have experienced. I also opted to vote in European elections from Spain, rather than from UK.

at your description of the paperwork needed to get something from the administration here. I'll never forget the hassle of getting our wedding in UK legalised here [stressed even thinking about it emoticon]

Cies - that must be the same for us then. We made the decision to get married here, which obviously, still included a mountain of paperwork but wasn't too bad. The only one we struggled with was trying to get a piece of paper to prove that we were single!! Fortunately the Consulate sorted that out for us.

Evening all

FOOC North Yorkshire

Hello my fellow foocers

I wanted to give you all a post about how wonderful the NHS have been this past week and an update on my operation.

I went in at 8am on Friday and was shown immediatly to my room, a private ensuite with a walk in shower just by the nurses desk. It was clean and functional and rather large. Decor was dated, but who cares.

I was down in surgery by 9.30 after beening gowned and draw-on and man-handled in a very embarressed way.

I returned to my room by 3.30 on a PCA - morphine personal administered thing and back on my feet and to the loo by 7.30 that night.

The staff have been fantastic, I was on 30 mins obs for the first night and they would come in and chat to me if I was awake and also nothing was too much trouble.

The food was good. Platics being a closed ward - served on propper plates etc. Tea when ever I asked - which is quite a lot as I am a tea monster

I was relased on Wendesday, albeit with the drains still in and I ring them in the morning giving my drainage amounts. They have rang me up each afternoon to check how I am feeling.

So all in all I have had a fantastic time - if I can put it that way so far and at so pleased that we have the NHS and that I am a very lucky lady, although I am a little sore.

Please update me on you and yours - I need more reading material

TMH - glad you're feeling OK and your experience of the NHS wasn't too bad. Look after yourself.

Well life just seems to plod on here. Summer seems to have disappeared overnight and we have plunged into Autumn. It's still mid 20 degrees but it's rained on and off for the past week with tropical style storms, high winds etc..... Had to laugh yesterday cooked a roast dinner (beef, yorkshires etc), it was 25 degrees but felt cool. We're off to Oz in a few weeks to meet my sister we'll probably be in jeans and t-shirts as our temperature cools and her in the skimpiest summer clothes as she comes from teh English winter .

Anyway, despite the weather we headed to the beach again. We bought a beach house the other week and have been ferrying furniture etc down by the trailer load to make it habitable. It really is fantastic. It's two storey, all tiled with neutral plastered walls, rather spanish feeling but the selling (or buying) feature was the deck around the top floor. Unobstructed views of the dunes, sea and river depending on where you are standing. Sitting on the deck watching the sun set over the dunes and listening to the sea lashing in the near distance was amazing. We slept with the bedroom curtains and sliding doors open so we could see the sun rising over the hills in the morning and hear the sea lashing during the night.

ds1 bought himself a surf board on trade me (ebay equivalent) and spent hours trying to stand. ds2 and I body boarded, jumped waves and built sandcastles. We went for early morning walks when the only footprints in the sand were ours behind us. Eventually we were joined by a few surfers, like little dots on the horizon battling with the rather fierce sea. We played tennis and dodged the rain storms, getting caught out once so the rain was dripping off our eyelashes, headed back for a warm shower and played board games. By the evening the rain had stopped and we sat on the deck with a glass of wine again admiring the view while the bbq sent mouth watering smells off over the dunes. We have made a decision not to have a tv down there (not sure how long it will last) but it's great watching the boys actually play with toys and each other rather than watch tv or play with gadgets. It also means we have to play with them, cards, read stories, ride bikes, board games etc....

Rather reluctantly we said goodbye yesterday all looking forward to Friday when we can head back.

TMH - I'm glad to hear that the NHS treated you so well. It is heartening to hear stories like that after so much doom and gloom in the newspapers.

Sibble - am very at your beach house. It sounds idyllic.

I don't really have much to report from Spain. DH and I are enjoying being dog owners, and I especially feel that my health is gaining as I take 4 walks a day. Living in a flat we have to take the dog out at least that often for her to pee and poo. Because of my work schedule it works out that I do the lion's share (at least during the week), but it's quite enjoyable (except in the torrential rain). We're getting to recognise the other dog owners in the area, and are on small talk terms with a couple of them. Who knows, friendships may follow...

This thread seems to have tailed off slightly. I expect you're all too busy out in the real world having fun foreign adventures! Well, I am too, but it would be nice to read about some of yours' again

FOOC Galicia.

Growing up in the UK you get to know the wildlife. The fox is probably the main wild predator that most of us recognise, plus a few hawks or falcons. In Spain, things are on a larger scale. Wolves still roam the highlands and forests of most of the country. There are bears in the Pyranees. And eagles and vultures circle in the skies, looking for prey.

One of my SIL is doing her thesis on wolf ecology, and yesterday DH and I joined her and her bf on a trip to find some good wolf population survey points. We drove about 50 km inland, going up and up. The monte is rocky, with granite peaks and sparse vegetation. Gorse, heather, bracken, oak and pine are the indigenous species. Eucalyptus is the foreign encroacher, planted for paper mills and sucking the earth dry.

We found a promising looking track and split into two groups. DH and I plus dog walking ahead, looking for wolf excrement or signs of attacks (hair, bones, scratch marks), and leaving pyramids of stones where we found some. SIL and BF behind, in the car, taking photos, marking positions on the GPS and taking samples. It was quite fun . Fantastic scenery, sun, exercise and a purpose.

Spring has definitely arrived to the coast of Galicia, but drive an hour inland and the trees are still bare, with a few primroses and other little flowers that I can't identify colouring the woodland. Up on the open highland the gorse is a lovely deep yellow, smelling of coconut or almond.

It was a long day, leaving home at 10.30 and getting back at 9pm. I surprised DH by not falling asleep while we watched a film, but I really don't know how I managed it!

FOOC Granada, Spain.

Hi, I've seen these threads but never contributed as I tend to moan about my life here and that doesn't seem to be the point of the exercise

Today I walked down through the centre of town with DD1 5.5 yo and DD2 2.5 yo towards the river.
Half of Granada seemed to be out meandering in the sun after weeks and weeks of rain and cloudy weather.

By time we got down to the river we were too hot although DD2 refused to take off her cardigan as she seemed to find having her arms bare a bit strange. That's how it always is in Granada - too hot or too cold. No spring or autumn to speak of...

On the way back up we saw a crowd and stopped to watch some people practising for Easter week. About 30 men with their stomachs tightly bound with white cloth to prevent hernias were carrying what looked like a huge, roughly made wooden table wired for sound and piled high with cement blocks.
The men were packed under the 'table' in rows, taking the weight across the backs of their necks and shoulders on long wooden beams. They all looked utterly grim.

This is the base on which one of the Easter week processional 'pasos' will be built. The 4 sides will have solid silver embossed panels, on top will be a life-size figure of the Virgen or Christ surrounded by flowers and over the top, if the figure is of the Virgen, will be an embroidered silk canopy held up by silver poles.

The men carrying the 'paso' start practising months before in order to build up strength and learn to walk together in a coordinated way. They must practise different steps which give different effects, for example some make the Virgen appear to 'dance'. Other steps are the very small ones used for turning tight corners or the full speed triumphal stride. Once they are inside the fully decorated 'paso' they cannot see where they are going and must rely on the shouted instructions of the heads of the brotherhood guiding them and coded knockings on the front of the 'paso'.

In the case of the brotherhood of the Church of Santa Ana the men must learn to come out of the church carrying the 'paso', which weighs the same as a car, on their knees. This is because the 'paso' is several centimetres too high and would crash into the top of the doorway if they were to bring it out standing up. Once outside they must, as one, rise to a standing position. It is a very tense moment, as, if anyone loses their balance a domino effect could bring the whole 'paso' crashing down onto the crowd pressed tightly around the church.
A huge round of relieved applause rewards them once they have lurched safely to their feet.

So, although the slightly surreal sight of them practising with their giant table always brings a smile to my face it is a deadly serious and highly respected thing to be one of the men chosen to carry the 'paso'.

Hi Shitemum. Good to hear from another Spanish correspondent. I used to live in Córdoba, so the Semana Santa preparations bring back memories. I found it all a bit spooky tbh, but I suppose it's because it's so different to any CofE festivals.

Paris fooc

Every metro stop has this picture....
www.lesouvriers.fr/mediacampagne.php?clecamp=115

For some reason everytime I see it I think of the foocs so I thought I better give you all a link to it.

This week Spring has really sprung - time to go out, enjoy Paris and report back as much as possible!

shitemum - welcome to the foocs - what an excellent post - I think I will read it for a third time.... just so I can imagine the scene perfectly!

By the way - The madhouse - how is your recovery going?

FOOC - London

Just popping in to say hi. What's big news in these parts? Not much of big interest as I'm back at work. But, I like Google Street View a lot. For those of you who like/miss this lovely city - you can have a small amount of fun by plonking the little yellow man somewhere on the map of London at random and having a bit of a nose around.

Here's Trafalgar Square for starters

This thread has been a bit quiet, I guess like here there hasn't been much to report. Autumn arrived over night, freezing mornings and evenings but still skin blistering days. It is the season of layers again!

With Autumn the new sports season started and NZ is VERY big on sports. Ds1 swapped from soccer (football) the other year and now plays league, this year we have also registered ds2 who is only 4 (such is the national passion for all things sport and especially rugby or league). The boys train twice a week and play Saturday. This weekend they have extra training for 2 hours on Sunday followed by an optional swim in the pool and family bring a plate of food BBQ. My whole life for the next 6 months involves driving, cheering and participating from the side line whatever the weather.

League as opposed to rugby is quite a cultural affair with most of the players being maori or islanders (at a young age at least). It is like football is to the Brazilians. Ds2 may have to learn Tongan, it seems to be the language of choice from coach down to most of the players!

Well we are also off to Oz next week for the best part of 3 weeks to catch up with my sister who is flying in from the UK, surf, hang out at the beach and generally have some family time. Look forward to catching up with the other Fooc's on return.

FOOC Paris

Enjoy your hols sibble!

Well, here the sun is beginning to shine and the temperature rise. Spring has sprung. As we walked around our town yesterday I couldn't help but notice that it was filled with the nostalgic scent of cut grass and under the warm sun, towering over the now blooming Spring flowers the people were buzzing with activity.

The feel of the sun on my pale winter skin and that overwhelming smell of damp Spring grass sent me into a strong memory of the first days of summer uniform and how I loved the relative freedom of wearing a red and white gingham dress to school. I remembered clearly how I would spend the best part of my lunch hour building nests with grass trimmings alongside a group of pigtailed girls who became women I don't know.

A van with a huge globe strapped to a trailer behind passed us by and it was very exciting to watch a big pirate ship setting up place outside the town hall. I think both sightings are preparations for a new exhibition on the importance of being 'green'. Hopefully the ship will be open for a look inside today....

FOOC Paris

Oh - wow - - it is VERY quiet around here...

FOOC Greater Manchester

Teafortwo do not be sad, it will get back to its usual business soon! It is just we are all so very much into spring cleaning !

The weather here has been beautiful for the last few days. Everywhere you can see daffodils and it does really brighten the place!

We have been to Tatton Park as DH offerd us membership to the National Trust for our 12 wedding anniversary it might sounds weird as a gift but he knows me so well, I love mansions and beautiful gardens!

The Dcs have started the Easter holiday and we are definitely hopping the weather is going to stay like that as we are not going anywhere. It is going to be a lot of trips to the park and a lot of stately homes visits, and maybe some intersting moments to share with the rest of the FOOCS!

Oh great - Gorionine I can't wait to hear about your Easter holidays adventures!

For our Easter hols my dd and I are doing a little tour
of England. Amongst other things we will be going to a wedding in Liverpool and later in the same week an Easter feed the lambs day at a little farm in rural Suffolk as well as time in London....

So I hope to have lots to tell you all about too!

We are going to London as well for the Easter Week end. Feed the lamb day sounds lovely! Are you going anywhere near Hyde Park/Kensigton Gardens? There is this fantastic parc for children sponsored by the Pricess Diana's Trust (not sure of exact name...)There is a big pirate boat and sand my DCs absolutely love it!

FOOC Japan
Almost forgot that it was Easter soon! Easter is one holiday that the Japanese haven't imported! They usually take any opportunity for some commercial gain, but having done St Valentines Day on Feb. 14th (girls give boys chocolates), and then White Day on March 14th (boys give girls chocolates), I think we would have a serious obesity problem with yet more chocolate at Easter...
April in Japan means cherry blossoms (sakura)! And they are now all in full bloom for a couple of days. The thing to do is to go and have a picnic underneath the cherry blossoms, and lots of companies have after work drinks parties al fresco
April also means the beginning of the new work/school year, and my DCs both went back to school yesterday and into the next grade of primary school. DD is now in Year 6, which means only one more year and then its Junior High! DS actually had his 10th birthday yesterday too, and went up a grade into Year 4.
Most companies will have a reshuffle of personnel, with new people joining the office and others leaving. There are usually welcome parties etc. around this time of year, so more excuses for a bit of a tipple!
Luckily, even with so much alcohol being consumed, drunken Japanese very rarely get violent - there is none of the fighting that goes on in town centres in the UK. Most of them here just go very red in the face and fall down!! Even if they miss the last train home, they can usually find a capsule hotel to crash out in for the night. Failing that, there is always the park bench, under the cherry blossoms!!