Ireland Reads Day - February 25th 2021

"Ireland Reads"

I could listen to the President of Ireland Michael D. Higgins forever!  

We found Bagels!

Look what we found - Bagels!

You have read about my search for bagels in a previous blog post (see here)

Well guess what we happened upon today! Yes bagels!

Aldi and Lidl - Malaga

We had decided to go to Aldi and Lidl to buy a few items that you can't get elsewhere, namely a block of cheddar cheese and a block of Stilton from Lidl along with some pre-made "Angels on Horseback" (dates wrapped in bacon) that just need to be heated up in the oven. Aldi doesn't actually have anything that we can't get elsewhere but in fairness it is a particularly nice Aldi so we like to go in for a browse to see what they have.

Well I was glad we went to Aldi today because what did we find among the special food items that they only have for a week or two and then when they are gone, they don't return for a few months? Yes Bagels.

We were so happy to find them that we bought a few packs in different varieties (plain, seasame and whole grain) and when we got home, I sliced them and then put them in to the freezer so that we can enjoy them over the next while!

Cake time!

Cake to celebrate

For the past 3 weeks we have been doing a Spanish course from 9.15am to 1pm everyday. Today was our last day along with another student who had been studying with the school for 3 months.

The student who was finishing up a 3 month course brought cake along for the morning break.  He had stopped off and ordered them from La Canasta Panaderia.  

La Canasta (there are a few dotted around the city) is one of our favourite spots for a coffee and a mixto for our desayuno and I can report that their Tiramisu cake is just as good as their mixto!!!

A big thanks to W. from The Netherlands for the lovely cakes. They were much enjoyed by all of the students and teachers.

Cheered up by the Garda Jerusalem Challenge

Malaga on restrictions

As I wrote yesterday Malaga is now on restrictions with shops and restaurants closed for the next 2 weeks. I anticipated it being worse than it actually is but there is still a fair bit open here in the city with Coffee shops serving take away coffees (definitely essential!) along with the panaderias selling bread. There are also other essential services like phone repair shops and hairdressers still open.

Garda Jerusalem Challenge

I was feeling a little down in the dumps yesterday with all of the Covid goings on but I was really cheered up by watching the Irish Gardai (police force) rise to the Jerusalem Challenge along with the Swiss Police Force and others. The music is great and the backdrop of the Irish scenery looks gorgeous......oh and there is also dancing horses!!!  Dancing horses, I needn't say any more - but there is also some traditional Irish dancing.

Have a look at it here:

Yesterday I shared pics of the streets 10 minutes before all the cafes, bars and restaurants had to close for 2 weeks.

Today I took more pics from the same spots and will put them down below, side by side, so you can compare the difference.

Calle Granada

Calle Caldereria

Calle Calderia - up near Plaza de Uncibay   

 

As you can see there is considerably less people around the streets which should hopefully bring down the numbers. Additionally I think the not selling of alcohol in bars and restaurants will be particularly helpful.

Let's see how it goes and fingers crossed there will be no extension of restrictions beyond the two weeks.

2 Weeks of Restrictions in Malaga: Restaurants and Non-Essential Businesses are closed

2 Week Closure of Restaurants, Cafes and Non-Essential Businesses

Malaga capital cierra su actividad no esencial a partir del miercoles

Well it has happened. New restrictions are starting in Malaga from midnight tonight. The number of Covid cases went above 1,000 per 100,000 and so new restrictions have been brought in where restaurants and shops are to close for 2 weeks. Up to this point they had to close at 6pm with a 10pm curfew. 

Of course we know that it is 2 weeks initially and this is sure to be extended.....

How we will be affected by the new restrictions

We don't think we will be very affected by the new restrictions. We have not been visiting restaurants or bars and have only been occasionally going out for coffee over the past while. We had signed up for 3 weeks of intensive Spanish lessons in a language school with 3 days left to attend but in actual fact schools are not closing so we will still be able to attend. 

Unfortunately we were also doing 2 hours of Spanish lessons with Speak and Learn where we met with a teacher in cafes in Malaga. These have been put on hold for the moment as the cafes will be closed so we can not meet up. In the past we have done these classes online but have decided to take a break from them while the restrictions are in place, as we did not find the online class as useful as the face to face class.

PIGSY Art

For Ciaran, his studio will be still available to work in but the art gallery that it is connected to will be closed for the next two weeks. Unfortunately his newest solo art exhibition was due to open in 2 weeks time so for the moment that has to be postponed. This is a big disappointment.

Other activities 

And the other thing that we thought would be affected would be Padel but it seems that non-contact sport can still take place so I will go to my padel class on Thursday. Along with all of the above, my volunteer job in Cudeca Charity Shop is also on pause for the moment as the shop will not open for the next two weeks as per these restrictions.

So let's see how all of this plays out and whether the numbers reduce in order to allow for reopening in 2 weeks time. I'm not feeling hopeful and think there should probably be more extensive restrictions like hairdressers having to close along with sport being restricted.

For posterity here's how the streets looked this evening at 5.50pm just 10 minutes before all the bars and restaurants have to close at 6pm for the next 2 weeks.

                                                                    Calle Granada

                                                    View of the Irish bar from my balcony

                                                                Calle Caldereria

Dog Friendly Malaga

Dogs welcome!

Having seen a lady in S'Fera the other day with a little Bichon, I wondered whether dogs were allowed in this clothes shop. I suspected they were because the lady was not holding her dog in her arms but instead was letting the dog walk around on its lead.

Today I was going in to S'Fera and was planning on leaving Bones outside with Ciaran when I noticed a sign in the window.

This is the sign:

"Best Dogs" welcome!

The sign reads that your best dog is allowed in the store. In small print at the bottom it says that the dog has to be less than 10kg or if it is bigger it has to be in a container (or I guess a baby stroller - of which you do see lots of older dogs being carried in, here in Malaga)

Dogs on terraces

Dogs are welcomed in to most cafes (outside on their terrace) in Malaga but I was pleasantly surprised to know that they are also welcome in to some clothes stores too. After bringing Bones with us all the way from Ireland to Spain on the plane it is nice that he can get to enjoy most of Malaga too rather than constantly being left sitting outside of shops. Click here to read about how Bones travelled from Ireland.

Additionally for shops, allowing dogs in is possibly bringing in extra revenue as many dog owners may pass up going in and spending money in shops if they don't feel safe leaving their dogs outside. Bringing the dog in to the shop with them allows them to browse in a relaxed manner and buy a few items if they want.

I'm not sure why I am so surprised to see dogs being let in to clothes shops. The charity shop I volunteer in on Saturday mornings, lets dogs of any size in and it is common to see multiple dogs in the shop at the one time. I guess I didn't think that new clothes shops would be so welcoming!

Let me know, what do you think of dogs in shops?  Or do tell if you have been allowed to bring your dog in to some places where you didn't expect and were pleasantly surprised.

Where I get my news in Malaga

News - where I get it from

As you can see from my past blog posts, we were anticipating that there would be a lockdown here in Malaga if the Covid numbers continued to rise and went above a particular point. This did not come to pass as anticipated and numbers are starting to go down marginally here in Malaga over the last few days. Hopefully this will continue.

There are a number of ways in which I get my news here in Malaga. With the whole Covid situation it is particularly important to have up to date info and sometimes I find that Twitter is best for instant info. Along with using Twitter I also go to the El Pais in English website and also the Sur in English website as well as picking up the hard copy of the Sur in English newspaper on Fridays. I pick up my Sur from the Tourist Office on Constitution Plaza.

Sur in English

Here's some pics of this weeks Sur in English. It's a great free weekly newspaper and I've highlighted some of the parts that I find particularly useful.

As well as news articles there is a variety of lifestyle articles including "What happened today?". This week's article features the date of 29th of January 1999 where a Valazquez art work sold for a record sum. Along with an interesting article, there is something further where the journalist pulls out some words from the article and translates them in to Spanish in a useful "Language Footnote".

Here's this week's "Language Footnote" which are actually really relevant for us given the work that PIGSY is doing here in Spain along with the work that I am doing promoting him, his art and his brand!

As you can see the Spanish words all relate to art which relate back to the article on the Velazquez article.

Language Crossword 

And then at the back of the paper is a crossword which is actually bilingual, in that you answer the clues in the Spanish language. Some of the words that turn up in this crossword are words from the "Language Footnote" which is helpful for learning new vocabulary. See One Down, for example, which is looking for the Spanish word for Painting, which is obviously "Pintura" as noted in the Language Footnote. I think this is a great fun way to add to my language learning here in Spain.

Event Listings

Further to all of the above, the Sur in English also prints full listings of all of the cultural events that are taking place in Malaga and we use this to plan ahead for the week and to take in some of the art that is on show in the city. 

I rate the Sur highly - it's a quality newspaper and they even have published articles about PIGSY which is a good indicator of what type of news outlet they are :-)