And so the adventure begins......our new home in the Orba Valley!

Finally getting around to writing in the blog - it's been a whirlwind couple of weeks for sure!  But we're more than happy living in the Orba Valley with scenery like this around us 💕

So.......what's been happening?

The packing took two days on 25/26th March and we were most impressed with this wonderful machine which lowered all the boxes on a lift down to the lorry - we could have done with this moving in I can tell you!

Our last night was strange and we didn't sleep brilliantly as we were aware of getting up at 5.30am to get to the ferry terminal in Palma for 6.30 😱  We drove out of the Port with a mix of emotions.  I'd done my last radio show the previous Saturday and had worked until the Wednesday and saying goodbye to my students was sad and a little bit surreal if I'm honest, but now we were actually doing it and leaving not just the Port but Mallorca 😥  And we were also leaving the place which had seen us through the challenges of the past year so a bit of  'gulp and square the shoulders moment' if I'm honest.  It was dark and of course nothing was on the roads so we made it to Palma in good time and as only one person could drive the car onto the ferry, I queued up with all the other passengers - I took the dogs with me which made the queuing a challenge to say the least especially when it came to the security check (three bags, two dog leads, a boarding pass and passport are not easy to juggle 😳) but we made it and met up with Ian in the doggy area where we put them both in the same large cage with a blanket and some water and had to walk away.  I hate this bit, it's kind of like leaving your child at playgroup during the first week, but it was better to leave them to it although we kept a regular eye on them.  This was our view as the ferry was leaving Palma's port:

The journey, via Ibiza was pretty uneventful.  The ferry was completely packed including several groups of youngsters from sports clubs, but at Ibiza it almost totally emptied! Very few joined at Ibiza so the second half of the journey to Denia was a lot quieter 😄 The ferry was well organised with everyone wearing masks and sticking to their seating area so we felt perfectly safe despite how busy it was during the first half of the journey.  Anyhow, as we approached Denia we got the furbabies out on the extremely breezy deck for the big moment:

We were allowed to disembark by car and braced ourselves for the inevitable police road block on the road out from the quay as currently the Valencia region has closed borders; I'd have stopped us as the car was loaded and we looked like we were going on holiday so to speak but nope, other cars were stopped and spoken to but we were just waved through.  Maybe we have honest faces 😂 anyhow, it's only a 15-20 minute drive to our new home and the good news was we arrived to meet our estate agent who had the keys.  The bad news was that the sellers had emptied the house of all white goods including the fitted oven, dishwasher, fridge, washing machine, ceiling fans and lit bathroom mirror - we literally were left with wires handing out of walls and ceilings 😱 So our first task was to drive to a second hand goods emporium to buy a fridge!  You had to laugh.  No really, you had to.  I mean if the last year has taught us nothing else, it has shown the power of laughing in the face of adversity.  So we set up our little camp beds on the floor and got ready for a slightly challenging couple of nights.  But not before Ian's mobile rang and he passed it to me as they spoke Spanish which isn't Ian's strong point - it's the Balearic health service and would Ian Froome like to come for a Covid jab tomorrow?  Ah 😳 dammit!  You couldn't make it up really - we've been waiting, dead keen for the offer and the very day we leave Mallorca they ring.  I reckon they did it deliberately 🤔😂  

Sunday saw us kept firmly occupied by taking down a wall which had split the living room in two and unblocking a doorway - as you do!  We unearthed an unexpected arch:

And outside and around the back of the garage we found the very doors that had previously fitted the blocked doorway - the wood was a little the worse for wear but all things considered they were in great condition and even the glass was intact so up they went.  In a couple of weeks' time we'll be able to treat the wood properly and bring them back to their former glory:

Our things arrived safely on the Monday but my goodness we lost count of the number of boxes!  The whole of the naya (an enclosed 'outside' terrace) was full as was the garage.  So for many days we have spent our time unpacking, doing work on the villa, shopping for second-hand furniture - this last one is great fun as there are several emporiums in the area where it's like a treasure trove of bargain furniture and we already have some lovely pieces.  

Following on from our call about the Covid jab, we registered with the town hall (padron) after which we spoke to the health centre.  Our appointment to change our health (SIP) cards from the Balearics to Valencia is 3 May and only then will we be on the Covid jab list here.  Patience is a virtue.....😇

This coming week I'm meeting a local Spanish teacher and also someone from the local 24 hr radio station here - Valley FM.  Plus I've registered for a beginner's drawing course.  And I've registered on OYG Davina (McCall) which offers a VAST amount of online keep fit classes which I can fit in as it suits me.  There's also great information on nutrition and wellbeing and I've been using it for a week now so I think that's me sorted fitness-wise 💪  We've met lots of lovely, friendly people - our Spanish neighbours even gave us some yummy torrijas (bread pudding) traditionally eaten in Lent - and we've eaten some rather nice food locally, a bonus being that interiors here have stayed open at 30% occupancy unlike Mallorca plus terraces can stay open until 6pm instead of 5pm 🥳 

So has the move been worth it?  Most definitely yes.  Everyone has been very friendly and welcoming and I keep having 'pinch me' moments where I just can't believe that we're lucky enough to live here and in such a lovely house which is in the countryside but just a few minutes walk to all facilities.  One thing we've really noticed is the bird song and we realised that we never heard birds in the Port (apart from caged ones on balconies).  The air is heavy with the amazing scent of the blossoms and filled with the sound of bees busily buzzing around them on the citrus and almond trees which cover the whole floor of the very large valley.  Dog walks in these surroundings are heaven on earth.  We also hear a distant (so not intrusive) cockerel crowing in the morning which really underlines that feel of the 'campo'.  It really is beautiful even though the weather has been a bit hit and miss here (much like the UK) but on one of the sunnier days Ian braved our pool (not me, I don't do cold water 😂) but it sums our new life here up in a nutshell.

The verdict thus far is that Mallorca will always hold a special place in our hearts, but here is where we are happy to be 💖

Hasta la próxima semana (espero domingo) - stay safe!