Kranswurm Posted September 1, 2020 Posted September 1, 2020 I do love it :-) Working outside has far more pros than cons as far as I'm concerned! Today my contract was extended 'til the end of September. Numbers of visitors are low now and to be honest, the boss could easily have just put me on "day-work", but he didn't. At the begining of the year, back in mid February, I was the first person to start work at the Campsite. During lockdown I was told that when work was allowed to resume I would be "the first person that comes back to work" (and I was) and now I'm the only person with an extended contract. My attitude towards work is simple. "Turn up on time, work hard, be honest & be pleasant, and do that bit extra whenever it's needed....." It's taken a while, but I'm finally winning the family over :-)Its quite simple actually.....my ethos.You will not become rich tho....he he Bonus 1
Bonus Posted September 5, 2020 Author Posted September 5, 2020 Actually, what I wrote isn't quite right. "My attitude towards work is simple. "Turn up on time, work hard, be honest & be pleasant, and do that bit extra whenever it's needed....." More accurate would be "Turn up on time, do a good job......"
Bonus Posted September 9, 2020 Author Posted September 9, 2020 We used to get amazing sunsets when we lived in South Africa. Here it's not generally so easy to see them because of the mountains but tonight was an exception . . . . Robbie Stewart, arcitmail, DJR and 1 other 4
Bonus Posted September 21, 2020 Author Posted September 21, 2020 (edited) After 24 hrs of heavy rain and thunderstorms, the cloud that stretched from horizon to horizon disappeared overnight and we woke up to beautiful sunshine and a mist over our two rivers and the lake...... It's nice sometimes to look up from whatever I'm working on and just enjoy the view :-) Edited September 21, 2020 by Bonus DJR, Cookie88, LBKloppers and 6 others 9
Bonus Posted October 3, 2020 Author Posted October 3, 2020 Yesterday was my first day off of work in 114 days :-) After our enforced Lockdown - mid March until the end of April - I finally returned to work at Camping Ainsa on 30th April (with a letter of permission) working a 6 day week until mid June. From mid June I worked a 7 day week until last Thursday. The site actually opened on the 1st July and closed on Wednesday 30th September. Before 1st July was "prep work" and after we've had a few days off now, I'll go back and we'll do all the shutting down and disconnecting work that needs doing before winter. 7 days a week isn't as bad as it sounds. Pretty much everyone here connected to tourism works a 7 day week during the summer season, as do the farmers of course. My hours varied depending on what was going on - so the first 6 weeks were 10am-2pm & 4-7pm - a nice 2hr break for lunch and a siesta. Then when we opened I did 2 months on contract- 7:30am to 2:30pm allowing for afternoons/evenings swimming at the river or cycling :-). Through September I did 8am to 2pm on contract and then went back for 2hrs in the evenings to tidy up and shut down the swimmng pools. During July and August this evening work was carried out by a Spanish lad but he wasn't kept on for September because the boss wanted me to "have some extra cash in my pocket".... Overall it's nice to be busy and see money coming in, and knowing that this sort of work is available and I have "first shout" at it is very reassuring because when we eventually get our own place built, any supplemental income I can earn takes some of the strain off of the B&B when it first starts running. Yesterday was a rest day. Today we're off on a hike together up above Ainsa . . . . :-) gerriemtb, Wayne pudding Mol, Wannabe and 4 others 7
Bonus Posted October 14, 2020 Author Posted October 14, 2020 At the end of last year the work we'd been gradually doing to transform our sloping back garden into a terraced back garden was looking good. The retaining walls were coming on nicely - it's slow work but we're getting there - the weeds and brambles were all cut back and everything was under control. Nothing grew much over Winter and then just as Spring and the sun & rain came along, everything started growing just as we went into Lockdown! For the next 6 weeks everything grew like crazy but we were not allowed out. Then the day we were allowed out it was to go to work, not to go up to our Project. Once work started it didn't stop, until last week. Now I'm back up at our Project in Guaso starting to clear up the weeds and the brambles again so that I can start building the next walls..... In any case, it's nice to see ourselves making progress..... Wayne pudding Mol, Wannabe, TIB and 8 others 11
Robbie Stewart Posted October 14, 2020 Posted October 14, 2020 (edited) At the end of last year the work we'd been gradually doing to transform our sloping back garden into a terraced back garden was looking good. The retaining walls were coming on nicely - it's slow work but we're getting there - the weeds and brambles were all cut back and everything was under control. Nothing grew much over Winter and then just as Spring and the sun & rain came along, everything started growing just as we went into Lockdown! For the next 6 weeks everything grew like crazy but we were not allowed out. Then the day we were allowed out it was to go to work, not to go up to our Project. Once work started it didn't stop, until last week. Now I'm back up at our Project in Guaso starting to clear up the weeds and the brambles again so that I can start building the next walls..... In any case, it's nice to see ourselves making progress..... I love how that wall has been resurrected and come to life so to speak. You're living the good life. Lots of hard work, but more satisfying than being office bound. Nice. Edited October 14, 2020 by Robbie Stewart Bonus 1
Bonus Posted October 15, 2020 Author Posted October 15, 2020 I love how that wall has been resurrected and come to life so to speak. You're living the good life. Lots of hard work, but more satisfying than being office bound. Nice. Cheers Robbie. The plan with the wall was to follow its original line (the wall is not as straight as it looks in some of the photo's) and use any existing parts of the wall that were strong enough - so as to retain its "character" (so to speak). The plan for the garden overall is that despite being brand new, it will blend into the surrounding scenery. When the buildings are renovated and modernised we'll follow the same principal. After a couple of years of "weather wear" the whole Project should look - from the outside anyway - as if it's been there forever.... From the inside of course it will look and feel like a top-notch place to stay with wonderful helpful owners - one of whom is obsessed with riding & guiding and the other who just wants to feed you all the time....... People will enjoy it so much they will have to come back for more! Red Robin, Robbie Stewart, Wannabe and 3 others 6
Robbie Stewart Posted October 15, 2020 Posted October 15, 2020 Cheers Robbie. The plan with the wall was to follow its original line (the wall is not as straight as it looks in some of the photo's) and use any existing parts of the wall that were strong enough - so as to retain its "character" (so to speak). The plan for the garden overall is that despite being brand new, it will blend into the surrounding scenery. When the buildings are renovated and modernised we'll follow the same principal. After a couple of years of "weather wear" the whole Project should look - from the outside anyway - as if it's been there forever.... From the inside of course it will look and feel like a top-notch place to stay with wonderful helpful owners - one of whom is obsessed with riding & guiding and the other who just wants to feed you all the time....... People will enjoy it so much they will have to come back for more! Well, if you put it like that, I just may have to come see for myself at some point... Bonus 1
Bonus Posted October 20, 2020 Author Posted October 20, 2020 (edited) In between knocking the garden back into shape over the last few days, we managed to squeeze in a little hike up on the top of Zona Zero Route 10 - ZZ-010 "La Coasta Doble". It was a lovely day and the views are great. It's a nice place to go for a "quick hike" because it's only a 10 min drive from Guaso and you can drive a lot of the way up! Edited October 20, 2020 by Bonus Red Robin, DJR and Wannabe 3
Bonus Posted October 22, 2020 Author Posted October 22, 2020 This weekend "La Vuelta a España", which was pushed back by 2 months thanks to Covid19, will be passing right through the area we live in :-) We currently live in Boltaña and the race will pass through Ainsa, 6km east of here at the 100km mark and again through Fiscal, 20km west of us at the 160km mark. With luck we should be able to see the race both times. Race officials are predicting about an hour and a half of riding between the two points while they take in the "Añisclo Canyon" with its "Alto de Vio" and "Alto de Fanlo" climbs. Plenty of time for us to get from one to the other..... The weather and temperature differences between mid August and mid October are worlds apart. The weather is currently too changeable to try and predict. Yesterday I was working in shorts and a T shirt - today I'm at home and it's raining and cold. Overall I'd guess that this is going to be a much colder & wetter Vuelta than usual. Stage 5 is following a different route than that which was originally released last year. It finishes in a different place - I assume because of the snow on the peaks at this time of year. The Route: The race will leave the town of Huesca and head east towards Barbastro. They'll be on the "old road" not the new dual-carriageway that we would use. It's an undulating road which, overall, descends very slightly between the two towns. In Barbastro they will turn left (North) and head towards Ainsa. 20km outside of Barbastro they will start riding alongside the El Grado Dam (Embalse del Grado) followed by the Mediano Dam (Embalse de Mediano) which takes them all the way up to Ainsa. The Mediano Dam has an abondoned village in the middle of it - you can see the top of the church tower, even when the dam is full. Currently the dam is 3/4 empty! Through Ainsa and 11km up to Escalona where they turn left again (West) and hit the two climbs of the day. This road is not an easy road to get any speed up on - up and down and very wiggly! The riders will have to pay attention here. It does take in some really stunning scenary though. We've driven it several times. They exit the valley at the small town of Sarvise, about 145km into the stage and turn left (South) to head down to Fiscal. This road is downhill all the way to Fiscal and it's not a bad road. From Fiscal to the finsh in Sabiñanigo they will be on, for the most part, a relatively new nice wide road that includes a 3km long tunnel and a 2nd Cat climb. I would expect an all out sprint for the last 20km of the race! Incidentally, the road from Sarvise all the way to the finish line in Sabiñanigo is the same road that they rode back on 4th September 2016 at the beginning of Stage 15 of La Vuelta - but in reverse. That was the day Nairo and Alberto dropped everyone in the first 10km of the Stage! DJR, Robbie Stewart, coppi and 2 others 5
Robbie Stewart Posted October 22, 2020 Posted October 22, 2020 Sounds lekker. I would not mind being a spectator at the Col Du Tourmalet for Stage 6 (under better conditions, of course, but I am sure it will be an experience none the less). Bonus 1
Bonus Posted October 22, 2020 Author Posted October 22, 2020 Sounds lekker. I would not mind being a spectator at the Col Du Tourmalet for Stage 6 (under better conditions, of course, but I am sure it will be an experience none the less). The Cols are spectacular, but it can be hard getting there and away again afterwards during a race :-) Robbie Stewart 1
Bonus Posted October 25, 2020 Author Posted October 25, 2020 We had a really nice day yesterday at La Vuelta. I've posted some pics in the "La Vuelta 2020" thread. Last night we watched the "highlights" on TV and it was amazing to see the area we live in from the air. It's easy to get used to the mountains around here and to forget just how cool this countryside is. So much that we still haven't properly discovered! :-) DJR and Wannabe 2
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