Today is 24 April. A special day, because it would have been Grandma Rol’s birthday.
In our previous posts you read that on 24 February we officially became the owners of Posada Aurora. A little later than originally planned — 16 February — but by that point it hardly mattered anymore. We held the key to our dream place in our hands — and we thought the hardest part was already behind us.
Life had other plans
Tamara and Gaia were due to fly back to the Netherlands on 28 February to wrap up the last things there. But a few days earlier, Grandma Rol’s health suddenly took a turn for the worse. So serious that we decided to move the flight forward. On 26 February they left very early in the morning, heading for the Netherlands.
Before they had even reached the airport, Grandma Rol passed away.
That news hit us hard. Sad, raw and unfair. Especially because Dyango was in Spain at the time and couldn’t be there. The last thing Grandma Rol had said was that she’d like to be “with us”. At our new place. On the land, under a beautiful, big purple tree, in the sun.
So today we bought a jacaranda tree. It’s not just a tree, but a memory. A birthday gift for her. A place where, before long, shade, flowers and memories will come together.
A jacaranda tree
Reunited
After a period of goodbyes, paperwork and missing each other, Tamara and Gaia finally came back to Spain on 18 April. We had been apart for seven weeks. That might sound manageable, but when you’re trying to build a new life together, seven weeks suddenly feels very long.
The reunion was beautiful.
The homecoming, a little less so.
Because where you might expect to walk into calm and progress, instead they walked into a full-blown building site. The electrics had already been sorted — and that was no unnecessary luxury, because it turned out there hadn’t even been an earth connection to begin with. Always a joy to find that out after you’ve already bought the place.
Large parts of the floor had been ripped up with a pickaxe.
And as if that wasn’t strange enough, inside one of the electrical conduits we found a fully fried baby snake. Probably, for years, the silent cause of the short circuit. When you emigrate you expect all sorts of things, but a crispy snake wasn’t on our bingo card.
The new flooring is already sorted. We’re just waiting on the contractor now. First he was coming last week. Then this week. And now it turns out it’ll be in two weeks, because next week is the village fair. And as everyone knows: some things are important, but the fair is more important.
And as if that weren’t enough, while Tamara and Gaia were in the Netherlands, Dyango discovered that several windows were leaking. He had just finished painting the guest room when a proper downpour hit. Water came cheerfully pouring in through the windows.
So yes — new windows are now on the list too.
Thirteen windows in total.
You can work out for yourselves how much fun that costs.
So for now, we’re living among piles of stuff, loose furniture, and rooms that are almost, but not quite, finished.
Good things are happening too
Dyango has officially been registered as a resident in Spain since 11 March, and Tamara and Gaia since 22 April. That officially makes us “malenos” and “malenas” now — the local nickname for people from Posadas. Sounds like we’ve been here for generations.
The kitchen blockage has also been fixed — a small victory, but never underestimate the value of a drain that actually works.
We’re also waiting on the new septic tank, an important step in the AFO permit process. It’s needed to get everything officially in order regarding water, electricity and installations, so we can finally apply for the tourist licence.
On top of that, 250 metres of fencing have already gone up around the property, and we’ve met someone who’s worth her weight in gold: Laura. She’s helping us wonderfully with the website and taking more off our plate than we can put into words. Sometimes life puts the right people in your path at exactly the right moment.
And maybe the best news right now: the first apartment is almost finished.
In about four weeks, the carpenter will hang the last interior door, and that will mark a huge milestone. Dyango, especially, has thrown himself completely into this over the past while. Walls have been plastered, painted, lighting hung, ceiling beams installed, and in the meantime the mattresses have arrived too.
For the last three days, on top of that, we’ve been running all over the place hunting for furniture and decor. Lamps, textiles, practical items and little details that will soon make the difference between a house and a place where people feel welcome.
Today we also picked up the curtains.
Bit by bit, a building site is turning into an apartment.
And an apartment, into a dream becoming tangible.
Finding our rhythm
The cats have already found their rhythm pretty well. Gaia will most likely start getting familiar with her new school on 30 April. Exciting for her, and, honestly, a little for us too.
Bomber surveys his new kingdom
Bomber enjoys the Spanish life
Amid all the building work, we keep dreaming. Of horses. Of donkeys. Of chickens. Of animals on the land and guests who’ll find calm here. Of the life we’re slowly building here.
In the next blog post we might even be able to introduce you to one of our new residents.
Because that’s just how things go here these days:
One day you plant a tree out of love.
Another day you find a fried baby snake in a pipe.
And another day you hang curtains in your first apartment.
A jacaranda tree
Between grief, chaos and hope, step by step, we keep building our new home.
