Preparations for Christmas Eve are well under way here in Seville. Families all gather on Xmas eve for the big family celebrations and they go well into the early hours of xmas morning we have been warned. Grame says we wont get to his parents-in-laws´s home until about 9.30pm...and that´s for tea! We went grocery shopping yesterday to get provisions...first stop a VERY busy seafood shop where you can buy every type of seafood imaginable and the Sevillinas were buying a lot! Then to a couple of different grocery stores so we could buy all the ingredients for the dishes we will prepare for tonight then for xmas day, here at home. We have decided to make trifle, which is not a xams dish in spain and finding the cakes and the cream has been a challenge.

The spanish parepare many dishes for all to share, rather than a big roast for all, so we are also making a prawn slad, some salmon dish and sushi. tmrw it will be chicken and vegies, Danny´s making chicken chilli and basil (had to go to a chinese grocer cause couldn´t get oyster sauce, chilli etc in normal grocery store. G says the Spanish generally don´t eat spicy/chilli foods, so we are keeping that for here on xams day. Also I am making quiche and we are trying to do the Cold Rock dessert but it has been a challenge finding just plain icecream.

Present wrapping as well when kids not around. Josie still very concerned that she wont be getting as amny presents as usual, so we have bought some odds and ends from a Sam´s Warehouse type shop to add to the booty.

The kids loved being at school and were very popular for their 2 days there. They said the teacher was very nice and Nate gave a little talk about australia. We picked them up yesterday afternoon and saw the school...looks pretty much like a school!

We packed apicnic and drove up to a park, designed around an old olive grove that sits on the platuea overlooking Seville. we ate crusty berad rolls, prawns, olives and oranges. Then played the inaugral game of cricket in the park! if it hit an olive tree on the full it was caught and if you hit a six over the fence it was out and the game was over as the ball went over the edge!

We had a lovely warm afternoon in the sun.

We then all got dressed up Sapnish style (even Dan put jeans on !) and we ventured into Seville with the hordes of other shoppers and saw a light show on the town hall building, lights everywhere, a bit of shopping then tapas sitting outside at Casa Paco on a plaza. We ate many delcious tapa and had some wine, meanwhile the kids played at a plyayground in the plaza. We left at about 10.30pm and it was just starting to fill up with more people!

The street in Seville are wonderful to walk along, so stylish and so different to anywhere in australia.

We all plonked into bed about 11.30 and were sound asleep immediately.

A wonderful day.