First Days in Portugal

December 15, 2007 - Saturday

After checking in to the Monte Carvoeiro Clube, I had a quick lunch at the café connected to the resort – a lovely normal tuna sandwich on ciabata bread. I hadn’t been able to get a sandwich in Egypt except dried up stale ones in the airport. (Food everywhere is another whole topic.)

Although I have only just arrived in Portugal, I already know I will remember it as a calming place with wonderful sea and mountain views, and charming villages, modern and vibrant. I’m sure it will be a place of respite where I will enjoy writing and pottering around. At least the suite where I am staying is perfect for these pastimes.

I have a full suite with living room, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and balcony. I have laundry facilities (an automatic washing machine and a clothes line on the balcony), full cooking capabilities, and everything handy here, like a grocery store, medical centre, drug store, used and new clothing stores, gift shop, a swimming pool, etc. The air is cooler though and I doubt I will be swimming in the pool here, unless we get some warmer days.

I poked around the hotel to see if I could connect to the Internet (they have a computer in the lobby, but the Internet is slower than frozen molasses) and the electrical supply with my laptop, asked about a post office and Internet café, etc. I was given a map by the reception people.

I explored my immediate surroundings, walking down into the narrow winding streets of the village. The map turned out to be hard to follow (as confirmed by others) and I got lost (only a little). I know where the post office is now, but the Internet Café I was told about didn’t exist. I chatted with people on the street and found my way and another Internet café where I can take my laptop and be connected so I can continue uploading blogs.

The walk back to my hotel from the old market at the bottom of the hill is a beautiful one along a stone wall where I can overlook the Atlantic Ocean and the high cliffs with their swirls of colour and jaggedness that proclaims their elegance and power, thwarting sailing ships over the centuries.

I can just see the sea from my balcony too. The sunset over the Atlantic Ocean in the softest blue and pink pastels I’ve ever seen, like gauzy fairy princess dresses or soft glowing candles melding into the water.

I’ve changed currency and languages again and my way of thinking and understanding has been altered yet again too. Where I had to come to terms with spending what seemed like a large amount of 35 Egyptian Pounds on a hamburger, I now have to go to refrain from thinking that 3 Euros for a tuna sandwich is really cheap. One can easily become miserly when the number seems higher and be extravagant when it is lower, yet they might both be similar in Canadian dollars.

The nuances in the Portuguese language are quite different from the inflections of Arabic, so one listens in a different way. Luckily Portuguese is similar to Spanish in many cases and I can understand some of what is being said to me, though my faltering Mexican Spanish words and phrases are different yet again.

I spent the rest of the late afternoon and evening making myself at home, doing some hand laundry, shopping for food for supper and watching a little TV. I can get a few British and a couple of American channels here, so can watch shows I’m a little familiar with, even though they are a season behind North America (just as they were in Egypt). (At least I’m not watching old Gunsmoke episodes, like I had to in Cyprus where I stayed.) I still don’t get any Canadian news, so have no idea what’s going on in my home part of the world. Perhaps someone will let me know if something significant happens, like if Regina still exists…..

The time difference from Canada is less here, only six hours as opposed to the eight in Cyprus and Egypt. This makes it a little easier to make phone calls if necessary. For the most part, I will be staying put in and around my suite, writing, finishing my online course, relaxing, etc. so probably won’t post any blogs for a few days, unless something noteworthy happens or occurs to me…..