My New Life in Portugal – and Mark will chime in with his…

Music playing, washer going, chiles I don’t recognize roasting in the oven…a good day. We walked down our favorite street before Mark left for golf and after sipping coffee and orange juice on the patio under our brand new jewel green umbrella. We are settling.

Aside: My face and glasses just got a major steam bath – these chiles are much more liquidy or this oven is HOT!

This is my life messy and pretty normal. Mark and I are quite relaxed but make sure to clean for the maid on Thursday morning. We aren’t terribly dirty really – in a small place, everything has a home so it’s easy. Just the kitchen becomes crazy. We’ve been shopping a bit in actual stores, exciting, but I immediately forget everything I think I need so we don’t buy much. We were, however, forced to do a panic shop when we invited our first guests over for wine on the patio – while walking River just three hours before their arrival, Mark turned to me and said, you know we have no wine glasses…we actually had only three glasses total, two big, one whisky. We’d be drinking out of mugs! Off to the Chinese Hipermart we go, Portugal’s version of Target. Crisis averted, our visit was lovely, Beth and Won are entertaining to be with. Mark met Won on the golf course and then we all went to a very windy lunch at the marina – all this just before lockdown.

Quick break from shopping when our favorite chicken restaurant was closed. McDonalds has beer as a choice of beverages with their meals along with cokes and tea!

I have had my first vaccination but Mark is waiting – bureaucracy interfering with need. It is frustrating so we are still being very careful. And we have no time frame. Mark’s Social Security has also been held up for months so we aren’t country blaming yet – life is challenging daily in completely new ways for most of us, lol.

Back to my day. This is my view from the kitchen table. Notice the fuzzy slippers? Yes yes yes, we rarely get in the 70’s and it is often very cool in the evenings, especially with a northwind. Glorious June in Cascais. I am a happy creature. And the laundry decor? It’s how it’s done here. We have a full washer and dryer on our covered patio but laundry racks are de rigueur in Portugal – it might be the maid hanging out your smalls but hung out they will be. Love it.

And what’s important here? No, not the telly. We rarely turn it on. What we thought was cute when River threw herself barking at the tv has now become expensive. Our televisions in The Woodlands were mounted on the wall, not so here and buying one tv for a house you don’t own is enough! No, it’s the full size fridge, with ice maker just to make it even more seductive to my tall husband. I truly think this was the determining factor in our move. And I must admit, it’s pretty wonderful. Score.

No heavy lock!! I do miss it. The satisfying sound of tumblers ticking, okay slamming, over as you turned the giant key.

Oh, how I covet this lamp. Yes, I miss a lamp. Mark tried to get Filipa (landlord) to sell it to us – no dice. Broken hearted. But…and here’s a big but, this is why we came on this adventure. To let go, to find out what we really wanted, needed, to be happy. I can live without the lamp but I’m really chuffed I had it for seven months! Ahh, growth, hahahahaha. I should note here that my English family all have great lamp attachments, through the generations – our lamps have stories, memories. We can test that by the fact that my English cousin, Jacky (I’m in touch with cousins and it’s pretty amazing!) expressed her love of Obidos, Portugal by buying a gorgeous lamp, local and typical of the exquisite glasswork they do here, and sent me a picture:

I’m certain her sister, Niki, has a few lamps in her history!

And Obidos is an old walled village. The day we went was rainy so pics aren’t stellar. I’ll get better ones another day. Can’t wait to go for Christmas. It’s supposed to be something special and they have an hotel that is a library and a bar…oh yeah!

Random picture of happy Sebastian and Amber in Garden City, SC just cos they’re beautiful inside and out and we love them. I wish I had a picture of Vicky, my aunt to post, but she’d buy a voodoo doll with my face on it. Send her your best vibes, please, she’s been in the hospital and now assisted living but is working very hard to go home.

So a snapshot of my life here. Mark will be home soon and add his two cents. He told me yesterday that he really enjoys retirement. Ahh, that’s just grand!

Quick video of the backyard area of our new house and the laundry area where Tracey spent her day. Wonderful!

Small exotic car show when I arrived at the golf course! Nice surprise!

Love to all, Tracey & Mark & River