The sun hovers high in the azure blue sky, there is the briefest of ripples of a breeze down the valley today as I sit and rest awhile in the shade. The temperature has hit 95 making the daily chores a little more tiring and with this being the start of Summer I contemplate on … [Read more…]
A trip to Fatima There was a crunching of stone as the tires spat out gravel as I turned into the huge open-air car park, outside what was once a little village called Fatima. Fatima is situated about 100km north of Lisbon and inland from the Atlantic Ocean about 50km. This small farming municipality was … [Read more…]
Today was a real, “best keep the butter in the fridge day!” as we used to say on the occasional sweltering day on the streets of Rochdale in the North of England during the seventies. I still know many people who recall the summer of the 76’ with relish and glee. The world seemed a … [Read more…]
The mercury pushes 30 during the day now, and slowly falls to 20 overnight, the rainy season is behind us and the long, hot summer days ahead. The songbirds sweet chatter fills the morning air as the searchlight of the sun breaks the hold from the darkness of night. Its beams warming the ground encouraging … [Read more…]
Most early evenings now are a good time to go for a walk with Bertie. The sun is fast disappearing down into a haze over the western hills of the Aires de Serras, a mountainous national park about 25km away. We can confidently stretch our legs without the sun zapping our energy. We head west … [Read more…]
I Made a MistakeThis week I have had to have a trip out to a town called Abrantes. It’s a 40-minute pleasant drive southeast of Tomar. I needed to go to a particular store to get a tool to help me fix a mistake that I made last year concerning water pipes in the lower … [Read more…]
Greetings from Portugal The last few weeks here have been arduous and productive with the ongoing renovations at Caminho da Cruz, The Way of the Cross. We have installed 11 new double glazed windows, 2 uPVC glass external doors, built 4 block walls, levelled and concreted a 31 sq metre sun terrace and installed 13 steps out of old and new stone. Once you are here, the restrictions of … [Read more…]
Just a short visit Just 12 days ago I flew back to England for several reasons. Back in early January after praying I had felt led that these specific dates were directed. I was flying back and returning by ferry from Portsmouth to Bilbao in northern Spain with my converted motorhome and goods trailer. Indeed … [Read more…]
Winding Down Over the last few days, I have spent my time taking things at a little more leisurely pace. Tidying around and securing the place here in Portugal. The last few weeks have been a little hectic as I have removed 10 of the old windows, metal frames with single-pane frosted glass. A simple … [Read more…]
I also have some nice second hand glass doors for a front and back door where once it was a home made concoction of wood and nails that partially filled a gap, the doorway was rather small, I’m told the previous owners were only small so they only needed little doors.