Iberian Wanderings

On our return to Portugal, the first thing on our agenda was a beach day. Every time we had visited a beach whilst in the UK, the children wanted to stay and play (despite any inclement weather) but I managed to prise them away, promising them a hot beach day once back in Portugal. Hope is berthed in Lagos Marina, which is close to numerous spectacular beaches, so the morning after our arrival we headed to Meia Praia; a sandy beach so vast that it is impossible to feel crowded there, even in the height of summer. We spent a good few hours paddling, collecting shells, building sandcastles and burying each other... you know, the usual beach activities that become the norm once you add a couple of small children to the family! Anyhow, as the sun passed its peak and I began to feel myself burning, I announced that it was time to go and was met with an outcry. Beth and Zach were appalled that I was suggesting leaving the beach before sunset - how could this be considered a full beach day, they argued? More like a beach morning! They were not best pleased about being short-changed, and felt that I was breaking my promise to them. Well, I did eventually convince them to leave (the lure of food and drink helped, with our supplies having been exhausted) and I learned a lesson to consider the fact that children can often take things literally, and to try to remember to set expectations accordingly.

Enjoying the sunshine and warmth on this beautiful Algarvian beach

After a few days relaxing by the sea, it was time to head inland and get back to work on the land. In Portugal, the risk of forest fires over the summer is very high and, as a result, all landowners are required to have strimmed and cleared their land by a certain date, to ensure that it doesn't pose a fire risk. This year, that date was the end of May, so I had my work cut out to get it finished in time. Ordinarily, brush cutting is a really fun and satisfying task, but my dad's old brush cutter is rather temperamental and it, therefore, became a bit of a chore towards the end. It was hard to make proper progress, because the nylon line no longer spools out correctly so I found myself having to stop regularly to feed it manually and it was often difficult to get the engine running again. We have already decided to invest in a newer, better brush cutter to replace this one but, having spent so much time repairing this one over the past few months, I felt compelled to see the season through with it before retiring it from service. At the end of the day, it did the job and I finally managed to clear the land to a satisfactory level, but I definitely look forward to using a more mechanically-sound model in the autumn!

I am smiling because I have almost finished clearing the land at this point!

Another task at the top of my list of priorities is sorting access to the land, in the form of a bridge. Currently, we have to walk across the river bed, which is fine in the summer (although not ideal, as this is not suitable for vehicles) but not so good in the winter when the river is running. We essentially have to wade through the water with wellies on to get across, and this is only possible if the water level is not too high (as it is after a huge downpour). As it happens, our neighbour Leonardo has the same issue and we are, therefore, hoping to work together to build a shared bridge. We have been discussing possible designs and looking into prices for the various options, and hope to come to an agreement so that construction can start as soon as possible. Unfortunately, I won't be in Portugal over the summer so will have to try to progress things from afar, but I feel like we are getting closer to achieving our goal, which is good.

The water level rises rapidly following heavy rainfall

A few weeks after being in Portugal, we were all due to fly out to Barcelona for my cousin Kelly's wedding to her husband Pepo. The plan was to drive to Lisbon in my dad's car, then fly from there to Barcelona and collect a hire car to take us to/from the wedding in Tivissa, Tarragona. Unfortunately, just a few days before our departure, Dad took his car to the mechanic as it had been losing coolant, and was hit with the news that it needed a new head gasket. Thank goodness he had the foresight to get it checked out, as we would have undoubtedly missed our flights had the gasket blown on our drive to the airport! With no chance of the work being done in time for our departure, we hurriedly arranged to collect a hire car from Faro airport to use instead. It seemed rather funny to hire a car from one airport, then drive to another and leave the car there, fly to a third and then collect a second hire car from there for the weekend! I must admit, I found myself getting very confused about which car was where and which airport we were at, but it all worked out fine and we enjoyed an absolutely fantastic weekend with friends and family, enjoying all the lively Spanish wedding traditions. Some of my favourites traditions are: 

• random shouts of "¡Viva las novios!" during the reception, causing everyone to shout "¡Viva!" in reply and prompting the newlyweds to stand up and kiss
• snippets of great music being played during the reception (for which a DJ is present, in order to orchestrate this), at which point something significant happens (such as the newlyweds entering the room, or giving out thank you gifts) and everyone present stands up to cheer and twirl their napkins above their heads
• the cake being cut by a humongous sword rather than a knife

Zach enjoyed the wedding so much that he proclaimed, "When I get married, I am going to have this exact wedding!"

Kelly's husband Pepo is a fireman, so his colleagues blasted their sirens
for the happy couple after the ceremony, which pleased Zach immensely

After the wedding, we returned our various hire cars and then were hit by some more car-related drama. One Sunday morning, when driving from my parents' house to the land to meet Leonardo to discuss the bridge and have a BBQ, I was overtaken on a blind corner (which, sad to say, is not an abnormal occurrence in Portugal) by a rather large SUV. I was forced to move over slightly and, unfortunately, this caused me to drive into a huge pothole. I heard a loud bang from my nearside front wheel and knew immediately I needed to pull over, which I did in a well-placed forecourt just past the bend. The tyre was flat and I could see that there was a large dent on the inside of the wheel rim, which had caused the tyre to deflate. With the help of the children, I removed the old wheel and replaced it with the spare... only to discover that the spare was also flat! I called Dad, who very kindly brought me a pump so that I could inflate the spare tyre and be on my way. Not two miles down the road, I heard a suspect sound from the nearside rear wheel and pulled over, to see that this tyre was also going flat! Upon inspection, I could see the rim of this wheel was also damaged, but not to the extent of the front wheel. I was able to inflate the tyre, then limp back to my parents' house, stopping every mile or so to reinflate the tyre. Mum kindly lent me her car for the day, then Dad and I took my car to the local tyre shop the next morning where the man working there cheerfully hammered my rims back into shape, reinflated my tyres and put the wheels back on the car... all for the bargain price of 20€! 

Instead of getting stressed about the puncture,
we turned it into a valuable lesson and had some fun!

The children have been enjoying our time in Portugal, as always. The consistently warm weather always helps with this, as they are able to play outside for most of the day, once they have done their schoolwork in the mornings. Additionally, having heard about a local gymnastics club from a friend, I decided to sign them both up and so they have been going to the gym every Monday and Wednesday for an hour from 17:00. During this time, Mum and I head to a local cafe by the river in Silves, where we enjoy a drink and chat together for the hour, which seems to fly by and feel like no more than 20 minutes! Apparently, the same applies for the children - they both complain that the session is over too soon, which I guess is a good thing since time does fly when you are having fun. Their coach, Tito, is very nice and seems impressed with Beth's abilities, which have improved enormously in just a few weeks. Zach is one of the youngest in the gym, at only 4 years old, so spends most of his time bouncing around and learning more basic moves such as forward rolls, whereas Beth being that bit older is able to learn handstands and cartwheels, and she has really got the bug. She is practising her moves at every available opportunity and, with some extra coaching from my mum (who, herself, was a competition gymnast and then spent over 20 years coaching), she is really getting proficient. Perhaps it is to be expected, given the fact that both my mum and aunt were successful gymnasts (with my aunt even making the Olympic squad) and my brother was a hugely successful gymnast for many years of his life, competing and picking up medals both nationally and internationally. It's certainly in the genes!

Beth practises gymnastics whilst Zach digs for treasure

Whilst Beth is busy practising gymnastics, Zach is usually to be found hunting for animals or treasure, or both! He loves all kinds of animals, and spends hours outside searching for lizards, geckos and frogs. For a while, I struggled to decide whether or not I should allow him to catch little creatures, as I was worried about their well-being but, having seen how gentle he is with them and knowing that he doesn't mean them any harm, I now allow him to do so without interfering, so long as he always returns them to where he found them. I figure that, as predators go, the creatures are rather fortunate that Zach has found them as opposed to a bird or a cat, and I don't want to stifle his budding interest in the natural world. When not searching for animals, he is hunting for "treasure", which basically encompasses any object that takes his fancy, which he usually finds on the floor. Recently, I was trying to convince him to discard some his treasure ready for travelling, and I asked whether we could recycle a long piece of plastic seal, originally from around a bottle top. Zach would not agree to this, since apparently it has been earmarked to be a vital component in the trebuchet that he plans on making at some point. Another piece of plastic, seemingly useless to my untrained eyes, is being kept for holding the rocks on his trebuchet.

Zach knows how to hold lizards and geckos carefully
so that he doesn't hurt them and they don't bite him

Whilst out and about, Zach's treasure often finds its way into my bag or pockets, sometimes without me even being aware of this fact until much later. Recently, when speaking to Alex on the phone, Zach told Alex that he had a pin for his pin cushion. I didn't really know what he was talking about, and didn't give it much thought at the time, to be honest. A few days later, I decided to put my shorts in the wash and was emptying the pockets. Upon sticking my hand in the back pocket, I was met with a sharp pain on the end of my index finger. I discovered the cause of this injury was a small pin, and suddenly I realised what Zach had been referring to when he told Alex that he had a pin for him. If only he had also thought to tell me, and warn me that he had stored it in my pocket!

Meet 'Hedgy'; an offcut of doormat which Zach found on
the beach and we then turned into a hedgehog!

One of the things I love about Portugal is the fact that the local councils seem to provide so much for the local community throughout the year, often for free. At Christmas, there is always a fantastic Christmas fair, with live music, theatre performances, various rides for the children and even an ice skating rink, and there is never any charge for this. Whilst in Portugal this time, the local council put on an event to celebrate International Children's Day, taking over a large green space in the centre of Silves with multiple bouncy castles and bungee trampolines, activities such as face painting and balloon modelling, and stalls giving out candyfloss and chocolate doughnuts; all for free! Beth and Zach's gymnastics coach Tito was running one of the stalls and I noticed that the activities were all being run by young adults (probably college or university students). I wonder whether that is how the council are able to run such events without charging the general public. Perhaps, by enlisting the help of the local community (maybe even as volunteers) as opposed to hiring external contractors to help out, they are able to keep costs to a minimum. 

Beth and Zach enjoying one of many free bouncy castles at International
Children's Day; just 10 minutes on bouncy castles cost us £4
per child at the fair in Paignton for the King's Coronation!

This is just a theory, of course, but it seems plausible... and perhaps the only feasible explanation, when you consider that my parents' council tax bill is under 100€ per year! I wonder whether life in the UK used to be like this, before capitalism and privatisation took over. Sadly, these days, the government seems like a sort of cash cow, with private companies charging excessive amounts to provide services which would be provided for a fraction of the cost in the private sector (certainly, this is the case in the IT industry). Inevitably, these costs are passed on to the general public either in the form of tax increases or a reduction in public services, depending on which government is in power at the time. I don't know what the solution is, or even whether the problem can be solved, but I very much hope that the local government in Silves continues to operate things in their current way for as long as possible, for the benefit of local residents and visitors alike.

The calm before the storm... we arrived at lunchtime and had the place to
ourselves then, about an hour later, hundreds of local school children arrived!