From our European Corner in Algarve, Portugal

Wow, and it is March! On the heels of my good bill of health, we have started making plans. Travel and more travel in the plans, and some already in the rear view, more on those trips to follow. A new apartment and our second year as Portuguese residents. Our first winter living in Algarve Portugal

We just moved into a new apartment. Same town; we are staying in Vilamoura which is a surprise to me. The problem is… we are making friends and putting down roots. For a while we were looking for a larger house with a yard that would accommodate a pet or two. A sheep or two and a kangaroo (sorry, that is from an Australian folk song that we were singing with our new Australian travel buddies we met in Iceland). But rationality prevailed and we decided one more year in a lock-up-and-leave situation so we could travel, travel, travel. 

Another furnished apartment it is going to be. A little nicer, maybe appropriate for a guest here and there. So get your reservations in. We would love to host some folks in the Algarve. Once our traveling feet quiet down, I still think we will migrate to a more portuguese part of Portugal, so this is temporary; later we will be hosting a different experience.

We will be elsewhere for all of August. August is hot in Portugal; respite is nowhere except actually in the water. And Algarve is mobbed with people that like it that way. Most English speaking people leave, and Portuguese people mob to their Algarve holiday houses. It is a very strange and abrupt migration. September comes, and the opposite occurs. It is poignant at the gym where the language of the classes changes.

It’s Chill, and a bit Chilly

For the time being we are struggling to stay warm. It is about 8-9°C (hovering around 50°F). But for some reason that is a cold 50; Portugal feels soooo cold. Inside especially. The walls absorb cold and leak warmth. These homes are made to stay cool in Summer, they weren’t meant to be occupied in Winter; as all those Portuguese families migrating home in September are aware. We are drinking tea like Brits, it is really the only solution. The other solution is to get out and go out. It is much warmer outside. Damp is another worry; black mold is everywhere in Portugal. Luckily we have not had a problem in our apartment despite leaving it vacant for months at a time. There is a ritual every morning to vent the poorly ventilating properties of the condensation caused by human habitation and try to exchange air. Then use a dehumidifier to suck out moisture from the air. We are pros at it now. 

Winter in the Algarve is pretty quiet. Some restaurants and tourist activities close until the tourists return, but many are operating with no reservations needed. And the footprints on the beaches are just ours.

Bureaucracy update: both of us are card carrying portugal residents now. We finally got the registration for the car and Mark is holding a portuguese drivers license. Mine is in process, hopefully soon to be in the mail. Our address move adds a wrinkle to that. Still no covid booster despite three trips to the clinic now. That’s portugal. 

When Mark is not biking, and I am not at the health club (some habits never change), we have been exploring our town and environs. Without a car, all the little coves and beach bars were unknown to us. Not everything is open right now, but we have those beaches to ourselves for the time being. Algarve beaches are beautiful. The countryside is green for the time being (that won’t last) and the light is bright. It is a beautiful time of the year here. We just returned from an international trip in a crowded jet from England to our little regional airport. We couldn’t figure out where all those Brits were going. Evidently some folks know it is a nice time of year here.

And this just in: Tripadvisor has named the 10 best beaches in the WORLD. Only one US beach made the cut: at number 10: Ka’anapali in Maui. At number 6, however, is our beach. Praia da Falésia, walking distance from our apartment. See the list.  This is a long flat sunbathers beach with golden sand and a flat approach. Not the picturesque windswept beaches you usually see in algarve pictures, and the sights that make you go wow when you turn a corner hiking.  We head down there occasionally for a beach bar lunch. 

International Sports

In another direction, 300 meters as the crow flies (or stork), we discovered an equestrian center that has been hosting an International show jumping meet for 5 weeks. Facilities include an Italian restaurant, cafe bar and Gin Bar. Lots of dogs present, all off leash and all well behaved. Surrounding this area is the winter nesting residence of scores of pairs of black and white storks. And hidden a bit further off the road, a lagoon full of flamingos. 

While I am there watching world class jumping, Mark took off up the Algarve’s highest peak to see the Tour de Algarve ride through. So Algarve in Winter is keeping us entertained.

In the past month we made two trips: one to Madeira, and one to Iceland. I will tell you about them in separate posts.