Andrew:

Brother Visit: Rob made his first trip to Olhão in early December. His arrival matched up almost perfectly with the beginning of the rainiest week of the year. The rain poured down and both Michelle and I got horrible head colds two days after he got into town but we still had plenty of fun.

Serhii insisted he drive me to Faro to pick Rob up and I finally acquiesced. Just minutes after leaving the house I got the update that Rob’s flight was delayed. I was frantically trying to explain to my friend that we should abort the mission… but he refused to stand down. We got a coffee at the restaurant one of our classmates works at then proceeded to Faro. Serhii LOVES the ocean and the main beach in town has a view of the airport so we headed to the seaside.

Serhii and I strolled on Faro beach and chatted in Portuguese for about two hours (Rob’s plane was grounded due to fog). Michelle was abandoned to do all the tidying up before we got back home, a contrast that she appropriately pointed out a few times.

Before I got too sick to get off the couch we were able to tour some of our fine city and also do a short trip to Faro on the train. We still had to attend class of course so we brought Rob to Café Bianca beforehand (there was a big game on) and had snacks and wine. Commendably Rob decided to hang out there for a bit after we left. I helped out by telling the proprietress what he’d like to drink for the next two rounds and that he spoke zero Portuguese.

Unfortunately after those early outings we truly were couch-bound for the rest of his trip. We got lots of great visiting in and continue to discover odd idiosyncrasies about our lives – for example all three of us think that Prince’s “The Arms of Orion” is an all time great love song which most people have never even heard. We watched an awesome 80’s movie Cat People and Rob insisted that we watch Nope with him.

Rob was the first visitor now that we are truly settled into our tiny home. Being sick was an interesting twist in that he got to see what it was like to just live here normally. The two of us played (and beat!) a fun little video game called Heavenly Bodies where you work together as astronauts to complete various missions in zero gravity. Lots of fun overall and on his next trip we plan to explore more of Portugal together!

DJ Performance: Our friends Serhii and Vasylyna have been extremely generous, hosting dinners and keeping us stocked with fresh citrus at all times. It was our turn to host a night out and we took them to a local restaurant that serves traditional Portuguese food family style (Frango de Cidade). The meal was lovely but the night was far from over when we finished!

Our classmate Leon is a hobbyist DJ who sets up by the waterfront and plays electronica on Saturday nights. I had verified that he was playing and after dinner we wandered around until we found his performance space. To the chagrin of multiple local people that space was directly in front of baby Jesus in the gazebo holding the town’s nativity scene. Leon repositioned after I pointed out the slightly angry mob forming with cameras behind us.

Talking with Leon was very interesting because, even though he is in class with us, he wasn’t comfortable having a conversation in Portuguese. We found ourselves in the role of translators for the first time. Somehow we were able to have some decent length talks. Vasylyna might have a future career as a DJ herself as she very much enjoyed taking over the turntables.

Perler: After our amazing neighbor dropped off a houseful of holiday decorations I decided to get to work on a gift for her. I haven’t done any Perler bead art since we arrived and this was the perfect opportunity. I made this Santa loving a deer while we let episodes of Manifest drone on in the background. I saw it up in her window one day after delivering it but felt creepy trying to sneak a picture.

Olhão Christmas Lights: We took a night to document holiday lights in our town. Unfortunately, they weren’t in place for Rob’s visit.

Michelle:

World Cup: The World Cup was heating up by early December and there had already been some upsets: Saudi Arabia besting Argentina and Japan winning against Germany. We tried to watch as many games as our school schedule would allow. No one was interested in the Netherlands vs. US in our cafe, so it was a quiet afternoon there. We watched the Brazil vs. South Korea game and celebrated when Brazil won (we felt a bit bloodthirsty because South Korea had beaten Portugal earlier in the tournament). We watched the blowout Portugal vs. Switzerland when Olhanense star Gonçalo Ramos scored a hat trick. We had been following Benfica prior to the World Cup and almost lost our minds with excitement during this match. He wasn’t the only Benfica player participating in the World Cup, there were 6 in total: 3 playing for Portugal, 2 for Argentina, and 1 for Denmark.

We were a bit shocked that Croatia knocked out Brazil, we thought Brazil would go all the way to the end. We were broken hearted when Morocco defeated Portugal, thus ending their tournament journey. Andrew and I informally bet with each other for the England vs. France match (I won). We didn’t cry when France beat Morocco, it was expected. The final game between Argentina vs. France was one of the craziest sporting events I had ever laid eyes on. It was a gift that kept on giving in the best possible way.

Christmas Decor: Some of the property we shipped with our boardgames, furniture, my piano, and miscellaneous household goods was our seasonal decor. We haven’t quite gotten back into the habit of decorating every month and the 6 or 7 bins of December glitz and glam weren’t really inspiring me (yet) since I haven’t quite figured out how to best use our limited floor space. We also weren’t sure how popular decorating for Christmas was in our new town.

Little did I know that our seamstress neighbor, who is one of the loveliest people we have ever met, would flit over in fairy godmother fashion and deliver decorations to our door! She had to make multiple trips in order to manage the Santa, a small lighted and decorated Christmas tree, 2 window hangings, a wreath, and an extension cord. I felt guilty about my lack of holiday spirit and set to correcting it immediately. I plugged in the tiny tree, found a place for Santa, and even found some yarn to hang the wreath outside our door. Our neighbor returned promptly the next day to advise me that she didn’t approve of my hanging method and she was concerned someone would cut the string and steal the wreath. I didn’t have another solution, so I moved the wreath inside where it is still hanging (well into January).

Our cats, in true demon form, initiated an extended assault against the tiny Christmas tree. It has shiny disco balls as one of the many things tucked into its branches and these proved way too much of a temptation. The tree was knocked from its home on top of the piano at least 30 times and it has seen better days. We have now purchased a replacement hot glue gun so that I can try to repair it before next December.

Beach: We FINALLY made it to the beach together! Our friend Serhii called us up and we said yes to spontaneity and an afternoon near the ocean. We went to Faro Beach which is a 15 minute drive from our house. There were fishermen, a couple of surfers, and only a handful of people on foot. The beach was large enough that a short walk leads you to what felt like a completely private experience. We brought some snacks and wine and relished in the open space, salty air, and practicing Portuguese with our Ukrainian friend. I can think of worse places to be on a December afternoon.

Christmas Films/Shows:

• Fun Holiday Spin Offs: We aren’t always great about starting and finishing TV series (this drives Rob nuts, especially when he wants to dish about plot points with us). This year we turned into some holiday episodes of other shows we dabble in:
  • Who Killed Santa? A Murderville Murder Mystery – why did Pete Davidson join the cast for the last few minutes? Not totally sure, but Maya Rudolph and Jason Bateman are hilarious.
  • Nailed It! Holiday! – I had some huge belly laughs. If you are prone to the holiday blues, tune in to this for mood brightening fun.
  • Blown Away: Christmas – I LOVE the normal version of this show and could watch glass blowing all day long. The holiday version had some returning fan favorites (and 1 guy I barely remembered at all).
  • Great British Baking Show: Holidays – the regular version of this show is a must-see for us and the holiday version doesn’t disappoint. It usually has some episodes with returning bakers and some episodes with cast members from other shows (at time it looks more like Nailed It!). Find and watch the episode with members from Derry Girls, it is fantastic.
• Holiday Series: We tried out a few shows set in and around the holiday season.
  • Home for Christmas – this Norwegian serial follows a nurse and her quest for love. Her friends and family are intriguing, but her life is a bit like a dumpster fire that we couldn’t stop watching. This is definitely an adult show with a good mix of drama and comedy.
  • DASH & LILY – is a cute teen scavenger hunt for love. It was nice and easy to watch, but I probably wouldn’t tune in for a second season.
  • Elves – I managed to sneak in a horror holiday series between Andrew’s lovey-dovey movies. This had me yelling at the teen on the screen during almost every episode. P.S. the baby elf is soooooo cute.
• Star Studded Seasonal Films:
  • The Holiday – this is an oldie from 2006. Andrew thought it should have been edited down from 2 hours and 16 minutes. I like this movie, but it is not Cameron Diaz’s finest work (don’t ask me what is, because I’m not entirely sure).
  • Father Christmas is Back – Elizabeth Hurley, Kelsey Grammer, John Cleese, and Kris Marshall from Death in Paradise join forces. This is an enjoyable show with a predictable reveal. We say yes to almost anything with John Cleese in it. We blame our parents for raising us on Fawlty Towers which we still love (our dog is named Basil).
  • A Castle For Christmas – Brooke Shields and Cary Elwes costar. Although they had almost zero chemistry between them, the setting of Scotland and in castles for Christmas made it worth my while.
• Animated:
  • Klaus – I think this may have been the only animated movie we watched. It was so adorable, I would watch it again in 2023.
• International Films:
  • 1000 Miles from Christmas – this Spanish film was one of my favorites. It is about a Christmas hating auditor who is sent to a Christmas obsessed village for work. It reminded me of a Mr. Bean movie at times and was all around good fun.
  • Falling for Christmas – this Brazilian film is like a seasonal version of Groundhog Day except the only day that the main character remembers is Christmas. The downside is he has to account for all of the shenanigans he has gotten up to throughout the year.

Baking/Cooking: We had initially talked about arranging a holiday cookie exchange with expats, but all of a sudden, the season was upon us, so we decided to make a few treats and share them with friends. Andrew made a new version of spritz with lemon (we still have many more lemons to use) and I made Russian teacakes. Unfortunately I found out mid batch that the powdery sugar substance I was using wasn’t powdered sugar, but a diet substitute. Alas, the challenge of shopping and not being quite fluent enough tripped us up again. I managed to change sugar midway through my batch, so some had a not so pleasant aftertaste and some were passable. I also made an easy fudge with sweetened condensed milk and topped it with some fun Christmasy sprinkles.

Some highlights on the savory side in December were a homemade chili that we spiced up with Piri-piri sauce, cooled down with Crème Fraîche and garnished with tortilla chips. We enjoyed this on a chilly day during Rob’s visit. Later in the month we combined leftover rice with chicken, a fried egg, and cabbage and had a surprisingly satisfying stir fry.

We continued our love affair with salads, adding whatever pantry or refrigerator ingredients we were inspired by: nuts, dried fruit, fresh fruit, cheese, tuna, meat, anything goes. My mom always used to make a 7 layer salad for holidays and I made one this year too. I made it a bit healthier by using a yogurt dressing with a small dollop of mayonnaise instead of the original all mayo version.

Tip: If you want to fancy up food like a 7 layer salad, use a trifle dish instead of a 9×13 pan. You can see the lovely layers and it elevates a simple side dish to a dish worthy of a special occasion. Be creative with your trifle dish, it can be used for so much more than just dessert. Sometimes I even use it as a vessel for decor like pretty glass ornaments mixed with tinsel – it makes a pretty seasonal centerpiece.

Piano: I spent many, many hours at the piano playing Christmas tunes. I play my favorite holiday songs all year long, but this year I learned some new ones. I subscribed to a new app called Flowkey and one of the big draws is that it has a ton of music online, more songs than I could have ever dreamed of playing, and it is way more convenient than having to store stacks of sheet music. I played quite a range from old classics, pop, and even some international songs I had never heard of before. Here is a well known song that I learned to close out 2022.