-
Our First Thanksgiving In The North
It was our third Thanksgiving in Portugal, but the first in our very own house. Experiencing a very American tradition is a bit of an odd thing when living in a different country, not to mention that some expats’ relationship to holidays and their homeland can be a bit complicated. Some are homesick and missing…
-
Urgezes House Tour
We had the very best of intentions. The plan was to film a post remodel house tour before the never-ending unpacking began. Andrew, myself, and the pets arrived after 9:00 pm on Wednesday August 28th and by 8:00 am Thursday August 29th our property started arriving. I am not a morning person on the best…
-
The Small(er) Trip
We wrote about the challenges and excitement of our move from Medford, Oregon to Olhão, Portugal in the summer of 2022. There was an international shipment of our property, an emergency passport pick up in Seattle, a FlixBus trip to Portland, car trips, airport shuttles, and long flights with 3 pets and 6 massive suitcases…
-
Goodbye Dear Neighbor
I have been totally neglecting my cross stitching hobby. I purchased a couple of cross stitch magazines at a bookstore within months of moving to Portugal and unfortunately they sat on a shelf untouched. Maybe I am dedicating more time to playing piano and more frequently saying yes to social engagements. Maybe the arrangement of…
-
About That Wedding Dress…
While sifting through our massive international shipment of belongings from the States in August 2022 we discovered two items that definitely didn’t belong to us. One was a small container of expensive looking technical cords which looked as if they belonged to a TV camera person or a sound and lighting specialist. The second was…
-
Random Adventures With Elsa
Have you found that the most memorable parts of a vacation are the surprises, unplanned excursions and serendipitous diversions that lead you to something unique? Sometimes unexpected themes emerge. We stumbled onto a few of these awesome adventures with cousin Elsa. All You Can Eat: We have never been huge patrons of all you can…
-
Halfway To 100
July 1st was my golden jubilee of a birthday, the big 50. We had kept busy with Portuguese language school through the end of May, we finalized our house purchase the beginning of June, and then hosted cousin Elsa who arrived on June 18th. By the time my birthday actually rolled around, I hadn’t really…
-
Put On Your Hard Hat: Spelunking In Loulé
Michelle: One of the adventures we planned with cousin Elsa was a salt mine tour in Loulé. Andrew visited the mine back in 2023 and found it so intriguing that he recommended another trip. Jorge and his friend visiting from Lithuania had both wanted to see the mine for years, so we made reservations for…
-
Tourists For A Day In Tavira
During cousin Elsa’s visit we tried to balance relaxation and beach days with travel, attractions, and tourism. One of the best day trips from Olhão is a quick 30 minute drive to Tavira. There are a ton of great restaurants, scads of picture opportunities along the Gilão River, cultural events, plenty of shopping, and even…
-
SO Many Algarve Beaches
