Evil Cats Destroy Lives In Europe

Category: Family

  • Some High Stuff: Arouca 516

    Some High Stuff: Arouca 516

    After moving from Minnesota to Oregon it was darn near impossible to avoid adding hiking as a hobby. The state is known for amazing trails and we could get to the Pacific Crest Trail in 30 minutes. Our normal routine was day hikes in the 5-10 mile range. Our longest hike was 39 miles which…

  • Some Old Stuff: Citânia De Briteiros

    Some Old Stuff: Citânia De Briteiros

    My cousin John visited a few weeks ago and in planning his visit he said he was interested in seeing some Roman ruins or a similar attraction. Lucky for him we live less than ten miles from an amazing archaeological site. Citânia de Briteiros is an unearthed “urban” community which actually existed in pre-Roman times…

  • Farming (Game) In Portugal

    Farming (Game) In Portugal

    My grandpa Finazzo was a farmer in Minnesota, he had a farm and a tractor and the whole shebang. Like most farmers he supplemented his income in a variety of ways but his core identity was related to tending to his crops. I imagine sometime around 1979 someone saw the new board game The Farming…

  • Spring Has Arrived!

    Spring Has Arrived!

    We have emerged from an especially long and wet winter season into the beginning of spring. The temperature has snuck up into the 60’s and plants are springing up everywhere. We can finally dry our laundry outside! I even snuck in a quick R&R session in our hammock out on the terrace this morning before…

  • Friendsgiving 2025

    Friendsgiving 2025

    I am absolutely food obsessed. This is not a new development. Food and memories of holidays, people, and places are pretty much inextricably linked for me. I remember baking cookies with Gram Novotny when I was too tiny to reach the counter (I had to stand on a step stool or chair). My passion for…

  • UEFA: 3 Ways

    UEFA: 3 Ways

    UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) is the European branch of FIFA that hosts a European Championship tournament every four years. This tournament is the second most popular in the world with only the FIFA World Cup ahead of it. Football (soccer for our readers in the United States) is extremely popular throughout Europe, but…

  • Random Adventures With Elsa

    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…

  • Lisbon: Tejo Bar, A Telecabine Ride, And Another Tuk Tuk?!

    Lisbon: Tejo Bar, A Telecabine Ride, And Another Tuk Tuk?!

    We have mentioned traveling to Lisbon in multiple posts but haven’t really dedicated a full write up to Portugal’s capital so far. The sun was setting on Elsa’s visit and the three of us made our way into the city. In order to hit the highlights we decided on a comprehensive Tuk Tuk tour as…

  • Halfway To 100

    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…

  • Coimbra: Creepy Art In A Cryptoporticus And Higher Education

    Coimbra: Creepy Art In A Cryptoporticus And Higher Education

    When we wrote up our last trip to Coimbra we mentioned that we hadn’t seen some of the historic highlights of the city, specifically the University. During the planning stages of Elsa’s trip we explained that Portugal (for a first time tourist) has two major cities (Lisbon and Porto), the sunny beach filled Algarve region,…