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Old Couple
Our first date was on May 4th 2001 and consisted of dinner at Perkins and a visit to a local business known for poles and scantily clad employees since neither of us had ever been to one of said establishments. This year we celebrated our 23rd year as a couple with a dinner date in
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House Hunting For The Geographically Challenged
I had seen the listing for the house in Olhão which we toured and talked about in Oh, Olhão!?!. Michelle wanted to cancel the tour because we hadn’t been thinking about buying a house and didn’t want to waste the real estate agent’s time. I persisted and immediately after the tour it felt like our
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Thursday The Miracle Cat
It was day 5 of the New Year. Out of nowhere we received a call that our cat had been found. WHAT?! How is that possible? She had been missing 40 days. She was being taken to a veterinarian in Faro by firefighters and was found in an abandoned house in Estoi almost 6 miles
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Wrapping Up 2023
October: We headed back for Year 2 of Portuguese language class. With any luck, at the end of the course we will have a B2 (upper-intermediate) language level, and hopefully a bit more ease with conversational Portuguese. Our favorite neighborhood kid Bianca needed help with a school project and it was Halloween themed, so definitely
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Oh, Olhão!?!
“How did you choose Olhão?” is an all too common question we are asked by friends and other expats. We were looking back through our blog posts and realized that we never really answered that question here on FinazzoFun. I’m going to give the easy and mundane answer and then want to delve into our
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An Unexpected Trip To The End Of The World
After finishing a whirlwind tour of Portugal in September and a transition into our first week of language class, we were delighted when our friend Jorge invited us for a leisurely trip to Sagres on October 5th. This is Republic Day in Portugal, a public holiday that observes the transition from a monarchy to a
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Sintra: Pena Palace, Petiscos, And Playtime In The Garden
Sintra is a town nestled in the Sintra Mountains about 15 miles northwest of Lisbon. It was once a summer holiday haven for Portuguese royalty and is a very popular day trip for visitors. The region is chock full of palaces, castles, mansions, viewpoints, a convent, a sanctuary, and multiple beaches. When limited to a
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Casa De Chá Da Boa Nova
On almost every trip, we try to book a meal at an upscale restaurant. We aren’t food snobs, we’ll eat street food and sandwiches without a single complaint, but we like fancy food too. I love collecting cookbooks, reading about food, experimenting with new recipes, and watching shows like Top Chef, Iron Chef, Chef’s Table,
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Porto Street Art And A Tuk Tuk Tour
Our adventures continued in the fabulous and fabulously hilly city of Porto. We were all quite optimistic about our leg endurance after the climb at Bom Jesus so we set off on a self guided tour of the city’s street art. I started seeking out and photographing street art on my first trip to New
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Pinhão And Port Wine
Port tastings and vineyard tours was another request made by our visitors and Pinhão, a gorgeous village in the Douro Valley about 80 miles from Porto, is one of the best places to indulge in this endeavour. In Oregon we frequented many a vineyard, and were long term wine club members with more than one