Relaxing holiday

Despite my years of award winning travel consultancy, the Editor is in charge of 99% of our holidays.

So after years of being up early, jam packing every inch of sightseeing into a day and regularly topping 20,000 steps in a day, times have changed.

Today we didn't have to catch a train until 09:20, yet there we were, walking to the train station before the sun came up because we woke up early.

The station was covered, surprisingly, with tiles.

We got on the right train at 08:20 to Guimarães, saw a palace, a castle, an old town and then having seen everything in a leisurely manner, made our way to the station.

Unfortunately, google maps had taken us to the bus station. A quick calculation had us getting to the train station with 5 minutes to spare. Of course the entire 19 minute walk was straight uphill. The biggest hill of the holiday. We did it in 16 minutes, spent 74 minutes on the train, wondering about all the eucalypt trees on the way and ended up back at our room (it's uphill all the way).

A quick break and we headed off to purchase fabric, Portuguese tarts and more music. 2 out of 3 ain't bad. No records purchased but if you are in Porto and want records, head to Vinyl Discs. It's on the 3rd floor in a tiny room with sooo many records.

Unfortunately with the recent boom in vinyl, prices have exploded. That, and the fact I already own most of the records I pick up, had me leaving empty handed. (Editor's note: I can wholeheartedly recommend stopping by Natas D'ouro for Pastel de Nata, which you would know as Portuguese tarts. I'm now on a mission to learn how to make such crispy pastry)

A quick trip to the supermarket to buy food supplies was followed by a quick trip to the same supermarket to buy the stuff we forgot to buy and all of a sudden the 20,000 steps of the past became the 20,000 steps of our present. Just as well. We needed to burn off the burger and chips calories.

A Quinn Martin Production

I love a good cryptic reference.

Those of a certain age will remember Karl Malden and Michael Douglas in The Streets of San Francisco. There was always a car chase with cars flying through the air in the hilly streets.

Porto reminds me of this. It's almost 7pm and the foot that I injured a week before leaving is reminding me that walking the hills is not the same as a good walk around Wattle Grove.

The day started with bad news. The 1 roll of toilet paper was no more. While I showered and shaved to take my mind off all toilet-related thoughts, Annette went in search of reinforcements. She found a 6 pack. Hallelujah. (Editor's note: also octopus in the freezer section)

From here we made our way out for a leisurely day of just looking around. Streets of tiled buildings and footpaths dominate the city.

I seriously think that one of those 50% off end of season, everything must go advertisements from Amber Tiles must have really hit the spot many years ago.

Churches are smaller than those of previously visited European countries but if you are going to charge me to go inside, I'm not.

I think I reached my stained glass threshold some time on our last European Vacation. Now I am trying very hard not to go off on a Beverly D'Angelo tangent and What the Husband saw, but I failed.

Back to today. We found the food markets and they were very good and, noticeably, not smelly despite all the seafood and meat. Upstairs, what I thought to be art markets turned out to be Porto Coffee Week.

For the overpriced cost of a small coffee mug with lanyard, I could get some free samples. This did wonders for my caffeine levels.

We purchased food for lunch and dinner, and proceeded mainly uphill to home. The uphills are making my foot unhappy.

Lunch eaten, we headed back out to the hills. 

I unsuccessfully looked for Vinyl Discs, but on the way home found Louie Louie, where I fought the urge to buy overpriced records but lost the fight against adding to my cd collection.

Dinner was heavily salad based, but after the last few days, it was probably needed.

Paris, but not for long

Singapore to Paris flight was good. So much food. Enough sleep I hope. Then it was airport train, train, another train and we are at a different airport on the other side of Paris for our flight to Portugal. I didn't expect that a croissant would be eaten this early in the trip so no betting pool was created .

One hour into a 2 hour wait to check in. Then another 2 hours to flight. I tried, accidentally, to purchase a coke using Singapore coins. So very tired.

It seems like every crying child is on the flight to Porto. And the one behind me keeps kicking my chair. I guess this is the price you pay for actually booking a discount airline to reduce the price you pay. 

We found the metro, accidentally purchased an extra trip, made our way to Trindade and quickly discovered that Porto contains many, many hills, which are so much fun with luggage. Luckily, the Easyjet luggage restrictions meant we had packed quite light and our accommodation was only 10 minutes uphill.

We got into the apartment building with the code given, found the lift, got out on the 3rd floor and couldn't figure out how to get in the door. Nowhere to put the given code. A quick read of the instructions revealed the lift had 2 exits. We had chosen poorly. 

Error rectified, we then struggled to figure out how to open the 4 digit lock box with a 6 digit code we had been emailed while the timer light kept turning off.

Then we noticed the door handle itself had a code.

Without such bumbling, this blog would be quite boring.

Inside the door and the one roll of toilet paper was put to good use.

We are here for 4 nights. Reinforcement paper will be required.

We headed out in search of a supermarket and dinner. There are lots of little shops that caught the Editor's attention and then we stumbled on Jerry's Kebabs. It was under some stairs in a tiny hole in a wall but the kebabs were excellent. Jerry's (I'm sure that's his real name) was very friendly and got the spicy sauce just right for my requirements. The 🍟 were a bit disappointing but my review on Google will be excellent.

We wandered down to the river and then with phone battery low realised that the guy who invented Newton's law of relativity actually came up with it in Porto with the theory initially being "with every long walk down hill there is a much harder walk uphill following".

At least it was only 30 minutes.

Back home, we tried our best to stay awake until 11pm to appease the "beat jet lag app" but I only made it to 10.

I will be back bright eyed and bushy tailed tomorrow with hopefully good news on the toilet paper situation.

Blame it on the caffeine

Those familiar with our attempts to tackle jet lag head on will be familiar with the methods, but I'm guessing you have forgotten the science behind it, because I always do.

It involves sleep deprivation, bright lights, dark lights, bulk periods of hourly caffeine and strict bedtime and wake up.

Sort of the Guantanamo Bay for those travelling the globe.

Anyway, this morning's lack of caffeine is what I blame on the Editor's intolerance of the check-in system at the airport.

You see, if you put a computerised system that requires you to print and attach your own baggage tags, you better make sure it actually prints the tags or somebody will get agitated.

"On to Singapore" I say to myself in a Bill Belichick drawl. (Yes there is homework already to understand what this reference is). To be honest, I'm not even sure what I'm on about. It's 1am Sydney time and a robot wheelchair and what might be a robot garbage bin have just met going in opposite directions near our boarding area. 

I need sleep badly, but it and caffeine are banned on the long flight to Paris for the first 6 hours. 

I'm so tired.

I will read this in Europe and probably be very confused. 

Sunset on the holiday

Breakfast, pack for me. Breakfast, pool and pack for her. We checked out at 12:00, were elated that the credit card only policy didn't count for check out. That solved the problem of the leftover 170 ringgit. I purchased chilli and we caught the bus to the airport. where a local airport rule meant no aerosol in any luggage. Our guide was the recipient of deodorant, bug repellent and shaving cream.

It was about a 2 1/2 hour wait at airport 1, a noisy 2 hour flight if you didn't have your noise cancelling headphones (it's not me, it's her), and it's now 9:09pm with about 2 hours to boarding at airport 2 (after already being here for 2 1/2 hours).

If only I had 170 ringgit, I could go to Burger King.

We ate on the flight at 4:40pm, will probably eat at midnight and then be welcomed home to a less humid climate where I think I will have the chicken.

See you in Portugal.

It's not me, it's you

Waking up early to go to golf and beat the heat is hard, considering that when I walked out the door the heat was waiting, which made it extra hard. But after a quick breakfast I walked to the course, got there early and was one of the first on the course. 

My first strike ever with a Titleist driver rolled about 50m. I had to purchase a dozen golf balls prior and with water on every hole, there was a chance I would need them. As predicted, I couldn't hit the Titleist t100 Irons (it's not me, it's you) but the Scotty Cameron (an expensive one) worked ok.

By 3 holes, 2 balls had found a watery grave. On the 4th, a local golf ball grave robber offered to sell me balls he had found. I was confident the 10 remaining would be enough. It took until the 11th for the next one to be lost and then no more. So now I have an extra 9 to take home. 

It was hot and sweaty and I hit the driver much further than my ones waiting for me at home. This could cause a financial problem.

Back to a vacant room 404, the 2 bottles of drink I had purchased only lasted seconds.

The Editor returned from the pool and we headed back to the golf course for lunch. Not the greatest choice, but the cheapest on the resort.

An afternoon nap on the lounge for one and a treadmill session for the other. On my return Annette went to the pool.

Dinner was nice. We chose the Asian outdoor and then moved to a table where some others from the group were sitting, then ...

Prepare for your minds to be blown.

The couple from the group who used to live at Wattle Grove (as if that wasn't enough) blew my mind. She was friends with a woman who married a man who was best man at our wedding. Kaboom went my brain.

Anyway, the meal was excellent (I had the chicken) and we got to the shop with a minute to spare for soft drinks 4 and 5 of the day. Golf is thirsty work and the "feels like 42 degrees" on the weather every day, with the official ending of a Titleist golf irons relationship for the second time, needed fizz in the day.

Just the leaving for home post to go.