Weekly blog about holiday rentals and B&B Termas-da-Azenha, in an old spa resort in the Coimbra district. Only 12 km from the coast as the crow flies.
Did you know that there are more than 30,000 saints? I would never have thought of it, pagan that I am, if I hadn’t seen a pop-up shop in one of the small alleys in the heart of Coimbra, selling beautiful kitsch clothing. Specially for the occasion of one of those Saints birthdays, it seemed […]
“I’m now at about three and a half thousand kilometers,” René says nonchalantly, and I almost fall backwards. That doesn’t seem to be a big deal for a passionate cyclist; last year it was six and a half thousand. René is the first guest via Friends on the Bike – dutch organization “Vrienden op de
Friends on bicycles Read More »
If you are as much of a football fanatic as I am, a European football championship could easily pass you by, if it weren’t for the fact that a few football fanatics in my network will prevent that. (I’m calling it football, by the way, not the american style “soccer”. Those americans are playing a
UEFA Championship 2024 – and the fraternization of people Read More »
Only when I take her to the station for her return trip, we find out that Joyce was here because a friend of her neighbor knows me and said that she would end up well here. As a woman alone on holiday, you look for a trusted address “How is Jan’s caravan going?” Joyce suddenly
Woman alone on holiday Read More »
An entire wall will take you about a year and a half. Not a 40-hour working week of course, and not 8 hours a day… but still, quite a few hours went into this. We think it’s a nice result, but very difficult to photograph! The mosaic is located at the front of the hotel
Mosaic – it’s finally finished Read More »
More and more foreigners in Portugal. We won’t ask whether these are the people who vote for political parties, which ironically want to keep foreigners out of their own country. According to neighbor Paddy, who apparently regularly encounters foreigners in the supermarket and then has politically tinged conversations with them, yes, that is so. In
Rent, buy or book? Read More »
Why is the buzzing of a fly so annoying, while that of a bee is not? The buzzing of bees sounds intensely satisfied, that’s why If you have ever stood with your head in a huge wisteria (like me), or near a “wall” of jasmine, then you understand. Imagine you’re a bee or a bumblebee,
I want to take a small side road, but a white van is just ahead of me. He stops at the beginning, blocking everyone (not such a problem, noone there but me) who wants to get in and out. I wait patiently for him to continue, but after a few minutes my patience runs out
Buried in Portugal Read More »
I put the key in the lock and turn. Nothing happens. In my mind I was already inside, almost outside again; just grab my sunglasses, and go for a walk. The key refuses to work – or rather: the lock refuses to open I know the phenomenon. Fortunately, because otherwise you will first have to
Stephanie and Paddy are searching. For houses. Affordable houses. This now seems to be a major problem in half of Europe, due to the significantly increased number of greedy landlords everywhere. In the meantime, they will stay here for a while and their family will come to visit them. Visiting family is a celebration if
Farewell to one family, arrival of the other Read More »
