Wow, it has been three months since we were last here. It has been a long while, but it all seems to have flown by. During our visit to the UK we managed to pack in a hell of a lot of things once we finished our quarantine.
Once we we able to taste freedom and get some much wished for exercise and walks in (see the last post), it was down to work, well work for us.
We (well, Annette mostly) managed to organize and get our COVID-19 vaccinations sorted, finish off our final packing and manage the final stages of the house sale. We also got to visit our Son and partner and wee grandson in sunny Scotland. (Yes, it really was sunny!). We then travelled south to N Yorkshire to visit my Sister and Niece & her husband and their wee boy, before a small detour to Harrogate for a whistlestop visit to an ex colleague who sadly recently lost his wife and also unfortunately fell ill to COVID. However, he was on the mend, and was now able to visit his new grandson. It was really good to see him looking so well.
It was then off to Worcester to spend assome time with our middle boy and his wife and more lovely sunny time spent eating outdoors and spending a great couple of days catching up and playing games. We also had a lovely walk along the river with our son while his ever busy wife was working before heading back home to make final preparation to hand over the property.
We even got the chance to get some walks in, one special request from Netty on her birthday was to dip her toes in a river, so to grant her wish we set off for Dovedale in the Peak District to do just that!
We also managed to get other niggly car things sorted, such as repair to a cracked windscreen, repair to some scratched bodywork and also to get the dash-camera up and running again.
We also got our passports renewed, and I managed to get my drivers license extended, as the Portuguese process to change has been adversely effected by the ongoing pandemic.
All this, on top of getting our PCR tests organized, all the required paperwork for the ferry and trip back sorted and printed off as well as a family reunion in Uxbridge for Netty´s relatives and a great meal and stay over before returning with Netty´s sister and partner who our youngest is living with, for a final stay before making our way to Plymouth and a very pleasant trip on the ferrry.
There is probably a lot more things we got done, but it’s been a while and my memory struggles to retain things after a few days (or more likely hours!).
It was a pretty uneventful trip down from Santander too. Just a couple of stops to get something to eat and drink plus the fuel stops. We managed to get back before it was dark and it was great to see our besties once again.
The next few days were just taken easy and a few drinks were required to acclimatise back to Portuguese lifestyle and weather!
We we completely shocked at how much our land had overgrown and all the hard work to clear ir was about to start again…
But first it was time to chill out with our friends and get some sun and swimming in. It was off to our favorite river beach where the water is warm and inviting, and just the thing on a hot day. A picnic and plenty of sun cream are the order of the day. We actually pitched our blanket, only to be scolded by some people near us, to be told we were too close to them, even though they were just leaving. But we shifted, and as soon as we did, they left. Go figure, but it didn’t spoil a fantastic day, and the water was lovely! It is a great spot to go when it’s not a weekend and towards the end of the summer, it’s super quiet and the water is even warmer!
Now we are just waiting to get the house build underway, and more of that to come shortly, so stay tuned. We had a lovely meal with our Architect and his family and things are looking ok and he is hoping to get going soon.
hope to see you all again soon.
Our Portuguese Life 