We arrived at our next sit in Leiria. A week in a comfortable apartment just a twenty minute walk from the city centre. We had briefly met our hosts (a young American family) previously so knew the pets before-hand. We got our final questions and instructions completed and then Wayne drove them to the bus station in time for their trip to Lisbon and beyond.
Unfortunately the weather from the previous week had followed us and we spent the first couple of days just binge watching TV and spending time with the pets…
The pets. Bailey was a nine year old golden retriever and Rufi, a young kitten. Both were a joy to look after. Bailey´s temperament was lovely. Anyone who meets him will instantly fall in love with him. Rufi was just a complete blast to watch. A typical kitten with endless energy and mischief. The interaction between them was excellent too. They both got along really well, and it was fun watching Bailey give little Rufi his daily bath, and looking sheepishly like a soaked kitty after a long licking!
It was only a short twenty minute walk into Leiria along the river, so we took advantage when the weather abated for a while and took a stroll in, with Bailey. It was lovely. Leiria was getting into the festive mood and the Christmas market was starting to appear. We were surprised at how full the river was from the recent rain. A raging torrent compared to what it was in summer when it was virtually dry and just a trickle. We also returned in the evening to check out the lights and see the castle illuminated!
It was also handy that we were staying in Leiria, as we had a couple of things we needed to sort out while we were there. Firstly the car needed to go through its first IMT inspection (MOT in the UK). It’s first test since being imported, as the car is now four years old. The tests are every two years until the car is ten years old and subsequently every year thereafter. My contact for this was in Leiria, so an easy pickup and go. Also, we have just had to extend our build permit for the house because of delays we have covered in earlier posts. This meant we also had to extend the electricity (construction) contract. The electricity company’s office was handily in Leira too. That was easy, but we left it until the last day of the sit. However the weather was still wet, so Wayne drove the short journey into town to sort that out while Annette was busy cleaning and packing for our next sit.
However, I am jumping ahead slightly…
Because we were going to be at our next house sit over Christmas and New Year, we would miss the company of all our friends in Alcaria and Alvados. So we planned an Indian meal at Everest Inn and invited them along. Sadly, our besties were away in the UK, but the others all came along and we had a lovely meal and exchanged our best festive wishes etc. Wayne even dared to wear his Christmas jumper, always a risk when eating curry!
On the house build front… As well as extending the contracts, we were contacted by the architect and Project Manager Rui, and informed they had started on the next phase, putting the floors in, while they had a weather window. The forecast wasn’t too bad for the following couple of weeks, so even though there is some rain, the progress should be continuing now. As we had arranged to meet our biker friends for a dog walk, we killed two birds with one stone and drove Bailey over and walked them around the village to check out the beginnings of our floor joists going in. We also noticed a crawl space entrance was added to allow some extra storage under the what will eventually be the pantry.
So that was our Leiria sit. Just a week, but we managed to pack in a bit while we could when the weather allowed. We had to leave before the hosts got back as we had our next sit arranged and having to get there, unload, and take Kathryn to Coimbra station. However, we walked Bailey, made sure they were fed and had enough water until they returned later in the afternoon. We made sure they were going to get back ok and then left.
Lovely pets. A really nice place too. Don’t miss out Leiria if you are ever visiting Portugal, you will be missing a treat!
That’s it for this week. Onwards to Travanca do Mondego and the festive season sit!
Our Portuguese Life 