Catch up Time!
It’s mid-September, 2022, and I’ve deserted my apartment. The car and trailer are gone, and most of the remaining belongings have been sold, stored or donated to worthy causes. The youngest has already been in NY for several months. It’s time to follow the girls and become an East Coaster, New Yorker or whatever. The four oldest have plenty of room for dad to park it for lengthy stays. Wearing out my welcome was not a concern — for me anyway. Hey, they mooched off of me for 18 years — time to reciprocate. Just kidding of course. I love hanging out with the girls and my eight grandchildren. The kids have indicated that they’re ok with me being on the East Coast indefinitely and possibly permanently.
Summer vacationing was over and children were back in school. The Fall weather was moving in and that meant it was time for me to travel! I’d mapped out five countries over six weeks — Portugal. Spain. Morocco. Monaco. Andorra. I added and subtracted three others, but that didn’t matter. Four weeks in and just a few days before heading to Morocco, I contracted Covid. It is still a mystery how I ended up getting sick considering I masked up whenever indoors and on flights.
I spent 10 days in Portimao just to make sure I wasn’t contagious. However, some of the symptoms lingered for another two months. I holed up in New York with the kids until early December, and prepared to take my first cruise — ever! Now that was an interesting experience.
The view from my balcony in Portimao, Portugal. I paid $1100 for this two bedroom apartment for the entire month of October. The low season begins then and 1-6 months rentals can be found for a very reasonable price. It takes time and patience to find this kind of deal.
The trip was cut short, however, it wasn’t a total loss. Gaia, Porto and Portimao were new experiences and I accomplished a major objective - eating fish I’d never tried before…with the exception of sea bass! Stone bass, grouper, monk fish, turbot, bream, sole, and hake. The only bad dish was the hake, but I’m not blaming the fish. The rest? Yum!
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