Koen and Marjolein - oh yes and Ayla inside Marjolein's jacket - waiting for the train...
OK, so I have to say that I am feeling a little out of sorts. It is a wee bitty intimidating to find yourself in a country with next to none of the language. Portuguese. It doesn’t sound like Spanish or Italian and as my new friends Marjolein and Koen would say, you have to change the “chip” in your head so you don’t mix up pronunciation.
The view down the street from right outside my back entrance
So speaking of my new friends, I am house sitting now for Marjolein and Koen. They are two lovely Dutch people who have entrusted me with their sprawling 300+ year old Casa in the Odemira region of southern Portugal. It is a fascinating house. The actual house is walled so there are number of terraces and it is all very private.
The view of the first terrace when you walk into the 'compound'
Today I headed out to Odemira to get some supplies. Odemira is about 24 km away. Koen and Marjolein left me with their car. It is a bit of a beater and was a little nerve-racking today driving since it is next to impossible to find 1st gear and the clutch box seems to be slipping all the time. But I made it there and back again and I just hope that the car holds out for the 3 – 5 months I am here.
Ayla gets tucked in to Mum's jacket
I went to a nearby town, Colos, first to get some gas. Now that was funny. All these towns around here have windy hilly streets and I really can’t figure out directions once I am ensconced in them. I finally had to try to ask where the gas station was since I couldn’t find it. I kept saying gas, but that is actually butane and not petrol. So a lovely Portuguese man got in my car and directed me to the gas station – which I found out that the word for gasoline is, well, gasoline.
And their train leaves and I am .... alone
Anyway, I know my courage will improve once I have some of the language under my belt, but at the moment I have been hiding away in my little retreat trying to find my bearings and putting some routine to my life for the next little while. Stay tuned, as the posts will likely shift from travel posts and focus more on all the stuff I am bound to go through as I face these next number of months on my own. This is a challenge I embrace. So wish me luck and stay tuned.
8:25 am Thursday morning - I am now on my own.