My head --- my eyes

My head says "feels like -17 with blowing snow".  My eyes say " a varied slope of green grasses and succulents and bushes" outside the windows opposite me at the airport cafe.  My heart is divided.

The island here has been a breath of spring for the senses and the soul.  We stood long on our balcony this morning drinking in the sights and smells of the city and the harbour.  Yesterday I walked to a new park I had not explored before and delighted in the perfect norfolk island pine,  I enjoyed my favourite almond pretzel at lunch.  We spoke at length with a local guide about other islands to visit.

Waiting for us at home will be a car covered in ice and a driveway that will be slippery at best.  Ian's mom took a fall while we were away and broke her hip.  She is doing well, but will still be in the hospital till next week.  There will be challenges there.

But home is where two of my grandkids are.  K and C are fascinating young people who have had my heart since their birth.  Being part of their lives trumps even the snow.  And there are the other members of the family so dear.  It is so true that home is where the heart is.

So, I am going home.

Tuna

Last evening, the old joke about being able to 'tune a piano but not tuna fish', took on a whole new meaning.  All week we have seen posters for a student concert from the University (one street up the hill from us) taking place at the Teatro Micaelense (about 400 m west of our hotel).  When we inquired at the box office, we were told it was a concert of music and dance -- what better on a Saturday night?

The Theater program has a brief English description. 
     "Debut concert of the most recent 'Tuna' of the Azores.  Rooted in the Portuguese academic traditions, 'Tunas' are musical groups based on vocals and string instruments."

It was a 3 hour concert, starting at 21:30 (9:30 at night).  We were welcomed by a bagpipe and drum group playing in the lobby.  Our seats in the balcony were perfect to see and hear everything.  Three different Tunas performed in the first half, surprisingly two mixed and one all male group.  Guitars dominated but ukuleles and mandolins were also featured.  There were different drums, and sometimes other instruments including violin, bass, flute, penny whistle, accordion, rain stick and trumpet.  The pieces featured both instrumental and vocal sections, sometimes in unison, sometimes in 3 part harmony, none of which were familiar to us.  The students were dressed in black and had capes which were usually folded and worn over the left shoulder with a crest visible.  Some selections were louder and more upbeat than others, but all the music was done from memory leading us to believe that the pieces were traditional in nature.  Featured at intervals were gymnastic dancers (usually male) with ribboned tambourines or with the flag of the group.  It was quite a different experience.

Cycle-less

We arrived here on Sao Miguel a week ago yesterday and the plan had been to connect with Carolina,  who worked at a local hotel, and with whom I left a bicycle last year which I had purchased here on the island.  Her hotel is undergoing renovations this month and therefore we are at a different hotel.  (This is a nice place with a great apartment, a pool and gym, and a spectacular view from the balcony, but it is about 3 streets up from the harbourfront and there is something particularly enchanting about stepping out of the front door and being on the water, so I think next year we will go back to the other hotel.)  Carolina made a last minute trip abroad and therefore no bicycle.

On Saturday, Sunday and Monday that was hard to take.  The weather was sunny and 18 degrees and I was extremely jealous every time a bike went by.  That was mainly the weekend, and that's when you see people out riding here.  It is recreational riding rather than functional, and most people just ride along the waterfront.  There is a new cycle lane along the coastal road and one can ride from Ponta Delgada west and east about 10 km each way and not encounter bad traffic or serious hills.

But since Tuesday there would have been no biking even if there were a trusty iron steed in the parking lot.  It has been very rainy -- sometimes off and on, sometimes just on -- and seriously windy.  The chairs on the balcony get blown around but if you pick a 2 hr non-raining window, you can dry your laundry.  When it was an effort to walk down the hill against the wind, I knew that I would not have been riding.

But there are some benefits to the wind.  The ocean is alive!  The white-capped waves have grown into swells.  I watched a cargo ship navigate into the harbour yesterday.  Against the steady horizon, it was undulating with the sea, first back to front and then side to side as it made the turn to follow the little tug to its place on the inside of the sea wall.  The waves crashed over the sea wall many times and I could see the white rivulets of foam streaming down the stones.  I have not seen any of the little boats, of which there are usually many, go into this weather.  And this is not even severe weather, but it is fascinating to watch.

We took the bus to Vila Franca do Campo yesterday.  Having watched the Harry Potter series this past week, it was almost like the London night bus to get our full sized coach through the narrow streets where you could have touched houses on either side out of the windows.  Vila Franca do Campo was the first capital of the Azores and did well for a century until an earthquake in 1522 which caused a landslide burying the town, killing about 3000.  Nowadays, it is a lovely seaside town with a historic and unique tart.

We haven't exhausted the island's secrets yet.

Rain

Well, it had to happen -- a day which had to be spent entirely at the hotel due to weather.  Make no mistake, I will take this rain over the snow and ice that has impacted all the activities at home.  However, with the blowing wind -- up to 80 km per hour, it was not the nicest of days.  The cobblestone sidewalks have a white strip made of a slippery stone, so you really have to watch the footing, especially if you are walking with sticks the way Ian does.  So it was best to stay home yesterday.

We had known about the impending weather and so had stocked in enough food and drink.  We had netflix and decided to watch all the Harry Potter movies in sequence -- 2 more to go.  I had my new tapestry stitching to keep my hands busy.  We watched the wind blow the palms around and the waves crash over the breakwater on the harbour.

This morning the sun is breaking through the clouds.  I can live with this.

Something new

I have always been excited by something new.  Certainly many people are delighted by new clothes, new cars, new toys, etc.  and I fall into that category. But more than that, I love new experiences -- a different resort, a place I have never been, a book I have never read, a piece of music I have never sung, a flower I have never seen, a food I have never tasted, an activity I have never tried.  While I can sometimes find these new experiences at home, I am much more likely to come across such things while traveling.

Today it was pineapples.  Yes, I have had pineapples at home and in the Caribbean and even in Hawaii where I was introduced to those special sweet little ones.  I even drove by a pineapple field in Hawaii many years ago, but I had never stopped to investigate how they grow.

Pineapples were brought to the Azores in the early 19th century as ornamental plants.  The first plantations appeared about 1860.  On this island is the only place in the world where the fruit is grown under glass, claiming to make it a unique tasting delight.  We have it at breakfast in the mornings and it is very good.

We walked to the plantation where we found about 15 rectangular greenhouses in various stages of the 18 month process of producing pineapples.  I had no idea about the bulb that it come from, the smoking process to encourage all the plants in a greenhouse to produce fruit at the same time, or that the fruit is staked to make sure it develops properly.  What a fascinating adventure!

Oh, and on the way back, there was a bush with flowers I have never seen before.

Water

I love water, especially the ocean.

I can walk for hours along the shore, be it sand or cobblestone paths.  I love riding along the ocean -- and wish that the lady who has the bike I got last year would get back to me.  There is something soothing and eternal and mesmerizing about the water coming onto the shore on a beach or over rocks.

When I used to windsurf, if I was too good and went too far just zooming along, I would deliberately drop into the water just because it was wonderful to get wet.

We can see the ocean from our balcony -- not quite as glorious as it was at the other hotel where we were right on the waterfront.

Ponta Delgada is lovely!

Three days in Lisbon

The internet connection here at the 4U Lisbon Guesthouse, has not been consistent, so there is only one post for the 3 days we have spent here.

Weather has been fabulous, if you like 18 to 20 degrees in brilliant sunshine.  Mornings are just under 10, so I have needed my jacket, which due to the breeze, I have happily worn all day.

First day -- Tuesday.  Learning to navigate the public transport in a city is always a bit challenging, and then when one has used it a few days, it becomes ordinary.  The metro here is no exception.  Our stop was about a km away, but just a nice walk to get the day started.  Our Lisbon card was a very good investment -- 72 hours of unlimited transit, and lots of free entrances.  So our first ride was down to the waterfront where the gates of the city face the Tagus River/estuary which provided the water access for all those Portuguese explorers.    We got an overview of the history of the city at the Lisbon Story Center, complete with a simulation of the 1755 earthquake.  Lunch of grilled sardines on an outdoor sidewalk -- mmmmm.  Then it was off to see the Music Museum which is in a metro station.  It was a grand little museum and to make the experience complete, there was a free concert at 6 pm of violin, clarinet and piano.  The students from the university music program did a very nice job -- especially the clarinetist who, according to Ian, was the best he has ever heard live.

Second day -- Wednesday.  Having mastered the metro, today it was off to the west using the local train system.  Here the national pastry was first made -- the Belem tart-- and they still make it exactly the same way they always have.  An espresso and a tart in the adjacent park was fabulous!  The Monastery of St. Jerome has wonderful cloisters and the remains of Vasco de Gama.  The Tower of Belem on the river bank reminded us that the peace of today was not always enjoyed in this area.  The monument to the explorers and discoverers is a contrasting modern monument.  The walk along the river is so pleasant.  We did not enjoy the 'art' in the modern museum. but the exhibits in the old electrical plant were very well presented and interesting.

Third day -- Thursday.  Any day that starts with chocolates being brought to you for breakfast, gets a positive kick.  Today we visited the art supply store that Ian found online.  Very Impressive in terms of scope of materials.  We mastered the bus system and made our way to the Tile Museum.  What a fabulous collection of historic and modern uses of this very Portuguese product.  We finished the afternoon with a circuit of Tram 28 which traverses the city and all the ups and downs of the many hills which are in this place.  We were very pleased that someone else was driving.

We saw lots, sampled new and different foods, saw the regular life of an old city and enjoyed some of the unique sights of Lisbon.  Highly recommended to all!

Winter Discussion II

So on Friday morning we flew from Lisbon (sunny and 12) to Stockholm (snow and -10).  As you may have figured out by now, I am not the greatest fan of the white winter.

Saturday morning dawned quiet and still and the early morning photo of Jenn and Richard's back yard showed a truly magical setting.

We headed to a town about 8 km away where Jenn teaches and TvE takes cross country ski lessons.  It was the local ski meet with appropriate length courses for everyone from 3 to whatever.  It was the first ski race for both TvE and R.  They were fitted with timing chips though their times were not given -- I guess it was to get them used to the whole routine.  The clock counted down 30 seconds between each entrant and beeped 5 short seconds and then a long sound for each to start.  R, being only 3, went with her Dad beside her.  TvE was very excited to go and had a great start and whole adventure, climbing the hills well and pushing hard on the downhills and straights.  Everyone -- yes even the adults, got a prize at the end with placing medals for all 9 years old and up.  There was friendly competition from 3 other local ski clubs with altogether 100 entrants.  As a total spectator, I was most impressed with the positive encouraging spirit for all.

Saturday afternoon it snowed and snowed.  It was necessary to shovel the driveway.

Shoveling snow is something very familiar from my childhood.  I lived on a farm in the late 50s and 60s which had a 275m driveway.  It was poorly positioned so that wind from the west regularly dumped snow in drifts over the drive.  Ours was a farm which needed 10 ton feed trucks to be able to come in weekly to supply the chickens and then trucks to take the birds to market -- about 4,000 at a time.  When we first lived on the farm, we did not have a snowblower and my Dad rigged a diagonal board on the old Massey Harris tractor with which he could push some of the snow.  It was not adjustable so there was still lots of the white stuff which had to be shoveled by hand.  It was a family work force, so we all participated.  My childhood memories of snow are the shoveling kind, not the sledding variety.  And we went to school at a time when girls still had to wear skirts and walking the 0.5 miles west to the bus stop in tights, my legs were always cold.  No need to wonder why I hate winter.

So we shoveled on Saturday and then again on Sunday because we were blessed with about 60 cm total.  We piled it on the lawn making a huge snow mountain which the little girls use as a sledding slope.  They wanted to make snow bunnies -- I even managed one they could sit on.  I have, probably for the first time in my life, snow pants that keep me warm enough to be outside.  I had a wool base layer which got a fleece over it and then was covered with a windproof waterproof shell.  I wore mini mitts inside big Omniheat mitts.  I had a neck warmer, a scarf, a knit hat, and a hood.  I had double socks inside big insulated boots.  I can say, that I was not cold.  I navigated through the snow, the girls slid and laughed.  We built a snow fort.  It was fun.

However, at home, snow usually means a raw wind and shoveling the sidewalk for the dog walkers.  Unless it is icy, I try to get in my walk outside, rather than on the eliptical.  It is determination, not fun.

So, I blame my perception of winter on my childhood.  The childhood of the 4 grandkids is about skiing and sledding in the snow.  We all have our long-held attitudes which define us, but if I look at it through my grandchildren's eyes, I may be able to change that perception.