Kick Ass Day and Pool

  Met with our friend Ron a former CAF fighter pilot in the 80s. 

He was stationed in Germany where he and the other pilots used to fly to Paris for lunch sometimes. He then began to fly for Air Canada . He and his wife Christine are retired now and live in the Algarve near Tavira for half the year. 

Ron biked down from his village to meet us for brunch. After that, we walked about the town, across the Roman bridge, looking at the restaurants and small squares, getting ice cream then a glass of wine at the Forte of Ginjinghis (sp), a restaurant that features the fabulous cherry liquor from Obidos in Portugal.

The liquor is like Black Forest Cake in a glass. 

After our libation Ron biked back home and I walked up the very long and high hill to our lodgings while C went looking for the small toy tourist train. 

The hotel we are at, is a former farm renovated some 40-50 years ago by the grandfather of the two sisters who run the establishment. 

Beautiful koi ponds, fruit and citrus trees and the highlight: a large flowering ancient tree with an aviary built about it with some 50 budgies flying around chatting happily and coming to see you. 

There is also the resident dog Cookie who takes her job seriously fending off the street cats of Tavira who are cared for by the local humane society. They are all picked up by volunteers, spayed and neutered and vaccinated and then released, to live a relaxed life wandering in and out of stores and restaurants and being fed at stations placed around the town. 

Blasted by the heat today and sun and after walking 20 minutes up the big hill I got the to hotel and decided that today was the day for the plunge. 

The grandparents' farm had an old giant tank, in which the owners' grandmother used to hand wash the laundry. It had slanted slats to beat and rinse the clothes. When it turned hotel it was refurbished as a pool, kind of "Petticoat Junction" style. I put on my bathing suit and braved the unheated water: after a screech or two I was relishing it. The cold was exactly what I needed to defog my brain. 

Apparently in the Algarve despite many places having pools, they are not heated so it's not for the faint of heart. 

Luckily we lived in Sault Ste. Marie for six years and some and swam in Superior in some very, very cold places and loved every minute. 

After my swim and dressing I headed back down the hill, not before passing by the 'tank' pool and watching a brave dad and his son splashing in the icy water.