I’m a voracious reader, a book lover from my earliest years, and I particularly like to read mysteries. But… I am not really an eBook kind of gal. I understand people love their Kindles and other eReaders, but it’s not my favorite way of consuming fiction. I like to hold a book in my hot…
The pace of life is slow in Portugal, at least in my little corner of it. As someone who has always been about the destination, not the journey, it’s been much less of an adjustment than I anticipated. I am outwardly the same me I was in Florida—happy sitting on the sofa, working on my…
I don’t know if I can adequately convey the all-out pandemonium that erupts in the sleepy fishing village of Santa Luzia the second week of every August. This past weekend we celebrated the Festa dos Pescadores. Today is the final—and for me BEST—day. Festa dos Pescadores takes a year of planning and a week of…
It is festa time in Santa Luzia. I have learned to savor the calm before the village becomes a full-on carnival. Sometimes I feel like I am living in the establishing shot of a movie. The fishing boats are in and one has music playing—it drifts up to my balcony where I sit with my…
Side hustles for older expats might not be on your radar, but most countries want immigrants to come with their own income streams. While yes, other countries can be less expensive than the US, many expats find they like or need to have extra income. As an older person, what considerations should you take into…
I am drifting—mentally—and I know I shouldn’t be, but it’s just so lovely and perfect that all I want to do is sit and stare. The restaurants are filling up. The tide is going out. The little ferries churn their way back and forth to the island beach. A crew of five is rowing a…
I am waking up far earlier than I want to these days—a combination of earlier sunrises and hotter days, which means the sliding door in my bedroom stays open to let in some cooler night air. Today, I am up early enough to see the baker and his assistants having their morning break. They come…
Older people say that time passes more quickly the older you get and I am here to tell you that it is true. The weeks fly by here. It’s like you put your head down to work on something, raise it up a few hours later and three days have gone by. I’m pretty sure…
This week I realized (again—can you re-realize?) that I can see the Atlantic Ocean from my balcony. Sitting down, at that. No need to climb the railing and squint. Most days, the sky and water match shades and the ocean just looks like a continuation of the sky—it all blends. But the other day, like…
I moved to The Algarve area because it is the warmest part of Portugal. After 30 years in Florida, I was not ready to brave any winter that was characterized as, well, winter. The code word is “mild,” but mild is relative. It was a colder winter this past year, with night temperatures going down…