Category: weeknotes

there’s not much to report, and yet (or maybe because of that), this was such a nice week.

the chinese classes took a break (easter holidays) and so the pressure to study and prepare also eased. the boy upped his medication and stopped coughing. it rained most days (a welcome change for algarve), and i tried to battle the caterpillars that plague my kale plants. we played a frustratingly difficult (yet hilarious) game of robo rally with friends and i came out last! and we watched oppenheimer at last.

i guess the biggest thing this week was that we started an elimination diet, in the hopes of ruling out food allergies that the boy couldn’t test for. basically, we eat just potatoes for a while, and then slowly re-introduce foods one by one, to measure and see the reactions (if any). this is not our first potato rodeo (just a more extreme form of it), but since i like potatoes, it’s not a big deal — i actually find it rather soothing not having to think what’s for lunch or dinner… it’s potatoes all the way down! :D

this week, we escaped to france to spend a few days with friends! it was the most glorious week — the first in years in which i was able to completely disconnect from work, forget which day of the week we were in and just… be.

we saw a diane arbus exhibition, explored arles and a few cute towns in provence, ate an enormous amount of cheese and bread, read (finally finished country driving and also book 3 of the scum villain self-saving system), walked the countryside soaking in the sun… but mostly we spent time with our friends and their adorable 1.5 year old, who demanded our attention quite vehemently. :) it was bliss!

i started the week by cycling to the swimming pool and being chased a ferocious (though tiny) dog. 😅 the whole swim i was thinking about the dog and on the way back, i did a detour through the main road just to avoid it. because of this detour, i saw an otter!

signs of spring: the countryside smells of orange blossoms, and the black-headed gulls’ heads are turning black again!

i found some advanced chinese classes online! they’re by the university of aveiro, and they’re hard, but also kind of perfect for me. the teacher is really nice too, and patient with my rusty skills. this is such a lucky find, because i was struggling a lot with self-learning and motivating myself to study on my own. with the classes scheduled, the rhythm is set and i have to study in advance, in order to actually follow the class. they started last september, so i’ve missed out on a lot of stuff, but i’ll get there!

i collected 2 beetroots, lots of chard and the last of the broccoli from the garden this week, planted some lettuce and zucchini, and seeded some tomatoes and more chard. unexpectedly, one of the beetroots was the stripy kind!

i went running with the boy for the first time in years! just 2kms, with lots of stops in between, but i did it!

to wrap-up the week, we went to an event that launched a movie the local eco-group i participate in made for april 25th. turns out, the carnations given away in lisbon during the revolution day in 1974 were grown in tavira! no one knew about this, until the technician who grew them got interviewed for a book someone was writing about the local agricultural experimentation center, and the story was resurfaced. how cool is that?

these last 2 weeks started off with a few last meals with friends and family (including a francesinha!), and then a 7-hour long train back home, spent napping and reading.

finished reading “adventures in stationery” and “legends & lattes“, and also listening to “the big year” and “five red herrings” — all so different!

in an effort to keep trying new things, we’ve been cooking one new meal every month for a while now. we missed it last month, so these weeks we worked on catching up and made 2 dishes: a very radioactive-looking beetroot rice, and orange/fennel couscous. both were big hits! the recipes came from tavira’s own mini food magazine, which highlights a few seasonal ingredients every month.

we were in faro for the boy’s doctor appointment at the central hospital, to try and move forward with a treatment for his breathing woes. his doctor wants him to have some special monthly injections that will hopefully make his systems not go overboard, but they’re stupidly expensive and a committee will have to review his case and give their okay. hopefully he’ll get a reply soon!

while there, we stumbled on this amazing mural by mariana, a miserável!

and last but not least, there were goats and sheep being herded in the backyard, and one day, the sheepherder let me pet a baby goat that had just been born!!! :D

cuteness overload! <3