This morning was a casual, no rush affair. We had 4 hours to catch a train that was a 10 minute walk away. I plonked into my favourite chair near the window, and looked out at a large trawler passing nearby, with an orange ferry on one of its many river crossings for the day. It was that bright , clean early morning light that highlights the colourful buildings with their curved tiled terracotta roofs. You’d never tire of this because it’s never the same. Last night Sue and I strolled down to the Praca do Comércio, a large waterfront square overlooking the riverside. It gets very busy as many people come down to sit at the waters edge with a drink, eat at one of the many eateries, or go for what the Italians call, ... read more

Good God, what a place. I’m writing this, looking out at the early evening sky over the River. It’s pink fading to a soft blue, and I think it may have dropped to low 30°’s. The breeze coming off the river conceals the heat, and on most hot nights, sleeping is not a problem. At the moment, a thin line of sparkling orange and white lights form the horizon, and split the dark sea from the light blue sky. Sometimes I’m really not sure where this apartment is located. On google maps, you need to walk 20 metres and turn left or right into our street. The staircase twists and turns at every level, and I know our window faces the river, but where exactly I couldn’t say. We do not step outside without some effort. ... read more

Currently high in the sky above Spain, the next part of our trip is about to start. Mission - Marry The Couple And Make Natalia A Sherry - was a success and she thinks she might have a movie career now with her new exotic name. Well, it’s exotic if you pronounce it the way it sounds in Polish. This morning I was forced out of bed by the incessant beeping of my phone, with all the early bird travellers communicating and making announcements via our whatsapp group, with no consideration for those of us who could sleep in; at 6am I don’t care where you are or if the train is late. Tim and Natalia are registering their marriage this morning and then meeting us for breakfast at Charlottes, a popular cafe in the old ... read more

With lights turned out at 2.30 this morning, waking at 6am with the bright sunlight streaming in was too early. I had a dull headache from lack of sleep; 3.5 hours of sleep just didn’t cut it. We showered, read a paper or two, and wandered out to the breakfast room at 9am. The early birds had already eaten one course and returned for more, while the hard core , vodka infused stopouts missed breakfast entirely; it finished at 11am. The food was similar to the night before. A large range of meats , salads, eggs, sausages complimented the standard mueslI, yoghurt, bread and honey or jam that most Australians recognise as a full breakfast. It was all tempting but I held back, conscious of the garden party in a few hours that is lunch, and ... read more

Today I’ll drive you mad with dwarves. It’s another hot day, the clothes are in the wash, and breakfast is at Charlottes, a popular, hidden eatery across the main road, in the Jewish Quarter. I think you could forget gluten free here. There’s a mountain of breads, croissants, and sweet sticky buns piled up in cane baskets on the counter, and most breakfasts centre around these as a base. Sue and Anne were being met by Tim for a nail appointment- apparently most important- so Michael and I went for a wander through the squares and streets on the edge of town. I challenged Michael to a game of Spot The Dwarves which, while very inappropriate in most parts of the world, entails spotting the many small brass dwarf statues in the squares. They are usually ... read more