coconut smell in the air

[Henriëtte]

why did you leave the Algarve again Elly?

[isabelanddavid]

So Blondelle, all three of you are one. Now I m going to look at Ellies Corner and will report back. In the meantime, does anyone have any experiences of the Algarve health service to share, or any tips on how to make the most of it? David

[Ellie]

Hi Henriette!
We spent about two and half years in Algarve-in early 90s-we had to return to UK as the recession of the 90s hit us badly and we could not pay our way>That,coupled with elderly parents bad health really left us no choice.Itwas all terribly sad as we had a wonderful life there and made so many great friends. We did actually try to start up again but we couldnt make it work so reluctantly had to close our carpentry business permenently.
But I have no regrets and would do it all again tomorrow-given the chance!
Hope you enjoy the stories David and that you get some positive results soon regarding healthservice! Elle.

[isabelanddavid]

Aye, the good old days. How do you feel about Algarve now?

[Blondelle]

Well, of course I still have great affection for Algarve. We made so many friends of all nationalities but most of all the local Portuguese who befriended us and helped us so much.
I was always so glad that we chose to live in Lagoa amongst Portuguese people and not on some ex-pat complex.Our aim was not just to runa business and hopefuly make a living but to intergrate and become part of the community which I believe we did quite successfully.
We only get back for holidays now --usually try to have a month each year--and we are always welcomed back by local shop keepers that we got to know so well and even if there is quite agap between visits --its as if weve never been away.
I know new highways have to be built but i get a bit upset at seeing some of the countryside disappear.Last year I didnt see "one" horse and cart--where as when we lived there they were quite a common sight.
penalties of progress!
Can you not find out anything in Lisbon regarding healthservice of Algarve?
Is language the problem?Ellie.

[isabelanddavid]

Ellie, I remember in the 70s & 80s seeing a lot of donkeys everywhere especially outside the markets in various towns - in the days before the stallholders drove white vans and the donkeys sought sanctuary. Also I remember once staying in a pension in the middle of Faro, we had a bedroom on the ground floor and we slept with the window half open. We woke early in the morning to find a gigantic hen (a galinha) standing on our bed looking down at us. You dont see so many animals now especially in town; just stray dogs.
David

[Guest]

Funniest story I read on news website today was about a UK pig farmer piping classical music into his piggery which he said his piggies liked. The locals complained but the council monitored the sound and fortunately ruled that the music wasnt a nuisance The piggery was there before the houses so why buy a house next door to a piggery if you can't stand smell and noise??

In the early nineties we lived in a cottage in a rural area and the local farmer decided to convert the storage sheds at the end of our garden into a piggery whilst we were in the process of selling it - fortunately we found the pigs very neighbourly and well behaved unlike the human variety in recent years
and our buyer was quite happy to have the pigs for company too

[Ellie]

Yes ,it was still like that in early 90s David---but there were an awful lot of "dead" dogs onthe roads too ! I did notice when we returned a year or so later that many of the strays had disappeared -we were told theyd been "rounded up"!
When we lived in lagoa -we had a "Chorus " of dogs every night! One would start and it would spread way across town til it sounded like a giant "kennels!" Wonder if its still the same?
I laughed at your "giant chicken" on the bed!Does anyone know-if the "goat herd" still drives his flock through Lagoa? Was a regular ocurrance in our time-usually at "rush hour"!
It was -as you say- a common sight to see chickens running around but didnt notice any last year.
Like Guests story of piggery! As I live i rural area Im used to animals around-we have sheep,cattle, ponies nearby anda "piggery" a little way away.
We also have badgers just up the lane-but sadly,saw a dead male laying by road side last week, poor creature. Thisis "hare" country too - beautiful creatures -but many are run down-- terrible driving here in lincolnshire!
My favourite creature here is the barn owl which flies through our garden and often rests on our shed.
We ought To have an "animalcorner" on here for stories!
Wonder how Gerry from Irelands Irish wolfhounds are coping with his 3 cats? Boa tarde, Ellie

[isabelanddavid]

bom dia
we hear
milkmans coming down the road right now
no float, no crates, no bottles, a cow
the milkman we see is the best around
with the truest freshest cow juice in town
this cow wears a bell on a strap on her neck
the dullest of clunking sounds; what next
behind green doors no curtains a twitch
so the milkman hit his bell with his stick
same stick he hits old girls rump as she goes
never complains; its a stick that she knows
bom dia
how
now
brown
cow
as the milk spurts out into his shining can
and the ladies get what they can when they can
the accounts are updated in the tattiest book
from the pocket of his blue dungarees
Kind words exchanged
Bom dia
we hear

[djprescott]

Ellie, we have had a property just outside CVO since 1999, and when we first came over, we found it quite difficult to sleep at night due to the 'chorus' of dog barking at night. It seems to have pretty much stopped now - not sure why. You also mentioned the goat herd. From our property we regularly used to see a goatsman driving his herd of goats to a field opposite and stop to shelter under the trees for a while. The field has since been built on, but occasionally we see him crossing a field in the distance. Great memories. Dave

[luna]

we found it quite difficult to sleep at night due to the 'chorus' of dog barking at night. It seems to have pretty much stopped now - not sure why. . Dave

...........mmmmmm did I hear someone telling me dogmeat is a portuguese specialty?...........kidding!

[Ellie]

To Isabelanddavid/
Enjoyed that poem/tale--is that your own work? and your own experience?
Dave (Prescott) /
Yes they are great memories and Im so pleased you still see the goatherd around. I would love to know if that one still drives his flock through Lagoa--I actually enjoyed the fact that he brought the traffic to a standstill--it was as if he was sayin"I was here before you and your cars!"
When we moved to countryside outside Porches --there was another herdsman brought his flock along track near us and the goats would often come into garden. I do really feel for these people and i hate to see the old traditions die off. I know folk need homes but we also need to protect Algarves beautiful countryside and rural ways and I fervently hope that all will not be sacrificed for the sake of the tourist industry!
Luna !
Lord what have you suggested!! No -I know youre only kidding -you are arent you???
Youve reminded me of something Ive always felt guilty about!
The man next to our Lagoa aprt. had 3 dogs on his rooftop -they made terrible din!One night it got too much for me!Unable to sleepI opened the window and shouted something--not very nice ----!!You know from that time -those dogs disappeared! Never saw or heard them again and Ive always wondered -what happened to them ?
Animal lover --truthfully!---Elle.

[isabelanddavid]

[quote="Ellie"]To Isabelanddavid/
Enjoyed that poem/tale--is that your own work? and your own experience?

my composition is based on a tale told by a dear friend whose childhood was spent in north Portugal in the 1960s.
david

[Blondelle]

Bet your friend had a very interesting childhood in the portugal of the 60s David. I expect there are some areas of the North that havent changed a great deal since that time.
I knew an elderly couple of Brits who had lived in Algarve since early 60s and it was so interesting to sit and listen to their tales of those times--I was told i would have seen plenty of donkeys and carts then and hardly any cars!
I have a book called "Algarve" --written in those times--- by David Swift --dont know if youve come across it -- amost interesting and informative book--particularly the chapters on Carvoeiro and Lagoa.
have you gained anymore info on the Algarves health service yet?
Ellie.

[Gerry Cullen]

Hi ellie,one of the cats just had 5 kittens,wolfhounds in state of depression,cat,s gone all strutty and our 12 year old springer (god love her) has gone all grandmotherly
boa noite,
gerry