where i've been, what i've done; a month in review

It is time, once again, to say goodbye to another of my temporary dwelling places, time to move on and continue my way slowly home. For the past month we've been staying with Tim and Alexandra at their lovely home and bed and breakfast called Quinta Azul. It is a small and quaint place with only a few rooms to rent, all unique and charming in their own way. Their guests consist mainly of young artists and foreigners seeking a rural beach holiday, away from the buzz of the city. 

Here is one of the warm dining rooms, my favorite, with a view of the sun setting over the mountain. Here we have our elaborate meals that we all contribute to the planning and making of. Here we stay up late into the nights watching the giant toads hop by and the slithering snakes make their way across the white rocks, all while enjoying the tasty varieties of Portuguese red wines.  

The neighborhood is vineyards and large farms. There are some horses, donkeys, cows, goats, and lots of family dogs! As we walk or drive or bike along the winding dirt roads we notice that for every inhabited home there is a forgotten dwelling nearby with the roof caving in and the stone walls succumbing to gravities will. So picturesque! 

Just down the hill from us is and old windmill, a cylindrical structure a few stories high, in rather good shape compared to some of the ancient structures we see. Inside there are still parts of the mechanism that was turned by the force of the wind. Perhaps a flour mill? We don't know, but we used our sleuthing abilities to come to that as the best option.

When I'm working it looks a lot like this:

And when I'm not working It looks a lot like this:

And how could I forget that special (naughty) friend, dear Pablo! Who has an equal (new found) love for the hammock as I do:

So now it's time to say goodbye to Portugal, to the Algarve, to Taca Quinta.... to Tim, Alexandra, and Pablo. Time to move on again and this time for a trip down memory lane to my old home in Germany! Then to my real bonafide home in the Pacific Northwest. 

Love.