Feliz Natal

Feliz Natal (Happy Christmas) to one and all.

Haven't managed a pre christmas visit although Joan was meant to fly out on Monday the 17th December. I missed a turn on the motorway and finished up closer to Humberside airport than Robin Hood where I should have been. Any way she missed the flight !

Fortunatly it only cost 25 quid. If you are considering a visit to portugal check out Thomsonfly from Doncaster/Sheffield robin hood airport. They have some fabulous prices at the moment.



I have been taken to task over my constant referal to Santa Luzia as a village, there are apprantly now 1700 inhabitants in S L , quite a lot by portuguese standards, and in the 1980s it was granted town status. Further more in the 90s it was upgraded to "small city".



We are hoping to get to the small city early in the new year to distribute belated christmas presents.



Meanwhile Paulo, former waiter at Mouraou restaurant, is looking forward to his first christmas here in the UK.

He is gradually learning to take with him hat gloves and scarf when he ventures out because in his own words "Esta muito, muito frio la fora" (It is very,very cold outside)


























Muito Frio Paulo enjoys a warm atmosphere in The cross Green pub with John my No 1 roofer's labourer.

Hard Slog

Arrived back in UK last Thursday after 10 days of hard slog on the house roof.
Grossly underestimated the amount of sheer hard graft involved in removing the old roof and replacing with new.

A great debt of gratitude is owed to Don and John who flew out with me and worked like dogs to complete the project.

My Portuguese improved no end during the 10 days we worked as very few (actually none) of the people at the various builders yards, skip providers,DIY shops etc. that I had to deal with spoke English.

The first two days removing the old roof and hand carting it down the steps was backbreaking, thighbusting, hipjolting, kneckwrenching, ribcracking (getting the idea?)bodybruising toil.

The tons and tons of rubble hand carted from the roof.

We found a number of rotten timbers which had to be replaced and Don's skills as a joiner were well utilised both on this and the sheeting of the none too level structure in preparation for the laying of the new tiles. Throughout all stages of the job John, as general labourer, worked like a horse.

Despite his sixty years and slight build I would not have swapped him for a dozen of today's youth.

New timbers inserted to replace rotten woodwork in readiness for the sheeting.

Once the new timbers were in place corrugated sheeting was applied upon which the tiles were to rest.

The tiles themselves are laid on the corrugated sheet and held in place with sand and cement which means you have to lay a few rows and then wait until the mortar sets before you can work further up the roof without disturbing those already laid.

Tedious, arduous and time consuming work.

The weather was very kind to us for the first week but on the monday of the second week the heavens opened and with the roof only about 90% complete and with no ridge tiles in place we hastily paid our bill in the restaurant we had just eaten dinner in and dashed back through lashing rain, crashing thunder and blinding lightning. Our worst fears were thankfully totally unfounded and the yet incomplete roof held out against the worst the Portuguese skies could throw at it.

A couple more days during which we were frequently rained off saw the completion of the tile laying and the addittion of the ridge tiles. The verdict...... well it holds water and though we may not be the fastest roofers on the algarve we can probably claim to be among the roughest!!!

Pictures of the complete job will be available following a return visit to tidy up our fairly amateurish mortar daubings.

Roofing

When you are looking for a property in Portugal agents are often keen to show you ruins and derelict houses with tales of how cheap it is to hire builders and tradesmen to turn the pile into a palace. Beware........we have a problem with a leaky roof and our experience of builders in the Algarve is that the first assumption they make is that as a foreign property owner you are rolling in money, the second assumption is that you are dumb enough to part with considerably more of it than is necessary to get a job done.


Now anyone who knows a Yorkshireman will know we are reknowned for two things, we tend to be a little blunt and we will not spend a penny if a ha'penny will do!!


You can I am sure imagine the fits of apoplexy caused by quotes for a simple roof re tiling job which varied between 8 and 27 thousand pounds. (no typos, that is 8 and 27 thousand pounds)

So having scoured the web for suppliers and instructions on how to make a watertight roof I am returning to Portugal in the next week or so along with a couple of dour Yorkshire tradesmen and doing the job myself. Will keep posting on progress.

Flags

Every town or village in portugal no matter how small has its own flag this usually consists of symbols or pictures depicting something about the place against a quartered background.

The flag is flown over municipal buildings such as the Ferguesia, which I believe is a bit like our Town or Civic Hall, and there is usually a standard for carrying at ceremonial occassions.

Santa Luzia is no exception.

This is the flag which is flown on buildings. As Santa Luzia is essentialy a fishing village the flag depicts a fishing boat with a fishtrap which is self explanatory and an alcatruz. An alcatruz was origionaly a pot for holding wine or water usally made from terracotta. They are used to capture octopus now and tend to be generally made from black plastic. Interestingly the Alcatruz points back to the Moorish influence as they were first used as the pots on the irrigation water wheels the arabs famously introduced to Portugal (a spledid example of which can be seen in Tomar in central Portugal) and their very name is a derivative of the arabic 'Al-Kadush' meaning 'of irrigation'.

This is the standard which is carried on ceremonial occasions.

I have never seen either the flag or standard in use but you can be sure on future visits I will be keeping an eye open for them. I feel sure the standard will have been somwhere in the procession at the festival but if it was I am afraid it completely passed over me!!

Festival

I touched on the festival in an earlier posting. The annual festival commences on a Friday and ends on the following monday usually in the second week of August. It is a very busy time for the village with many visitors from Lisbon and the north of Portugal.

A staged area is constructed on the promenade and a show is staged every evening, this year the stage area was not fenced off and whilst you had to pay for a seat or table it was perfectly possible to go along and enjoy the entertainment from a standing position just outside the main audotorium area. The entertainment typically commences about 10-00pm and goes on till around 2-00am. lots of temporary bars are placed along the prom and to say alcohol is so freely and cheaply available it is amazing that drunkeness is almost unheard of at this event, quite a contrast to what would probably happen here in the UK. There were quite a few GNR (portuguese police) in evidence but their primary concern seemed to be ensuring that cylists did not ignore the traffic signs and laws of the road on the otherwise vehicle free streets!!

On the Sunday a solemn mass is held in the little local church after which the statues of christ and the various saints are paraded around the village accompanied by a marching band and what looked like the entire 1500 population plus a good number of excited tourists. The statue of santa Luzia the patron saint of both the village and the now severely depleted fishing fleet is carried cermoniously to the fishermans pier where the fishing boats await decked in ribbons and flowers to be blessed for the coming year. On the return to the church around 8-00pm a display of fireworks signals the end of the religious celebration and everyone gets back to the business of enjoying the festival.

The Highlights of our visit

Well i have been back in the UK now for just over a fortnight and have just been too busy with the pub and the vending machine business to post anything.

During the time we were in the village we managed to do a number of things we have been promising ourselves for some time now. The first and most unpleasant of those ws to visit the local town hall and pay our 'Council tax' (don't know what it is actually called in Portugal).

We caused a little confusion in the place by trying with our not too good Portuguse to organise a direct debit arrangement for what we thought must be the monthly payment of 139 Euros. That was ultimately resolved when the clerk managed with her not too good english to communicate that 139 euros was in fact the full years dues. Now that's the kind of tax I do not mind paying!!!

Managed a trip across the Rio Formosa on the water taxi to Terra Estrata and walked the kilometer or so down the fabulous beach to the Isle De Tavira, more about that another time.

During the second week we managed to visit Pego do Inferno, an inland attraction a twenty minute drive from Tavira. Though it was busy with bathers and swimmers the stunning natural beauty still left a lasting impression and I will surley attempt an out of season visit to see it in a more natural state.

Visitors enjoying the spectacular Pego Do Inferno

Enjoying the Festival

Arrived last tuesday to find the village a little quieter than last year but by weekend all that had changed, the place was packed.
A coulpe of new places have opened. The new restaurant on the promenade has opened and is a little upmarket, aiming for the tourist trade. It is called O Marinheiro and I have not eaten there yet but hope to give it a try before I return to England.
Just round the corner from Lorgo De Igreija (The church square) a little cafe bar called Arco Iris (Rainbow) has opened. Joan and I were among it,s very first customers and we had the honour of christening the ice creams.
The festival was free this year so I watched the Fado evening and very much enjoyed it. It was not quite what I expected as I thought Fado was slow and mournful but it was quite catchy really.
On Sunday an artist called Andre Sardet performed, it was very well attended as he is quite popular here in Portugal, he was very good ( A bit of a Portuguese Robbie Williams).
The festival ended with a spectacular and noisy firework display. I have to wonder what the reaction to a firework display at 2 in the morning would be in the UK.
As part of the festival on saturday afternoon there was supposed to be mud football on the river but it was delayed as the tide was still in. You would think in a village of fishermen someone would have checked the tide tables before printing the programme!! Still this is Portugal.
No one has setttled the dispute over the ferries yet so they are not running but the water taxis have stepped in to fill the gap in the market. It costs the same as the ferry did but runs far more frequently and is faster. Hope to go over to the Isle De Tavira later in the week as I have never been in all the years I have been visiting.

Preparing for our visit

Lots to do today.......late shopping, get rooms ready for guests make an emergency list for the relief and of course pack a little bag. We have most things we need over at the house so no need for hulking great suitcases, we could literally pick up passports and money and set of as we are.

A few essentials however will go in a bag, a catering pack of English bacon (well Danish really but you know what I mean), a copious supply of Tetley teabags, a tube of english mustard and the latest Harry Potter take up most of the space available.

Already pondering where to eat lunch tomorrow. Casa do Polvo and restaurant O Moroua are the 2 prime contenders. Casa do Polvo (House of octopus) is a small new place which has been open for less than 12 months but is already very well established, it is ideal for a light lunch serving mainly sea food with octopus making up much of the menu. The Gambas de casa (large prawns in sizzling garlic laced olive oil) are a particular favourite and along with a large tuna salad and a bottle of the crisp house white will set you back about 25 euro. situated on the promenade just across from the ferry landing it is a great place to sit and watch the world go by.

Moroua is a typical portuguese eating house where a freshly caught sea bass or bream will cost you no more than 10 euros ( and thats the dearest thing on the menu). Many locals use the place at lunch time as the Prato Do Dia provides a substantial meal at a price even the most poorly paid can afford. Just 7 euros sees your table festooned with appetiser, fresh portuguese bread and sardine paste and a bowl of tangy olives, a substantial helping of the dish of the day along with wine or beer, a home made dessert or piece of fresh fruit and to finish it all off a delicious pot of coffee. Order an extra beer or bottle of wine and thats included too........magic.

As I write this now I think Morauo just won my vote.

Festival

Have been busy preparing for my trip, getting the pub stocked up for the relief etc.

A phone call from Portugal on Friday confirms that the village Festival starts on the 10th of August and will last for 4 days. A fairground is constructed at one end of the village with dodgems, stalls and rides for the kids and a temporary arena is constructed at the other end of the village where a series of musical performances ranging from Portuguese Fado to pop bands are staged. The entire promenade is lined with market stalls and temporary food stalls. I don't know what will happen this year as the stall holders normally drive iron stakes to hold the canvasses into the road surface but I can't see the local authorities being too happy about driving metal stakes into the brand new surface of the promenade. We shall see.

The highlight of the festival for me is at 6pm on Sunday when following a service in the church the icons of all the saints are carried through the village accompanied by a marching band. The icon of Santa Luzia is carried to the pier where a fishing boat is moored festooned in flowers and other decorations and a blessing is performed presumably to ensure the safety and success of the fishing fleet throughout the coming year.

During the festival the village is extremely busy and it is almost impossible to eat in any of the restaurants without either a reservation or a very long wait. Many visitors arrive from Lisbon and other parts of Portugal and it will be interesting to see how many foreigners are about this year.

Santa Luzia

Well I'm going! Booked a flight this morning so i'll be walking through the front door next week.

They were working on the new promenade last time i visited (see above)so can't wait to see what the finished job looks like. The photo shows where the work was being done at the Pedras del Rei end of the village. It should have been completed at the end of June and apparently the other half at the Tavira end is to be done this winter.

There are mixed feelings about what is going on, some see it as welcome progress others as the begining of the end of the unique nature of the place.

i suppose the truth lies somewhere in between, due to the decline in fishing the local economy is pretty depressed and many of the local people get by on next to nothing so tourists will bring much needed busines and work to the village.

A few years ago you rarely met anyone in the village who was not portuguese but that is changing already though it is (hopefully) never going to be an Albufeira.

One local shop has actually started selling Santa Luzia T shirts and I do believe you can now buy beach accessories in a couple of places.

A lot of run down properties are being done up and I expect the new promenade and the removal of the sewage works from the end of the village will spawn a whole lot of new cafes, bars and restaurants along the new promenade.

A new place was set to open next door to Casa Polvo the last time I visited so I expect that to be now up and running.

The local fiesta is held at the beginning of August and the place is packed with visitors from Lisbon so I think the proprietors would want to benefit from this busy time.

I hope to get some photos of the crowds whilst i am there.

Longing to visit

The beautiful village of Santa Luzia is situated a mile or two outside the city of Tavira on the Portuguese algarve. I first visited Sta. Luzia about five years ago and have returned many times since, ultimatly buying a small house there in August of 2006.
I have been back to the house about 5 times since August last year the last visit being in early June. I am currently longing to return and feel the hot August sun but running a pub makes it a little difficult. So that's what this blog is to be about ...........Santa Luzia by proxy!!
I will be posting pictures etc. but not necessarily on a regular basis and if i ever get to go anytime soon i wll keep a diary and post that too.