Life winds on in Carvoeiro and I find
myself distracted by the pleasures of a wonderfully new computer. These things are
supposed to enhance one's productivity, however it is incredibly easy to get caught up in
the entertainment side of my computer. I have decided to start the week on a productive
note and to steer clear of fun things like installing Linux (which I have already done),
searching for a Palm PDA (www.handspring.com)
or exercising my new found aerial skills in the most comprehensive F-16 flight simulator
ever built (Falcon 4) - not to mention watching TV through my new TV card on my PC.
I found myself on my way to Lagoa last week on the back of the pool man's bakkie (a South
African term for pick up truck). My bicycle had given up the ghost yet again and I was
taking it in to the Oficina (Portuguese for workshop). I began to wonder whether Fernando
Campos hadn't sold me a dud as I seem to be forever fixing this mode of transport. My mind
spends a lot of time dreaming about the Landrover I would love to buy (www.landrover.com). Having spent a
year and a half driving one of these incredible vehicles in the African bush, I have come
to think of it as the most inspiring and rugged transportation of all time. I goad myself
back into reality as the hot winds kick up the scent of warm pine needles and my bicycle
chatters over a dusty road between Roma and Lagoa. There will be time for a car next year
and right now I am revelling in the outdoors environment that my bicycle affords me. The
need for exercise is great and I put on a spurt of speed up the next hill. I have heard
that an enterprising expatriate is setting up mountain biking tours around Carvoeiro -
this is only unqualified rumour at this stage, but I am sure that it could be a great
experience as there are a wealth of quiet dusty tracks in the Algarve that take one
through the most peaceful rural scenery.
On the message board there is a lot of debate about the service levels in various
restaurants around town - it is amazing to see how little the staff seem to care about
their clientele. I experienced some of this myself while enjoying a wonderful pizza at
Cats on the Estrada do Farol yesterday. Although the food was fantastic, it certainly puts
a damper on the meal when you have an extremely curt waitress. I sometimes wonder why the
people working in restaurants (here in the Algarve) need to sacrifice their friendly ways
when dealing with clients. Donīt they understand that their guests are paying their
salary? I try to be as courteous and polite as possible to people at Roma Restaurant and
they are almost always polite and friendly in return - after all, the reason most people
go out to eat is to enjoy themselves. I hope that the Primavera Restaurant has been
reading the message board after all those scary experiences people are having there. It
occurs to me that I should print out some of the comments and take it around to the owners
to see if they are worried about all this negative publicity.
I wonder if they are...
Steen seems to be enjoying himself in Denmark and the webcam is
holding up. I had a quiet scare on Saturday night before leaving to go out for a drink. I
checked the site and the webcam and it seemed to be displaying a day-old image of the
square. Before I rushed into the LSD Bar, I popped into Steen's ice cream shop, Palacio do
Cone, in order to see if the cam was still working. All seemed well and I returned to my
beer at the LSD Bar where we met some weird Dutch carpenter who was staying in Benagil.
It is now Monday morning and I need to cycle into Lagoa to buy myself a few supplies, so I
can design web sites all afternoon. Until next week....
Nick - nick@carvoeiro.com
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