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thingsThisWeek #105
Azores. Busy week. Actually, slightly longer than a week, but I wanted to keep everything Azores on this one. We had an incredible time, thanks to our lovely friend Rui, and the cousins who were vacationing there as well. Next visit will surely happen sooner, rather than later.
Note: minimal editing on this thingsThisWeek, so feel free to let me know if something looks odd. Thanks.
✈️ Still counting, the flights on this trip were tinyMovieStar’s 13th and 14th. The kid gets around. This time, sadly, we flew Ryanair. Money, profit, chaos. It’s a mess, one we avoid whenever we can. We couldn’t escape it this time, as the prices on a normal, comfortable, professional company were three times what these tickets cost. Worth it? Still not sure.
Read on for more on this.
🍍 Anyway, we got to São Miguel. Rui was waiting for us at the airport. The bags took over an hour to be delivered (yay, Ryanair, you really have your shit together), and we were very late for a very tasty dinner. Thankfully our friend is a respected member of Azorean society, and our reservation was still valid, more than an hour later.
He then handed us the key to his house, and moved to his parents’s for a week. He’s the best. We can’t thank him enough.
Day One
Picked up a bottle of water in the morning and a bottle of water in the afternoon from a mini mart next to our place. The girl is already calling me neighbor, which I love. The accent is a dead giveaway that I’m not a neighbor.
Awesome first day. Beach. Forbidden beach. Natural pools. Dinner with cousins. Ice cream. Soft serve, from a very old machine. The spot (Tomé) is an institution on the island. Huge lines every single day.
(These trips to Tomé would turn out to be a routine, but we didn’t know it yet. Soft serve has a tradition over here, and we did have a lot of those delicious treats).
Day Two
Day spent at oceanic pools, and proper ocean. Sunday, so very busy. We were alone for half the day, then Rui met us and we went to Caloura, one of our favorite spots on the island. Caloura is an harbour, a very small one. At the end of the cement pier there’s a pool for kids, that gets water from the ocean, and a diving spot for all ages, provided you can swim.
Day Three
He have car. Today was the day when we finally had our car available. Not complaining, obviously, as we’ve been driven around the island by the incredible Rui, but this works out better for everyone. This one is his mother’s spare car, and has been used by a few visiting photographers. He’s just that kind of person.
We drove to meet our cousins at a beach close by, then had lunch at a very local, very busy, spot. They are famous for their chicken wings, and for good reason. They were awesome.
On our way to the car, we were presented with a fishermen’s brawl. A couple of guys drove a car to a cafe, jumped out, and started yelling at the guys there. One carrying a huge knife, the other a big stick. Despite all the noise, none seemed willing to use the tools, and the ones being yelled yet knew it. Cafe doors were closed, just in case, but nothing really came of it. Just a few hits of the stick on tables, but soon it was all over, and they drove away. It was definitely fun to watch.
Afternoon beach amazing, and then we drove to the hot springs for corn, and to the oldest European tea plantation for some tea, and a delicious IPA. Locally made.
There are a few local products that I love, and will try to find in Lisbon.
When we thought we’d just go back home, tinyMovieStar said she wanted to have dinner with her tiny cousins (she rode with them all day, not with us), so we did.
Day Four
Starting very late. Girls up at 11AM. Drove to the pizza place, and back with lunch. movieStar found a way to have a remote meeting in the middle of our holiday. Nice.
Went to Caloura with tinyMovieStar. The tide was super high, with every wave crashing over the pool. I held the little one in my arms, we were thrown this way and that way, and then she dove and swam before the next wave hit. It was SO much fun. We managed to spend half an hour there, and then a huge wave came and ran over the pier, our stuff was wet, and everyone had to go. No place to set a towel down. Lockers on the cafe next door would be great. Nothing really happens, of course, but one does have to leave stuff unattended while swimming, and it would be useful to have a place where one could just stuff the backpack with the phone, money, car keys,…
It was probably my best time at Caloura ever.
We picked up movieStar, and moved to a different beach, on the north coast. A busy one, with big waves to play in. Stayed for a while, then had a huge steak at Associação, followed by another ice-cream at Tomé, in the city. tinyMovieStar fell asleep on the way over, and missed the ice-cream.
Day Five
Another late start, it was noon when the girls woke up. Since tinyMovieStar missed her ice-cream yesterday afternoon , we went out last night, to make things right. She couldn’t, obviously, fall asleep right after, we had to wait for the sugar rush to go down. Fell asleep pretty late, again.
Yay for responsible parenting!
Caloura, huge waves. Huge ones. This time phone went in.
I needed translation, again. The accent is really thick in some parts of the island.
We the dropped the little one at their cousins, and went to The Gin Library with Rui. He had set up an appointment with the owner, and what fun it was!
Day Six
We finally made it to the western part of the island, to Lagoa das Sete Cidades, Mosteiros, and around there. It is one of our favorite parts of the island, one we were wanting to go since getting here.
Nice, simple, lunch, then back to Ponta Delgada, picking up the cousins, and amazing beach afternoon at Pópulo. Dinner at Cais 20. Super day.
Day Seven
Ferraria in the early morning (yes, everyone was up earlier today)! That’s a hot spring, by the sea. In the sea. Like a tidal pool, but on top of a hot spring. Super hot water (think 50 degrees), and it’s cooled down by the crashing waves. It’s one of the coolest places on the island.
We then moved to a nice Italian restaurant for lunch. tinyMovieStar fell asleep right after that, so we just drove around the island, two thirds of it. Rabo de Peixe included, for a quick photo of some Vhils. Something was about to go down, sadly, and we were ushered out of there. It can get tricky, fast.
When she finally woke up, as we were close to the big beach, we just went. Santa Bárbara again.
Time for dinner, at the pirate’s cove: Forte Terrace. Nice place, very poor service. They are severely understaffed.
Day Eight
A lot of rain throughout the night, waking up often (and early), and then…
We met the cousins at their favorite beach again. They always go to the same one. It’s odd, since there are so many good ones around, and we love driving around finding new ones. They are always at the same one, for two hours, before heading home and spending the afternoon there, while we’re enjoying the island. To each their own, of course, but can’t help but think their kids would love to go out more. Cais 20 for lunch (we LOVE this place). Another couple of hours at the beach, and a quick drive home for a shower and change of clothes. We had a party (a religious procession) to attend, and dinner while at it. It was fun, and I got a couple of photos out of it.
Our old ladies photo contest is still going. It’s quite easy, in fact, and there are a lot of sweet ones around.
Day Nine
We’re leaving. Sadly. We had a blast here. We are very thankful to Rui, who provided housing, means of transportation, guidance, and company. He’s a huge friend, but never expected this level of generosity. It was incredible.
Morning at Populo beach, with cousins. We then asked tinyMovieStar where she wanted to have the last lunch on the island, and she immediately said “Cais 20”. We went.
Quick drive home, finished packing, and moved to the capital city. Dropped the little one at our cousins place, and picked up some supplies for later. Our flight gets home at midnight, and we have no food at home.
Rui, always the gentleman, drove us to the airport, and we said our goodbyes.
The flight over was nicer, because small airports are always better.
We arrived, and took a cab. A regular, old fashioned, cab. The platforms were going nuts with so many people at the airport, surge pricing was skyrocketing, and the drivers kept refusing our ride. We waited three minutes, before heading to the taxi line, and getting in immediately. Cheaper too.
We’re home.
📚 Still reading (managed a few dozen pages) The Way of the Knife, by Mark Mazzetti. Still liking it.
📰 Using ReadKit for a while, replacing FieryFeeds. Why? Why not? Miss that one FieryFeed feature (swipe to mark all read) on the feed list, but feels fresh. I remembered I had purchased Premium for life on this one.
📷 Also trying, and enjoying, the new Process Zero with Halide. Not for all the photos, but when I have time to think. It’s cool.
📡 G-Shock automatic time sync on the islands, these ones and the ones that will follow, accomplished with Clock Wave. It works as promised. We are VERY far from the areas that are covered by the transmitters.
✈️ Ryanair is shit. You know it, I know it, everyone knows it. We couldn’t afford this trip on a regular flight, not after Menorca, and just before a month and a half on the very basic, and yet expensive, Principe. We flew Ryanair.
Lisbon has two terminals. One for regular people, a modern terminal, with nice folks working there, plenty of shops and food. It’s lovely. And then there’s Terminal 2, for those too cheap to pay for a decent flight. Only the low cost airlines use it. It’s like a bus station in the dirtiest city of a developing country. Thousands of smelly passengers thrown into a warehouse. The staff is made up of people who failed their prison guard exam, because they were just too happy being too nasty.
You cannot have a regular carry on with Ryanair, as they do not allow them. Just a small volume. You can, of course, pay for the privilege. I can live for a week off a small backpack, it’s very doable when you’re spending your days at the beach, and places where beach attire is allowed. movieStar will do that as well, easily. She has a talent. But the little one cannot. She needs a bit more stuff. We had a checked bag.
Security procedures are messy. Way too many people for two entries into the screening area. Not enough security personnel over there as well, no way to make this quick.
We somehow managed to board our plane, and were immediately stuck on the tarmac. Other, more important planes, had to leave on time. They pay for that, I’m sure. Ryanair will not. We waited.
We flew in, trying not to make eye contact with the other passengers, as it looks like they’ll ask for something the moment they lock eyes with you. Maybe some money, or help with their own kids, maybe a kidney. You never know.
Eye contact with the crew is also not advised, as they seem to always have some sort of item for sale in their hands: the usual food & beverages, but they will try to push perfume, scratch tickets, and other stuff. It’s awful.
The airport in Ponta Delgada is small, the kind where you walk from the plane to the terminal. We could even carry our own bag, if they would just give the damn thing to us when we arrive. They do not, of course. That would be illegal, but also too practical for us.
It took us three minutes to get to the luggage belt, and the screen told us the bags with be with us in 15 minutes. Fair. They did not. They took over an hour. With only two planes at the airport.
The second one, from our lovely national airline, arrived 50 minutes after our own, with normal looking people flooding the terminal, and their bags were offloaded in 10 minutes, while we still waited for ours! We were told that Ryanair is the only company using a different baggage handling service, and delays are usual. They are just too cheap to pay for normal service. Not premium service, mind you, normal one. The one everyone else uses.
I had never, in my five decades of flying, seen people clapping when the bags finally showed up!
thingsThisWeek #104
Home, In-Laws, Cascais, and we’re about to leave for the Azores. That’s where we’ve been this week. We’ve been in packing/unpacking hell for a while now.
😌 We spent a couple of days at the in-laws before moving to the Azores, our next stop in Crazy Summer 2024. Picked up a cousin on the way over. She’s a teacher in Finland, and tinyMovieStar loves her a bit more for that, as her mother told her she lives in the land of Frozen. Of course a trip to Lapland is already in the works, this little girl needs to see snow, doesn’t she?
movieStar is working from home, while the rest of us try to keep the little one entertained. We spent our days doing mostly nothing else, while movieStar had meetings, and handled her usual office routine.
We did have a birthday party late Tuesday, hair appointments early Wednesday, pool day on Thursday, just before flying to the Azores tomorrow. Other than that, not much to report.
We drove a lot this week.
🦚 It had been a while since we’ve heard the peacocks in the morning, but we slept at home (one night only) for the first time in weeks. We’re not used to the noises of the city by now. Trash collection, tourists and their trolleys, constant construction, you name it. It’s a mess.
👩🏻🏫 Finally managed to gather all the paperwork needed for TinyMovieStar’s enrolment. Very very late. But it’s done.
📚 I realized I took the Kobo with me to Spain and Chaves, and I didn’t even open it once. I’ll keep putting it in the backpack, maybe this time it’ll be different. I also have an real book, a physical one, with me, but that’s even harder to get to. In the meantime, I added another book to the device, hoping I can get around to it someday: The Way of The Knife, by Mark Mazzetti. I started already, but I’m pretty sure I won’t finish it anytime soon.
🍿 Inside Out 2, not a perfect movie for a 4 year old and quite frankly we did not enjoy it that much as well. We had pizza afterwards, and that was fun. Killer Elite, very bad. Also Road House, but I had to fast forward some of the fighting scenes as they were so long and, although really well choreographed, quite boring. Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant. Nicer.
I will pirate Perfect Days when we’re back from the Azores. I tried to find a place to stream it, or rent it. I’m paying for HBO, Netflix, Apple TV+, Disney, Amazon, and Filmin. And none of them has found a way to make it available here? I give up.
🎤 ner3y shared a post about Voicenotes on Mastodon, and I caved in. Quickly. I’m now a Believer. It was one of those FOMO things, the Lifetime tier seemed like a no-brainer.
I talk, it records, transcribes, and can do a lot of stuff with it. Like a private LLM, with my words as input. Neat.
Thinking that I might also use the app to record the sound of my daughter. Now that I have a place where I can keep all the sound notes, I can definitely use this, even if the translation or transcription is not perfect. It will be a way to have her voice safe and ready to listen.
🖼️ Finally settled on a wallpaper that I think I’ll keep around for a while. Found it on Mastodon, looked for a bigger version on Threads, and I’m sharing it here for others to enjoy. No idea who authored this one, sorry.
⚙️ Just in time for the screenshots, I joined the beta of Shareshot, and then, two days later, subscribed for a year. I’ve been using the wonderful Shortcut Apple Frames, by Viticci, for the longest time, but felt it was time for a change. I’m still keeping it around, the Shortcut, for those multiple shot combos, as I don’t think this app handles those yet. Messaged the developer, and it’s coming. No ETA, but it will come.
🔋 After some issues with the delivery (gotta love CTT), the package finally made it to my hands. The Sharge Retro 67 looks really cool, and it works like a charm.
🌐 Being in town for a little while, with no real work to do, means I could get back to the other blogs I’m keeping: I’m updating sticker spotter, 🐼 Panda Pixels, and dreaming of the time when Boo! will finally get a new post! Looking forward to Azores stickers (is that even a thing?) after the good catch in Spain. Have to save some, as there are no stickers in Principe, and we’ll be there for a while.
📺 Paolo fromTOKYO. I still love his videos, and we’ve been watching for years now. Even when the subject is not that interesting to me, I just enjoy the way he talks about stuff and love seeing Tokyo from his point of view. People walking in Tokyo will never get old for me. The Day in the Life series is my favorite.
📱 So far, no iOS 18 beta for me. I really want to try it, but I’m very scared it will break the banking apps, just as we’re moving out of the country for a while, and I’ll have no other way to interact with my accounts.
📚 Books Are Awesome
📚 Let’s add another one to the pile.
thingsThisWeek #102
This update is coming from the lovely island of Menorca. Maybe I should have done it in Spanish! Anyway, we had some stuff to do before getting here…
🩸 More blood tests for movieStar (she’s ok).
💈 A visit to the barber on Tuesday (no issues here).
🦷 A visit to the dentist on Tuesday (I’m ok).
📦 Pick up a new G-Shock (loving it).
🌡️ tinyMovieStar’s temperature rising right before we have to get on a plane. Classic tinyMovieStar.
She was fine the next morning, coming down from a quite high fever, and even went to school. She had to pick up her stuff, say “thank you” to her amazing teachers and staff, and goodbye to everyone. She’ll see them again in October only. That’s 80 days! She’ll miss the first month and a half of school, for a very valid reason: she’s traveling!
💻 More photo editing. All done, thankfully. I’ll shoot the music festival in August, but I’ll probably have no work until October. Freelancing sucks, and a bit more when people/clients have no idea when you’re in town. They stop calling. Understandably.
🇪🇸 It was time to fly to Menorca, and begin our week of relaxation.
That would be flight #11 for our 4 year old.
Day One
First trip with one single watch, the one I’m wearing. It feels odd to do this, of course. Not having another one in the backpack is just strange. But, since the GW-5000U (must find a nickname for this one) had just arrived, and needed to fully charge, what was I to do?
movieStar also decided to travel light, and forgot her phone at home. She only noticed at the airport, too late to go back. Travel days are, of course, already pretty stressful, and we had to spend the time before boarding trying to sort this one out. Nice.
The lady who helps us with cleaning up (and has a key) also does that for a few of our family members, and she was at a cousin’s place. In another city. She had the key with her. She gave him the key. He handed the key to his wife. She drove to the city (about an hour), and left the key with her sister. Another friend was flying to the island to meet us, and she’s picked up the key, drove to our place, and retrieved the phone!
Anyway, we got on the plane, and found ourselves in a Spanish island one and a half hours later. A taxi ride away from our final destination.
As soon as we found our apartment, we went to the supermarket. tinyMovieStar vanished. She was unaccounted for for about three minutes, but I think I aged a bit during those minutes. Found her quite far from the supermarket, closer to the apartment. I was pale, and pissed.
Swimming pool, and we were done. Time to wrap up day one.
Day Two
First full day on the island.
Our friends were flying in today, and picking up the car we’ll use to drive around the island. Sadly, their flight was with easyjet, and there’s nothing easy about that. Flight delayed, and then cancelled. With the passengers already sitting in the plane. Maybe tomorrow. Classy.
In the meantime we went to a couple of beaches close by, and spent an incredible amount of time at the pool.
tinyMovieStar got a bit of fever, again. I rushed (walking as fast as the heat would allow) to the nearest pharmacy. She bounced back pretty quickly, with medicine and a lot of water.
No 📚, no 🎵, no 📺, no 🍿.
📚 Brought Kobo, and one physical book, along. Not a single word was read.
📚 Not available as ebook, paper it is.
📚 Another full day, but managed to get back home in time to join the girls at the Book Fair. We got a book each, and will be back next week. Dinner with a friend, and now taking care of things for yet another early morning tomorrow.
📚 Since I was already reading Burma Chronicles, by Guy Delisle, I thought I might start reading Burma Sahib, by Paul Theroux, at the same time. So I am.
📚 tinyMovieStar picked up a random book from the living room, and it was a really nice surprise: I remembered I loved reading Bill Bryson. Loading those up on the Kobo next.