January the 5th, 2015
Today I am moving to my Paradise, but it is hard to say goodbye to Pasha, the dog. I get attached to the animals, wherever I am………..
The owner of the house in Gorgoes brings me to the airport in Faro, where I will collect my rental car at 11.00 a.m. We make a stop at the bank, as I need 600 euro cash to pay for the rent of the house and other things. After waiting 20 min. in line, the bank employee tells me that they don’t have so much cash!!! I have to take 200 euro out of the machine and then try it again at another machine in another place…….weird……..
I have to collect my rental car at P 4, an assigned parking place for rental cars with a small office, where different local rental agencies help their customers with the paperwork. The bigger car rental companies are situated in the airport itself. For the last weeks I have been comparing rental companies price wise and the local Portuguese agencies were way cheaper. I rented a small car for around 165 euro for the whole month, plus around 10 euro for the highway transponder and another 30 euro for the green card, if you want to go to Spain also.
I get a Mitshubishi Gold and after transferring the luggage and saying goodbye to my “landlord”, I am on my way to Sau Bras de Aportal for a visit to the Vodophone store and some shopping, as In Cacela Velha are no stores. In the Vodophone store I buy a small cell phone for 20 euro with some calling time, that way I can stay in touch with a few people and for emergencies. I also try to get a “hotspot” for my laptop, as I will not have internet in the rental place in Cacela Velha. The nice lady in the store tries to get in working, but my Laptop Vista is getting old and tired and doesn’t like the “hot spot”. First problem!
At the Lidl store I can get another 200 euro out of the machine and after trying it again, I get another 200 euro! At least I have money now! My car is making a clicking sound when going slow and with all the roundabouts it drives me nuts……..I better call the office (with my new phone) and ask for another car.
I have to wait until 5.00 p.m. before I can enter my new home, so I drive to Faro to do some investigation regarding my computer problems and finally head out to Vila Nova de Cacela, to have a late lunch and a big coffee. Then I drive to the other side of the main street, where the entrance is for Cacela Velha. At this time a day, still tourists are coming to see the sunset over the Laguna, which is amazing. I feel priviliged that I can enjoy the view for a whole month! Later, I have supper in the one and only restaurant there is and although it is far more expensive than the average restaurant in Portugal, the food is excellent and the ambiance also. I meet some people from Belgium and we have a nice chat. They rented for two nights the other house of my landlady. They paid 50 euro a night and I pay 400 euro a month! They didn’t like that…….
It has been a long day and in the next coming days I will have to find a solution for my computer problems and try to change my car.
