Almost home

Flying over the WA/SA border.

Almost home. At last.

Did a bit more duty free before I went to the gate. Got some 100 proof black label vodka. Some little vodka sampler bottles (different flavours). Picked up some cigars too since they were about half the price of the ones in Australia, well the ones I've bought in the past anyway lol

Singapore Airlines really are the best. I've been awake for 5 minutes tapping on my phone and had one of their gorgeous girls thrust a glass of orange juice at me with a beautiful smile.

I'm glad I was able to get the top deck, back row, window seat again. Just helps to make the trip easier knowing I could pick the seats I wanted all the way :-)

Left my family in Singapore just as they were starting to get their things together to goto their gate. Jack asked why I wasn't going with them and asked if I was going to braga again lol silly bugger. Gave them all a hug and kiss and told them all I loved them, then we all headed our separate ways....

I'm glad I have someone meeting me the airport. Nothing like giving someone a great big hug after a long journey home :-)

And birds of a feather made a 10th season!! :-) they had first 2 episodes on the plane. I love those girls! :-) year stamp at the end was 2014 so it's really fresh off the press :-)

About 3 hours to Singapore

Got up from uncomfortable sleep not long ago. Lady with a tray of drinks and salty snacks greeted me soon after which was nice.

Early on in the night there was some sort of in flight emergency. I still don't know what it was, but there was an abrupt german call on the p.a. system followed by a blonde attendant running towards my seat then she leapt up onto the end seat of my row to reach up and rustle around the emergency equipment in the overhead compartment then rushed towards the sections past the curtain of the galley in front of me. Some other girls went looking for things with a torch in the other stash of emergency things opposite my seat row. No one seemed to be disturbed by this commotion apart from myself so I'm sure if the plane is still flying quietly, it must've been a passenger problem. The blonde who leapt up near my seat initially came back after a while and it looked a bit like a defibrillator pack that she was placing back up in the overhead so then I started wondering if there'd been a heart attack or something and if there was a dead body on the flight..... no idea....

Exotic Marigold Hotel was an excellent movie. Not as funny as I thought it was going to be but a great storyline nonetheless. Good strings entwined together at the start with all the characters and how they all came to encounter each other at the hotel, highs and lows throughout, with a really good ending proving pretty much that love and passion are the keys to life at any age. Well that's what I got from it anyway :-)

So I'll crack open the nibbles and watch something else now whilst I wait for the lights to come on when breakfast starts showing itself :-) it's daylight already outside but I only snuck a peek and shut the window shade again before anyone hissed at me like vampires in the morning sun lol

3 hours in

Don't ask me where I am. In the middle of international airspace lol

Dinner eventually came after having starters and a glass of wine whilst we waited for non eaten food to come from business class upstairs....

Worth the wait. Beautiful fish fillet with potato wedges and snow peas in a beautiful sauce. White sauce I think.

Now watching The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Wanted to watch it when it came out at the movies but me and trips to the movies just don't mix normally lol

I'm enjoying it so far.

Got my patches on.

The plane is very empty down the back so after all the effort I put in to getting my family seated within a row of each other has gone to waste as the rest have all moved to have rows to themselves to sleep easier with extra space lol

Mum watched Rio as per my advice and loved it :-)

I'm enjoying my trip home so far. Got seats organised that I'll enjoy sitting at. And time to myself again :-)

Nose patches on. Lights out and window shades drawn. Time to finish the movie and probably have a snooze :-)

Mid flight frankfurt to Singapore

About an hour in to the flight

Just had a very strong vodka orange drink. reminiscent of the vodka drink on the eurostar to Paris in 2004 with amber lol so I'm a bit half way to pissed already lol don't mind any spelling or grammar errors lol

Watching Rio on the in flight thingo. Damn I love birds. I wish I was one. It's one of the reasons I feel so comfy on a plane

dinner should be served shortly

I've added a few movies to the play list to watch during the flight.

Trying to sleep little on this flight so I sleep on the Singapore flight as I arrive early morning Saturday in Melbourne.

We saw grandmother today as we left. It was so good but so sad. She recognised dad. Then she called mum by name. She saw me and Alex and Jack and you could tell she knew who we were even if she didn't remember our names. You should've seen the great big smile on her face. Unbelievable. Brighter than the sun.

And then dad led the charge "nos vamos a porto hoje!" I.e. We're going to porto today

That was the story we fed to her so she wouldn't get upset as we expected she would probably forget at some point anyway.

What an amazing lady. It hurts to think that's possibly the last time I'll see her. I really don't know what dad would be like when she passes on into the next life. His dad passed away the year before I was born so I don't know what he was like back then.

And last night tia lola started to cry about us heading home. It was sweet but sad at the same time.

I have to save up to come back and do the trip I wanted to do this time around.

Even sadder still.

By the sounds of things, I probably don't have much local time left with my parents as it's almost a definite that they will sell up and move back there when dad retires.

Still don't know how to handle that just yet. I'm still processing it.....

Tia lola made a last ditch effort to convince me to move over to Portugal. She says she'll even pay for my ticket.

I just don't think I can do it as a full time thing. For travelling yes. Full time no. I've only been there 2 weeks and I'm crazy about coming home.....

Just got given a hot towel. Damn that feels good :-)

Guess dinner is on the way so sign off for now :-)

Pissed cub in the big bird lol.......

It's on the list....!

Things I have enjoyed:
Flying on a380's
Travelling on trains
Seeing relatives for the third time (on average)
The weather has been a good mix of hot and cold
Architecture of old buildings
The ruins of mum's old house
BREAD ohhhhh the bread is damn good
The cheapness of eating out is unbelievable
Travelling 215 km/h on a train
The views
Some of the food tasted wonderful
Cheap shopping
(Make that 220 km/h)
Most importantly, being able to attend my grandmother's 100th birthday celebrations
Montalegre
Being able to watch the eurovision song contest on live television (albeit a semi final)
The beauty of the bridges and train tunnels around the river at porto

Things I didn't enjoy:
People are licensed to drive but they mustn't have many road rules
Being completely alone only when I went to bed
Getting sick
Not packing enough hankies or antihistamines
Some of the food wasn't very nice
Other foods were nice once only but reappeared multiple times at future meals
Hot weather
The beds I have slept in
Almost every retail complex I visited had the same songs as what I work with
The drive from braga to Pisões
My cousin and goddaughter picked this time to visit Melbourne *forehead slap* lol

Things I miss about home:
My bed
A big shower
My chookies
My friends
My job
Asian foods
Cooking for myself and others
3aw
Footy talk
My truck
Having a sticky beak on mobile apps to see if there are any handsome fellas nearby lol
Frasier (last time I was in Portugal they showed "roz and the shnoz")
Talking to my neighbour
Gardening

Things I'll miss about Portugal:
Cousin Paula
BREAD!
good pork meat

Things I have learned:
I still don't travel well with others
I still don't live well with others
I still don't enjoy the company of children therefore am happy with knowing I'll never father any
I need a better paying job to save up and come back alone to explore
Portugal has little to no level crossings
I love to share photos on Facebook
My Portuguese is better than I expected
The birthday party wasn't nearly as scary as I thought
I do have a concept of self confidence in social situations once in a while
Lisbon has a garbo strike so it's a bit dirty on the streets at the moment

Dummy spits:
x1 quietly
x1 loudly

Lisbon 2. Eurovision. Food. Life.

I got to watch a bit of the eurovision semi final on live TV tonight, including the Portuguese entry. That was wonderful considering I've only ever watched it on delayed TV in Australia.

I really wanted to be at the final this year seeing as I'm only a short plane ride away from it, but it wasn't meant to be. Ah well. The future possibilities are endless to a certain extent.

Had lunch with alex's padrinhos today. Was great to see them. They are lovely and very much part of the family.

Went to a local shopping centre this afternoon for a wander and to see if any good music shops still existed in this part of the world but not much luck. No luck at all really lol

I'll have a good fossick around frankfurt as it's a decent sized airport and hopefully has a proper music shop.

I miss hmv......

So the holiday is pretty much at an end now. Train to braga in the early morning. Last look around the shops there before heading up to Pisões to pack up and get ready to fly home Thursday.

I miss home but really wanting to come back here to travel around on my own and see places myself without having to travel with others.... bit like living at home alone. Not having to be mindful of others or pets too much. Chickens aren't much problem cause someone can throw food to them and they look after themselves. Don't need walking etc

Bit like relationships too. Being single means you don't have to worry about someone else constantly whether it's out loud or subconsciously.....

Oh that's right! I got to have the BEST grilled pork cutlet for lunch. It was perfect. Tasty. Juicy. Not too dry. Not too oily. Perfect roast baby spuds. Damn it was the pick of the litter in terms of all the food I've had here. Absolutely loved it! :-)

Almost forgot to write about it lol

Lisbon.....

Lisbon tonight and tomorrow night. Staying at tio Fernando's place on the south side of tejo river.

The train to Lisbon from braga was quite good despite the 4 hour rough journey time. Travelling with Jack I thought it may have felt longer but I think both Alex and I were surprised at how quick the time seemed to pass......

Got to visit cousin carlos this afternoon and have dinner with his family. Wow he's got himself a big beautiful house with an inviting swimming pool out the back and a very comfy hammock :-)

Had a bit of a heart to heart chat like I did with his sister last week about the gay thing in relation to how our family might take things. It was another nice talk and it's reassuring to know that someone else I'm related to is ok about it.

He also has the same view as me in that a family is what you make of it and blood relations are only as close as you want them to be. So that was a nice thing to find out too...

On the way back to tio's house, carlos took us on a little tour along the river tejo to a beautiful viewing point of the city from the sexial ferry terminal. I love city lights at night from across a river. Reminded me so much of Melbourne.

Tomorrow having lunch with alex's godparents which will be lovely to see them. I still consider their daughter to be one of the most beautiful girls I have met, since I was a little kid. Not sure if she'll be there too just yet but we'll see.

Now that tomorrow is the last tourist day, I'm starting to look forward to getting home more. Checked the weather forecast and it's not quite as cold as I'd like but it's certainly colder than here so that's a good start! The short burst of extra summer is nice but I'm over it now and can't wait for a nice cold winter in my big bed with flannelette sheets and a roaring fire in the lounge room :-)