APAPS 9: The Thirst of August or Aristotle Ascendant

For this week´s title, we are indebted to the wit of our in-house Aristotle, because he  spotted the mistake in how APAPS 9 was first advertised, as follows:-

“Blog and Early Morning Walk 3st August

“This will be the final APAPS walk of the summer off-season and will be a totally boring repetition of the type of walk we did on 13th July  starting from the Grupo Desportivo Encherim near Silves. You will, I am sure, remember that this is to the east of Silves on the Messines road, about 300 metres past the eastern Galp Filling Station in Silves. You can park on the left in front of the GDE or, as Senhora Bonte prefers, on the right by the Cafe Prata opposite which might be open if you need a coffee. If it´s not open, there are other cafes in the streets just behind the GDE which do open early. If you need a map, please let me know. Start time will be 7 am which might put some WAGS off but the sun rises at 7.04 am so they needn´t be too alarmed. This is after all a breakfast, not a brunch, group and some folks are busy in the mid-morning . We aim to breakfast at 9.30 am. By popular demand this will again be at  Café Retiro dos Pescadores Pedreiras which is 3.5km eastwards in the Messines direction. Once there, the thing to look out for is whether or not Yves manages to get served with his breakfast before anyone else does.

The walk itself will be uphill during the first half, some moderately steep, and then back downhill. On tracks, distance about 7.5 km and total climb about 380 metres.

Please let me know if you intend to walk. Those who want only to breakfast, ditto.”

No sooner had the publicity gone out that I noticed a typo and, so as to forestall a sarcastic put-down from the Emeritus Chief Blogger, I hastened to send out a correction to the effect that the date planned for the walk was 31st August.

Quick as a flash Aristotle came back with

"Thank you for the update ; 31st has been noted… Mind you, the ‘thirst’ had a certain ring to it: mine’s a Sagres!”

His eponymous and eminent predecessor would have approved, as would Omar Khayyam.

It was rather gloomy first thing that morning at the GDE

but, despite the early hour, Paul and Myriam were there and had coffee´d up at Café Prato before anyone else had arrived. The Gaiety Ladies then livened things up with a much improved synchronised leg display and we were off.

The Seven Swinging Starters, and Support Staff

The sun rose as we made our way up the first of many inclines and several paused to drink in the sight. Thirsty work, eh Arisotle?

 

The coffee rush seemed to have gone to Paul´s head because initially he could be heard muttering half-remembered verses from Edward Fitzgerald´s Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam:

Awake! for Morning in the Bowl of Night Has flung the Stone that puts the Stars to flight

And Lo! the Hunter of the East has caught The Sultan´s Tower in a Noose of Light.

and something about “a Tavern Door”  but soon the need for him simply to concentrate on his breathing  as he tackled the slopes put a stop to such reveries. Which reminds me that the Track and the Statistics are customary at this juncture.

Total distance: 7.53 kms. Total time: 2 h.22 m. Moving time: 1 h 57 m.

Average Moving Speed: 3.8 kph. Total Clmb: 357 metres

Maximum slope: 40 degrees.

Pretty much as it had said on the tin. Certainly the slopes kept on coming.

A steep downhill

followed by a steep uphill

This was the 40 degree slope, 45 metres of it, but the WAGS were in good nick and made it without too much belly-aching.

Mercifully, things eased off a bit up at the top where the weather was pleasantly cool and the views were rewarding.

After slightly more than 1 hour´s effort, we arrived at a high point where we had been on one or two earlier walks and this was where we were able to turn for home. Thankfully most of the slopes were now downwards.

Near the bottom, with Janet just discernible at the back still on the hill.

No, she wasn´t slowing down. It was just that she had been trying to remember an old Music Hall number – something about a mother warning her daughter not to look under the bed at night in case there might be a man there.  Does anyone know the words? But whatever they  are, clearly the highly serious cultural overtone of the previous week´s Silves excursion, and also of our friend Fitzgerald earlier this morning, were now being eroded – but much worse was to come! Antje was striding vigorously out in front, glad to be free of the confines of her Saga cruise liner, when she came across an abandoned … thing….. ( I hesitate to put a name to it in case I get it wrong - no doubt, some undercover expert will enlighten me.)… suspended from a convenient bush.

 and with a few deft twirls of her stick, she revealed the “thing” in all its glory.

A case of the unmentionables                   (photo copyright Myriam)

Imaginations went into overdrive. A romantic tryst gone wrong? A catastrophic failure of elastic at a critical juncture on the Via Algarveana?

But grey clouds, metaphorically speaking , were looming. During the latter part of the walk, Maria had been making a lot of phone calls but eventually she had to warn the Leader that she had been trying to contact Fernanda, our hostess at Retiro dos Pescadores,  to make some special prior arrangement on behalf of Aristotle but that she hadn´t been able to get any answer. She was now very worried that the restaurant might have closed for some reason and that there wouldn´t be any breakfast. “Don´t panic” we agreed “we´ll come up with a Plan B when we get there.”

In the event, there was no problem; the restaurant was open, we were expected; it was simply that Fernanda´s phone was on the blink. But crucially the mystery of how it had been that Yves always got served his breakfast first had been revealed; he had been phoning in his order in advance! These Greek wise guys, I ask you! So Rose, Antje and the Leader hatched a cunning plan. Just before his priority meal came out of the kitchen, we persuaded him to go outside to photograph a traditional Portuguese rural custom and then we concealed his meal. and when he came back in he  waited… and waited.

“Why are we waiting?”

The next plate to come out was Myriam´s, so she got to eat first.

But all was well that ended well. Aristotle eventually found his plates, Maria did  her usual sterling work helping in the kitchen and behind the bar (thanks, Maria), and the food as always was terrific and good value (thanks, Fernanda).

Previously when we were at Retiro there had been a chocolate crisis. If you remember from Wednesday 13th July – the day that Yves lost his straw hat – this archive shot will remind you -

“What do you mean “We don´t have Belgian chocolates” ?”

but this time, Ingrid had smuggled in her very own chocolates all the way from Brussels which were greatly enjoyed by all (thanks, Ingrid)

Myriam then did her customary paparrazza thing through the window

and got the whole group in one, despite Antje nearly falling backwards off her chair..

and That´s All, Folks: summer breakfasts over for another year.

I think you will agree that we have done the hilly area behind Silves to death ; here is a composite chart of 5 of the walks we´ve done there recently.

Green line: APAPS 2 -  29th June

White line:   APAPS 4 - 13th July

Red line:      APAPS 7 – 10th August

Yellow line:   APAPS 8 – 17th August

Blue line:     APAPS 9  - 3st August

 

We will leave the last words to Omar Khayyam in his Persian dreamland:

How long, how long, in infinite Pursuit Of This and That endeavour and dispute?

Better be merry with the fruitful Grape Than sadden after none, or better, Fruit.

Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough, a Flask of Wine, A Book of Verse - and Thou

Beside me singing in the Wilderness – And Wilderness is Paradise enow.

And, as the Cock crew, those who stood before The Tavern shouted – “Open then the Door.

You know how little while we have to stay, And, once departed, may return no more.

Ah, fill the Cup: – what boots it repeat How Time is slipping underneath our Feet:

Unborn Tomorrow, and dead Yesterday, Why fret about them if Today be sweet?

Omar clearly had quite a thirst.

Statistical Postscript.

Finally for those of you who like this sort of thing, here is a numerical summary of this summer´s breakfast excursions.

And as a final finally, a Post-Post-Script courtesy the Emeritus Chief Blogger to cheer you up:-