......otherwise people will think that we have faded away.
And so that was how the 2025 APAPS season began, slowly. Numbers were low. Some were away on holiday and some laid low by new-variant Covid. Four of us met at Poço Frito´s ever-popular Café Martins. Rod had said not to wait for him so we didn´t.
Then just after the Starter photo, he turned up, so he got shot, especially.
We took our usual route up through the old village and past the new builds. Construction works appears to have come to a halt for the summer but one of the more recent efforts has at least had a door and a window installed.
and a hitherto vacant plot now boasted a sign for an unfamiliar house; we shall have to keep an eye on how it pans out, titled or not (if that is what não se encontra titulada means.)
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We then moved on into the orange groves by a new route, eventually finding ourselves among some old recently cropped cork oaks.
but also finding ourselves fenced, in all round. But to the Leader´s relief there was a sort of movable gate in the wire fence
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| The gate through which we manged to escape. Nothing much too alarming happened after that. There were some familiar horses...   Some venerable fallen oaks ....  Some shade... |
Some rest.....
and then some more rest....
It was all getting a bit much at this stage.
I don´t recall what the banter had been up till that point - I had been leading from the front for once and hadn´t heard the general chat going on behind me, but now it seemed to be all about fossas, what causes them to malfunction, and how and when to get them cleaned. All very cheerful stuff!
And so it was that, without much of a spring in my step, we made it back to Café Martins in time for our 9.30 am breakfast.
The Track and The Statistics
Here the five walkers were joined by Paul and Yves. The banter at breakfast was no more exhilarating than the recent walk talk had been. Paul was not feeling great internally; Maria had spent the past few days on a sick bed; Yves was suffering from severe structural damage after attempting to a ground clearing job that would challenge a JCB by using just a pickaxe. Who says pétanque is a game for wimps? Rod was as happy as ever to compare his symptoms and treatment experiences with anybody round the table. So much of the conversation involved this comparing symptoms, and arguing whose discomfort was the worst that one began to wonder what APAPS actually stands for.
To be fair, Yves did try to cheer things up by telling a few of his Yorkshire jokes but they mostly fell on cloth ears. It´s the accent, you see. Middlesbrough filtered through Occitan..
Still, the breakfast was tasty, generous as always and I thought, good value.
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| Yves tells the joke about Yorkshire Airlines and mushy peas The our good lady hostess Snra Patricia took our picture to cheer us all up. |
Next Week
Well, as I write, next week was yesterday, if you follow me, unless you are reading this on Friday 8th. when next week would be two days ago.. Myriam had decreed a canal walk but insufficient responses led me to cancel the walk and the breakfast. We will try again next next week, i.e. for Wednesday 13th August. Watch this space.
As it so happened, Rod and JohnH did manage to have a breakfast of sorts on Wednesday 6th when we met to discuss the aforesaid cancellation and all that it entails. Who says Rod does not do breakfasts? It´s just a matter of timing.
Now a moment to thank Paul for picking up the slack the past few weeks and for demonstrating that he has not lost the art of doing a blog. He has introduced us to some serious Country and Western music, so here is a closure from one of his favourites - maybe not mine - maybe not yours - but do let Paul know what you think.
