Greetings friends and family,
April was a busy month for us, and for the most part, rain-free as well. Those "April showers" seemed to have waited for May to arrive instead. We spent a beautiful Sunday (4/21) at the beach. While there, we headed over to a cafe to have lunch. Looking at a lunch menu we were curious about a cod dish and used google translator to try and figure it out ... decided maybe that didn't sound too appetizing after all (the entry following "mixed board").
Our annual condominium meeting was held a few weeks ago and once again we attended and couldn't make sense of anything the manager was saying. Learning to speak Portuguese doesn't instantly mean you can understand what others are saying. We met a few of the residents in attendance who can also speak English and at times they would lean over and chat with us. One thing we learned when, at times, the meeting seemed to devolve into residents talking endlessly and disrupting the speaker, was that in most cases they are just gossiping. These meetings also start very late - 9:30 p.m and this one didn't end until after 11.
One couple we've gotten to know in our building, Daniel and Diana, invited us over for dinner recently. Daniel cooked a lovely meal, all Portuguese dishes. They have known each other since they were kids in the Douro valley region. Diana's mother was an English teacher so that explains her excellent command of the language. Daniel too speaks English very well and is great about loaning us his tools when needed. He treats Nick like a grandfather, always checking to see how he is and whether he can do anything for us. We feel very lucky to have them in our lives.
We're both still humming along in school. Nick got the results of his big test in March and he did very well. None of us at the A-1 level have received our results yet but I'm sure that I passed. Still, I would like to know my score because it also includes my score on the oral exam. Currently my class is learning to tell time ... WTH ... it's done differently in the north of Portugal, where they start with the hour followed by the minutes vs. the south where they start with the minutes, followed by the hour. And the variety of prepositions required, depending on the circumstances ... my head exploded over this.
We feel lucky that we found this school and for the friendships we've made. Recently one of Nick's classmates, an Indian woman (Bamini) who also lived in the UK and the US before coming to Portugal, took it upon herself to plan a class luncheon for them (I was also invited). She prepared the whole meal and James, another of his classmates, hosted it at his home. We had a fabulous afternoon with them all.
This year there were many activities celebrating the 50th anniversary of the April 25th Carnation Revolution (1974) and the end of the dictatorship. At our school we were treated to a musical show put on by a group of older Portuguese folks who lived under the dictatorship. The music was all very traditional folk music and quite fun. I spoke to a few of these musicians after the show, and they were so appreciative that we're interested in hearing them play and learning about this dark period in their history. The following day my instructor, Joana, had a number of her students who are learning to speak English and who again, are all older Portuguese people who lived here during the dictatorship, speak about their experiences. Unfortunately, I got sick the evening before and couldn't attend, however Nick attended and was quite impressed and moved by the experience. Most of those who spoke were teenagers at the time of the revolution. Some spoke about how they lived and attended school under very strict rules and regulations and how wonderful things felt the day following, when they could trash the required uniforms and wear whatever they wanted to school, listen to music that had been banned and read books that had been forbidden. Women spoke of all the restrictions and the freedom they felt on the day after the revolution. One gentleman told his story in Portuguese with Joana translating for him until she broke down with emotion and someone else had to take over. His father deserted the family during the dictatorship and moved to France, never to be seen again. This had a profound effect on him as a boy, as you might imagine, and the whole audience was choked up and weeping. Some spoke about members of their own families who had joined PIDE, the secret police, who wouldn't hesitate to rat out others including family members. Everyone had to be so guarded in all they did.
Both of our instructors are young women who only know of the experiences of their parents and grandparents under the Salazar dictatorship. Joana shared with us that she was taught to use a Salazar (spatula) to get every last bit of food/dough etc. from plates and pans. Portuguese people referred to a spatula as a Salazar with his encouragement because Salazar emphasized the need for people to be frugal and find virtue in being poor. This helped him justify all the money that was spent fighting wars in the Portuguese colonies.
On the night of the 24th there was a big celebration downtown that once again drew a huge crowd. This year the music was very traditional Portuguese folk music culminating with the most famous song from the revolution Grandola Vila Morena. It chokes me up when I hear a crowd singing it. Red carnations were everywhere. Two students in Nick's language class surprised everyone by crocheting red carnation pins for everyone in his class to wear (they made one for me as well).
Yesterday we went to the cinema to see The Fall Guy, or, as google translates it
I leave you with wishes for a lovely May, filled with sunshine and flowers.
Adeus, abraços e beijos,
MaryLou