David Johnson

Monday April 29, 2024

Dear Friends,

I have an early start tomorrow (today), driving to just west of Lisbon, and so I’m writing this letter late at night.

This first week in Portugal has seen the temperatures drop from the high 20°C when I arrived, to topping out now in the high teens. Though the wind has been cold, the sun has been shining for which I am grateful. There is a quality to the light here that we do not get in Hawaii.

This week has also seen the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution which has seen a long weekend of celebrations here in Alcácer do Sal. Each evening since Wednesday and through the weekend music was played on a stage that was specially erected for the celebrations. With an excellent sound system, and the town situated on a hillside coming down to the river, music has been reverberating through the town into the early hours. Some has been local Portuguese music, some very modern provided by a band or DJ.

Oh, and I can’t forget the wonderful fireworks at midnight last Wednesday night - I share thirty seconds of them below.

While photos from the Micro.blog April Photoblogging Challenge are certainly in last week’s posts, I have managed to get more writing into the blog including an addition to the On The Road series, which I’m pleased about. I hope that you enjoy the words.

Thank you, as always, for reading.

David.