We went looking for Pink Flamingos this morning. If I understood this page correctly from the Alcácer do Sal municipal website, Pink Flamingos have recently returned to the area. If this is so, we were either unable to see them - the rice fields stretch a long way from the road - or they had moved on.

Of course we could have been looking in the wrong area, but I think not going by previous sightings.

We are back in Alcácer do Sal after two nights in the Serra da Estrela, the highest mountain range in Portugal. I love the mountains and during a brief hike, looking out over these hills, I was reminded of The Black Mountains and Brecon Beacons in South Wales. I use to go hiking in those hills and lived for almost two decades looking out towards The Black Mountains. The mountains of the Serra da Estrela took me back to there.

A vast, open landscape with rolling hills under a cloudy sky.

I could sit and watch this movie all day.

Two empty modern chairs and a small table are positioned on a terrace overlooking a foggy landscape surrounded by trees.

Waking up to this, this morning, I don’t have much enthusiasm for getting out of bed and driving home today.

Looking out of a window with rain drops all over it, to a balcony that is wet and beyond that trees and think cloud mist.

I am thinking that it has been almost a decade since I have been amongst trees in autumn, and I am so appreciating it. The colours, the damp smell, the cool air. It all takes me back to what I grew up with and spent so many years around.

A small road with trees on either side, changing autumnal colours and many already on the ground.

Quiet, silence and stillness this morning. Visiting the Serra da Estrela here in Portugal for a couple of nights. Up in the mountains and appreciating the fresh air here. We are sitting at an elevation of just below 2,000m (6,562ft). Sun out, cool, cloud slowly drifting in.

Phew! Just got home. A late night drive back to Alcácer from Lisbon, not my favourite thing to do…though the bed at the end of the drive is very welcome.

A day of meeting up with friends. Dinner with a couple who we know from our time living in the US Pacific Northwest who are in Europe, though my wife has known her since high school days in New York. And earlier, catching up with @maique over a few drinks in the autumn sun.

It was very good to see them all.

A calm River Sado hosts a flock of young seagulls on a Sunday morning.

Young seagulls rest on a calm River Sado, with fields on both sides and some small buildings on the right side. The sky is blue, the sun is out.

🛌 My bed had an iron grip on me this morning. It was quite a fight to get out. I gave into the struggle a couple of times, but eventually won through. Coffee is now being made.

For some reason I redownloaded Ulysses just now. I have not used it for a long time. I have been getting along just fine with my two workhorses - Drafts and iA Writer. Tot has also been a part of the mix. But not Ulysses. Not for a long time…until now. I am writing this with Ulysses.

Maybe it is because my subscription will expire in three weeks. I’m just checking back, you know, just in case. I guess time will tell where this itch scratching will take me?

I’ve now heard back from Hawaii Elections.

Your ballot has been accepted

This message is from your County Elections Division. Your 2024 General Election ballot has been received, validated, and accepted for counting. Mahalo for voting!

🇺🇸🗳️

A green and white digital sticker to say that I have voted in Hawaii for the 2024 Presidential Election.

🏁 A first this morning. I drove from Alcácer do Sal to where we usually park in Lisbon without using GPS (Apple Maps). I’ll need it to get out this evening, but I’ll chalk that up as a win for familiarity and knowing my way round.

A reading nook.

A brown chair is illuminated by a floor light. A couch can be made out in the dark room.

Capela de Arraiolos.

A small, white chapel with a red door and a bell tower is situated in a sunny cobblestone courtyard surrounded by trees.

The weather was so grey this evening at sunset, that it almost looked as though it had been snowing over Alcácer. While cooler than yesterday, snow though was very definitely not in the air.

A serene riverside scene at dusk, with city buildings reflecting on the calm water. The sky is cloudy, and there are lights illuminating the area around the riverbanks and houses.

My wife and I will be out of State on Election Day. Today we submitted our votes electronically. This is the first time that I have voted in a US Presidential Election since becoming a US citizen. What a first election this is. 🇺🇸🗳️

Finished reading: Instructions for Traveling West by Joy Sullivan 📚

The bus aisle is a long series of choices.

My sisters and I would arrive home, caked with dust. As if God were baking with red four and sneezed.

Even I know a sunset doesn’t save us but still I swerve to the side of 405 just to see the sky squish pink beneath night’s dark thumb.

Pedro Nunes looking out over his Square in his birth place of Alcácer do Sal.

A statue of Pedro Nunes lit up at night by lights from below. Behind are two trees and a building also lit by lights.

(Some of) the colours of Alcácer’s bridge by night.

Collage of four photographs showing the bridge in Alcácer do Sal lit up at night in four colours, blue, red, green and purple.

Night time is quiet here in Alcácer do Sal. I sit here now and the only sound that disturbs the quiet is the podcast that my wife is listening to downstairs and the crickets outside. Otherwise there is no sound…oh, the roof cracks and creaks occasionally as it cools down from a day of sun shining on it.

With the quietness comes a stillness as well. Nights are still and quiet.

This time in the evening rests me. I sit here reading, jotting down notes, sitting and reflecting.