Holiday Time in Porto

The lights are on, the music is playing, and the stench aroma of bacalhau permeates every food store and flavors the streets. Compared to the US, Christmas is comfortably understated here. According to the Portugal News, the average spend for Christmas time last year was around €239 (about $263), and this year projections are for a slight decrease due to economic concerns.

Wine and chocolate are among the most popular gifts, thus settling any questions about why I moved to Portugal.

My low-key plans for my first Christmas in Porto include baking cookies to take to the Bombeiros (firefighters) across the street, including special ones for Porto, the best firehouse dog in Portugal. I’ll share time with friends, listen to lots of music (hooray, I finally have my Sonos speakers with me!), and take some long walks.

On Saturday, I attended a beautiful baroque Christmas concert at the world-famous Casa da Musica. It was a packed house, and I’ll go again next year. The acoustics are outstanding, and the architecture is something one must experience to appreciate.

Joy…

What a joy to have my oldest niece and her family here at Thanksgiving time! We made the most of the afternoon, including a stroll down Santa Catarina and dinner at Honest Greens. I’m going to miss you all in NYC this year. Instead, I will eat cinnamon rolls from OGI Bakery and then walk down to the ocean where I’ll stand on the tallest boulder and wave hello, so get your binoculars out and look for me. 🙂

…And Remembering

I’ve been out of sorts this past week. Nothing works right. I’m cranky. I’m angry. December 13 was the one-year anniversary of the passing of my sister-in-law, Setsuko. Loss and pain are the price of loving, and we are much the better for it, but that doesn’t make it any easier. I’m sure most of you know the feeling. Saudade* kicks in. And gratefulness because Prof. G is right: life is so rich.

*Saudade is a unique Portuguese word that is hard to translate. The Porto Editora dictionary describes it as
-Feeling of hurt, nostalgia and incompleteness, caused by the absence, disappearance, distance or deprivation of people, times, places or things to which one has been affectively and dutifully connected and that one would like to have in mind again

-Affectionate remembrance of something or someone absent

-Greetings to an absent person; Memories

Postscript

Thank you all for the wonderful responses to my last post, Letting Go. Martin chatted me last week to let me know how much they appreciated everything, and they have already given items to a family in great need of furnishings. How much better to let things go to a new life, rather than letting it all sit in storage.

May Your Days (and Nights) Be Merry and Bright. Feliz Natal!

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Feature image: The Bolhao Market is all dressed up for the holidays.

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Para português nativo e especialistas, por favor, perdoe quaisquer imprecisões nestes blogs. Sou iniciante, otimista de que, à medida que aprendo, vou melhorar.