Inspections, Tavira, Portimao, and Transfers

Wednesday, November 14  
    

Happy Birthday to our FAVORITE missionary in all the world. . .
Elder Logan McQueen serving in the Philippines.  Love him!!

I got behind again this week, so I will be summarizing activities.

This is the last week before transfers, and we had four apartments left to inspect. Today we drove to Faro to do two inspections. We first met with the Sisters – they had worked hard to make sure the new Sister coming next week would find a clean apartment. They had even decorated a little Christmas tree in the corner. Hard to believe that it is already that time of year!  (Sisters Chagas and Tavares)

We found the contracted painter/repairman at the Elders’ apartment. The painting is about done, but due to all the rooms being painted, things were in a disarray. We did a quick inspection and left a pack of Oreos for the Elders who are doing their best in a difficult situation.

We helped with transportation for divisions with the Olhao Elders and then took Elder Patricio and Elder Pugh to lunch at the Forum – their favorite hangout. The three guys ordered bacon cheeseburgers with fries, and I had a big salad.  Christmas decorations are going up.  One unique thing was a basic tree form had been placed in front of each store front that had been decorated by a school or organization - some were very creative.  After dropping the Elders off at the church, we stopped by the Toyota dealership to schedule a maintenance and service. I stayed in the car and probably took a nice nap as Merl spent time trying to find someone to help him and then to get our appointment scheduled. . . for November 23 – Black Friday.

I finally convinced Merl to stop at the Decathalon store by the Foram. Sister West said they had been successful in finding warm clothing for the winter there. It is a huge store catering to every sport imaginable here (skiing, biking, fishing, hunting, swimming, soccer, hiking, skating, camping, boating, martial arts, dancing, etc. . .) Instead of a sweatshirt or fleece jacket, we came out with a new pair of tennis shoes.

When we arrived home, Elder Dias called with instructions for closing Tavira and Lagos apartments. We should have the documents in the mail soon. We also received a phone call from President Fillmore requesting us to consider moving to Portimao. We are happy here in Loule and are more centrally located to take care of both sides of the Algarve. Apparently, the Portimao Branch is struggling and could use our help. We will be visiting Lagos and Portimao later this week.

Only had one drippy nose episode today.

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Thursday, November 15

Today we had scheduled inspections in Loule. The Sisters had a good inspection, but we noted some things that need our attention – grout and caulking issues, electrical issues, cracking wood on kitchen table issues. . . They got their package of Oreos (which were promptly eaten) while we visited. The Sisters like to talk with “Elder Egbert” and ask gospel questions or get advice on topics of finance, schooling, and marriage. The Elders stopped by to help take the old refrigerator downstairs for Pres. Nestor to pick up later.

I really like this little outside barbeque - might convince Merl to build me one when we get home.   It sits on the balcony below the Tavira apartment.

Merl made an appointment with Pres. Azevedo to complete the closure documents of the Tavira apartment tomorrow before going to the Elders’ apartment for their inspection. We were disappointed with the cleanliness of “the best” apartment on this side of the Algarve. No cookies for them! We noted some specifics and will make a followup visit in a couple of weeks.

Nestor came to pick up the the refrigerator at 7:30 p.m., along with a deep-fat fryer we removed from the Elders’ apartment.

When I asked Merl for some input for the blog, he said he found we have a FICA score of 823 and he studied Portuuese. We are also reading the new Personal and Family Study Guide in Portuguese “Vem. E Segue-Me” (Come Follow Me). We can understand most of what I read.

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Friday, November 16

Now that we have all the inspections done, Merl scanned the documents and sent them to the Mission Office. We then prepped documents for the trip to Tavira for the apartment closure. When we arrived, we found the landlady a bit testy. . . didn’t know what to expect when Pres. Azevedo showed up.

Fortunately the tone changed, documents were signed, and we were on our way. The landlady’s husband said to let Lisbon know they would be happy to rent to missionaries again. Since the mood was very congenial by now, I said if he would come to our church and bring his family and friends, we might have enough people to support another set of missionaries. His first response was kind of a laugh, and he said it wasn’t his thing. . . but God willing. . . We left it at that. 

 We decided to take a little time to “visit” Tavira; we had only seen the road to the apartment. We drove into the center of town, parked the car, and started walking. We found old churches, the fire station (Bombeiros), remnants of an old castle, and an amazing old water tower converted into a Camera Obscura. Using mirrors and light, we could see a panorama of the city, rotating angles to see 360°. Our guide spoke eight languages and was very entertaining as he explained the history of the city.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tavira

From the observatory, we walked up narrow roads past old churches to the castle. We climbed steep stairs to the top to look over the city and down into beautiful gardens/trees inside the castle walls. We met some people along our walk and had good conversations. One was an older man who had good stories to tell about his life and all the important work he had done in several other countries; but now, back in his home country, he can’t find a job and living on the street (another hand out). We visited with a young family from England who recently located to Tavira and are loving it.

 

I wanted to walk across the Roman Bridge across the Gilao River (actually a bridge built by the Moors). There was a rusty old statue of a fisherman that I wanted to get a closer view of – and was completely shocked when it moved towards me. . . I was lucky to not have fallen into the river.

We found a gift shop run by a couple from India where I purchased a Tavira souvenier. They also owned a restaurant around the corner, and we stopped for lunch – which we enjoyed. We then walked along the river and up the hill back to our car. It had been a great day – the forecast of rain didn’t materialize.

The Sisters needed a ride this evening to Almancil for a couple of appointments. For some reason, that little city keeps Merl going in circles. Missed exits and missed turns almost became comical. We final got to their destination. The Elder’s will pick them up on their way back from Quarteira. We spent the rest of the evening studying. I have also started reading the new LDS history novel, Saints. We are learning some new things.

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Saturday – November 17

After our morning routine, we drove to Lagos to meet with another landlady and close another apartment. With the combining of the Lisbon and Porto Missions and with the surge of 18 year old Elders entering the mission field over, the Mission has more apartments than are needed. We have been told that either the Portimao or Loule senior couple apartment will be closed – and we will be affected by this, one way or another.

We requested the Lagos Elders (McKee and Gusmao) to accompany us on the visit with the landlady. Again, we were fortunate that everything went amicably; the Mission had already paid her for repairs, and she was happy. In fact, she will be moving into this apartment and renting hers to her son who is returning to the area.

I had heard there was an American store in Portimao, but only found a British Supermarket – I have been searching for cream of tarter and corn starch. I found both, along with several other things to try. Right now, the only perk to living in Portamao is the close proximity to beautiful beaches and the British store. The city is too big and busy for us. But, we told Pres. Fillmore that we would go wherever he feels we should go. (Foto:  Bridge over the river entering Portimao)

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Sunday – November 18

Today we were up early and back on the road to Portimao. We told Pres. Fillmore that we would visit the Branch there. We found the church and actually arrived a bit early. We visited with a few members before the meeting started. The one I remember most was a wiry little lady from Ireland who owns a condominium here. She travels back and forth. She rents her big condo to other tourists, and this year found a small apartment to rent right on the beach. She loves it. She is a health nut, indicating that everyone wants to follow America, and our eating habits and obesity are starting to carry over to the rest of the world.  

I was asked to play the piano for Sacrament meeting- and then Primary. Next week is their Primary program – so we will be attending here again for that. Elder Gusman from Lagos will also be playing the guitar and ukulele. While I was with the Primary, Merl attended Sunday School and Priesthood meeting, being called on to read and participate. We got to meet and talk with some great members.  This was Elder McKee's last Sunday in Portugal.  He is going home - he has been a blessing for us!

The missionaries also had a baptism after Sacrament meeting (I was asked to play the piano again). We only know the new member as Lu. She was excited to be baptized and a good group of members supported her – even baked brownies in the kitchen adjoining the room with the font. We could smell them baking during the meeting.

Before driving home, we took a drive around the city where the Senior Couple apartment is located. It is a concrete environment – multiple high rise buildings and lots of asphalt/cement. Certainly different from what we enjoy here in Loule. As we were approaching Loule, from the freeway we could see a rainbow in the distance. . . the first one we had seen here. I tried several times to get a picture. As we entered the city, it appeared that one end of the rainbow was at our apartment building. We jokingly (or maybe not), said it was a sign. We are supposed to stay in Loule and not move to Portimao. The pot of gold is right in our apartment. We had made a list of pros and cons of both places, and in our minds, Loule always wins – unless the Lord wants us in Portimao.

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Monday, November 19

Today it was time to stay in and take care of some P-day activities. . . cleaning, laundry, catching up on some computer stuff. I sent an email to our new friend Hellen who was baptized recently in Olhao. It was fun to receive an email back telling us that she was just called to be a Family History Consultant in the Branch. She doesn’t know what that is, but she is excited to start serving, just like the missionaries. She also said that her family in Zimbabwe attended the LDS church, and the Elders will start teaching them “step by step so this is a blessing for me again in one week.”

The weather hasn’t been great lately, and today the sun was out for a while. We went for a walk down the central plaza street doing a little window shopping – and then some real shopping. I found some fabrice panels that had the name Algarve along with the Barcelosos Cockeral. I bought eight of them to give to departing missionaries as a remembrance of their time here in the Algarve.

Merl has been fascinated by products made from cork – how you can take rough bark from a tree and make soft, supple materials from it. He finally broke down and bought himself a really nice cork hat. That led me to find a cork Christmas ornament and an Algarve souvenier for our travel tree. One thing leads to another.

We hadn’t eaten much yet, so I made a nice late lunch of mashed potatoes, baked beans, chicken nuggets, and some tomato/cucumber salad. Not bad for finding some things in the freezer and cupboard.

We have been trying to reach Pres. Fillmore to discuss apartments and assignments; but so far, no luck. This is transfer week along with receiving new missionaries. . . and Angel Moroni was placed on the Lisbon Temple. I think the Fillmores have been extremely busy.

Pres. Nestor was able to look at the broken windowat the Elders’s apartment and came to the same conclusion as Merl did. The window wasn’t installed correctly, tweaked too tight and probably cracked from the heat expansion. The Mission office needs to contact the landlord to discuss options.

The Sisters came by to bake some brownies to take to Pres. Rui’s home. It was raining, and we gave them a ride. Then back home to study and read another chapter of Saints.

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Tuesday, November 20

Transfer day – always a little sad. We helped get the Sisters packed into the Elders’ car for the trip to Lisbon. Merl had a more difficult time fitting the suitcases into the little Yarrus. I didn’t envy the Sisters sitting crunched into half of the back seat for three hours. We said goodbye to Sister Jackson and Elder Lewis. We will see who comes back with Elder Payne and Sister Ngalu.

We had a heavy rainstorm much of the day. I cleaned floors and put beds together for company coming next week. Merl sorted tools, light bulbs, hardware, etc. and organized his tool box and supplies. We decided to do some surprise repairs in the Sisters’ apartment to make it a little more welcoming. I bleached all the tile in the bathroom and scrubbed out the grout (didn’t think I would being stuff like this on a mission). Merl scraped peeling paint of the bathroom ceiling, fixed the hall light fixture, recaulked the sink and tub, and repaired wood cracks in the kitchen table – who would have thought his calling in the temple to do wood repair would come in handy here! We left feeling good about what we had accomplished.

We walked around the city initially looking for orange yams. All we can find now are the red skinned white sweet potatoes. The city workers are busy putting up lots of street decorations; all the major Christmas festivities will be happening soon – and most take place one block from us on Praca de Republica. We can’t wait til they turn on the lights which will happen after Santa arrives on December 1. We also checked out the bus station; we may have a need to use it next week.

I fixed yummy coconut curry chicken over rice for dinner.