Galicia - Timeless in Our Hearts.

We are in Galicia right now, "resting up" from all the last intense days of preparing for the shippers to come and pack up in Braga and to prepare for the move itself (i.e., clean the flat, say our goodbyes for now, etc.). We came up to the little apartment we rent in Monforte, a charming small town with a castle, no less, and we have been visiting friends here - saying more goodbyes until next spring.

Why next spring? We had really hoped to come back in October, but the tentative date for the shipping to arrive in Oakland is September 28, and then it will take a few more days for it to reach Sacramento, so that wipes out any fall trip. We'll need the time to place furniture, unpack things, find new places for pots and pans and dishes. Whew! I hope this is our last move ever!

Meanwhile, it's lovely to be in Galicia again. Above are pictures showing what a walk by the river looks like at night. And while the heat has been suffocating, in the evening it does cool down enough with a soft breeze that the air is quite pleasant. So we took a walk to the park that edges thte river and then sat on a bench and talked for a while.

We just finished having the perfect week-end, too. Saturday we went back to our beloved village of Trasulfe where we had a house for so many years and grew so fond of our neighbors. Many of them are gone now - one by one, they have passed on. Earlier in the week we had met out previous neighbor Miguel at the Feria in Escairon for pulpo - our first Feria in three years. Here are two picture from earlier days: They drizzle the pulpo bites  with olive oil, give you a loaf of bread already slashed for tearing into bits to dip in the juice and a bottle of red wine. Heaven.

  

Miguel was our immediate neighbor across the lane and used to bring us coke bottles full of his home made wine and sometimes full of aguardiente. The feria was just as remembered in a poem I wrote - so much community! Everyone greeting everyone and catching up on news. And the two daughters (and one of their husbands) of our dear neighbors, Manolo and Eva were there, so we caught up a little with their news, too.

Then Saturday we returned to visit neighbors at the farm down the road - Maria Elena and Antonio. Neighbors from afar, as we used to call each other. (Even though we were in Sacramento, they were still our neighbors.) Maria Elena has health problems now, and walks with a cane but her personality is as sweet as ever. And Antonio is as full of life as ever. It did our hearts good to see them again. 

Here is a picture from a few years ago — when I was still taking pictures of everyone. 

After our visit with them, we went across the road and visited a with other neighbors, Jesus and Milagros —  whom we met again yesterday in Monforte for lunch at a pulpo restaurant. (They have a flat in town where the spend evenings, and then they stay at their original home in Trasulfe during the day. They have quite a large farm and a dog to take care of.)

After we left them, we drove into Tuiriz, planning to go to Escairon for lunch. But we passed the home of Julio and spied him in the yard, so we stopped to visit with him - and his neighbor, Pepe. Before we knew it, we were in the bodega, enjoying a glass of homemade wine, a slice of terrific cheese, and a slice of bread. (So we considered that lunch!) But it was so great to see them all again. What wonderful memories the day brought back - days of walking the dusty roads and taking pictures, stopping to talk with those we encountered. A lovely day altogether.

On another note, here is a link to the trailer for my new mystery, Deadly Verse, set in Braga, Portugal, as was the first book. Just click on the title. This is a promotional video my publisher put together, and I think they did a really good job. Deadly Verse will be released August 4th (the very day we are flying home! Isn't that weird?)   Enjoy. Comments about the video are welcome, and if you are motivated to buy the book when it comes out, reviews are always welcome, as are opportunities to guest post or be interviewed. 😍 Right now, a blog friend has a nice shoutout on her blog, Vicki Lane Mysteries. She is a mystery writer, teaches writing, wrote a terrific historical novel, And the Crows Took Their Eyes, and shares good photos of the countryside where she and her husband live in western North Carolina. Well worth a visit. 

Meanwhile, how about you? Do you have a favorite food that you only have now and then in special settings? Are you nostalgic about places you've lived? Do you keep in touch with neighbors even after you move? 

Shipping & Packing and The Feira do Livro (Book Fair) in Braga

 

What's on my mind? Packing and the Feira do Livro (Book Fair). The packers (7 of them!) arrived this morning at 8:30 and have been busy since. They are scheduled for two days, but they are so efficient, it could be over this evening. We have rented a room, since we won't have any furniture. It will be sstrange to see the flat so empty. Meanwhile, the Book Fair has stalls all along Rua Dr. Justino Cruz, Rua Francisco Sanches, and Largo São João do Souto, where the stage at Artesan Square is being used for author readings, musical performances, poetry readings, panel discussions. I tried to get a picture of one of the discussions, but it didn't turn out. I did get pictures of the events schedules, and here is the link to tell you more about the fair - all in Portuguese, but Google does wonders. (https://www.feiradolivro.cm-braga.pt/apresentacao )

The picture of young musicians dressed in what looks like Renaissance attire we took on Avenida Da Liberdad just before Praça República. We think they were university students because school is out and the students do all kinds of performances around town. But they also might have been one of the Book Fair performances. Enjoy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How about you? Do you enjoy book fairs? Have you ever gone to one?

At Last:

 I know I have been silent on this blog for quite a while, but two big things were going on: My publisher was putting together a promotion video for my new book, and I was posting events of the Sao Joao Festival in Braga on Facebook. Quite a festival - 10 days - and quite a video. I'll share the festival posts later, but here is the video. Please do watch. I'm thrilled with it.

Let me know what you think. 

PS: I would welcome opportunities to guest post and have interviews if anyone is interest.

My Own Cozy News

 My other news is that my new cozy, Deadly Verse, will be released in June. The build up begins this month, but my publisher told me to feel free about splashing the cover around, so here you are:

Who is this man dressed up in Renaissance garb who looks like he is winking? Luís Vaz de Camões, a Portuguese renaissance poet and some say Portugal's greatest poet, who is famous for  Os Lusíadas, his  epic poem about Vasco da Gama's voyage to India. 

Why does he look like he's winking? He lost an eye when, as a soldier, he fought the Moors. As was not uncommon, back in the day, he was a soldier and wrote poetry. His sonnets are considered on a par with Shakespeare's, Dante's, etc.

What does Camões have to do with a cozy mystery? Well, someone in Braga, Portugal, claims to have an original manuscript of one of his sonnets, possession of which leaves a trail of death. And, you guessed it: Carla is a suspect. 

How the heck do you pronounce Camões? Hah! When the book comes out, you'll have to read it to find out. 😊

Gave you read any cozies lately? If you do enjoy cozies, do you prefer mysteries with a travel angle? Historic? Contemporary?

Another Book Review for Those Who Like Cozy Mysteries: Birthdays Are Murder

 I'm an afficianado of cozy mysteries, which is why I write them instead of thrillers or suspense, etc. So recently I read this delightful cozy by Cindy Sample, Birthdays Are Murder:

It’s always fun to discover a mystery full of both suspense and humor, which is why I like Cindy Sample's earlier "Dying" series. (Dying for a Double, Dying for a Daquiri, etc.) In the first book of her new mystery series set in Spindrift Cove, Birthdays Are Murder, Sample offers ample doses of both.

Protagonist Sierra Sullivan, aging actress and longtime widow, has moved to Spindrift Cove a small coastal town in the Pacific Northwest, to be near her married daughter. Formerly a cruise ship director who sang and danced in productions at sea, Sierra has taken a gig performing at a children’s birthday party to make ends meet. After the party, still in costume, Sierra discovers the body of the host. Soon after, Sierra discovers she is a prime suspect. To make matters worse, her daughter works for the police department. To make matters even worse, a new corpse turns up while Sierra is sneakily trying to find out who killed the first one.

It is hard to say more about this delightful book without dropping spoilers at every turn. And there are turns aplenty, as well as a colorful and well-rounded cast of characters. An added bonus is the wry humor that permeates Sierra’s observations as she tries to track down the killer without becoming the next victim herself.

You can get a copy of Sample's book HERE  . It's available in Kindle and in paperback.

THE AUTHOR

I am hoping to get an interview with her later, but you can learn more about her on her WEBSITE. 

In a future post I have news about a cozy of my own that is going to be published in June. Stay tuned. 

Meanwhile, how is your own reading going? Do you have any cozies to recommend? 

So Here is What Has Been Happening . . . .

Dear friends:

So here is what has been happening that has kept us so busy: Difficult and wrenching as the decision is, we are going to move back to Sacramento in August. We LOVE Portugal. Living here has been a wonderful experience. And we love our friends here. If we were only feeling homesickness (and we do, despite how much we love it here), we would stay.

But we have to be honest with ourselves and our capacity to become truly proficient in the language. We are making progress and MAY become conversationally fluent (we plan to keep learning Portuguese.) But we probably never will be proficient enough to read through documents and papers and forms without hours and hours of translation efforts, and even then we may not get it right. (After 13months, we still are not able to fully use our oven; and we can’t make head or tale of the customs forms – I have lost a birthday present and a book by clicking the wrong information.)

What daunts us, though, is the future: We are having a great time now, because the two of us can share everything. The day will come when there is only one of us and having to navigate everything alone in a sea of not understanding is scary. The medical care we have received is outstanding. We have only used private health insurance and a private hospital so far, because our SNS (national health) clinic and the SNS hospital are a good distance from our flat. But the hospital we go to doesn’t perform major operations, deferring cardiac surgery, for example, to a hospital in Porto. (Rajan does have a cardiac condition.) SNS may do the surgeries that could come up, but eventually, one or both of us will not be able to drive. In emergencies that require an ambulance that whisk a patient off to the hills or another town, one’s spouse is not able to ride in the ambulance. Visits to the patient would be problematic.

We know friends would help if they could – but they have parents and relatives of their own they to take to doctor appointments, hospitals, visitations, etc., all around a full work week with long hours. They are not retired.

If we were about 20 years younger, with time to become throughly immersed in the language and the system, assuming we could figure out the transportation part when frail, we would risk staying; I can’t stress enough what a high point in our lives it has been to be here. But we are not 20 years younger. That's the reality.

On another note, my next book will be coming out soon, which I’ll save for a later post. The publisher sent me a mock up of the cover, which I love, but I'll wait for the cover reveal.

In the meantime, I’ll be posting a lot about our beloved Braga and Galicia for the remainder of our time here. This is the season of fiestas and festivals in both places. No pictures today, but there will be soon.

A LOT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW

 I don't mean to be unsociable, but a lot is happening right now. Good stuff, but a lot. See you soon.