Well, as always, I had a fine time---despite the Neil Diamond aficionados in the villa next door. When I go on holiday, there are always certain things that I re-discover....
1) I love grilled sea bass and cold mugs of Sagres beer.
2) Airports are annoying.
3) I love chicken piri-piri and cold mugs of San Miguel beer.
4) My wife has a remarkably individual pool-playing style. It involves waggling the cue around while facing 90 degrees away from the table and humming "Summer Holiday" by Cliff Richard. This results in the tip of her cue actually making contact with the white ball about once in every seven attempts. My sympathetic efforts to offer advice are greeted with "Shush---I'm on a roll!"
5) I love swimming when the sun is beating down.
6) Young children from the South East of England have indescribably grating voices. I'm convinced there's a school somewhere in Essex that teaches kids how to scream the word "Mummmeee" at a level beyond anything normal humans can achieve.
7) I love holidays.
On the way to the airport this morning, I chatted with a charming taxi driver whose bi-lingual abilities put me to shame. He mentioned how busy the Algarve had been this year and how it was down to the fact that tourists were avoiding more volatile areas like Turkey and Egypt because of the fear of terrorism. I said that this was wonderful news for Portugal after all its financial difficulties.
"That's true" he replied "but I only wish it was for a different reason."
Another reason I love Portugal and its people.
