Today I wanted to do lots of things and nearly got there, but I woke up late and wanted to watch the tennis final, so I waited for it, which meant the things I wanted to do earlier didn’t happen. I watched it in bits and was amazed to see how someone can just have such a bad day – and end up in bits, if you saw it, you’ll be happy for the unlikely winner (Markéta), because she deserved it and sad for the disappointed loser (Ons), because she just didn’t turn up. Billie Jean King said “pressure is a privilege”, but when you might be the first African woman, and the first Arabic woman to ever win, then it might just get to you.

I was getting ready to leave as I watched, and when it was over, I was ready to go straight away. I was heading to Tubitek for their CD sale, 4€ each, brand-new, crazy. From there to the Marquês market, hoping to see Pedro and Carolina, but they weren’t there (they have our spare keys and helped us move). I also expected to see Emanuel, the man who sells me the old Wired magazines for 1€ each, but he wasn’t there either. I had a quick look through the market and then got back on the train and went to the viewpoint in Gaia that looks over Porto and thought I might see Shelly and Jason who are visiting, but I was too late for their pool party, so I just lingered on a lovely breezy sunny day and admired the beauty of Porto.

I walked back across the bridge into Porto and wound my way home with a dead phone and a bag of CDs. I dropped everything off and went out again to buy dinner and foodshop. We go to this veggie restaurant, it’s very healthy and has different food every day, but the problem is that it doesn’t matter what different types of food there are, they always taste the same. After eating Thai with spice every night, it’s very bland, maybe I should just put spice into it? But then spice overpowers everything, it’s just texture and fire, but this food needs help.

There were millions of people on the streets, Portugal is the place to be it seems, but I imagine there are millions of people on the streets of Greece and Spain and Italy too, here the weather is beautiful, not impossible like it is in those other countries. Can you imagine going on holiday to a place where you dream of the sun and then when you get there it’s so hot it’s dangerous and you’re advised to stay in?

Later, I watched All Quiet On The Western Front (2022). What a great film, a must-see, anti-war film, brilliantly acted, the lead Felix Kammerer was amazing, as they all were, brilliantly shot, poignant, horrific, and beautiful. Best foreign film Oscar.

Music today has been Cat Stevens‘ reimagined Tea for the Tillerman 2 (2022). I like it, apart from Wild World (1971), but I really really like the original.

Music Of The Daze