Portugal; the cabeleireiros and other things

6th September 2009

As is the norm, I worked all week in the office [we have a quaint little white ‘house’ almost in a forest, next to the factory proper] – then I spent the weekend here too. It was amazing! Constant sunny weather, temperatures of 35 degrees, not a cloud in the sky. Bliss. Made up for all that frenzy of actually getting here in the first place. I spent all weekend doing nice things. Only nice thing missing was the Jones.

Saturday morning I did my usual run [which I do in Portugal only] of the tabacaria and the cabeleireiros [hairdressers]. In the UK it costs me about £90.00 just to have a colour. In Portugal it costs me €55.00 for a colour, cut and dry with delightful service. So I had the FIRST HAIRCUT since September last year!! September last year I was as bald as a coot. Amazing how much my hair has grown since then. I did have it trimmed once it had grown in, but it didn’t really count, as I had hardly any hair. So, this was a major palaver, and my lovely hairdresser, Romy, knew it. She made a great job and understood exactly how much it stressed me out having it cut. But, after all, it does grow back. And at least now it’s even, whereas it was going completely bezzo. My hair is back to how it was before I had cancer – about a year before I was diagnosed; my hair became lifeless and started falling out by the hand full. I didn’t worry much, as I have a lot of hair. But now that it’s back to normal, I realise that that was another sign that something was seriously wrong. I wonder if that’s another ‘symptom’. I don’t know, but certainly my hair has come back twice as thick as it was in 2007, the year leading up to ‘hello you have cancer’ year.

So, cigarettes purchased, hair cut and coloured, off to the beach! And that’s where I remained for the rest of the weekend. I saw friends, had lunch and dinner at the seafront, early nights and calls to Jones [to be sure it was STILL raining and ghastly in the UK]. I also found out that a friend’s sister has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She is young, just found her first ‘real’ boyfriend. Merde. So I went to see my friend to offer what support I could. Not a lot, but at least she knows I am here if she needs me. There’s really nothing useful you can say except ‘I am here’. Bloody cancer – how is it that it’s everywhere? I hate it. That was the only crabby thing that happened though.

Other than that, I am fried to a crisp. Yay! As I probably won’t be seeing any sun until July next year, I made the absolute most of it. Oh, I was attacked one evening by a crazy drunken Frenchman who was insistent to his friends that he 'had' to speak to me as I was ‘magnifique’ [so glad I can still ‘pull’ drunk men eheheh] and a nutty Portuguese maintenance man who thought it most rude of me to sit on a sun bed before 9.00 on a Sunday morning…little did he know I had been awake since 6.00 and was just delighting in the sight of the sun brightened sea with no people around. What a grump. But he didn’t spoil my day - just added to the entertainment…breakfast at the seafront is bliss.

This is the beach.

Tomorrow, another week of work in the 'house'…then home again home again jiggety jig. Wonder what hilarious vehicle I will be driving back to Exeter? At least I will be able to travel at my leisure this time! I hope.