Up at 6:30am ready for the 8am transfer to the airport. Flight is at 11am.
I won't lie, i'm very happy to be coming home. I'm happy that i'll have things to do when I get back. I'm happy that i'll have a comfy bed to come back to.
It's still raining.
Portuguese football shirts have been on sale everywhere for €60, a lot more expensive than I can get back home. At the Airport (Faro), a football shop had a 30% discount on everything. The Portuguese football shirt was now only €80! What a bargain!
I tried to download 2 episodes of PhoneShop to watch on the plane. I had one downloaded and had only 2mb remaining on episode 2 when my internet ran out. I'm not paying €1,50 to download 2mb.
Why doesn't my mum just get a Nokia 3310 and make done with it. She has a HTC but she doesn't have a clue what she's doing. She was trying to turn cellular data and data roaming back on when we landed, she ended up trying to set up a VPN.
Not sure whats going on in baggage claim, there's bags everywhere. It's like they've just thrown all the bags off of the belts onto the floor and nobody has decided to collect them. There's a good two or three flights worth of luggage. How odd.
Monday, 9 May 2011
Portugal Dec 2010 - Day Four
Slept on the sofa last night, I must say it was a lot nicer than the bed! Except my dad decided to come and watch TV at 8am. Ta.
The cleaner wanted to come in and clean at just past 10am, ha you can fuck off!
I'm gonna buy another pair or two of Chinos when I get back, my grey Chinos are great, might get some black ones?
So, the hotel give you a card to get into your room, then you insert the card into a slot to turn the electricity on. This means that when you leave the room, you have to turn the electricity off. My dad says the card has been programmed to work. No, it's just a button. I took an old PayPal giftcard from out of my wallet and left it in the slot whilst we go out, my mum says i'm a genius... It's just common sense.
Arrived at Portimão Retail Park, there are about 6 shops, Decathlon and what looks like shoe shops and home furnishing shops. I'm gonna spend a bomb on Crocs and pillows!!
I bought two shirts today.. Result! From a supermarket ironically, no clothes shops here! Christmas is over so I no longer have an excuse to buy things for people. Bad times. I'll find a way to buy people things, even if they try to refuse.
My mum makes me laugh because she doesn't understand technology at all! She couldn't get wi-fi on her phone when me and my dad could.. "maybe it's the rain", "maybe it's the wind", "maybe it's because i'm wearing trainers". Not. A. Clue.
My dad rang for a taxi and we end up with a driver that can't speak English. Hilarity ensues. Trying to explain that we want to go to Portimão Centro was a hard task. He'll say somewhere and finish his sentence with 'Dik?'. My dad would take offence. He didn't take the time to learn basic Portuguese words. If he did, he would know it means 'yes'.
I'm also hoping that my deliveries will be waiting for me when I get back, I really liked the jumper that I ordered from Play, plus there was a massive saving on it. It should of been £75 but it was down to £17. Bargain!
US comedy is so much better than UK comedy. I've been watching Gary Unmarried, Accidentally On Purpose and How I Met Your Mother, and can't believe I've never seen them before.
An episode of Glee came on before we went out for a meal, I haven't seen this one, I thought i'd seen the whole of series one! Disappointed!
I lie, I have seen this one!
Very annoyed that most of my texts haven't been sending even though i've been charged by o2. I'm moving to Orange soon, possibly in the next few days.
There's thunder and lightning outside and it's very very windy. I'm sure it's not even this bad in Derby.
Why do Portuguese cars have seatbelts? Both taximen didn't wear them and they were wreckless drivers. God help us if they didn't wear seatbelts in Turkey.
My pumps have split. I knew they wouldn't last because they were only £4 from Primark. But now that it's raining... Wet socks!
Day Five will be a short post, unless I go overboard on the thinking on the plane. That'd hurt my head so I doubt that. The flight is at 11am, so we should be back in Birmingham at around 12:30-13:00.
The cleaner wanted to come in and clean at just past 10am, ha you can fuck off!
I'm gonna buy another pair or two of Chinos when I get back, my grey Chinos are great, might get some black ones?
So, the hotel give you a card to get into your room, then you insert the card into a slot to turn the electricity on. This means that when you leave the room, you have to turn the electricity off. My dad says the card has been programmed to work. No, it's just a button. I took an old PayPal giftcard from out of my wallet and left it in the slot whilst we go out, my mum says i'm a genius... It's just common sense.
Arrived at Portimão Retail Park, there are about 6 shops, Decathlon and what looks like shoe shops and home furnishing shops. I'm gonna spend a bomb on Crocs and pillows!!
I bought two shirts today.. Result! From a supermarket ironically, no clothes shops here! Christmas is over so I no longer have an excuse to buy things for people. Bad times. I'll find a way to buy people things, even if they try to refuse.
My mum makes me laugh because she doesn't understand technology at all! She couldn't get wi-fi on her phone when me and my dad could.. "maybe it's the rain", "maybe it's the wind", "maybe it's because i'm wearing trainers". Not. A. Clue.
My dad rang for a taxi and we end up with a driver that can't speak English. Hilarity ensues. Trying to explain that we want to go to Portimão Centro was a hard task. He'll say somewhere and finish his sentence with 'Dik?'. My dad would take offence. He didn't take the time to learn basic Portuguese words. If he did, he would know it means 'yes'.
I'm also hoping that my deliveries will be waiting for me when I get back, I really liked the jumper that I ordered from Play, plus there was a massive saving on it. It should of been £75 but it was down to £17. Bargain!
US comedy is so much better than UK comedy. I've been watching Gary Unmarried, Accidentally On Purpose and How I Met Your Mother, and can't believe I've never seen them before.
An episode of Glee came on before we went out for a meal, I haven't seen this one, I thought i'd seen the whole of series one! Disappointed!
I lie, I have seen this one!
Very annoyed that most of my texts haven't been sending even though i've been charged by o2. I'm moving to Orange soon, possibly in the next few days.
There's thunder and lightning outside and it's very very windy. I'm sure it's not even this bad in Derby.
Why do Portuguese cars have seatbelts? Both taximen didn't wear them and they were wreckless drivers. God help us if they didn't wear seatbelts in Turkey.
My pumps have split. I knew they wouldn't last because they were only £4 from Primark. But now that it's raining... Wet socks!
Day Five will be a short post, unless I go overboard on the thinking on the plane. That'd hurt my head so I doubt that. The flight is at 11am, so we should be back in Birmingham at around 12:30-13:00.
Portugal Dec 2010 - Day Three
This bed is not nice. I was tossing and turning all night, now I ache all over. I've decided not to go out today. It's raining again and I'll just be bored again so what's the point.
So i'm hungry now, the nearest supermarket is a good 20 minute walk away... Lidl. Woo!
Why does Fox Life show the same 3 episodes on repeat? I'm bored of the same episode of Ugly Betty, Accidentally on purpose and How I met your mother. Sighhhh.
The swimming pool hasn't been used since we got here, our room is directly over it and I haven't seen a single person using it.
There's a big football pitch just outside the hotel, there's a youth side that train on it every night, i've watched them sometimes and they're not bad. 12 year old Portuguese kids turning on the style.
I thought it was meant to be cheaper over here? Everything seems more expensive. It cost £7 for the equivalent of a Big Mac meal from Burger Ranch. I'll be bringing all my money home, hey, I might buy an iPad.
I see Man City have gone top of the league after a 4-0 win against Aston Villa. Good lads. Lets hope they can keep up the good work and achieve something this season!
Having an Indian tonight, no TV here though so I can't see the Man Utd game. I always like a nice Dupiaza so it should be a nice meal.
My mum keeps moaning about there not being any free wi-fi anywhere. It's funny watching her with her crap HTC trying to connect to networks that require authentification or that don't have an active internet connection. She doesn't seem to understand that you can have a network without the internet. It's quite embarassing actually.
I'm quite looking forward to going back to work, I may moan about the early mornings and how tired I am at the end of the day, but I love it. I love Landau, it's just a great place to be a part of. I have a new office and we have a new guy starting, it'll be good... If I get a new chair that is!
So it's the last day tomorrow, another retail park apparently... We'll see. My flight back is early Thursday morning... Not a moment too soon. Should be back at Birmingham airport at around midday, i'll upload Day Four's blog then.
So i'm hungry now, the nearest supermarket is a good 20 minute walk away... Lidl. Woo!
Why does Fox Life show the same 3 episodes on repeat? I'm bored of the same episode of Ugly Betty, Accidentally on purpose and How I met your mother. Sighhhh.
The swimming pool hasn't been used since we got here, our room is directly over it and I haven't seen a single person using it.
There's a big football pitch just outside the hotel, there's a youth side that train on it every night, i've watched them sometimes and they're not bad. 12 year old Portuguese kids turning on the style.
I thought it was meant to be cheaper over here? Everything seems more expensive. It cost £7 for the equivalent of a Big Mac meal from Burger Ranch. I'll be bringing all my money home, hey, I might buy an iPad.
I see Man City have gone top of the league after a 4-0 win against Aston Villa. Good lads. Lets hope they can keep up the good work and achieve something this season!
Having an Indian tonight, no TV here though so I can't see the Man Utd game. I always like a nice Dupiaza so it should be a nice meal.
My mum keeps moaning about there not being any free wi-fi anywhere. It's funny watching her with her crap HTC trying to connect to networks that require authentification or that don't have an active internet connection. She doesn't seem to understand that you can have a network without the internet. It's quite embarassing actually.
I'm quite looking forward to going back to work, I may moan about the early mornings and how tired I am at the end of the day, but I love it. I love Landau, it's just a great place to be a part of. I have a new office and we have a new guy starting, it'll be good... If I get a new chair that is!
So it's the last day tomorrow, another retail park apparently... We'll see. My flight back is early Thursday morning... Not a moment too soon. Should be back at Birmingham airport at around midday, i'll upload Day Four's blog then.
Portugal Dec 2010 - Day Two
Slept for 13 hours straight.. Refreshing. Although I did wake up with an aching back because of the hard beds. Dad came and woke me at 11 by opening the blinds. Yeah thanks for that.
Today we're going to Portimão, apparently it has a big shopping centre... No doubt it will be closed. There isn't anything to do here and all the Portugese people look miserable. Note to self: Don't come back.
My Dad seems to think that he knows where everything is, of course, he doesn't. We trecked right around Portimão looking for the big retail park, it was the place that i'd pointed out on the taxi from the airport. But my dad knows best, of course.
And why does my mum seem to think I want to go in every shop that sells menswear, I do have eyes for myself, if I want to go in there, I'll bloody go in.
So my parents have gone to where they stayed last time they came because theres a cafe that does a nice latte apparently. There's nothing else there so i'm staying in the hotel. Get me home please. I'm fed up.
Found a spot with free wi-fi in Portimão, so I downloaded the Word Lens app but they only do Spanish at the moment... That's a big help pfft.
So after the day where we went round all the shops, I still remain with just one purchase this holiday, a bottle of water on the plane. I'll be going crazy on the spending when I get home. I'm sure my personal fashion adviser (Alex) will help me get some new clothes.
I wish she'd text me first rather than me texting her. I don't want to seem like a nuisance. Fact is, I just want to talk to her. Yes, i'm not the most interesting person to talk to, and I can struggle to find a topic of conversation alot of the time but I don't mind as long as i'm talking to her. I'm sure she doesn't feel the same. Then again, I don't have a clue how she feels. She's a complex person.
So i've also been thinking about when I shall start driving. After Joe ever so kindly bought me driving lessons for Christmas, I will be booking them soon. Truth is, I do want to drive, for convenience rather than necessity. I just don't feel confident in learning. We'll see how it goes anyway.
I'm also thinking about upcoming birthdays and what to get people. I guess i'm better off asking but nobody tells you, they just tell you not to spend money on them. I'm going to buy something whether you tell me what to get or not. If you tell me, you'll definately want it. And I'm not buying you something for a few quid, you may not be able to buy me something to the same value but it's not the cost that matters. I just want to put smiles on faces.
We went to a little Italian place this evening, twas about the only place open again. Sat right in front of the TV watching Arsenal v Chelsea. Arsenal had just gone 3-0 up when we left, had Ravioli to eat. It wasn't bad, a bit on the cold side actually. I don't have a clue what I can do for the next two days... I might end up staying in the room watching Fox.
Come to think about it, i've yet to see another person staying at the Hotel. It seems like we're the only ones here. It seems like we're the only ones in the Algarve. It's dead.
It rained today.
Portugal Dec 2010 - Day One
We checked in online the night before so we didn't have to queue to check in, but the queue to enter the departure lounge was so big we had to board as soon as we made it past security.
After a turbulant flight, we arrived at Faro airport 25 minutes ahead of schedule. Our taxi man was there already so we didn't have to wait for him. It was 9 degrees when we landed at 9:45am, within a few hours the sun was out and the temperature had doubled so we thought we'd go for a scroll along the front and see what there was. Of course, it's Boxing Day, so nowhere's open. Hoping to go go-karting one day, there's a good track just down the road.
The hotel's nice, we're on the corner of the building so we have a massive balcony, and I mean a massive balcony! I was hoping for Sky Sports in the room so I could watch the footie but the best we had was EuroSport, the very best when you want to watch Skiing and Curling, real sport.
I guess it's nice to get away, but Portugal is nowhere near as nice as Turkey, I'm still quite tired after not being able to sleep on the plane, the headrests were too low so either my neck hurt or my back did. No in flight film either, not one of my better flights.
In some ways, I wish I was still at home, there's probably more to do there. I'm a miserable bugger, me. At least I can go do some shopping if a) the shops are open and b) they're actually any good. I'll probably just come back with it all and spend a fortune at Topman or ASOS...
The hotel has free wi-fi but only in reception, what's the point in that? The hotel's quite nice though, might get a good night's sleep for the first time in a while..
Wishful thinking. Christmas Day gets worse each year, I had no presents that I could play/mess with so I resorted to watching Christmas repeats and listening to my Nan trying to spit out stories about my mother, whilst forgetting the details along the way. I've had nicer Christmas Dinners too, the turkey was dry and my Dad put too much garlic in with the roasts, I ate it none the less.
I don't get why my grandparents come either, they just moan because we don't watch Strictly, then talk through the programs we do watch. Then my Nan and Gran constantly try to outdo each other and make snide remarks trying to make out that they are the better grandparent. I'm done with Christmas, it's a waste of time. Until next year comes of course...
I'd like to do something on New Years Eve but of course, I won't be invited to anything. I'll end up in bed at 10, having spent all night watching old comedy shows and playing Football Manager. Happy Fucking New Year. So we went back out for a meal and still most places were closed, this being at 7:30pm. We had a look at what there was open and settled in a little Chinese restaurant by the sea. Very good prices in there, a 5 course meal was only €10 (that's £9). Service was very good too. I guess we may end up going back there if everywhere stays closed!
At the end they brought out little flannels that were steaming, intended to wipe your hands and face after the meal. I, however, had earlier spilt my beef in oyster sauce on the nice table cover and tried to use the steamy towel to remove the stain. Needless to say, the stain remained.
This is why I don't come away with my parents anymore, they'd rather walk along the front and sit and watch people go past. You can sit and watch people out of our living room window! They don't do anything fun or interesting, not to me anyway.
You can probably tell that I'm really bored because im blogging on holiday. Maybe i'm just sad? Yeah, that's most likely it.
After a turbulant flight, we arrived at Faro airport 25 minutes ahead of schedule. Our taxi man was there already so we didn't have to wait for him. It was 9 degrees when we landed at 9:45am, within a few hours the sun was out and the temperature had doubled so we thought we'd go for a scroll along the front and see what there was. Of course, it's Boxing Day, so nowhere's open. Hoping to go go-karting one day, there's a good track just down the road.
The hotel's nice, we're on the corner of the building so we have a massive balcony, and I mean a massive balcony! I was hoping for Sky Sports in the room so I could watch the footie but the best we had was EuroSport, the very best when you want to watch Skiing and Curling, real sport.
I guess it's nice to get away, but Portugal is nowhere near as nice as Turkey, I'm still quite tired after not being able to sleep on the plane, the headrests were too low so either my neck hurt or my back did. No in flight film either, not one of my better flights.
In some ways, I wish I was still at home, there's probably more to do there. I'm a miserable bugger, me. At least I can go do some shopping if a) the shops are open and b) they're actually any good. I'll probably just come back with it all and spend a fortune at Topman or ASOS...
The hotel has free wi-fi but only in reception, what's the point in that? The hotel's quite nice though, might get a good night's sleep for the first time in a while..
Wishful thinking. Christmas Day gets worse each year, I had no presents that I could play/mess with so I resorted to watching Christmas repeats and listening to my Nan trying to spit out stories about my mother, whilst forgetting the details along the way. I've had nicer Christmas Dinners too, the turkey was dry and my Dad put too much garlic in with the roasts, I ate it none the less.
I don't get why my grandparents come either, they just moan because we don't watch Strictly, then talk through the programs we do watch. Then my Nan and Gran constantly try to outdo each other and make snide remarks trying to make out that they are the better grandparent. I'm done with Christmas, it's a waste of time. Until next year comes of course...
I'd like to do something on New Years Eve but of course, I won't be invited to anything. I'll end up in bed at 10, having spent all night watching old comedy shows and playing Football Manager. Happy Fucking New Year. So we went back out for a meal and still most places were closed, this being at 7:30pm. We had a look at what there was open and settled in a little Chinese restaurant by the sea. Very good prices in there, a 5 course meal was only €10 (that's £9). Service was very good too. I guess we may end up going back there if everywhere stays closed!
At the end they brought out little flannels that were steaming, intended to wipe your hands and face after the meal. I, however, had earlier spilt my beef in oyster sauce on the nice table cover and tried to use the steamy towel to remove the stain. Needless to say, the stain remained.
This is why I don't come away with my parents anymore, they'd rather walk along the front and sit and watch people go past. You can sit and watch people out of our living room window! They don't do anything fun or interesting, not to me anyway.
You can probably tell that I'm really bored because im blogging on holiday. Maybe i'm just sad? Yeah, that's most likely it.
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