Saturday 13th April 2013 - Sunday 14th April 2013

All around us are Brits (English, Irish, Welsh and Scots), we cannot just say “English” now, they are all so prickly about it. Just a couple of Dutch, Germans and French to add to the mix.

Yesterday, another British van arrived, from their accents, I think we can safely say English.

On the back of their van, they have slogans and jokes.

Their surname is Wylde, so, emblazoned across the top of the back of the van, they have the words “Wylde Thing”.  

Other slogans include:

“Don’t steal, the Government hates competition”.

“Adventure before Dementia”.

“Old Age Travellers”.

A cycle ride to the beach, then along the promenade in Quarteira, to Vilamoura Marina.

A nice five mile cycle to work up our appetite.

Lunch at the Vilamoura Marina, and very nice it is too.

To think, we only have seven more weeks to go, isn’t life so unfair?

It is Sunday, so, Church for Kathleen.

While Kathleen is away at church, I busy myself with a few small chores, then go out on my bicycle to try and find the route to the beach behind the campsite. We can see the small road, cars, people and cyclists going along it, but we cannot find where the track emerges onto the main road.

Armed with some directions from one of the “residents” here, I still fail to find it, but, I do find another track to a beach on the other side of the lagoon.

Better luck tomorrow, perhaps.

The mystery of the full purse.

I meet Kathleen from Church and we walk the length of the promenade to work up an appetite for lunch.

As we walk, we decide to have lunch at a restaurant (Fantasia Restaurant) which has been recommended to us by the Wylde Campers.

I check my wallet, not much cash left, I will need to go to a cash machine.

Now Kathleen and I, operate an “equality” system, Kathleen has her money, I have mine, and we share the costs.

Each time I have drawn money from the cash machine, Kathleen too, has drawn money.

I have spent all of mine, Kathleen still has a wad of Euros, in her purse.

How can that be?

I think the phrase “Kathleen has her money, I have mine, and we share the costs.” Should read “Kathleen has her money, and Kathleen has my money, and the costs come out of my money!”..

It is decided we will eat at Fantasia, and big wow, Kathleen will pay.

While we peruse the menu, I treat us to a couple of cocktails (Pinacolada and Tequila Sunrise) with my last 10Euro.

Mystery solved, I am just too generous.

I should point out, the move to cocktails is partly my brother John’s fault. John commented on Facebook (to a photograph of Kathleen), that it was the first time he had seen her without a glass of red wine in her hand. 

Kathleen felt the need to show, she is not addicted to Red Wine or Gin, she will in fact drink just about anything.

The mystery of the third empty beer bottle.

After lunch, we return to the van, have a cold beer and chill out, well, fall asleep to be more precise.

After a while, when we wake up, we have a tidy up of the empties.

Big mystery, there are three empty bottles, there are, you may have observed only two of us.

Now, the bottles of beer are only 50cents in Lidl, so, as far as I am concerned, it is not worth worrying about.

Kathleen however is not so easily fobbed off.

Have we had a burglar who helped himself to a beer while we were comatose?

While pondering this mystery, she decides to make a coffee to shake our senses into action.

Kathleen's cup is already dirty, mine is clean.

Mystery solved, after Church, Kathleen had a coffee (hence, the dirty cup), I had a beer (hence, the third bottle).

I have been caught out, Alzheimer’s is here.