You made me laugh out loud. Especially the wordswordswords... yesterday our car's transmission decided it was too hot or something (it was 95 degrees in the Eastern Algarve) and proceeded to die on the A22 highway. Somehow my husband coaxed it in neutral of all things to a very local, undoubtably Portuguese restaurant, where it was my job to go in and seek help "Com licencia, eu preciso ajuda; meu carro e reparticao" and pointed to my husband out in the parking lot trying to push the car to a safe spot. Sure enough, in the midst of words...she called out two patrons by name and ordered them out to help my husband. We tried to buy them beer, but they refused. We ended up having a delightful lunch in air conditioning while waiting for the tow truck and the cab to take us home, both gratis on our car insurance. Big tips all around. I love this country.
I laughed so hard I had tears! I can relate, and it is wise to keep your humor during times like this. Every day is an adventure! Thanks for the great article.
This cracked me up! The wordswordswords part. LOL! It reminded me of being in Barcelona and asking for directions but not understanding the words. We kept asking different people and would head out towards where they were pointing. We are a little nervous about finding certain food items, like beans, because we are vegan and it might be tough for us to eat out much.
There are so many vegan options in Lisbon it's nuts. I don't know where you are now and/or plan to be later but I think you will have choices if you do your research.
And yeah, we've done the "walk in the direction we were pointed towards for a while and then ask someone else" thing.
That’s great to hear! We haven’t even been able to travel over there until we sell our business (too hard to get away) but we hope to settle in a smaller city.
So, did you ever find the soybeans? And sorry, what is a pepito (a small pepper? hot pepper?). I go to several grocery stores, too, but I drive. I can't believe you toted all that stuff home and walked 7kms. What did you do with my nephew Scott? I think you are both becoming Europeans. Hope your dinner went well after all that.
I did not find the edamame but our friend Filipa came to the rescue and brought us some on Saturday evening. Pepitos are pumpkin seeds. The dinner was fun!
I have made one cautious venture into Mineirão Market in Malden and attempted to communicate in Portuguese, but it didn't go well. At the critical moment I just could NOT remember that chicken is "frango," there's no cognate and "frango" just doesn't sound chicken-y to me. In my casual attempts at learning Spanish and Portuguese with language companions, I've found that foods... and animals... are brutal, just brutal. There are no exact correspondences for so many things, AND the names vary from country to country. Guinea pigs seem to have a different name in every country, for example.
Not having seen ECI, and not having a time machine, I can't be sure, but I was listening to a podcast about shopping in New York in the Gilded Age and it sounds just a tiny little bit like the grand US "department stores" from 1880 that lasted in their original format perhaps into the 1960s. The detail of having a subway station is interesting. I'm afraid I've already forgotten but there was a distinction between stores with entrances on Fifth Avenue for "the carriage trade," women arriving in carriages, and one big famous one that had an El station at its entrance and actually arranged display windows so that you could see into them as you rode on the El. The old giant department stores in Boston, Filene's and Jordan Marsh, were also built above the subway.
Did those department stores have movie theaters? I've seen films that depict those places and they do look grand. And the Metro stop here isn't dedicated solely to ECI, but they do have a private entrance to a main station.
For sauerkraut and corned beef ( had a tasting for a Ruben salad) and left with a $141 receipt. Too many BOGO offers and a 10 min wait at the Deli counter - we will enjoy fresh deli cheese: meat this week😏
When we travel, the first place we head is to the markets, so this was the perfect story--however, I should not have read it before everyone was awake, I laughed out loud and loudly at the “wordswordswords”! We are gutted that we didn’t know about ECI when we were in Lisbon, but we did find and enjoy wandering the Apolónio near Lagos (as well as multiple Continentes, Pingo Doces and ALDIs--and, of course, every single local open air market). Today is our 45th wedding anniversary and this was the perfect gift to us, to take us back to Portugal and to give us a peek into the next chapter of our lives, adventures in living and shopping in Portugal! Obrigada!
You made me laugh out loud. Especially the wordswordswords... yesterday our car's transmission decided it was too hot or something (it was 95 degrees in the Eastern Algarve) and proceeded to die on the A22 highway. Somehow my husband coaxed it in neutral of all things to a very local, undoubtably Portuguese restaurant, where it was my job to go in and seek help "Com licencia, eu preciso ajuda; meu carro e reparticao" and pointed to my husband out in the parking lot trying to push the car to a safe spot. Sure enough, in the midst of words...she called out two patrons by name and ordered them out to help my husband. We tried to buy them beer, but they refused. We ended up having a delightful lunch in air conditioning while waiting for the tow truck and the cab to take us home, both gratis on our car insurance. Big tips all around. I love this country.
What a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing it!
I laughed so hard I had tears! I can relate, and it is wise to keep your humor during times like this. Every day is an adventure! Thanks for the great article.
Thank you for following along.
I am a bit behind reading. Work is crazy lately, but I will NEVER miss reading one! Love the pasta “bit”. Gave me quite the chuckle!!
Hope things settle soon for you!
Thank you for today's laugh!
Glad you found it laugh-worthy.
This cracked me up! The wordswordswords part. LOL! It reminded me of being in Barcelona and asking for directions but not understanding the words. We kept asking different people and would head out towards where they were pointing. We are a little nervous about finding certain food items, like beans, because we are vegan and it might be tough for us to eat out much.
There are so many vegan options in Lisbon it's nuts. I don't know where you are now and/or plan to be later but I think you will have choices if you do your research.
And yeah, we've done the "walk in the direction we were pointed towards for a while and then ask someone else" thing.
That’s great to hear! We haven’t even been able to travel over there until we sell our business (too hard to get away) but we hope to settle in a smaller city.
So, did you ever find the soybeans? And sorry, what is a pepito (a small pepper? hot pepper?). I go to several grocery stores, too, but I drive. I can't believe you toted all that stuff home and walked 7kms. What did you do with my nephew Scott? I think you are both becoming Europeans. Hope your dinner went well after all that.
I did not find the edamame but our friend Filipa came to the rescue and brought us some on Saturday evening. Pepitos are pumpkin seeds. The dinner was fun!
I have made one cautious venture into Mineirão Market in Malden and attempted to communicate in Portuguese, but it didn't go well. At the critical moment I just could NOT remember that chicken is "frango," there's no cognate and "frango" just doesn't sound chicken-y to me. In my casual attempts at learning Spanish and Portuguese with language companions, I've found that foods... and animals... are brutal, just brutal. There are no exact correspondences for so many things, AND the names vary from country to country. Guinea pigs seem to have a different name in every country, for example.
What I can say in the calmness of my own home during a lesson varies wildly from what I can say out in the wild.
Concordo!
It's hard, for sure. And, yeah, frango isn't chicken-y. Just don't ask for galinhas, though, unless you want to leave with a live bird :-).
Not having seen ECI, and not having a time machine, I can't be sure, but I was listening to a podcast about shopping in New York in the Gilded Age and it sounds just a tiny little bit like the grand US "department stores" from 1880 that lasted in their original format perhaps into the 1960s. The detail of having a subway station is interesting. I'm afraid I've already forgotten but there was a distinction between stores with entrances on Fifth Avenue for "the carriage trade," women arriving in carriages, and one big famous one that had an El station at its entrance and actually arranged display windows so that you could see into them as you rode on the El. The old giant department stores in Boston, Filene's and Jordan Marsh, were also built above the subway.
Did those department stores have movie theaters? I've seen films that depict those places and they do look grand. And the Metro stop here isn't dedicated solely to ECI, but they do have a private entrance to a main station.
Fantastic! Jealous that you have so many grocery options!
We do have a lot of options, that's for sure.
Hysterical read!! On the other side of
Grocery shopping- a quick stop
For sauerkraut and corned beef ( had a tasting for a Ruben salad) and left with a $141 receipt. Too many BOGO offers and a 10 min wait at the Deli counter - we will enjoy fresh deli cheese: meat this week😏
That's a lot of stuff to carry home! Hope you managed it ok!
I agree with everyone else, "wordswordswords" was too funny. 😁
When we travel, the first place we head is to the markets, so this was the perfect story--however, I should not have read it before everyone was awake, I laughed out loud and loudly at the “wordswordswords”! We are gutted that we didn’t know about ECI when we were in Lisbon, but we did find and enjoy wandering the Apolónio near Lagos (as well as multiple Continentes, Pingo Doces and ALDIs--and, of course, every single local open air market). Today is our 45th wedding anniversary and this was the perfect gift to us, to take us back to Portugal and to give us a peek into the next chapter of our lives, adventures in living and shopping in Portugal! Obrigada!
Feliz aniversário! We're glad you had a good laugh and some nostalgia on your big day. Thanks for sharing that with us!
That is an amazing grocery store adventure! Worth the whole trip! 😂 Great work!