Mr Lloyd & Flamingo's.

"Well that was relatively pain free eh Tanya." I said.

This as we drove away from Faro airport after a trial run through the pick up area. This 'trial run' was admittedly a week before Barbara is due to arrive but better safe than sorry eh! We also located a local campsite and wild camp spot where we can head for as her plane does not land until 1930hrs.

After stopping to pick up a fresh 5kg bag of juicy fresh Oranges from one of the roadside stalls we headed back out into the wilds of the Rio Formosa salt marshes for a couple of nights solitude.

I'd previously, on one of our bike-walks, found a wee rough track over the coastal railway and out into the salt marshes. So here I am and I've Not seen any other vehicles down here except the locals who are always out at low tide collecting shell fish. Quite a few walkers and cyclists pass nearby on the Southern Algarve cycle route and we have used the same path to visit 'Fuseta' the nearest town. It's a relatively un-touristy fishing based town complete with rail station and campsite.

We visited this afternoon and used wi-fi at a local cafe to organise Mr Lloyd and his pal Visa to transfer cash over to my special Euro card. Only Mr Lloyd was not playing. Mr Lloyd instead had the cheek to set his fraud detection department upon me. Not a big thing and I will sort it over the next day or so. What surprised me though was how 'being dragged back to the real world' got me down. For no reason at all I was suddenly angry with myself. I was upset and the whole day seemed to have turned sour. Tanya did not help either and got the sharp side of my tongue. She did her usual act of being fast asleep right by me one second and the next totally gone. Vanished, disappeared, out of sight and only re-appearing just as I started to reach panicking stage about 5 minutes later. Grrrrrr!  Yes I know, doggy lead. I'd left it back in Sadie ...... again....!

All's well that ends well though. After having given myself a good talking to we enjoyed cycling-walking round the town before heading back along the cycle track to Sadie safe and sound in her hiding place deep in the salt marshes. By the time I'd put some good music on, cooked up the rest of last nights home made chicken korma and downed a cup of tea, well, the world and things in general were back in their rightful place and the unwarranted anger at myself had dissipated.
. . .

Tanya, this morning redeemed herself admirably. At 0619hrs. She awoke and gave her morning alarm of head shake accompanied by loud flapping ear noise. Often when she does this I put on a grumbly voice and tell her. 

"Too early, Tanyas bed, back to Tanyas bed." 

She invariably does just that and we both enjoy another hour or so of sleep. Sometimes though when we are wild and it is safe to let her out I drag myself out of bed open the door for her and crawl back into bed sometimes accompanied by freshly brewed cup of tea.

So there I am, stark naked sleepily opening the door to allow Tanya her freedom and suddenly I am jerked into awakefullness and enthralled by the sight in front of me.

To my left an orange sun disc is, just as I am, sleepily and nakedly, peeping over the threshold of the horizon. In front of me on this as yet windless morning are the shallow mirror surfaced oblong shaped salt pans with about 50 Flamingo's feeding. Long pink legs and downward flexible neck moving a feeding head around in the shallow water. All peacefully and perfectly reflectively mirrored. The vista, especially using my binoculars, was stunning. A mobile phone camera, unfortunately, can in no way capture such enthralment. A few minutes later the sun had donned its clothes of strong glare and the initial beauty was past. I too finally donned robe against the cold. I made my cup of tea and retired back to bed to continue viewing through Sadies large side window. My tea drained deliciously, sip by sip, as I continued to watch my own personal flock of beautiful Flamingo's. I must at some point have dozed off for when I awoke it was 0745hrs, the sun was streaming in Sadies front window and starting to remove the early morning chill. The salt flat was empty. My Flamingo's were gone. I stared out at the salt pans now with rippled water from the cool early morning breeze. In that half awake sleepy hinterland I wondered: Was that all a dream? Sadie then gave a slight shake as the familiar clump of Tanya jumping in through the open door reminded me it was no dream. My early morning gift of Flamingo excellence from Tanya had been real and very special.

Thank you Tanya.