Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Autumn

The vineyards around Casa Brigitte are showing their autumn colours - and we are harvesting chestnuts, a lot more than last year.

Kittens are growing up

Our kittens are 4 months old now. They do everything together - playing, eating, sleeping....
very important: experiencing their new surroundings. Last saturday morning Minka was sitting on a tree at an altitude of 7 metres - nearly the height of a 2-storey house -, not knowing how to descend, trembling with fear, miaowing and crying. Loni was walking up and down on the ground, upset, and miaowing despairingly. Well, our best ladder was sufficient to reach Minka. Hopefully they will be able soon to manage such situations themselves.
They are really sweet, incredibly devoted, and always being a lovely sight with their coats shining like the stars at night.

A New Holiday Home at Quinta Do Sobral!

A new holiday home is under construction at our country estate. It is likely to be available from April 2011 on! As with Casa Brigitte, it is a matter of reconstruction. It will be larger than the former house: 2 floors, the ground floor with 1 bedroom, bathroom, spacious living/sitting room and open kitchen. First floor: 2 bedrooms and one more bathroom. Everything very comfortable, with central heating in winter and air conditioning in summer. The house is suitable for disabled people as well. And we are lucky to receive 40 % funds from the European Union, from the Portuguese PRODER program for delvelopment of the rural areas. One more success for the Rural Tourism.

Grape Harvest

As we use only a small amount of the grapes to prepare our own wine, we have a lot to offer for sale. Our clients come with their helpers and accomplish their own harvest. And when the work is done, we all have a fantastic Portuguese sardine party together.

Kittens

At any time you may have a pleasant surprise: one day our cat Garrida had a bad injury and needed treatment in the animals' hospital. Bernhard took her to Penela, and while he was waiting for the doctor to finish his work, 2 kittens approached trying to attract his attention. One even clung to his pullover using its little claws and teeth. Yes, the doctor explained, we care for them, but they really need a proper home. Bernhard liked the little ones, so he called Brigitte and asked: "what do you think about this?" As we wanted to have more cats since our Zarca had disappeared in May, we decided to adopt them both. Only 5 weeks old and without mum, we did not have the heart to separate them.
So we have 2 mor cats: Minka (photos on the left) and Loni (on the right).
They seem to be happy: they eat a lot, play around, always waiting for us to make time for them.
And Bernhard already prepared the long ladder to help them get down the trees they will climb without knowing how to descend...

Summer Flowers

These flowers exist here in a wide variety of colours - they really contribute to a colourful Mediterranean summer.

Tessa, our little dog

Now Tessa is 5 months old. She is always pleased to meet our guests. She is everybody's darling. Especially the children love to play with her. This 6-year-old Danish boy, Theodor, even bought dog-biscuits for her.

Water-lilies

Our Solar has a really nice interior garden - like the Romans had in ancient times. And now the water-lilies are in bloom!

Citrus Blossoms: the scent of early Mediterranean summer

Orange trees produce a wealth of blossoms



Tangerine blossoms: slender and tender


Lemon: with a trace of violet



Last not least: grapefruit

Wonderful Edible Mushrooms!

It is true: this is a specimen of the wonderful Boletus Aestivalis we harvest here on our country estate. This one is 262 g! Depending on the weather, we have several kilograms of them in early summer.






















And we have mushrooms (Agaricus Campester) !

Tessa

An abandoned little dog: approx. 2 months old, and left alone at the border of our country estate. Hard to believe: Beno, our adult dog, adopted the little one, feeding her in the traditional wolfs' manner, warming her at night and playing with her during the day. When we realized what was going on, we asked all the neighbours if they knew the owner: yes, everybody seemed to know, the owner was a Mister Such-and-such, living up the road. Alright, we visited him taking the dog with us and asked: Is this your dog?
Yes, he said, but I already have two dogs, I cannot keep all of them. But I feeded her down there every day!
Well, we asked, may we adopt the little one?
Alright, he answered, everything is settled!
So we have one more dog now.







Tessa loves playing with her adoptive father!




Exploring the country estate: always exciting!






Yes, this is my territory!

Take care, Eddie!

Springtime: Eddie has returned to wildlife!

The story:

His weight is 1270 g now. Obviously he had had a good winter. He rolls into his defensive ball perfectly - now he may go!

His last meal in our house:
Sunday 21st, 5:30 p.m.

Oh dear, what are they going to do to me?
We are taking you to a wonderful place in nature!

Of cause his den goes with him, along with a protection for the food that we still offer - just in case.

He immediately found some of his natural food. Apparently he does not need any more help.

Garrida is wondering:
What a fuss!

Take care, Eddie!
We shall miss him.