The US vs Portugal, Soccer World Cup...The town was hopping..Today's our Madeira halfway point....A year ago...history of a village...

Shortly after 11:00 pm, I took this photo of the TV during the World Cup game between Portugal and the US.

Yesterday, while on my walk up the torturous steep hill I could sense the enthusiasm over the upcoming night's soccer/football game, Portugal verses the US.

One of many flags of Portugal on display in our neighborhood.

With the Portugal flags displayed and waving from homes in the area, the excitement could be palpated. From time to time, cars zoomed along the steep road, honking their horns.

The strong winds over the weekend, made it hard to see some of the flags.

It was ironic that we are in Portugal when this World Cup game was being played against the US. Tom stayed up to watch the game on TV, broadcast in Portuguese from Brazil, which didn't start until 11:00 pm.

While on my walk I was close enough to see this flag hanging out the window of this house in Campanario.

Shortly after 1:00 am, he came to bed explaining to me in my somewhat of a sleepy stupor that the two teams tied at the end. In a way I was glad. At least with a tie as opposed to a loss for Portugal, as US citizens we won't be fodder for ridicule when the locals detect our clearly American accents, at times oddly mistaken for British. (I guess it the "English" we speak).

As we stood on the veranda, we spotted this flag at quite a distance. It was so windy I had a difficult time holding the camera steady for the shot. Thus, the blurry image.

The day was spent in a determined effort to find a place to live in the northern part of Australia a year from now with little luck. Prices are twice as high as we've seen in other countries/continents, getting so little for the money.

We've seldom seen children in the neighborhood until yesterday during a birthday party a few doors down. There were several children playing in this blow up structure but I made an effort to keep them out of the photo.

It's been the toughest search we've experienced in all of our travels. We inquired to no less than a dozen properties to no avail. The prime cooler season of June through September provides little, if any, room for negotiation.

More Christmas holly growing in the neighborhood.

In the next few weeks, we'll either decide to bite the bullet and pay more than we've budgeted or, go to a different less popular location than that of Cairns, Darwin and all the surrounding beach towns.

At this point we're trying for ocean views. That may be the next criteria we are forced to forgo. Perhaps, "walking distance to the beach" will be an alternative. Neither of us can see the charm of living on the interior of Australia in a condo overlooking nothing of particular interest.

The season for roses is rapidly fading away. Only a few remain much to my disappointment.

We're not looking for a "place to crash." We need a view, something to watch occur, nature surrounding us.

Later today, after a much needed trip to the supermarket in Ribeira Brava, a few household and financial tasks, we'll be back at it...on the search once again. Sure, if we lightened our requirements, settled for less, accepted a less appealing property, this wouldn't be such a daunting task.

I posted this solitary photo on my Facebook page a few days ago receiving a number of "likes." So perfect and beautiful.

We never fail to remember why we're doing this. It's not for a "place to live." It's for a "place to love." We're especially reminded of that particular "feeling" as we spend this special time overlooking the sea in Madeira.

The view, the persona of this enchanting village, the bells ringing, the goats baaing, the rooster crowing, the flowers and greenery, the farms, the musical food trucks, the complexity of the terrain and of course, the people...we love it all. We need this sense of wonder and awe in order to fulfil our dreams of traveling the world.

Another rose, who's beauty is fading with time. Isn't that how it goes? We all wither in time. But, who we really are, our hearts, our souls remains with us long after the petals have fallen.

The search continues on until we accomplish our goal. It may not have a view of the majestic sea. However, whatever we ultimately choose must make us happy and excited. That, dear readers, we know for sure.

And we promise whatever it may be, we'll share it here with you the next morning when we grab our coffee, position ourselves on this comfy sofa with the view of the ocean a mere glance to the floor to ceiling glass walls. Get it? We do. We will.
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Photo from one year ago today, June 23, 2013:

Getting used to the steep winding roads in Boveglio, Italy was challenging. Plus, we had problems with the internet signal at our house resulting in difficulty in posting, often with editing impossible. The story we wrote that day may be of interest to history buffs. Please click here for details.