It’s been five months since our contractor: Esquadria Estável Construcoes (Mr José Benedito) commenced work, which was great in one sense; ‘we got started’ but the downside was we were heading into winter!
The weather in Evora and the inner Alentejo region usually means extremes in terms of rain and temperature. Winters are a bit rainy and cold; Summers are dry and very hot, typically reaching highs of 44ºC. November & December (2022) were exceptional in terms of rainfall which hindered the construction process.
In the first three months of 2023, the weather has been kind to the construction team. The Agricultural building (large garage) is progressing nicely and taking shape.
The all-in-important swimming pool construction has commenced in earnest, with the excavations transforming the back garden into a huge hole and corresponding earth mountain.
As part of our planning consent, we obtained permission to excavate a pond in the lower half of the back garden, measuring 50mx20m with a maximum depth of 4m. This has proven to be a challenge in terms of the cost of excavating it. We have received two quotes; €58,000 / €48,000 (not including 23% tax) which came as a shock. Not deterred we hatched a plan whereby we bought a secondhand excavator & will do it ourselves.
In the meantime, Geoff is studying Youtube for ‘Beginners Lessons’ on how to operate an excavator, watch this space for the up-and-coming exploits of Geoff & me learning how to operate the new excavator.
Charlie, Bella & Elsa have all adapted quickly to their new surroundings, which had caused us some trepidation. At 10 am tea break the dogs can be found sitting in the tractor shed with their newfound friends (construction team)! Charlie has adopted the chief role of ‘Building Inspector’.
Retiring to Evora 
Wow, it’s looking good and coming along nicely. Let us know when we can book a lane swim and we will get our flights sorted… Seriously, hope to see you all soon xxx
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Evening!
We are coming over next week to view some properties. We are almost certainly flying over on Wednesday to view houses on Thursday and then fly back Friday. It would be wonderful to meet up although I fear the logistics of it could be challenging!
Everything is still to be confirmed, but we hope to see Fernando at some point on Wednesday and I think most of Thursday will be spent with Catarina Lucas. We should be free on the evenings, but alas will not have transport…! There, I have left the conversation open ended to allow you to fill in whatever blanks you like! Kirsty and I have both said we must take you to dinner, but we have no car and no local knowledge, so as mentioned, catching up could be a challenge, not least due to the short notice!
Hope you are both well, I should get confirmation from Catarina tomorrow that next week is suitable, and will let you know our plans as soon as we do!
All the best
David
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