Randomness on the Road Part 5

 Happy Halloween from Portimao!  Here are more tidbits I've observed during my travels.

I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned this dude before, but this is Cristiano Ronaldo.  He is a football (American soccer) player who used the jersey number CR7.  He is practically worshipped as a god all over Europe and especially on Madeira where he grew up.  The picture was taken through a shop window -- it's a custom-made rug with his mug on it.  There are hotels bearing the name CR7, people wear his jersey everywhere, and he has his own museum in Funchal.  There’s even a statue of him outside of the museum where people rub the crotch for good luck. 

I seriously don’t think that man can live in his own country anymore.  He’d probably be mobbed on a daily basis.

Ronaldo's Best Moment with His Fans in a Coffee Shop #cristianoronaldo #football #fans #respect

Another face I keep seeing everywhere is Frieda Kahlo.  Her uni-browed visage shows up a lot in souvenir shops on tote bags and purses.  The first shot is from Montenegro while the second is from Türkiye.

In trying to make the best of Negril, Jamaica while I was there, I decided to get a massage on the beach.  The ladies who ran the place seemed surprised that I was interested and barely knew what services they offered.  Since the ‘facility’ was a bare bones space upstairs from a bar, the lady sent me to the nearby restaurant to disrobe.  I was then expected to put on a towel and carry my belongings back to the massage space. 

I got to the tiny bathroom, having nowhere to even put my clothes while I was changing, and immediately changed my mind about the whole endeavor. I realized that the draw of the service was the open-air view of the ocean, but I just wasn’t feeling it. Yet another way Jamaica got on my nerves. 

Thanks Jamaica!

I have an odd relationship with dogs.  Most of them are drawn to me.  I was walking on a beach in Hilton Head (I think) and a pair of dogs that were playing together slowly moved their way to me across several feet of sand just to say hello.  I once walked on the main street near my old house and had a pair of dogs cross the street to get to me (again, not a threat – just to say hello). 

For every two encounters I’ve had like that, there will be a dog that sees me and immediately starts barking.  No reason, I wasn’t doing anything in any of these instances.  That’s mostly been my experience in America.

In Europe, it’s been … different.  Most dogs completely ignore me.  I quickly got used to this in Türkiye as most of the street animals ignore people as a rule.  But even the leashed dogs tend to walk by like I’m not even there.  And yet I’ve encountered a few barkers as well.  Go figure.

I’ve read that dogs are drawn to a person’s scent, to their good energy.  Call me crazy, but I think there are more good or at least less stressed people in Europe so the dogs are just used to it.

I've seen these dealies in a couple of places, mostly Greece and Cyprus.  The door key controls the electricity.  As soon as you take it out of the slot, everything that isn't essential (refrigerator, power to computer) shuts off.  It takes a while to get used to, but I never worried about misplacing my key once inside.

There are a lot of tattoo parlors in Europe.  I first noticed this in Greece where even the small towns on the islands have one or more places to get inked.  The guy giving you your buttery croissant will likely have arms covered in artwork.  It’s mostly the dudes, but some of the chicks do as well (they’re also more likely to have nose rings or piercings).  Not many colored tats though, most of the designs I’ve seen are all in black.

Another recurring theme I’ve seen all over the souvenir shops is the evil eye.  Big in Türkiye, Greece, Cyprus, it’s on jewelry and clothing and takes many forms.  Also big in souvenirs?  Dongs.  Most of the souvenir shops carry statues of different sizes, including quite a few of some very happy naked men in Greece (I would have included the picture, but I don't want this post to get taken down).  

Or if you don’t need a whole statue, you can just buy a decorated wooden dong bottle opener.  If ever you need to play the “My dick’s bigger than yours” game, you can just whip one of these out and declare yourself the winner.  And then you can open a celebratory bottle of beer.