Portemonnaie terug uit Madeira

Terug en uitstekend gerepareerd!

A few months ago we were on the Portuguese island Madeira, the flower isle as people say. Well, maybe in the past it smelled of flowers, but nowadays it's the automobile gasses that produce the prominent smell, at least at the coast villages. Nevertheless we liked our stay to a certain extent because of the kind and nice people and the good food that was served in the hotel restaurant (at a surprisingly low price). And the sun of course.

What we liked the most was the inner city of Funchal, the main city of the island; small shops, an attractive market with excellent products like the garlic we took home but also sun grown tomatoes oignons, and subtropical fruits. And very well tasting sweeties as you may expect from Portugal.

During the whole trip I was looking around for buying things for my two grandchildren; most probably a grandfatheral habit I presume. When we made a look around bustrip, we were in a little town, dominated by a certain factory where I bought a small mandje for Evi, which later on was confiscated by Gijs. Everywhere I saw nice things for my little granddaughter; Gijs always gets booklets; therefore my nickname is opa boekje.

The first time we went to the inner city of Funchal we came into a street with a leather shop where I bought a pair of "shoes" for Evi. And there Roos came up with the perfect idea asking the leather working owner of the shop if he was able and willing to make a new wallet for me. My old one is oldfashioned but I'm still font of it; I cann't miss it even now since it's falling apart. It's on my body for at least 30, maybe 40 years and falls completely apart in the meantime; coins fall out of it. But these oldfashioned things are not sold anymore alas.

Well, the owner of the shop agreed on doing so; it would take him at least 6 weeks before he had the leather which was necessary for constructing it. I left my old one up there, gave my adress. He told me to be able to repair the old one as well. And so we left and waited at home. Nothing happened. After 8 weeks I wanted to call him, but he hardly could speak spanish and no english at all. So what to do? But … since more than a year we know Marjorie, the brazilian girl-friend of my son Hugo and Brazilian language is originally from Portugal, so she called by telephone.

And what happens? Two weeks later I got an enveloppe from Madeira containing my old but brilliantly repaired wallet. Back in back pocket immediately.

Marjorie will call the owner again in order to thank him, asking if we can expect a new one as well (is not really necessary no more) and in what way and how much we have to pay him.

We did not like Madeira that much that we want to go there for a second time, but I'm so glad having my repaired wallet back that maybe we will just for the sake of thanking him. I'll see what happens. And many thanks for Marjorie as well.

Apologize for my bad english; I did my very best.