the hot goddess

Staying Put in Midlife

Long before staycations became a U.S. thing on Instagram, Germans were going to Balconia for summer vacation, GB recently told me. He said when he was growing up in Germany his family would often vacation in Balconia in summer. Where is Balconia?

Literal translation: vacation on Balconia. One can also urlaub auf Terrassien, or vacation on one’s terrace or patio.

I. Love. This.

We have been enjoying the hell out of Balkonien and Terrassien this summer. Too many tourists, too many wildfires, and too much heat are keeping us close to home this season. There are a few upcoming road trips to non-fire zones in northern and central Portugal — for grape harvesting and stomping, and to hike in a now-famous forest with a recent designation shared by only two other forests in the world. More on that later. A trip to Germany will also cap summer.

We just booked our next big trip, for our third anniversary. For our first anniversary in 2025 we were in Argentina, beginning our journey below the Antarctic Circle as part of our expedition to Antarctica. Our second anniversary this year saw us in Spain. For anniversary 2027, we’re heading above the Arctic Circle near the northern tip of Finland, not far from the borders of Norway and Russia. I’ve seen the Northern Lights in Iceland, but GB has never seen them, so I’m looking forward to sharing his first sighting with him this winter.

For now, though, we are staying put, enjoying our respective homes on Portugal’s Silver Coast and our shared pied-à-terre in Lisbon on the weekends. Below are some photos from our ongoing and unfolding staycation in and near Balconia.

Solar Eclipse

The highlight of this week — this summer — was the total solar eclipse visible in Portugal for the first time since 1912. The next total solar eclipse that will be visible here will be in 2144. We will miss that one.

The path of totality was in northern Portugal. We had about 96 percent coverage north of Lisbon on the Silver Coast.
Coastal clouds parted long enough for me to capture the crescent sun at nearly maximum coverage, at 7:33 p.m. WET.
After the eclipse, the setting sun disappeared behind the Berlenga Islands in a blaze, topped with thick clouds that did not allow viewing of the Perseid meteor shower later that night.

Balkonien and Terrassien

Morning
Afternoon
Evening
Staycation “travel” brochure

Country & City Colors

Hilltop windmill
Municipal market in Setúbal
Lisbon Port
The works of the anonymous English street artist and political activist known as Banksy are featured in Lisbon’s Banksy Museum.

Lively Nights

Garden concert at Lisbon’s Gulbenkian Museum
Lisbon neighborhood festa

Quiet Evenings

Lisbon restaurant courtyard
Silver Coast star-gazing
Backyard sunsets are the best.

Thank you for reading! ❤️ Wishing you a weekend of joy and discovery close to home or wherever you are.

All images are my own except as noted.

The Hot Goddess

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