I thought I would let you in gently to the first official COWS Blog. A view from our roof terrace at about 6 am as we prepared for the beach walk, At least as I prepared as Myriam was still sleeping the sleep of the innocent (and hardworking). The aim was to set off from Bar Quim at about 8am after the sun had warmed the air yet the proxiity to the 17C Atlantic kept the shore reasonable cool.
First a word of explanation for the unwary and incurious to avoid any embarrassing errors.
The acronym COWS represents Clothing Optional Walking Society. Coined by me in 2022, while I was still walking and well before my knee op in 2022, it was a moment of enlightenment for me, realising that it was not only cooler, but also extremely liberating and closer to nature to go naturist in suitable environments such as home and early mornigs on Meia Praia when few were up and about.
I preached, but for most elderly people with ingrained sensibilities and who haven't had their filters blocked by PD or some other incaoacity, it fell upon already deaf ears!!
And so I walked daily, Myriam joined me for a dip occasionally and Chris and Antje dabble acording to their own timetable.
Anyway, when I spotted a gap in the Geriatric Wednesday walking activities, occasioned by annual stand down for the WAGS, and APAPS being on hold during John and Hazel's 50th Anniversary trip to Edinburgh., I decided to offer a stopgap. Lagos COWS walks are invariably governed by Nature, both in attire and tides and temperature.The latter two meaning that the temperature has to be comfortable for unclothed walking if you opt to do so, and the tide has to give a reasonable chance of walking on firm flat sand. The walks start at or near Bar Quim and heads East along the unpopulated area of the beach to the Mole where we may have a dip and then back to Bar Quim. There is no significance to the name of the Bar as it is a Portuguese abbreviation of Bar (Joa)Quim The bar is run by the capable, efficient but sometimes grumpy Louisa and her family whom we have known fo over 25 years. Total distance is only 5km tops, and we like to return before the beach is populated by tourists and families. For obvious reasons there are no personal photos but just very few items of interest should there be such.
The Beach - later when tide had receded
As I was fairly confident that there would be no other takers, I set off at about 0815, Myriam was a little late as she had back trouble, both in separating it from her mattress and from overwork in the lifting department. Eventually, as the tide was fairly high and the beach was soft and sloping steeply, she decided to go solo on the boardwalk without exercising the option.
My walk was fairly uneventful and apart from finding pieces of what seemed to be a very large decomposing ray,spread over about 400 metres of beach.
I returned to Bar Quim to meet Myriam.
The first clue to the identity of the fish: a 23 cm quill or spike - not from a sea porcupine
More debris from the suspect
A fleshy outer membane.
Fully textiled and back at Bar Quim for the post walk coffee with an acquaintance.
After this we repaired to EveryDay People, a newish place where they have a breakfast called EP Brekky.
This is ovo estrelado, salsicha, chilli crocante em bolo de caco, although it looks very much as if someone slipped a slice of cheese in there too.
They also do an interesting sandwich called a Brek Bahn Mi which is described as 'Sanduiche Vietnamita com barriga de Porco, ovo estrelado, cenoura e rabanete, baguete, which is also very tasty.
The coffee is very different from the traditional Portuguese cafe coffee, being pure arabica and lightly roasted,
And from there I repaired to my Komoder Victoria II Massage chair, dialled in the Olympics,
and spent a happy day studying the limits to which the human body could be pushed.
Not enough walking for Myriam however. At 7 pm she met 3 friends to join the previousy advertised evening walk near Lagoa. Lucky for her she had lingered in bed in the morning, as she didnt return until after midnight - or so I am told!! The walk itself was apparently only about 5 km, but the travel and social side, plus some evening shopping filled out the time..
Myriam and friends with free T-shirt.
I hope this short blog serves to alleviate concerns about the interim walks, but we shall see if anyone else turns up next Wednesday!!!
And now a couple of learned opinions culled from the Interweb:-
Have you ever stopped and wondered why we wear clothes? If you think about it, it’s an odd custom. Before exposing ourselves to the public, we choose to hang colored material from our shoulders and hips and then cinch everything together with a strip of cowhide. It’s true that this whole business provides some consolation on a frosty morning, but let’s be realistic, shall we? It’s summer. And summer means sultry. And sultry means sweat. And sweat means my clothes play the sponge more than anything else. I don’t know about you, but I’ve got better things to do with my hot months than spend them in the arms of a soggy carpet.
Milton called our clothes “these troublesome disguises.” Far better for him was that “first naked glory” that Adam and Eve enjoyed, that verse of a moment when our parents were unclothed and unabashed (Genesis 2:25). But living as we do on the far side of the bitten fruit, east of Eden, our tenderer parts find themselves squirreled away under cotton and denim. And we’re left to wonder, Is this the way it’s supposed to be? Wouldn’t it be better to cast off these duds and trot around in the buff? Adam and Eve did it. Why can’t we?
Opinions differ, but most people realise that the human body is not inherently indecent. The majority of us have been culturally conditioned to believe that being naked in public is somehow shameful. But there’s really no reason to impose our own sense of shame on others who do not share it. If you feel your body is not “good enough” for other people to see, that’s OK, but remember it’s a choice that everyone can make for themselves. Of course, people can behave indecently whether naked or clothed. When considering questions of decency, what matters is how we behave towards other people, rather than how we choose to dress.
I would rather take part here than in UK or anywhere North of the Algarve!
