At this very moment, as I click “Publish”, Michael and our two cats are on the final stretch of their flight from Dubai to Lisbon. Michael for a short 12 day visit, and the cats to permanently come live with me. To say that I am super-excited would be an understatement. How Midnight and Lily feel about all of this, is a guess at best.
Their big adventure started yesterday at midday, when they headed from Abu Dhabi to Dubai to spend the night at a hotel, as they had to be at the airport at 3am, four and a half hours before their flight. They were understandably skittish and nervous, and struggled to settle down in their strange environment, just to be, a couple of hours later, bundled into their cages again for the longest leg of their journey.
When they arrive in Lisbon we will head to an apartment in Montijo, just on the other side of the river from the airport, so that they can have a break and eat and drink again, as they would then have been without food and water for 24 hours.
Bright and early on Monday morning we will embark on the final leg of the journey, a three hour drive to the quinta. I hope they will like their new home, and enjoy the delights of being outside in nature as much as I do. For the first 10 days they will be housebound to get them used to their new environment, using my mother-in-law’s trick of rubbing a bit of butter under their paws to prevent them from running away the first time we open the door for them to the big outside world.
“Cats choose us; we don’t own them.”
– Kristin Cast
Midnight, an Arabian Mau, manipulated her way into our hearts at the beginning of February, three years ago.
The first cat who adopted us was a very loving blue eyed tomcat, unimaginatively named Kitty (of course there’s a story), who crawled into our life and laps, while we lived in Al Ain. After we had to put him down the previous November, I told Michael in no uncertain terms that I didn’t want any other cats . . . EVER. It was just too heartbreaking to say goodbye, and I thought the best way to safeguard my heart would be to avoid all street cats. As we were living on the eigth floor of an apartment block in Abu Dhabi, I thought I was well protected.
What I didn’t factor in was Michael babbling about this gorgeous little kitten living in the tiny garden of the office building where he worked. Cringing at the thought that anyone is hungry, I told him to feed her the dry food we still had left over from Kitty. Soon she was waiting for him at the door every morning, and I even went to meet her, but Michael, who suffers from severe commitment phobia was reluctant to adopt her, yet couldn’t stop talking about her, so when she developed a cyst on her cheek, I gave him an ultimatum: take the cat to the vet, or leave her to her fate and never speak of her again in my presence.
Let’s just say that allowing nature to take its course wasn’t an option for him, and that night as she snuggled close to me, with a horrible plastic cone around her head which kept dragging her off balance and turned her walk into a slink, earning her the nickname ‘slinky dinks’, I knew that she had found the empty space Kitty left in my heart.
“I had been told that the training procedure with cats was difficult. It’s not. Mine had me trained in two days.”
– Bill Dana
Michael found Lily, a Turkish Angora, when he stumbled upon the Cat Lady in the parking area of our apartment building, where she was waiting for her ride to take Lily to the vet. She found Lily in another clinic when she went to buy cat food, and a worker brought her in so ill that if the kind Cat Lady didn’t take her, would in all likelihood have died. She nursed her back to health, and we committed to giving her a home on the condition that Midnight approved.
Michael built a special door for the man lab (our second bedroom where he stores all his toys like a CNC machine and heaven knows how many tools and screws), and we took turns to spend time with Lily, even sleeping on a mattress on the floor, while we gradually introduced them to one another. It didn’t go quite as smoothly as we would have liked, but we persisted, as Lily wiggled her way skillfully into our hearts.
Ironically where we thought Midnight would be the aggressor, it turned out that sweet, gentle Lily was the one who turned into a white ball of fury at the most unexpected moments as she invaded the space Midnight used to call her domain. That was fourteen months ago, and although they have their occasional spats, they mostly gravitate between silently tolerating one another and bouts of joyful play.
“A happy arrangement: many people prefer cats to other people, and many cats prefer people to other cats.”
– Mason Cooley
“Since each of us is blessed with only one life, why not live it with a cat?”
– Robert Stearns
“You take the one on the left. The one on the right is mine!” 
“What are these wonderful new things our humans got us?”
“I meant,” said Ipslore bitterly, “what is there in this world that truly makes living worthwhile?”
Death thought about it.
“CATS”, he said eventually. “CATS ARE NICE.”
– from: Sourcery by Terry Pratchett
Portuguese Words:
gato(s) (m) / gata(s) (f) – cat(s)
viagem – travel
o avião – aeroplane
Notes:
# On Wednesday I finally had my appointment with SEF (immigration), and with all the formalities done, I now just have to wait a couple of months to receive my residence card in the mail. So finally, after a lot of stress to accumulate a stack of paperwork through contracting an agency in South Africa to do all the footwork, and immigration lawyers in Lisbon to take care of the details amidst the challenges of a pandemic, Portugal is officially my country of residence. Definitely a cause for celebration. (This process deserves an entire blog post. One I will write once I have my residence card in my hands.)
# Michael and I are strong believers in paying professionals to take care of the details and paperwork, whenever we have to deal with official processes we have no knowledge about. We realise that they are not available to everyone due to cost, and are deeply grateful that we have the resources to pay for these services, as it helps to shave off a couple of layers of stress in the process. In Abu Dhabi, Britvet was crucial in helping us through the years of caring for our cats, and dealing with the stack of paperwork we needed to relocate Midnight and Lily. (We thought it a good omen that our vet in Abu Dhabi is from Portugal. Not only did he helped us through the agony of Kitty’s illness, comforted us when we had to make the final decision to put him down, and rejoiced with us when we adopted Midnight and Lily, but answered every worry and concern with patience and concern. I am looking forward to the day we will all live in Portugal and can meet up for a glass of wine, talking about the years we spent in the UAE.)
Written by: Jolandi
Hello again dear friend!
So happy to hear that all your dear ones (both human and furry) are on their way to you!
I humbly agree with your philosophy of paying competent professionals to take care of paperwork and important details whenever possible, and am very glad you have the resources to do so. Wishing you a Happy Valentine’s Day 🙂
Thank you so much, Takami. Having Michael and the cats with me on Velentine’s Day was a special gift. I hope you had a lovely day with your husband and that you are both well. – Jolandi
What a nice warm story for my wintry Sunday morning! Sunning kitties, Michael and the cats’ imminent arrival, a heartwarming backstory, and even all your positive news on residency and vet paperwork! Have a wonderful time with Michael, and I hope the cats settle in nicely and provide some good company as you wait for him to come back permanently (I forget when that will be).
P.S. I was studying the photo of Midnight looking out toward the balcony in Abu Dhabi and wondered if you ever let him out there? I am not a cat owner but one look at those birds on the railing, and I pictured a leaping cat!
Ah, thank you, Lexie. I’m happy to report that the whole journey went well, and I for one can’t wait to finish that final leg to the land tomorrow morning.
You’ve just painted the picture of my biggest fear. Friends who came to visit were always lectured about that balcony door. Both Midnight and Lily were trained well to stay inside. Not that I ever left the balcony door open, but I did always hang my washing out there, so they were taught not to try and sneak past my legs. I always, as an extra precaution, made sure that there were no birds in sight when I opened the door, as instinct will always prevail. Just recently a cat fell from the 12th floor of the apartment block, and he was so badly injured that they had to put it down. I had nightmares about that balcony!
As for when Michael will permanently settle in Portugal . . . well, that’s open for debate. His work contract finishes in December, but only time will tell when he will be ready to make that final leap. – Jolandi
It is good to know that you, Michael and the cats will be together for the next twelve days; I hope you all have a wonderful time! I enjoyed reading how you became a cat-person. Once our three rescued cats had all died I couldn’t face getting any more because of the terrible anxiety when they are sick and the misery when they die.
Congratulations on having all the immigration formalities out of the way; it will be great to eventually have that residence card in your possession!
Thank you, Clare. I can’t wait to hold that residence card in my hand.
I can so relate to your anxiety when your rescues were sick, as that is perhaps the reason I never wanted pets before. Both Midnight and Lily have very different personalities, and they bring a lot of joy to my daily life. – Jolandi
What gorgeous cats! As one who has been repeatedly adopted by street cats, I give you credit for opening your hearts and home to a couple of them. Yes, it’s heartbreaking when they pass on, but cats in particular have a funny way of snuggling into the hole their predecessor left in your life.
I’m also glad Michael is able to spend some time with you. Long distance marriages are hard, especially when you’re the one holding the fort. I hope you two are able to enjoy the visit and not have to preoccupy yourselves with fixing the house or working on legal paperwork. I also believe in hiring professionals to handle difficult jobs whenever possible. I feel bad that so many can’t get over the hurdles of immigration without having to shell out thousands in currency to some legal expert, who is hopefully honest and ethical. My son-in-law, who was born in India but had been living in the US since he was eight, had to pay several thousand dollars to an immigration attorney to get his citizenship, even after he married my daughter, a US citizen from birth. (I thought it mildly funny that my daughter had to show photos of him with me to prove he had met her family and we could attest to his character.) Wanting to live in a new country should be an honor, not an expensive privilege. Wishing you and Michael the best of luck!
Thank you, Hangaku. We think they are very striking, and just like their looks their personalities are quite the opposite. My heart breaks to think of the difficult life these cats have in the UAE where summers are both long and brutal.
It is crazy to think how difficult and costly it is to get residency or citizenship in most countries. I’m astounded at your son-in-law’s story, as I always thought cases like his would be easy and straightforward. Just shows you how little we know about the challenges others have to face.
We are trying to balance work and relaxing, so that Michael can at least feel that he is getting a break too, as he hasn’t had some time off to just relax for about 15 months.
– Jolandi
Wonderful news all the way around. So happy you’ll be reunited with your fur babies ~ enjoyed the backstories, only hope Michael could stay around longer. He must have some stories with all the traveling he’s been during this this time. Give the cats kisses from Aunt Lani, xo
The cats loved those kisses from Auntie Lani! It is a joy to have them here, Lani, just not when they start to destroy my brand new curtains or eye my even newer couch instead of their scratch pad!! We are planning to allow them outside a bit from tomorrow, and hopefully they will start scratching the olive trees instead. Fingers crossed they won’t go too far exploring . . . I’m a tad nervous!
I think Michael wish for normality to return to airtravel, as it is not a pleasurable experience any longer. That said, we humans are remarkably adaptable, and what seems ridiculous or frustrating or whatever initially can quickly feel normal a short while later. We were hoping he could stay a bit longer, but 12 days are better than nothing, so I decided to rather count it as a blessing. 🙂 – Jolandi
Midnight and Lily are quite lucky animals. Lily is quite a stunning beauty. Hope they settle in well, as well as you two.
Thank you, Greg. I find it heartbreaking to see abandoned cats. Especially in the UAE where the summers are brutal and life can be very short and harsh for street cats. They are a blessing, and wonderful company. They seem to be settling in nicely, and tomorrow we will allow them to go outside for the first time for a little while. – Jolandi
I hope Midnight and Lily have settled into their new home, Jolandi. 😸😸
They are settling in nicely, Tanja. We are trying to get them used to going outside, but that will take a while, as they are still very jittery to leave the house. – Jolandi
I’m glad they are settling in, Jolandi, This might be a good opportunity to turn them into indoors cats, so they won’t kill local birds. As you know, that’s a huge problem.
Although I know it is a problem in certain places in the world, I honestly do not think it is the case everywhere, Tanja. Midnight and Lily, after having lived indoors for most of their lives are just too happy to be outside, chewing on grass, sniffing flowers, climbing the olive trees or on top of the roof, or just sitting in the sun. They have no chance in catching any of the birds flitting about above their heads, and I would be quite surprised if they do. A bigger threat to the bird population are the hunters with their guns. – Jolandi
That’s good to know, Jolandi.
Best,
Tanja
The only cat I ever “owned” adopted me too! I have never been able to replace her. Those two are just gorgeous! I’m about to catch up on some of your later posts, and looking forward to reading how it is working out.
Thanks, Gwen. To be honest, I would prefer my life to be uncomplicated and without the responsibility of having cats. BUT they bring joy in their company and presence, which I would never want to change. They are loving their new surroundings and being allowed outside, although I still regulate that with an iron hand. This morning Midnight came running back into the house. Something clearly scared her, and I was glad to note that she knows this is a place of safety instead of running off somewhere else. – Jolandi
For some reason your posts still end up in my junk file even when I click on that they are not junk! I am behind in your life journey. By now Michael will already be gone. I hope you two had a wonderful time together. I’m sure those two beautiful cats fill you with joy. Makes me happy just looking at the photos. Those eyes on Midnight, wow! I know cats can be sensitive about change (and their’s was a big one), though based on the later post I read it sounds like they are settling in.
Spam filters really are a double-edged sword with a will of their own, I find. I’ve made a commitment to post every Sunday, Caroline, if that helps at all with expecting a new post.
Yes, we had a lovely time together, and I even managed to convince him to take it slower and relax a bit, instead of trying to get too much done. As always, time just went by too quickly.
I love having the cats here with me, and they are settling in nicely. I am learning to relax about them exploring outside, although I hope they will stay close to home. They really differ like day and night, not just in physical appearance, but personality as well. Lily is starting to follow me around when I have outside chores, or comes running when I call, while Midnight is far more aloof.
Michael is the big cat lover in our relationship, and I’ve always kicked against having cats because of my own allergies. Years ago, when I was away for six weeks in South Africa, he opened the window to our first rescue cat, Kitty, who we spayed and fed in the garden, but who I refused to allow inside. Anyway, I guess now my body has adjusted to some degree, but I still regularly have to reach for my antihistamines and asthma medication. The four months I lived without them here in Portugal was a reminder of how good it was to breathe freely, but I guess the love I have for them trump the physical discomfort.
– Jolandi
I’m glad to hear that you and Michael had a nice visit, albeit too short. It’s interesting to read about your allergies and how you’ve adjusted a bit over time. Mike’s are really severe. About 15 years ago, when our then young son and I both desperately wanted a cat, we drove to Washington to meet with a Siberian cat breeder. Supposedly this breed is hypoallergenic. Gorgeous cats but within 20 minutes Mike’s eyes were so bulged out he looked like a monster. I still remember my son looking at me sadly and asking: Does this mean we can’t have a cat?
Thanks for the heads up on your posting schedule. I’m often behind as I have so much to read.
I know exactly what a Siberian cat looks like, Caroline, as my stepsister bought one for her son who was also quite allergic. They are gorgeous, and I must say, if Mike had that reaction with one of those, I cringe to think what another cat would do to him. It makes my allergies pale in comparisson. I have a lot of sympathies for anyone who suffers from allergies, as they really destroys one’s quality of life. My heart also cringes to think how much your son would have loved a cat.
It is so hard to keep up with blogging and reading, and have time for all the normal chores and joys of life, Caroline! I find that I now follow a limited amount of blogs (only those that bring me joy), as I simply cannot keep up otherwise. – Jolandi