Sol & Mar

I was hungry at 1pm and Sol & Mar looked like a reasonable place to find a bite to eat. There were already three Portuguese ladies enjoying coffee inside so that was better than the first place I stopped where I was told they weren't doing food today.

I asked for a menu and between my broken Tetum and the two waitresses broken English we got an order together.

They didn't have a fresh lemon juice I was so looking forward to but that's typical for most Timorese Restaurants, things on menus are often unavailable. I enjoyed my chicken skewers in spicy sate sauce with an iced lemon tea instead.

Whilst I waited the few minutes for my lunch to be cooked I noticed a whiteboard high on the wall beside the hatch where I had ordered. It was in Tetum but I recognised a list of sandwiches, something that had not been mentioned in the menu. I was a bit disappointed since I would have preferred a cold meal on such a hot day.

As well as the large open bar and restaurant area the waitresses were serving across the road where a couple of people were relaxing in the plastic chairs on the beach.

Today was Monday so the whole of Portuguese Beach was deserted except for about a dozen sun bathers. It's a different story on the weekends. The whole area is packed with UN staff and the 3 or 4 establishments must do a roaring trade all day and on into the small hours of the morning when the coffees are replaced by alcohol and the music is turned right up.