Europe: Portugal 2023

"It seems that the more places I see and experience, the bigger I realize the world to be.  The more I become aware of, the more I realize how relatively little I know of it, how many places I have still to go, how much more there is to learn."

Anthony Bourdain

On November 14, 2024, Melanie and I, along with our good friends Don & Denise, hopped on a plane and headed across the big pond to the tiny Iberian peninsula country of........

Portugal

Officially known as the Portuguese Republic, it is a country blessed with 17 UNESCO World Heritage sites, cobblestone villages, medieval castles, a rugged coastline, cosmopolitan cities, and incredible weather. Throw in great food, plentiful wine, and cheap prices, and it makes for a perfect place to spend the next three weeks.

       

One of the oldest countries in Europe with a population of 10 million, its territory has been continuously settled, invaded and fought over since prehistoric times. Today it is a different invasion, as tourists from around the world now flock in droves to this tiny country.  Many of these tourists come only to bask in the sun on the beaches of the famous Algarve region in the south, however in mid-November there is little incentive for us to travel to this area.  Instead we came to experience the culture, history, architecture, cuisine, adventure, and of course, the wine!!  But first I want to briefly discuss the ties that bind Newfoundland & Labrador with Portugal.....

Portuguese influence on Newfoundland & Labrador:  This dude has been standing in front of the Newfoundland & Labrador Confederation Building for close on 60 years but most Newfoundlanders and Labradorians haven't a clue who he is.  

Meet Gasper Corte-Real, the Portuguese explorer who, alongside his father Joao and his brother Miguel, sailed to Newfoundland in 1498 (only a few months after John Cabot "discovered" the New Founde Land in 1497).  Apparently, the Portuguese King Manuel I, believed that the coast of North America were within the realm of Portuguese control under the Treaty of Tordeillas and he sent Gasper & his merry clan to secure his ownership.  Of course the good King was wrong, and for this reason we speak English and not Portuguese. I guess timing is everything! 

Not being deterred, the good King also sent another Portuguese explorer across the big pond,  Joao Fernandes Lavrador, and this guy left an even bigger mark on the province, with the his name becoming part of our provincial name.  In addition, the most popular dog bred in the world, the Labrador Retriever, is named after the Labrador peninsula and thus by effect also bears his name!! True story!

They respect Real & Lavrador's accomplishments here in Portugal enough to name a wine after both of them!

Newfoundland & Labrador's influence on Portugal:  This is an easy one - in a word, 'codfish', specifically; salt dried codfish, NEVER fresh codfish.  Salt dried cod is the national dish, the "king of fish", practically a national treasure, one that is connected to Portuguese history, culture and cuisine.   The Portuguese fished the Newfoundland Grand Banks for more than 400 years in the famous 'white fleet', calling codfish the Bacalhau da Terra Nova.  To this day they annually consume over 100,000 tonnes (about 10 kilograms per person) and even have a cookbook with 365 salt codfish recipes (one for every day of the year), but NEVER fresh codfish.  

Bacahlau (salt dried codfish) is found everywhere in Portugal.  They have restaurants that sell nothing but and the grocery stores have pallets stacked on the floor piled high with it....always salt, NEVER fresh!!

And now you know the ties that bind Newfoundland & Labrador with Portugal.  So with this useless tibit of information in mind, we head north to the ancient city of.......

Porto

Set between the Douro River and the seaside, this city of 230,000 residents, is famed for its Port wine, sardines, medieval architecture and UNESCO-listed historic city centre. 

We take the train from Lisbon and spend eight days wandering Porto's streets, exploring the nearby regions, tasting the delectable delights and playing tourist.

This church decorated in the classic blue and white azulejo tiles was only seconds from our AIRBNB.  The glazed blue ceramic tiles from the 14th century decorate many of the buildings in Porto and usually tell a story.  True story!

Walking the Walking Street in the downtown, (good thing it wasn't called the Running Street) 

Scenes from an UNESCO World Heritage city centre.

A cafe that specializes in making only one thing - pastels (a Portuguese egg custard tart).  Thousands and thousands of pastels.  Okay, I wasn't a big fan, but apparently someone is.

Looks like we got us a jumper.....no wait, it's only some guy's blow-up doll hanging out to dry.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas with chestnuts roasting on the open fire.

Historic Porto.  The tower in the centre is the Clerigos Tower and you can climb it, all 240 steps (76 metres) to the top!  So we did......

....when we got to the top, the fog had moved in and all we could see was this.  It's beginning to look a lot like home.

True dat.  Time for wine......

....and speaking of wine.  Shopping in the Porto open-air-market with a glass of wine.  Such a civilized country!  This was the most shopping I've done in my life!

If Bacahlau is the 'king of fish' in Portugal, then the lowly sardine is the 'queen of fish'.  Here they have taken a tin of sardines to new heights with stores selling only tins of sardines.  Same slippery slimy fishy fish, as you get in every tin of sardines, but....... 

....with walls lined with thousands of tins of sardines, this has been a marketing success like no other.  I true stroke of genius in the age of persuasion!!!

Aaaaah, 1959, such a fine vintage year for the sardine! Velvety soft bony crunch with a slight hint of fishiness. 

Big B staggering home after shopping in the open-air-market and eating sardines!

Porto's famous waterfront on the Douro River.

The 'Rabelo', a traditional Portuguese cargo boat originally used to transport the barrels of Port wine to/from the wine cellars.

And now for an artistic moment:  I call this piece the "Seawall With Plants Growing Out of It".  I wanted to call it  "Another Brick In the Wall" but that one was already taken.

Porto at night with a rabelo boat (that's me on the other side waving).

No trip to Porto is complete without a glass of Port wine.  Or perhaps a good Douro vintage is more your speed?  Regardless; that glass of exceptional goodness got its start on the steep vineyard slopes of the....

Douro Valley

The Douro River valley bisects the top half of Portugal, carving a ragged gap from east to west.  There are many ways to see the valley - some prefer an expensive river cruise, while others see the public transport systems as a valid means of getting around.  In either case you'll experience postcard-pretty villages and a much slower pace of life.  We decided to take the 2 hour train to Pinhao, a sleepy little Portuguese village situated right on the Douro River.

We take the train everywhere in Portugal.  It's fast, on-time and reasonably priced, plus as a bonus, it's usually a scenic ride (similar to the Newfie Bullet)!

The train passes all kinds of relics, including this long-lost-to-nature chateau.  You can own this fixer-upper for a very reasonable price.

Sleepy scenic village # 27.

We arrive in Pinhao, sleepy scenic village # 34.  

A rabelo glides pass the terraced vineyards that make this valley famous. 

We walked around Pinhao until we got tired so decided to grab a 'Kiss & Ride'.  Our ride never turned up but we enjoyed the wait!

A truck full of freshly picked olives.  A bottle of No Name olives has about 50 olives in it and goes for $2.99, therefore, according to my calculations (os/wine + $ ÷ pie x 0), there are roughly 1.3 million dollars worth of olives in this truck.

Our final destination was a winery over there, but when we arrived the place was closing, so we........

....had to buy a bottle instead.  "Yes this one will do just fine."

We decide to do some day-trips from Porto (like ya would) and our first stop was to Portugal's 3rd largest city......

Braga

Regarded as the religious centre of Portugal, this city as long been a critical stop for the pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago (Europe's longest and most storied pilgrimage route) walk.

A must do for pilgrims walking the Comino Santiago (Europe's longest pilgrim walk) is to visit the UNESCO World Heritage basilica, Bom Jesus do Monte, with its three flights of stairs (577 steps) leading to the church.  The steps symbolize the passage from earth to heaven: pilgrims are encouraged to climb the stairs on their knees for the ultimate purification.  "Yeah....fawk dat.  I did one flight on me knees and all I got was boney knees." 

If climbing about on your knees isn't appealing, you can take Europe's oldest water powered funicular down the 274 metres (900 feet) to the bottom.

View of Braga from the steps of the church.

While in Braga we also visited its other extraordinary cathedral, the Se, the oldest church in Portugal, which was built in 1070.

Here we are getting right religious in Braga.  About to go to me second church in one day.  That's a record!!

During the middle ages the satyrs within the church were meant to scare the b'jesus out of the faithful and keep them in line!  This one would have done a good job.

Next stop on the magical mystery tour is the beautifully preserved city of..........

Guimaraes

The birthplace of the kingdom of Portugal in 1110, the old town centre is yet another (yes another) UNESCO World Heritage site.  This university town has cafe-filled plazas and a 1000-year-old castle to keep you interested.

Built in the 11th. century the seven-towered castle was the birthplace of Portugal's first king, Alfonso Henriques (known locally as The Fonz).

Let's take a selfie with my favourite Knight that says 'Ni'.

One of many plazas filled with cafes and restaurants.

Melanie leading the charge of the Light Brigade.

This house reminds me of Alfred Hitchcock's movie The Birds.

Jeezily big ole church.  Seems to be the norm here in Portugal.

B strolling the nearly deserted laneways.  If this was August, there be a gaggle of thousands swarming this place.

Last, but definitely not the least, we cross the Douro River from Porto to the sister city of......

Vila Nova de Gaia

While technically its own municipality, Gaia is woven into Porto's fabric by a series of bridges and the shared history of port-wine making.  Basically, the port-wine bottlers have maintained their warehouses here with some 30 of them lining the steep riverbank.  You want to try some tasty ports, this is the place to come!!!

We crossed over this bridge several times to taste the 5 for 5 deal.  Five different types of port for 5 euros....a steal in European terms.

Who knew there were so many different types of port?  Let the games begin!

After consuming copious amounts of 5 for 5 port we walked (staggered) down the back streets of Gaia.  We saw this junk art of a (hic) monkey.....I mean (hic) cat.....no no no don't (hic) tell me...a (hic) wabbit, ya that's the ticket, a wabbit!!

We leave Porto behind and grab the train down the coast to our next destination, the 16th century seaport of..........

Aveiro

Sitting on a shallow lagoon this town has been dubbed the 'Venice of Portugal' thanks to its high-prowed boats, humpback bridges and network of picturesque canals.  

Portuguese version of Venice!

Apparently these boats were originally used for harvesting seaweed, whereas now they ply the canals with tourist.

The selfie miesters on the canal.

There is a worldwide tradition for couples in love to place a padlock on the rail of a bridge to immortalize their love.  The unfortunate side effect is that the thousands of padlocks on a bridge add significant weight to the structure and requires a person to cut them off - no easy task.  Here they decided ribbons would be a good substitute.....

.....we couldn't find a ribbon, so I tied a sock on the rail instead.  Hey, it's the thought that counts.

I have a morbid side - I like poking around cemeteries and gravesites.  I believe it says a lot about a particular society based on how they intern their dead.  Here in Aveiro they do it in grand style with massive family crypts.

I particularly like this one - complete with a real black cat.

While in Aveiro, we decided to take a day trip to coastal town of Costa Nova, to soak up some sun.....

Large day on the Portuguese coast.  23C on November 23rd..  Not to shabby for my 64th birthday!

Somewhat over-dressed but the establishment further up the boardwalk had very cold beer, so alls good with the world.

Costa Nova, with its candy-striped cottages, a very unique style of architecture for this part of the world.

These quirky and charming seaside homes attract social media savvy visitors who flock here to have their photos taken in front of their cheeky exteriors.  Isn't that right Melanie?!?!? 

Worst places in the world to spend your 64th b-day.

After a couple of days of lazily floating around on the canals, we head for our next destination, the medieval capital of Portugal for over a hundred years and site of one of the world's oldest universities........

Coimbra

Old Coimbra is situated on a steep hillside where a tangle of old town lanes are clustered with the university crowning the top.  The streets are busting at the seams with cafes, bars and restaurants.  It's a happening place!

The world's 9th oldest university getting its start in 1290.  That's a big WOW from me.

A night-time view of the university from our AIRBNB balcony.

A university band of Harry Potter Look-a-likes.

Coimbra's walking street.....

....same street, but with the night-time Xmas lights!

"Well hello!".....hmmmm......not very friendly.  Kinda cold actually.

Wandering the streets in search of a cold beer.

From Coimbra we did a couple of daytrips, including one with the bus trip from hell to Portugal's highest city......

Guarda

Guarda's town motto: Fria, farta, forte e feia (cold, rich, strong and ugly).  True story.  One thing I can attest to is the 'cold' part, being this high in the Serra da Estrela mountains it got very chilly (limiting our movement to the town square).

The second church we've visited that is named the Se.  I didn't know it was such a hard task to come up with a different name.

Europeans don't drink the double double extra super-sized large coffee like North Americans, rather they 'kiss' their tiny expressos of coffee.  Damn cold here so I quickly kissed this one.

From high up on the city walls with the Se in the background.

And now for another artistic moment:  I call this piece "The Green Door", I wanted to call it "The Red Door", but that would require a much more indepth explanation.

Our time in the Serra da Estrela mountains weren't done and this time we headed for a truly magical world, where time passes much more slowly, the best kept secret in Portugal, the......

Schist Villages

There are a total of 27 villages clinging to the mountainside and are called schist villages because that is the stone used in the construction of the houses and is, apparently, abundant in the region.

Once upon a time, long ago,  this area was the border between Spain and Portugal.  Border castles appear to emerge out of the mist here, something akin to fairy tales.  I believe I see Rapunzel in the tower window.

We visit three of the 27 villages.

Wandering around the narrow winding lanes which mingle seamlessly into the colours of the natural landscape, you're never sure if you've come to a dead-end or another lane.

A kodachrome moment around every corner.

The tourist hordes and Chinese gaggles that plague the rest of the country are noticeably absent here.

The villages were built in the 12th & 13th century, when cars were in short supply, so the lanes are too narrow for vehicular traffic - only way to get around is with two feet and a heartbeat.

When your house just doesn't have enough wall space for your favourite picture of Mary & Jesus.  

.....still looking for that cold beer!

And now it's time for another artistic moment: I call this piece 'window'............................I know you're waiting for me to say something funny right about now.  Sorry, but 'window' it is.

Surprisingly, here in the mountains where it does occasionally snow, they are able to grow Shopping Mall trees.

In the 70's and 80's, most of the young people left these villages seeking their fame & fortune in the big cities.  The houses laid abandon until the uber-rich bought them up and turned them into AIRBNB's and summer homes. 

Once again it was time to move on to Portugal's second most famous wine region, the Alentejo.  This time, however, we didn't come so much for the wine but to see one of Portugal's most beautifully preserved medieval towns.......

Evora

Inside the 14th-century walls, Evora's narrow winding lanes lead to striking architectural works, an elaborate medieval church, Roman ruins and a rather odd chapel.  

The Aqueducto da Agua de Prata (Aqueduct of Silver Water) is an 8.5km Aqueduct built in 1530's to bring clean water to Evora.  You can walk the entire length if you were so inclined, but that's crazy talk.

The town square, void of the camera touting tourist.  Evora is a little off the Gringo Trail and this time of year most just don't make the journey.  Their loss.

The Templo Romano, a 2nd century Roman temple considered among the best preserved in Portugal sits in the middle of the walled city.  Apparently it was dedicated to either Julius Caesar or Biggus Dickus, although there's no real consensus on this.

It's not everyday that you get to eat at a Michelin-rated restaurant and, according to the number of stickers on the Dom Joaquim, I wasn't going to miss eating at this one!  

Evora's cathedral-fortress, built in 1246, towers above everything (aptly named - the Se (#3 with the same name)).  For a small fee collected on God's behalf, you can climb to the rooftop - this picture was taken on the lower roof......

.....from the lower roof you can look down into the cloisters garden.

The upper rooftop.  Big enough to hold a soccer field, hockey rink and a couple of ping-pong tables thrown in for good luck......

.....and smack-dab-in-the-middle of the upper rooftop is an ancient sundial, which is used to monitor the time played on the soccer field, hockey rink and two ping-pong tables.

And now for something completely different - what do you get when you combine several bored Franciscan monks, way too much Frangelico Liqueur, and 5,000 corpses? - a Chapel of Bones of course!!

The entrance has the following words inscribed on the top: "We the bones that are here for yours we are waiting".  Well alrighty then!

Apparently; the dying preferred this to be their last resting place as they thought that they were closer to God here and that they were guaranteed absolution of their sins.

Entry to the Chapel once again requires a small fee to be paid to God.  These medieval bones make more money now for God than they could have ever fathom when they died.

Morbidly fascinating; a definite place for reflection on life and death.

Once again we are on the move, taking an uber-cab to the walled city of......

Obidos

With a gorgeous historic centre and a labyrinth of flower bedecked lanes, we arrived in Obidos with the same expectations of solitary cobblestone streets as we experienced in Evora, only to find the town over-run with people.  It was a civic holiday here and they were celebrating Christmas in a big way.  Thousands crammed into the walled city with screaming rug-rats in tow.....we had no option but to head for the city walls where we could watch the spectacle from up high.

This was a line-up just to see Sanity Claus and it pretty much stretch the entire main street.  I call it the InSanity Claus line-up!

The fortress wall circling Obidos is nearly 2kms in length and most of it can be walked.......

.....however, with no guardrails on the inside portion, it is not considered safe for children.  Oh happy days!

Do the funky chicken!

Melanie racing ahead to find a bathroom.  Good luck with that!  

The Muslim Moors built this castle in the 8th century.

A view of the outside - calm and peaceful, unlike the madness within.

An ancient windmill can be seen behind Melanie.

With the Christmas madness (it was only Dec.1, for God's sake) out of our system we decided to do a day trip to........

Sintra

With its rippling mountains, dewy forests thick with ferns and lichen, exotic gardens and glittering palaces, Sintra is like a page torn from a fairy tale.  Its UNESCO World heritage centre is dotted with pastel-hued manors folded into luxuriant hills.  This time to avoid the crowds we picked a RDF day and hoped there would be no Christmas palooza's to thwart our plans.

The National Palace of Sintra with the iconic twin conical chimneys.  For 12euros we could have went in and had a gawk at how the rich and famous lived, but who really gives a "****".

Soaring above the town, this mist-enshrouded ruined Moorish castle looms above all else.  The 9th century castle's dizzying ramparts stretch across the mountain ridges and, apparently, during a good clear day it is a perfect place to go! 

Rising up from the opposite peak to the Moorish Castle is the bizarre National Palace of Pena.  It's a wacky confection of onion domes and crenellated towers in pink and yellows.  It being enshrouded in the same swirling mist, there was no reason to go any further than from where we took this picture.

We settled on spending our time in Sintra at the Quinta da Regaleira which, believe it or not, is a UNESCO World Heritage site.  I know, I know, what is it with us and the UNESCO World Heritage sites.....well they get that designation for a reason and that reason is good enough for me!  Tiny Portugal has 17 of them as compared to Canada's 22 or the USA's 25.....just saying!!

The Quinta da Regaleira consists of a romantic palace and chapel, and a luxurious park that features lakes, grottoes, wells, benches, fountains, ten lords a leaping and a partridge in a pear tree. 

For the next 2 hours we wander around the 4 hectares of grounds trying to find the Littl' Bits castle......

.....found the Littl' Bits castle but Melanie said they were out.  

"When I first came here, this was all swamp.  Everyone said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built it all the same, just to show them.  It sank into the swamp.  So I built a second one.  That sank into the swamp.  So I built a third.  That burned down, fell-over, then sank into the swamp.  But the fourth one stayed up."

Monty Python, In Search of the Holy Grail

The selfie miesters hanging at the Quinta da Regaleira.  Like ya would!

The park also consist of an extensive and elaborate system of tunnels connecting many of the park structures.  It was a great place to get out of the rain.

The palace consists of 5 floors, with the second floor containing the Lord owner's office and the bedrooms of the female servants - convenient. 

The main reason I wanted to come here was to see the Initiation Wells or Inverted Towers, of which there are two on the property.  They were used for ceremonial purposes only and have 9 flights of stairs which are supposed to symbolize the 9 churches of Hell from Dantes Inferno.  And all along I thought it had to do with John Lennon's Revolution #9!

Our last stop in Portugal is to the nations capital........

Lisbon

Spread across steep hillsides that overlook the Rio Tejo, Lisbon has been a #1 tourist draw for centuries.  It's a panorama of cobblestone alleyways, ancient ruins, grand plazas lined with sun drenched cafes and white-domed cathedrals.  It's everything you envisioned a classic European city would look and feel like!!  

Getting around this city is ultra-easy with an elaborate Metro and bus system plus the ever present 'uber' taxis, but without a doubt, the best way to see it is to put on a good pair of sneakers and simply stroll around.

I love this city!  You can get off the train and go down the escalator and catch the Metro, bus, taxi or elephant all in the same place!

Vintage Tram #28 clatters around Lisbon passing by all the block-buster sights for a mere sum of 3.50euros.  Just hop on at any of the stops and hop off when you want......

.....and, if huffing and puffing up some of Lisbon's steep hills is not your thing, there are always these hill lifts to whisk you to the top!!

Lisbon's neighbourhoods are all noticeably different and there are several throughout the city.  To get a true feel for the city you need to explore each separately, and the most obvious choice to start is the Baixa.

Walk down the pedestrian only Rua Augusta and eventually you'll spit-out through the Arc da Victoria.....

.....into the grand Praca do Comercio.  With its grand 18th-century arcades, lemon-meringue facades and mosaic cobblestones, the riverfront square out-pomp them all.

We were going to stop for pizza but we heard the cook wasn't that good, basically he only uses 5 ingredients.

Perched high on his marble pedestal and gazing down on the merry minstrels is Dom Pedro IV, the first emperor of Brazil.

Lisbon's infamous Pink Street - no idea why it's called this, but during the night, this pedestrian street is a bustling party-hub teeming with clubs, bars and terraces.

Six kms. west of the city centre is the neighbourhood of Belem.  A place with two UNESCO World Heritage sites - that's a big WOW from me!

Belem's undisputed heart-stealer is the UNESCO-listed monastery, the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos.  This monster-sized building was commissioned to trumpet Vasco da Gama's discovery of a sea route to India in 1498.

Belem's second UNESCO site is the Torre de Belem, jutting out into the Rio Tejo, it epitomises the Age of Discovery. This chess piece was built in 1515 and was used to protect Lisbons harbour. 

Another of Belem's sites, is the monolithic Padrao dos Descobrimentos.  The 52-metre high limestone giant is a testimony to Portugal's contribution to the world of discovery - a contribution that is unmatched by just about any other nation in the world.

And finally, my favourite neighbourhood, the Alfama, Lisbon's Moorish time-capsule: a medina-like district of tangled alleyways whose cobblestones have been worn smooth from theatre-going Romans, bath-loving Moors, stampeding Crusaders and camera-touting tourist.  

Towering dramatically above Lisbon, the hilltop fortifications of Castelo de Sao Jorge sneaks into almost every picture. 

A view of part of the Alfama.

We spent hours simply roaming the narrow laneways.

Never far from a reminder of home!

Life here in the Alfama moves at a different speed than the rest of Lisbon - with a cafe squeezed into every available space one could sit and watch the world slip away for hours....so we did.

And finally........

Introducing Melanie, Portugal's 2023 Miss Sardine.  For winning this prestiges title, she won all the sardines she could eat and bragging rights!!