Blogs from Coimbra, Central, Portugal, Europe

Ansião to Águea 92.00 km Another day I have noticed that I may have made some grammatical errors in earlier messages. Given the fact that I write these notes at the end of my day and that is the last thing I do before going to sleep after a long day of biking, I beg you to forgive any error. ( Now back in Florida I have tried to correct most of the errors, nevertheless still may still persist.) Today again was a day of biking and tourism. We biked to Coimbra, some 50km, and took the time to visit the world-famous library and the Santa Ana Convent, where one of the former queens is buried. Coimbra, at some point in time, was the capital of Portugal. A spectacular and beautiful place, although difficult to reach ... read more

Sad to leave the city of Porto but ready to see more of Portugal. We set off for our place near Coimbra in Serpins at Casa Branca (The white house). Along the way, we made a pit stop in Coimbra at a coin laundry and washed some of our clothes. While we were waiting for the machines we noticed some people hanging out on the street and next to our car, 2 girls sitting on our car and 2 men smoking near it on the sidewalk so it didn't give us a great feeling. We were keeping an eye on them and wanting to move on once the wash was done. It was the first time we felt a little uneasy during the whole trip. I'm sure it was nothing but it felt weird. We packed ... read more

How quickly the busy days rush by! We've been travelling in Portugal for a week, and now there are only a few days left on this trip. Porto is a lovely, hilly city; built on both sides of the equally lovely Douro River. On our first evening here we took a short river cruise, enjoying, of course, a glass of port as we travelled. I always thought I did not like port as it is too sweet, but after trying it a few times, with one tasting at the Ferreira Port Cellar (reputedly one of the most beautiful), I find that I can enjoy a good tawny or ruby or white, branco, as the Portuguese call it. We learn so many interesting things when we travel! One morning we had time to explore on our own; ... read more

Tag 17 – Coimbras Gärten & Universität Am nächsten Morgen schliefen wir erst mal aus. Dann liefen wir zur Markthalle Mercado do Pedro, um etwas fürs Frühstück zu finden. Die Markthalle war recht ausgestorben, nur etwa ein Viertel der Stände war belegt. Wir hatten jedoch von unten eine Paderia im oberen Geschoss entdeckt. Hoffentlich war die auch geöffnet. Und wir hatten Glück – da war noch viel Auswahl an vielen leckeren Backwaren, und die ältere Verkäuferin war sehr herzlich. Wir kauften vier verschiedene Pastelerias – die waren hier wirklich günstig – und frühstückten dann im Jardim de Sereira. Anschließend gingen wir in den naheliegenden Jardim Botânico, der 1772 unter anderem für die Heilpflanzenforschung der Universidade de Coimbra eröffnet wurde. Heute konnten wir dort einige beschilderte Bäume, einen Bambushain sowie zwei Gewächshäuser sehen, die leider nicht zu ... read more

Bom Dia, I arrived in Coimbra early in the morning, well, early for Portugese as it was 8am, proceeded to leave my stuff in the hostel, and then started walking around the city. Coimbra thrives around it's university, which happens to be one of the oldest in Europe. One of the highlights of the city is a visit to the university, which is housed in a former royal palace situated at the highest point in the city. Prior to the university, Coimbra had been a Moorish city, which was visible when I entered the old town through the Moorish gate. As I continued up towards the university, i walked past two people dressed in flowing robes. As I learned later, they were students who wore the traditional robes because they were writing exams. For some reason, ... read more