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Leaving the sunshine of the Algarve,we headed north early for what I consider to be the heart and soul of this Iberian country.
Evora This was our first stop after hours of driving on beautiful roads, away from the coast and into the interior hill country, bypassing numerous small towns and villages. Besides the sightseeing in the city itself, the most amazing discovery was the megalithic stones discovered nearby. The stones of
Almendres Cromlech, have been in use since 6,000 BC and are two thousand years older than those of Stonehenge. It is worth Googling this for more in depth information.
Tomar This small town of 40,000 was the perfect introduction to authentic Portugal. Later on, I will share an incident that we had with the police on the highway after we left this town on our way to Porto. Using our GPS to find our bed and breakfast in the town was an exercise in futility and it became obvious that there was a problem. It was only after telephoning the proprietor that he was able to guide us to his place on the outskirts. His earlier email to me cautioning not to use
the GPS had gone to my previous address. However, what a delight it was to meet Kevin and Kate and to stay at their lovely place which was perfect in every way - peaceful location, exceptionally clean, modern renovated facilities, a great breakfast spread and wonderfully warm and helpful hosts. Is there a rating higher than 5 Star?
Kevin's recommendation to have dinner in a medieval restaurant,
Taverna Antiqua, turned out to be one of our many highlights, enjoying the sumptious meal under candle lights. Every aspect, tables, menu, wine goblets and even the washrooms depicted the medieval. And not to forget the after dinner surprise we were privileged to enjoy as we exited on to the plaza. My pictures show the celebration of the
Feast of Saint John as citizens of all ages crowded the area.
I am including just one photograph of the magnificent
Convent of Christ and the Knights Templar castle (taken in the rotunda) because I have concluded that it deserves a blog dedicated to it exclusively. In my opinion, it ranks considerably higher than the much touted Alhambra of Granada, in itself a wonder.
Having visited countless palaces and cathedrals in many parts of the world, it is lately becoming somewhat of a challenge
to impress me , but this place leaves me in awe of it. Police incident. The European maps on my GPS were two years out of date. When on our way north, our annoying computer voice suddenly kept repeating "
Recalculating, recalculating", we realize that we had a navigation issue. The highway then came to an abrupt end, resulting in our being totally perplexed as to our next move. When in doubt, ask a cop! Luckily, two officers were parked in the vicinity of road construction so we pulled over to seek assistance. They were both particularly helpful and the older officer was meticulous in explaining what we should do to reach our destination and so off we went at speed and headed downhill through the next exit. Lo and behold, as we reached the next traffic circle, a police car came racing after us, the driver signaling wildly at us to turn and follow him. We had obviously made a mistake (let's put it down to the language barrier, okay?) And so we did, as he escorted us to the correct exit, waving as he sped
away, still smiling broadly. They were great representatives of their country. What a different and wonderful experience with the police which in a nutshell speaks volumes about the people of Portugal.
Conimbriga On Kevin's suggestion we bypassed our intended next stop of Coimbra and instead visited
Conimbriga, where excavation of an ancient
Roman city was taking place. The incredibly beautiful and well preserved Conimbriga ruins included abundant decorative materials, beautiful mosaics, sculptures and painted murals. This diversion was really worth it. After enjoying sandwiches of cheese and sausages, we headed off for the city of
Porto. If any of my readers is travelling in this area, Conimbriga should definitely be on the itinerary. Porto Jeanette again picked a great location, two blocks from the river and within a few minutes walk from all the action. And walk we did, as usual, having parked the car for the two night visit. It is an specially captivating city. And the port wine.....superb! On the long drive down to Lisboa, we visited
Aveiro, Nazare, Obidos and Alcobaca before entering the capital city. Between trying to drop luggage off at our apartment and returning the rental car, the highly
Ceremonial arrangement dating over 6,000 years.
The major observation I made while driving through the area was that as far as I could see, the stones did not originate there. Aside from open fields there was no topography that suggested a local origin so by what means could those primitive people have accomplished such a task?
trafficked rush hour and a close-to-empty gas tank, influenced a quick change of plans to ease the mounting stress. After much angst, we finally got a taxi and eventually settled into our top floor apartment in the
500 year old Alfama district and immediately set about to enjoy one of the premier cities in Europe.
Lisboa Jeanette and I had briefly visited a few years ago but this time immersed ourselves in the culture, staying in the most desired Alfama area near the river, a location where most discerning travellers are attracted to.
Great food, exciting nightlife, Fado music and on our last day, a great driver to tour Sintra, the
Pena Palace,
Cabo da Roca, Boca de Inferno, Cascais and
Estoril, then return to Lisboa before leaving the next morning by air for Barcelona. That drive along the coast back to Lisboa showed the ultra modern contrast that can be found. It was a private tour with the excellent and recommended Mario. Mario was so trusting of us, people he had never met before, that when it came to pay him at the end of the tour, he said that he would settle
after he had dropped
us off at the airport the following day. It was another most pleasing experience with the Portugese. If anyone needs a tour of Sintra, contact me for Mario's contact information.
Here is my video of the Fado music from the restaurant: [] As I write we are having a wonderful, relaxing and sun-drenched time in a beautiful beach resort in
Le Pineda, Estevan Park Salou, south of the city of
Tarragona which city Jeanette and I visited a few years ago. We will also be visiting the sites of
Barcelona, one of our most favourite cities and will of course tour the
Sagrada Familia with Norman and Jenny. The last time we visited we stayed in an apartment (with a wonderful and memorable bakery downstairs) about four blocks from this
Gaudie masterpiece. Since I have already blogged Barcelona and areas around it, I will spend this time simply enjoying this part of Spain once again.
I have found that while all the countries of Europe in general offer a particularly different lifestyle to our own accustomed North America, each place delivers its own unique flavour, unfailingly providing me with unexpected gems that remain seared in my memory forever. One endearing attribute is the level of socializing that takes place in the open air cafes and restaurants across the continent. I try to enjoy each moment to the full as it will surely not return but nevertheless whetting my appetite to keep on travelling, searching, learning and enjoying God's world and it's people. Whether it is dining on a narrow street, sipping freshly ground coffee on a street corner or the oldness of the culture and traditions, each place I visit continues to leave its indelible mark on me. And, I keep coming back for more. Today I am even less able and in fact adamantly refuse to answer the frequent question I get, "Roger, which is your most favourite country in all of Europe?"
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naomi rattray
non-member comment
Policemen
Your incident with the police reminds me of one a very long time ago in London, when my husband took a roundabout the wrong way. A policeman stopped us and referred to me as "your girl-friend". Bernard wanted to seem respectable and said: She is not my girl-friend but my wife. After a long discussion, the policeman said: Go, and make friends with your wife! (Wonderful English sense of humour)