To Lisbon and Faro

Fri 21st June

Our hosts met us as arranged in the morning to check-out, then we walked the short distance to the metro and caught connections to the station where our train left for Lisbon with plenty of time to spare. Our trip was just under 3 hours with wifi in each carriage. How good is that? We crossed the Duoro for the last time and had a very pleasant journey to Lisboa. Then the fun began. It wasn't difficult finding the metro and sorting the different lines and directions but when we walked out onto the street at Martin Moniz we were baffled by the streets, many which end in steps. Lugging our bags along the busy pavements and up and down steps with frustration mounting was not a good way to end the trip. Perhaps a taxi would have been a better idea. We eventually found our way to Rua João do Outeiro 55, Lisboa and climbed upstairs to level 2 (more steps). Our bedroom is on level 3. The apartment is in a quarter known as Mouraria, right by Baixa, the heart of the old centre of town. Baixa was destroyed in the earthquake of 1755 and when the Marquis of the time rebuilt it, he laid out all the streets in a grid pattern so it is very easy to navigate. On the other hand, Mouraria is still as it was in medieval times, so a minefield to navigate

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Looking out our back window.

The building dates back to the1690’s – which makes it very old even for Lisbon standards. The apartment was done-up in 2010 so has all the mod cons and a great shower but quite small. It is definitely only a one person kitchen and bathroom. There is really only one place to sit too, so not as good as our last stop but we won't be indoors that much. I'm sure the weather will improve.

Eric beside a Fado monument near Martin Moniz MRT
























Once we were settled-in we ventured back out to the Praca de Figueira to meet the 2 other couples we last saw at Paris airport, they have all spent the day in Sintra. Many of the streets in the neighbourhood are decorated in hand-made paper lanterns and streamers as if for street parties.
By now the 2 other couples (Deb and Michael, Heather and Michael) are old hands at finding their way around Lisbon so have lots to share over dinner accompanied by green wine (dry white made from immature grapes) and finished with pear liqueur.

After dinner we followed the crowds to the riverfront where the boats were all lit up. On the cue of a flare they all blew their fog horns. Not sure yet of the significance but everyone cheered before dispersing. Walking home we found many street parties, everyone out celebrating with loud music and food. Being a Friday night the party is not going to quieten down for these two weary travellers so we went to sleep in our loft to the beat of party revellers. It wasn't necessarily Fado style but a mix of world music I guess, including some pop and rock. Every now and again I would know a tune but my brain was too tired to recognise it, the words being sung in Portuguese. The next morning the streets are still decorated but the rubbish is mounting. We find Lisbon quite dirty compared to Porto.

Googling for information it seems that, being the birthplace of St. Anthony, Lisbon celebrates the saint’s birth during June with a Sardine Festival. In the historical centre the street entertainment ranges from theatre to all genres of music, to circus acts and mime. We have missed the main parade where associations from the city’s different neighborhoods marched down Avenida da Liberdade competing with one another in flashy costumes to music. In the old districts (like Mouraria) the streets are alive at night with lanterns, music, and crowds. In these parties Arraiais) the people of Lisbon go to dance and eat sardines all month long.

Saturday 22nd June

The sky is blue and the sun is glorious this morning. We got a load of washing done before joining the others in an organised walk from Praca do Comercio for an overview of the main city sites. We really enjoyed Pedro's explanation of the history and development of the city and some of the quirky snippets he included. Some of the landmarks we visited included Baixa – the new city built after the earthquake, Praça da Figueira – Lisbon’s traditional market square, Rossio – the heart of Downtown, Santa Justa Iron Lift viewpoint – 360º view over the Downtown district, Largo do Carmo – the setting for the democratic revolution of 1974, Carmo ruins – the only Gothic monument of the city, Bairro Alto – the lively bohemian district and Graça Viewpoint – a stunning overview of the city and the 25th of April bridge which we arrived at after a ride on tram 28.

Statue at Praca do Comercio (Commerce Sq.) just being unveiled after restoration

Pedro sharing his local insights with us.

Fun statues in a Braixa Square on our way to the No. 28 tram.

After lunch we left the others to visit the São Jorge Castle. We found it pleasantly shady to wander around while providing fabulous views of Lisbon (including Mouraria). The entrance to the São Jorge Castle is around 600 metres from our doorstep but it is oh, so steep to decend. I am starting to get my bearings now, thanks to the morning walk.

While we were wandering around the castle we came across these students and their teachers dressed in period costume for their excursion.

At about 6pm the neighbourhood was just coming alive with music and fiesta activities and feeling refreshed after a late afternoon siesta, we followed the music to Martim Moniz Square where we caught the end of a samba set which was followed by a very popular regional brass band. The others joined us and we moved on to a restaurant just near the Largo do Carmo for our last meal together. They move on to Evora tomorrow while we still have a few more days here.

Sunday 23rd June

Woke to a sore throat and knees, need a day's rest but there is too much to see and do

We caught the yellow bus tour to Belem. The trip took us through some of the more modern areas of the city and then along the Rio Tejo (Tagus River) towards the mouth where Belem lies. We visited the Museu da Marinha which is appropriately housed in the Jeronimos Monastery since the church funded and supported the maritime exploits. The museum contains many models of 15th to 18th century sailing ships, celebrating the glory of Portuguese discovery and domination in the Age of Discovery when Europeans were searching for new trade routes via the oceans which had them explore Africa, the Americas, Asia and Oceania. It was interesting to learn about the treaty, drawn up to prevent conflict between the two most successful explorers, Portugal and Spain. When it was signed it divided the world into two regions of exploration, where each had exclusive rights to claim newly discovered lands, no matter who actually discovered it.

No trip to historic Belem is complete without visiting Antiga Confeitaria de Belem, a traditional cafe renowned for its custard tart recipe. If you can drag your eyes away from the array of pastries on display you can also admire the tiled walls of the interior.

The drive home took us along the Tagus River and passed the 25th April Bridge. It was originally named after dictator Salazar, but its name was changed after the revolution of April 25, 1974 when the fascists were defeated. Over 3 kms long, it is often compared to San Fransisco's Golden Gate Bridge which it resembles in both structure and colour.

Near the far end of the bridge is an imposing monument to Christ inspired by the famous statue in Rio de Janeiro. It was built in 1959 in thanks to God for having spared Portugal during WWII when they remained neutral.

Mon 24th June

We had a pretty lazy start to the day and then caught the train to gorgeous Sintra, reputed to be the single most beautiful town in all of Portugal. The train only takes about 45 mins from Lisboa and we spent the entire day wandering about in its quaint streets, beautiful cool gardens and visiting two major attractions; Castelo Mouros and Palácio Nacional de Pena. There are 2 other palaces here as well but you can only do so much in one day! The Moorish Castle is thought to have been constructed in the eighth or ninth century at the height of the Moorish occupation. The castle walls wind their way up the mountain to the summit, merging with the jagged rocks that line the steep gradients. The views extend right across the forested hills to the Atlantic so a very strategic place to build such a fortress. We could see Lisbon's 25th April Bridge from here. We also had fabulous views looking towards the Pena Palace.

The Pena Palace, coloured sand and pastel colours, is said to be one of the world’s best examples of Romantic architecture from the nineteenth century. Perched high on Sintra Mountain overlooking the town, its onion shaped domes and tall clock tower are one of Portugal's best known images. It is a protected national monument, both a UNESCO World Heritage site and one of the official Seven Wonders of Portugal. It now also rates as my favourite palace; opulent no doubt but charming rather than audacious. The gardens cover a huge expanse but they are mostly pockets woven into the natural, shady forest.

Our last night in Lisboa. Although we are both very tired we ventured back down to Largo de São Domingos, a colourful Square with a colourful past for dinner. Depending on your faith, the church on the square is either blessed or cursed having survived fires and earthquakes. The square is also the site of a bloody massacre of Jews in the 1500's when they were accused of being heretics as well as responsible for the drought. It may have had more to do with the fact that they were the financiers of the day though. These days the African community clusters in the area because this church has had a black priest. We had fish for dinner, it is the traditional dish after all. Locals certainly love the salted cod, but I find it too salty. We resisted the offer of a glass of ginginha, a local syrupy cherry brandy liqueur as a nightcap. Tonight the music is definitely of African origin.

Tuesday 25th June

After tidying up and packing we were in plenty of time to catch the train to Faro from Oriente Station. The journey took us across the 25th April Bridge and on through townships, olive groves and orchards of citrus and fig. We didn't see any cherry trees but they must be around somewhere as the shops are all selling them. Three and a half hours later and at the end of the line, we were in Faro on the Algarve, Portugal's sunniest spot with the finest beaches and weather on the continent according to the brochures. True, the weather is glorious. Haven't found the beaches yet, perhaps they are further out of town. Faro is the provincial capital and not a resort town like the other centres. We booked our onward bus tickets to Seville for tomorrow morning and then spent the afternoon wandering by the marina to the old walled town with its quiet, cobbled streets and buildings that date back to the 16th century. Offshore there are many islands and islets. The region also includes a lagoon and nature reserve which are significant migratory birding sites. It reminds us a lot of the Camargue region in Southern France.

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Bravely venturing off to Porto with only the iPad

Up to now I have struggled to post to the blog using only the iPad when we are travelling, but thanks to my good friend Jenni, I have discovered Blogsy. Its an app that overcomes all the problems I was having. I hope! This week I have watched the videos and had a play. Now I can wrap text around images and all sorts of things I couldn't do before. Best of all, I can scroll down the page if I revisit to edit. Next challenge is to learn how to embed a calendar. Watch this space but don't hold your breath.
Eric was always interested in returning to Nepal for another trek while I was determined that what I had done was enough, I was very satisfied with having managed what I did. As the weeks have passed and the talk of returning and reuniting with the support party has increased I just can't imagine not being there with them again. I did consider meeting up with the group in Pokhara after a side trip to Chitwan National Park but in the end I figured I might as well just join the fun and stop being difficult! We are both making a more concerted effort to the weekly exercise regime. We have been swimming, using the gym and walking further or faster this last week. We also bought the flights for Kathmandu (Dec 3 - 21) so we are committed in more ways than one. There is a party of at least 6 going this year. We are trekking to Annapurrna Base Camp (ABC) which I am told is not as difficult as we did last year since the track is formed for walking parties rather than donkeys.
The last week of term went as fast as the rest. It seems we all survived the audit team's visit on Thursday at Kovan. We celebrated Bev's birthday at New Everest on Saturday night which meant once again we only managed to pack for our trip on the Sunday night after work and before leaving for the airport. I wonder what we have forgotten this time. We met up with Deb and Michael Canaway (Jurong) and Heather and Michael Munroe (Punggol) at the airport, they are also on our flight to Paris and heading to Portugal. The plane left on time despite a very big storm while we were boarding and it was refuelling. It was the roughest start to a flight I have experienced in a long time but soon settled down. I watched Quartet with Billy Connolly and Maggie Smith which I thoroughly enjoyed before catching some sleep. When I woke I watched Stoker with Nicole Kidman but that was pretty dark. Eric watched a little tv but got a pretty good night's sleep really. We had a delightful French breakfast before landing in Paris having enjoyed a good view of the Eiffel Tower as we approached.

Unfortunately a big storm parked itself right on top of Charles de Galle Airport so everything came to a standstill. No catering was loaded, no planes could be refuelled and the baggage handlers took a break. We were lucky that another passenger was happy to entertain the crowd with some beautiful guitar, playing in that easily recognised Spanish style. Eventually the weather cleared but by then there was a back-log of planes to be serviced so we boarded 2 hrs late. Then as we approached the runway for clearance we were 4th in line with strong winds buffeting the planes and it was unsafe to take off. We waited patiently, what else can you do? Better to be safe on the ground than have an accident at the end of the tarmac! We found ourselves on board an A380 Airbus which could have been called a school us as there was a large group of teenage school kids on board. Poor teachers! We were thankfully reunited with our bags in Madrid and made our way to check in for Oporto. Still with plenty of time to kill despite that delay. One leg to go, we've been 20 hrs so far.
Our RyanAir flight left on time and landed 15 mins early so that was a pleasant surprise to end a very long journey of 26 and a half hours. It is now 6:30 pm local time. You hear all sorts of stories about this budget airline so you are not sure what to expect but we were impressed by their efficiency. They are particularly strict about the 15kg weight limit for luggage and only one regulation-sized onboard piece though, so many others were busily repacking at check in. I have been reading a book called Jackaroo by Michael Thornton all about the tough experiences he had on a sheep and cattle station in the 60's. I had just been reading about mustering mobs of sheep when the call came for check in. I do remember thinking we were being mustered in much the same way. The Ryanair policy of no seat allocation encourages some people to act very selfishly. You just have to laugh when you are this tired. If only those young bucks up the front had any idea what the jackaroos were about to do with their knives and teeth, they wouldn't be so enthusiastic about getting to the head of the line.
We caught a taxi to the apartment we have booked at 206 Rue de Antero de Quental. We were disappointed that it was cool and raining, haven't packed for that! Also very surprised to see a number of tall stands of Eucalyptus on the 20 min drive, haven't seen any of them in awhile. We were met by the owners, Isabel and Victor, who made us feel at home in this neat, little abode with all the mod-cons. They pointed out Portugal's best Pastelaria (bakery) Confeitaria Real across the street and explained that the supermarket is a short walk up to the corner of the block and then 100 mtrs ahead, its a 7 min walk to the centre of the old town, or you can catch a bus from the stop right outside the door. Looks like we will be very comfortable here if the weather improves. We took a brisk walk to get basic supplies and stretch the legs after all those hrs of sitting then Eric cooked up a quick pasta dish which we enjoyed with a local red wine and we were in bed early after a long, hot shower. Haven't had one of those in awhile either. Or slept under a doona! As I lay in bed I was aware, that at some point today, while I was either lounging around in airports or flying above the clouds, my Uncle Royston was being buried and I reflect that I am so lucky to still have my Mum.

Eric here in our neat little kitchen.




























Tue 18th June
We woke to early morning traffic on the street and a blue sky day.
After breakfast we walked toward the river but were forced into shops to buy extra layers, the sky was by then overcast and the wind chill factor just too much for us.

Our pasteleria across the street

Walking downtown we went by many beautiful buildings, some restored and others showing their age, Eric wondered if he was the cause of a traffic accident as he hesitated to cross the road for another picture of another interesting facade.

Our Rue de Antero de Quental.




























We were quickly over-awed by the city, everywhere you looked was another 'best photo' opportunity. I began experimenting with the camera, this is with the fish eye feature.

So much to see and so much history to understand by lunchtime we agreed a bus tour would be the the best way to appreciate it all.

 Eric eyeing-off the the hamon at the Mercado do Bolharo or market.












Sao Bento Railway Station, opened in 1900, is known for its magnificent tile panels in the main hall that depict scenes of the history of Portugal.

In the afternoon we managed half of the tour and it helped us to map out the next two days. It began here in the Praca de Liberdade and took us through the historic centre, out to the coast, along the riverbank and over the river to the wine caves (cellars). Included in the tour is a boat cruise, a wine house tour and free metro tickets. Good value at Euro 22.

This features the Clock tower on City Hall while in the foreground is one of the pair of sculptures in Praca D. Joao I (John I Square).

Returning home on the metro we emerged from underground into this park where the men were gathered to play cards.

After all that walking and touring, I crashed out for a few hours then we ventured out to dinner at a cafe we had walked by on the way home. The food and drinks bill came to a total of Euro 17, so cheap, but we had forgotten about the dreadful cigarette smoke that still accompanies every indoor meal in Europe. It got to 18 deg today with winds at 14 mph. Looks like tomorrow will be much the same. It should be just perfect for the Festa de Sao Joao (St John's Festival) held here on 23rd June where crowds celebrate by joining processions, enjoying music and feasting. Then at midnight everyone bashes everyone else with plastic hammers (historically it was leeks). Gee, I'm sorry we won't be here for that!

Wed 19th Jun
We started the day with the city walk from Lonely Planet. It took us from Sao Bento station down Rua das Flores which has some quaint Parisian styled homes and stores before coming to Igreja da Misericordia with a very impressive Italian rococo-styled facade.

That brought us to the Praca Infante Dom Henrique which is overlooked by the Palacio da Bolsa. Once Porto's stock exchange, the elaborate interior honoured the money merchants and standing right beside it is the Igreja da Sao Francisco whose baroque interior is almost completely gilded in gold leaf, honouring a somewhat different God. We ventured inside this one, through its museum and catacombes.

Getting closer to the river we walked beside the Casa do Infante, birthplace of Henry the Navigator in 1394 and later Porto's first Customs House.

 






















We had a coffee in Praca da Riberia surrounded by tiled town houses and facing the Douro riverfront.

Instead of walking all the steps back up to the Main Street level we caught the funicular railway beside Dom Luis I Bridge.
























Planning to have lunch near the wharves, where the fresh catch is sold on the streets by the wives of the fishermen and then grilled right there over coals on the footpath, we took the second half of our bus tour to Matosinhos-sul. Then we realised how far out of town we were, and how much further it was to the next point of interest, the Museum de Arte Contemporanea (museum of contemporary art), so we stayed onboard.


Instead, we had cod for lunch in a cafe near the art museum. Salted Cod is a favourite traditional menu item in Portugal, known as Bacalhau. Apparently there are more than 365 recipes to prepare it, more than one for every day of the year. We had it cooked in an onion sauce on a bed of potato.

Neither of us were impressed with the current exhibition but we had really come here to walk around the gardens of Casa de Serralves in which the museum is set.

We found lily ponds, formal fountains, rose gardens, vegetable patches and fragrant herb gardens all intriguingly linked together by paths and trails. We also came across horse paddocks and an orchard, then bushland, once again featuring eucalypts. Of course there were birds which we struggled to identify without binoculars or a field guide. Mostly all we've seen to date are gulls, feral pigeons and sparrows but today we also found Spotted Jays.

After a long wait for our bus home, in the wind again, we spent the evening indoors and Eric cooked up beans on toast since we really weren't that hungry after such a substantial late lunch.

Thurs 20th Jun
Our last full day in Porto. We have a plan for the day and it begins with finding the sculptures in Parc da Cordoaria which we saw only briefly from the bus yesterday.

The park is close to the Clerigos Church whose bell tower can be seen from various points of the city and is one of its most characteristic symbols. The tower is a mere 75.6 metres and there are 240 steps to be climbed to reach the top of its six floors. This great structure has become the symbol of the city and today we achieved the summit.

After descending we continued downhill to the river and had lunch before taking a cruise on the River Douro in one of the old boats specially designed to transport wine down to Porto from the upper reaches of the valley. It was a pleasantly warm afternoon thank goodness, about time it warmed-up. The boat docked on the Gaia side where all the wine cellars (caves) are.

We have a free visit to Calem Cave in our bus package but we postponed  so we could combine it with an evening of Fado, a form of Portuguese music. Instead, we climbed back up hill to visit Taylor's Cave. Until recently, we have been enjoying an occasional port with Peter in the mistaken belief that it was Taylor's of South Australia we were sharing. Someone recently bothered to read the label and discovered it was Taylor's from here, one of the original, still family-run companies. We felt obliged to go to the source since we were coming here to the home of port. It was a very pleasant afternoon spent in their cellar, tasting room and sunny terrace.

In the late afternoon we tripped down the hill to Calen Cellars, first enjoying an espresso on the waterfront doing a little people watching. At 6:30 we toured Calens Cellars and then enjoyed their ports while listening to live music performed by a fado guitarist, a classical guitarist and 2 singers. We hadn't a clue what they were singing about, but could interpret the mood. Fado is typically mournful tunes and lyrics, often about the sea or the life of the poor, and infused with characteristic sentiment (not wrist slashing though). We were home before 9 pm and it is still daylight so have still not seen the night lights of town.

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