Vila do Conde
Aloha on the Move arriving in Vila do Conde, Portugal WITHOUT a single travel incident! I think this is a first for the 4 months of travel that we will complete by the time this is all said and done.
We are staying in a town called Vila do Conde, which is right on the Atlantic Ocean and located in the northwest corner of Portugal, about 1.5 hours over the Spanish border. Vila do Conde is the oldest city in northern Portugal, dating back to BC times. Artifacts have been discovered here dating back more than 15,000 years. That’s pretty old.
It is not only on the Atlantic, but also on the River Ave, which flows into the Atlantic. It has a long history of fishing, ship building and many other maritime trades. The town is also famous for its lace making tradition, which is still a thriving business today. They even have a lace museum and an institute wherein they still teach the fine art of lace making. Some of this will definitely find its way into my suitcase. Oh, and remember the Camino de Santiago? It is the pilgrimage we learned about in Santiago de Compostela. Well, Vila do Conde is on the Portuguese Way of the Camino de Santiago. We have seen the clam shell signs on buildings in the old city.
We chose this town for a few reasons, namely its proximity to Braga and Porto and its location on the Atlantic with some of the most beautiful beaches in Portugal (says the people from Vila do Conde – the Algarve region of Portugal may beg to differ). After spending the last 2 months city dwelling, we wanted to experience living on the beach. So far, so good.
There are a number of interesting things to see in VdC. There is an “old city”, dating back to medieval times, a small park, the convent and monastery of Santa Clara and an aqueduct in the old city. There is also the Forte de Sao Joao, Chapel of Our Lady of Guia and a great boardwalk that runs along the Atlantic, extending along the River Ava. We have been here for 2 days and have walked the boardwalk both days. Not sure how long it is, but we logged 7 miles round trip over the last 2 days. So, plenty to keep us busy until Carmen and Dave arrive for a 4-day visit on the 19th of September. Paaaar-tay!!
Yesterday we did an exploratory walk through the old city and found it to be very charming. There are some small markets, a city center park, a wine bar and some random statues, all of which we will learn more about on our 3-hour TukTuk tour scheduled for Friday. Here are a few pictures of me hanging out with the local talent. 🙂
Today, we are heading to the historic city of Braga. We visited Braga last year when we spent 3 weeks in Portugal. It is a very cool town and worthy of a second visit. Stay tuned for the low-down on our trip to Braga. Until then, Bom dia, kidz!
Braga
Braga is the 3rd largest city in Portugal and the religious heart of the country. Braga has more religious buildings than any other city in Portugal. In fact, it was here that the first cathedral was built in Portugal, dating back to 1040-ish. There is one really magnificent church located here, known as the Bom Jesus de Monte. All of the guide books say, do not miss seeing this church. However, to reach the church, you have a choice of climbing a beautiful Baroque staircase of about 580 steps (not an exaggeration) or riding the oldest water-powered funicular in the world. We did neither, however, once my knees are in working order again, I would like to return and climb the stairs to the front doors of the church. I have no desire to ride something known as the “oldest piece of machinery in the world” so will take my chances with the stairs. The legend is, the staircase symbolizes the ascent to heaven so I want to experience that at least once so I know what it is like to ascend to Heaven. Not sure I have enough plenary indulgences built up to get me to the actual Pearly Gates! I grabbed a picture off the internet (not piracy if you admit to borrowing it until you are well enough to go and take your own pictures :)) to give you an idea of, and help us to remember, what the church and staircase look like. It’s quite beautiful, right?!
Braga is about a lot more than religious buildings. In addition to its generous and interesting religious history, Braga today is a really hip place to live and hang out. The streets are lined with cafes, shops, lovely gardens and beautifully restored old buildings now used as apartments by young hipsters. Many of these restored buildings have maintained their original facades, including the gorgeous blue tiles for which Portugal is known. It also has its fair share of medieval looking castles and arches and walls, all interesting to look at and admire. Braga also has one of the most impressive municipal farmers’ market that we have experienced. Vegetables, flowers, fruits, meats, spices, and fish; an abundance of beautiful food and plants!
The city has done a really great job of enticing young Portuguese to live here. Some of the big banks, investment firms and accounting firms have offices now located in Braga and there is a high speed commuter train that takes you directly from Braga to Porto and back in minutes. There are several higher end hotels located here as well. Even since we visited 18 months ago, the city has really grown. If you find your way to the north of Portugal, we highly recommend spending a few days in Braga. Or, make Braga your home base and from there you can visit Porto, Gaia, Viana do Costelo and Guimaraes. I think you need at least 2 to 3 days to really see everything Braga has to offer. If you do stay for a few days, check out what’s showing at the Teatro and get some tickets to see a show like Phantom of the Opera, to namedrop a little. If you go in September, there is a 2-day music fest that is held in the city. Channel your inner rock star and rock out with the locals. This kind of “channeling” is always good for the soul and brings good aloha to the scene, I promise!
Here are some pictures of the municipal gardens located throughout the city center of Braga. I cannot get enough of admiring these flowers!
Living Local
We have tried to “live local” during our 4-month visit to Europe. We lived in apartments, shopped at the local farmers’ market, done our laundry at a laundry mat (with all of the signs, including those on the machines, in languages other than English), had our hair cut and colored (me) and today, we went to have the car washed. It was loaded with gifts from the local seagulls along with road dirt and tree sap. That was the outside. The inside looked like the floor of a peanut factory. So, we decided to try our hand at getting the car washed. We googled local self-service car wash and the first one landed us on a cobblestone road for 4 miles, at the end of which there was not a car wash in sight. There wasn’t even a building in sight.
The 2nd attempt was more successful. It was an actual building and an actual car wash. Jim went inside to pay for the car wash and we got in line. I asked Jim, “did you get the heavy duty car wash, cuz this thing needs it.” Jim informs me he got the 5EU car wash. I said, “it is going to take an hour to get the sea gull poop off the car, let alone the rest of the dirt”, to which he responded, “Deb, I had to buy the one I could pronounce – “the Expresso”! I fell on the floor laughing. Oye!
Live local and spread aloha!
Speaking of which, when we went for our walk yesterday, guess what we found in the old city center? A building in Vila do Condo named “Aloha” and on our way to the city center, we saw this van parked on a neighborhood street! This is the 3rd time this has happened on our trip. it is all good karma!
For lunch today, Jim decided to live like a real local and try the local dish called the Francesinha. It is a sandwich made of bread, Portuguese sausage, beef steak, ham steak, spiced tomato, beer sauce and covered by a huge layer of melted cheese, topped with a fried egg and served on a bed of french fries, accompanied by a local beer! Can you just feel the veins clogging?? Hey, when in Rome, or in this case, Braga, live like a local!
See for yourself – it was completely wiped clean before we left. Jimmy looks very happy, doesn’t he?
And to finish off the day, here are my 2 favorite pictures.
So, tell me, who wore it best?
Salad for dinner tonight. Time to go enjoy some wine and lettuce. Sweet dreams, angels!
More on Vila do Conde
Vila do Conde is the town where we have rented our flat, as I mentioned above. We spent our first full day here taking in some of the local sites, like the downtown area. There is a lot to see in this town so we decided to spend a few more days looking around. So I found a Tuk-Tuk tourguide on Trip Advisor and booked a tour. If you have never been on a Tuk-Tuk tour, it is basically a golf cart that is street-ready. I am not sure what the laws are in Portugal related to “street-ready” but we decided to take our chances. It wasn’t bad! the only difficulty lie in the weather that day. It was cold, rainy and windy. I tried to suggest we do this another day but the good people at Tuk-Tuk insisted it was fine. They have “covers” for the open windows that will shield us from the weather.
Note to self: be sure the Tuk-Tuk driver is willing to put the covers on and be sure he/she knows how to put the covers on. Our driver showed no signs of being willing to put the covers on or knowing how to do so. Jim and I were both in rain jackets and I had the hood up and gloves on. It was the coldest 3 hours I can remember in a while. Meet our Tuk-Tuk driver. He did a pretty good job for it being THE FIRST TUK TUK TOUR HE HAD EVER DONE IN THIS AREA!! Oye!
One of our first stops on the Tuk-Tuk tour is the convent of Santa Clara. It sits on top of a hill and can be seen for many miles. It was founded in the 1300s as a place for cloistered nuns. It was abandoned in 2002, after the last nun passed away. It is now a gorgeous luxury hotel known as the Lince Santa Clara. The church was built between the 14th and 16th century and still stands on the property and is used for special occasions such as weddings, baptisms and funerals and a weekly mass on Sunday evenings. The property and buildings are beautiful. We went into the hotel to admire the lobby and the internal garden which we think was the original cloister. We wanted to enter the church as we were told it has a beautiful rose window and the tombs of the church founders, as they are supposed to be the most beautiful tombs in all of Portugal. Unfortunately, the church was locked up tighter than a tomb! (just curious, what makes a tomb “beautiful”?).
There is also an aqueduct in Vila do Conde that was built to bring water to the convent. Much of the aqueduct is still standing and is a very impressive piece of architecture. It has 999 arches and is more than 3-1/2 miles long. So, Batman, riddle me this… why 999? you could not build one more arch to make an even 1,000? I like EVEN!
Anyway, I digress, again.
Today the aqueduct serves no purpose except to be admired by tourists, although we read that National Geographic has categorized it as the 4th most beautiful aqueduct in the world. Here, you can see for yourself the beauty of these buildings. The very last picture on the first row below, is a great shot of the monastery, now a 5-star hotel, with the old Santa Clara church to the right of it.
As we were being driven through many of the neighborhoods of Vila do Conde, we came through an intersection where on opposite corners stood 2 groups of elderly women with bins filled with sardines. They were selling the sardines to passers by. As our Tuk-Tuk drove through the intersection, both groups of women started hollering and clapping and carrying on. Both Jim and I were a bit concerned at their hollering. The Tuk-Tuk driver waved back, was laughing and shouted something back at the women. Of course we were curious! So I asked if the women were saying bad things like “send the Americans home”!. We were happy to learn that they were cheering our arrival. They had never seen the Tuk-Tuk before but recognized that it was obviously a tourist “thing” and they were happy to see us, shouting and clapping “put us on the map”. How sweet!! I do hope the Tuk-Tuk driver was telling us the truth.
Sitting on miles of beach front, the town is known for its naval history, shipbuilding, and fishing. There are numerous fresh fish markets in Quonset-hut type buildings where one can go purchase the local fish caught that morning. There is also a wonderful farmers’ market that is set up each Friday. We paid a visit to both on our Tuk-Tuk tour.
These 2 little guys are “dorado”, very common in Spain and Portugal. They were going to be dinner for the evening. So, the fishmonger was kind enough to cut, clean and filet them for us. There is not a snowball’s chance in Hell that I would remove heads and innards from these little guys. By the way, we pan fried them with some OOO, paprika, S&P and ate with roasted potatoes and zucchini from the farmers’ market. DEEE-LISH! The thing in the last picture is an octopus. This is also a very popular dish in this part of Portugal and Northern Spain. Served sauteed with olive oil and paprika and is delicious as well. Best when served by a restaurant that knows what it is doing. That would not be me.
The day after our Tuk-Tuk tour, the weather was gorgeous. Sunny, 75F and a beautiful breeze. So, we took a walk along the Walkways of Vila do Conde, which run along the ocean and the River Ave. The walkways are old and very beautiful. There is also a modern-day bike path that has been built along side of the walkways. There are so many beautiful old buildings along these walkways. We paid a visit to a number of them, including the old castle, the Fort of St. John the Baptist, the Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Guia and the Naval Museum with the old ship, Nau Quinhentista sitting on the River Ave in front of the Naval Museum. We even paid a visit to the Royal Customs Naval Museum, which was really very interesting. It included the shipbuilding plans for the Nau Quinhentista as well as videos of her reconstruction. Watching the videos, you see the reconstruction being done with all of the specialized, modern equipment of today. Then you walk out to the ship and take a tour and you are in awe at how something of this complexity and size could have been built in the 1700’s without benefit of these modern-day tools. The engineering skill and craftsmanship is really something to see.
Here are some pictures of the sights we took in and explored along the walkway.
Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Guia dates back to the 11th century. It sits right on the ocean. It is no longer in use as the wear and tear of the ocean and wind have ended its days as an active church. We climbed to the top of the cross, where there is a small walkway that you can stand on and observe the beauty of the ocean and the town.
The lighthouse stands at the end of a very long peer. You can climb to the top of where the lighthouse sits. From here, you will be treated to some of the most spectacular raw beauty of the ocean.
St John the Baptist Fort (also known as the “Castle” can also be seen from the walkways. It was built in the 1500’s to protect the city from nefarious and ill-meaning “visitors”. It was abandoned for years and years and years. Then, it was renovated into a 5-star, 8-room hotel. Don’t think that lasted all that long. It is now a nightclub with lots of loud music on the weekends, which can be heard from our balcony. When the “club” closes, the 18 year-old crowd moves on to the Hookah bar, with an outdoor patio. Said Hookah bar is located on the ground floor of the building we are staying in. The patio is 2 floors below our bedroom. The Hookah bar closes around 3am. We know this because we can hear the gaggle of young voices as they leave for home. I wish I knew where they live. I’d go over and sing them a lullaby around 9AM. lol
Here are some good pictures of the ship. I got a few of Jimmy hanging out with some of the local workers (I think he was planning the “mutiny” based on the pictures that follow!). As you can see, he had no problem taking over for the Captain once the “mutiny” was complete! That Jimmy Flynn, you think he is so sweet and then he does something like throw the Captain overboard and take over running the joint! Hmmm, I best watch myself! (I’m not saying that I’m the “captain” of the boat…I’m just sayin…)
These photos are from the opposite end of where our flat is located. These are pictures of the River Ave, which flows into the Atlantic Ocean right around the spot where the old ship is docked (which is now part of the Naval museum referenced above). There really isn’t a bad view anywhere in this city. There is so much to see and do for such a smallish town. We are glad we decided to stay here for a month. Between Vila do Conde and the surrounding towns/cities, we will not be lacking things to do and places to explore.
Next stops will be Viana do Costello and Aveiero – 2 very cool towns about an hour’s drive from our flat. Until then, ahoy and aloha!
Sunday Funday for us! Later, enjoying the magnificent sunset from our bedroom terrace.
Where to begin??
We have been to so many new places in the last week, I do not even know where to start! We have truly been “on the move”. It has been a great experience and each place we visited, lent a new perspective on Portugal and an appreciation for its beauty; both the land and the people.
The people in Portugal are very kind and welcoming. It was our experience last year when we spent a month in Portugal. It has proven to be true in this part of Portugal as well. It is also very safe. You do not hear about major crimes here in this area. People seemed genuinely interested in you and are very thoughtful and respectful. They don’t even scowl when you make mince meat out of their beautiful language. They just politely smile and offer a suggested alternative to saying any word you may have mangled.
There are several lovely towns and cities between Vila do Conde and Lisbon worth the time it takes to jump in the car and take a day time road trip. Most of these places can be reached in 60 to 90 minutes, or less.
Aveiro (pronounced A-va ru)
Aveiro is a large city with more than 120k inhabitants total in the metro area. It sits on the Atlantic Ocean and is affectionately called “The Venice of Portugal” because it has a fairly intricate network of canals and the gondolas that are so familiar in Venice. The many bridges throughout the city are covered in hundreds of colorful ribbons added by visitors and citizens alike. It is really pretty and very festive.
The city has a beautiful cathedral that is undergoing a complete restoration and renovation. We could tell from the outside, that the cleaning of the old stone and new tiling of the entrance had already been completed. The inside however is in the thick of the restoration process. The new organ looks like something out of a science fiction novel and I’m sure Mozart and his peers would fine it rather sinful compared to the Gothic-looking church pipe organs of old. The altar and altar piece are completely covered in scaffolding. We were able to go inside the cathedral to witness the scaffolding and the work being done by some of the skilled crafts persons carefully disassembling an altar that is hundreds of years old so that it can be restored and put back in the cathedral. One of the craft persons was a woman who was working with a small mallet and chisel to remove a statue from the altar piece. It could be easily seen that the work is long and tedious and requires a great deal of care, attention to detail and patience. Guess I will not be applying for that job as NONE of those traits appear on my resume! It would be worth coming back here to see how the restoration unfolded to completion.
Aveiro also has some of the most gorgeous displays of Portuguese building tiles that I have ever seen in this country. The tiles are known as Azulejos. These are painted tiles made of tin-glazed ceramic. The country of Portugal has put these tiles under a state of protection, meaning, if you deface, steal, destroy or otherwise harm these tiles, you will be held accountable in a court of law. I read that in Lisbon, the authorities estimate that more than 25% of the times in Lisbon have been lost between 1980 and 2000.
The Ajulejo have an interesting history, as we learned from our Tuk Tuk driver. Most of the building facades in northern Portugal are made from granite. The climate in northern Portugal is “mild Mediterranean”. It is warm in the summer and very wet in the winter. The granite soaks up moisture like a sponge. Being wet most of the time corrupts the stone and causes the buildings to decay more quickly. Back in the day, the Portuguese people discovered that if they tiled the granite facades of their buildings, the granite would not be so easily corrupted by the wet winter climate. Hence, all over the north of Portugal you see these gorgeous blue and white tiles on the fronts of residential and commercial buildings. Some are very intricately designed and others less so. But they are all beautiful and Aveiro pays them homage in a wonderful way!. See for yourself! These are just a few examples of the amazing craftsmanship and beauty.
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There is plenty of shopping, dining and touristy things happening in Aveiro. The afternoon we were there, was a beautiful Fall day (you can see how blue the sky is!) and there were hundreds of people milling the streets, sitting in the cafes and leaving some of their hard earned cash with the local vendors. One of the higher-end malls is decorated with many colorful balloons and is so pretty, it makes you want to go in and spend some money! Thankfully, my CFO had a tight reign on the billfold and so I was stopped from hurting myself and our bank account 🙂 That Jimmy Flynn can be such a buzz-kill (but he is a great CFO, which allows us to travel to Europe for the summer, so I think I will let him keep his CFO job. LOL). Back to the balloons, they are really great and just make you feel happy, like a kid again. I love this kind of approach to life – a little playful is good for the soul.
We probably could have spent 2 days in Aveiro but did not plan accordingly for this trip. It is worth a 2nd visit and may be on a future agenda. Bidding adieu to Aveiro for the time being as we leave the city center for now.
IMPORTANT UPDATE
There are serious wildfires burning throughout northern Portugal this week (week of 9/17) with 7 firefighters having lost their lives so far. The rural community surrounding the City of Aveiro is being particularly impacted by some of the worst of these fires. Please keep the good people of Portugal in your thoughts and prayers.
Here are some photos we took related to the wildfires, which ended up being as close as 15 minutes from where we are staying. It was really scary being here during this time. The first 2 shots are from our terrace. We were about 30 miles from the nearest fire. For 2 days, the sky was so think from smoke, that your eyes burned and your throat hurt. You could not see the sun through the smoke. Needless to say, the air quality was dangerously bad. We stayed indoors all day to keep from being exposed. The outdoors smelled like a camp fire. In the first shot, it is early morning and the sun is up. You can barely see it through the smokey haze. In the second shot, the bright red dot you see is actually the sun setting. You can tell how dense the smoke was by the look of the sunset.
The next group of pictures are taken at “ground zero”. We drove out towards the countryside surrounding Porto and Aveiro where the fires had been the worst. The trunks of the trees are badly burned and the earth completely scorched. Almost a week after the fires had been taken under control, you could still smell the smoke in the air. Many people lost their homes, their vineyards and their farm production as the rural areas were the hardest hit. Thankfully, the First Responders were able to get the fires under control in a few days and before much more damage occurred. God bless the First Responders!
Viana do Castelo
Viana do Castelo is a very old city in Northern Portugal (aren’t they all???) It is fairly large, with about 85K total in its metro area. It sits on an important river, the Lima river, making the city a substantially recognized piece in the world trade puzzle, dating back to the 1500’s.
I researched 4 or 5 websites for the best things to see and do in Viana do Castelo. Some sites report the top 10, others the top 12, some the top 20. So, I picked those places reported by all of the sites I researched and narrowed it down to 9 highlights, plus 2 bakeries known for their version of the infamous “Berliner” pastry.
Let me start there first. We located the bakery most regard as being the lesser well known of the 2 but some said had the better Berliner. Sweet Baby J. This thing called the Berliner is one of the most delicious pastries ever made by man. It is like like a donut but without a hole in it. It is all puffy and airy and stuffed to the Nth degree with delightful, obscenely delicious custard cream. It is lightly dusted with coarse turbinado sugar and served in all of its delectability on a small plate, sans silverware. Eat with your (clean) fingers. Eat slowly. Then, when done, buy another for the ride home (you won’t make it home without taking at least one bite, I promise you).
Ok, museums, churches, blah blah blah. Go straight to the bakery, do not pass go, do not collect $200, just get The Berliner and a cappuccino and enjoy a moment of pure heaven.
I could just leave it at that but it would not be fair to this lovely city to marginalize it to a cream filled pastry.
When we arrived in Viana do Castelo, we entered onto one of the small city squares and were greeted by bagpipers. They performed for at least 30 minutes, and were still going when we moved on. They were excellent. This area of Portugal (and just north into Spain) was occupied by the Celts, many, many years ago. There are still remnants of the Celtic clans in these cities as seen in the music and other traditions. In Santiago de Compostela, the national instrument is the bagpipe. You can hear it throughout the city in small squares, pubs and street musicians. Warmed the heart of that Celtic husband of mine, Jimmy Flynn.
Enjoy the entertainment!
Moving on from the festivities in the other part of town, we took to exploring the “new” Viana do Castelo. We found the huge square in the middle of the city, known as the Praca da Republica. Sidebar: Right after locating whatever treat the city is known for, the Berliner for example, the next thing to locate is the city’s main square. All things happen on or near the Square/Plaza. There sits a lovely fountain built in the 1500’s, cafes, shops, the old town hall and the Edificio de Misericordia. There are also new, more modern buildings and large pedestrian areas built as part of an urban renewal effort in the early 1990s. The renewal effort worked because the place was buzzing! Here are pictures of the huge plaza, some of the old/new buildings and the fountain in the middle of the plaza. I don’t know about the statue of the gold woman. The plaque was in Portuguese and I have not been able to find a reference to her significance. So, I’m going with she is just a cool looking chic made of “gold”. Speaking of which, that’s a “gold” horse I am standing next to in front of the store. Unfortunately, someone operating the camera (who will remain anonymous, Jim!), did not get the proper angle on the horse so you can’t really tell it is a horse.
Sidebar: It is always so nice to visit these old towns and see groups of locals gathered for coffee, laughing or earnestly discussing world problems, shopping, rushing off to work, young local families walking through the municipal gardens. Many of the old towns in Europe are fading away as the young people leave to pursue their dreams in the big world and the older people leave, for a slightly different reason. The countries we visited are filled with what I’m sure were once beautiful old towns that are now derelict buildings, empty farmland and empty town squares. It is so good to see a city thriving and embracing the new world and yet celebrating its historical and cultural roots that are hundreds and thousands of years old.
Viana do Castelo has at least 6 or 7 important religious buildings, including the Cathedral of Viana do Castelo, a magnificent 15th-century mix of Gothic and Romanesque architecture. All of these churches date back to the 1400 and 1500s and each is stunning in its own way.
Sorry, another sidebar: It is overwhelming to walk into one of these churches and try to get your head around the fact that what you are looking at is 600+ years (or more) old. What is most amazing to me is the architecture and structural engineering that went in to building these magnificent churches. They soar hundreds of feet in the air, with painted, intricately decorated domed ceilings and stone, wood, marble carvings that are so detailed and life-like. How did they manage to accomplish these feats of wonder without building cranes and drills, nails and so on? How is it that most are still standing without having collapsed in on themselves from the sheer weight of the stone? And the attention to detail makes my type-A personality sing with joy!
Last “church” story, I promise! From just about any angle in the city, you can look up and see a fairly imposing hill on which sits the Sanctuary of St. Luzia. It is a large church that was built in the 1900’s. It is considered by many to be one of the most famous religious monuments in Portugal. In order to reach the top of the hill and visit the church, you have 2 choices: climb 659 steps and walk 1-1/2 miles, or take the funicular to the top. For reasons I probably don’t need to explain, we rode the funicular (which is free on Sundays! or 5EU roundtrip M-Sat). I would have walked the steps if they had made it an EVEN 700 stairs but I’m not going to bother with 659…how silly would that be! So it is the funicular for me, roundtrip please.
Anyway, the church is modern, and it is beautiful. It is very touristy however. There is a souvenir shop, an ice cream store and a gift shop, all on the upper deck where the church is located. The church has 3 beautiful rose windows filled with colorful stained glass windows. You can see one of them in the pictures below. The views from the top of the hill are pretty incredible and worth making the trip to see the view and the church is beautiful. The church has a large dome which can be reached by elevator or you can climb another set of stairs for even better views (or so I hear) and all for the low, low price of 2EU per person. We did not invest the 4EU to see another view of the city. You can see the dome in the picture below. That would be a long climb to get to the top. Maybe another day…
Another point of interest is the Eiffel Bridge, designed by the same Eiffel of Eiffel Tower fame! It crosses the Lima River joining the 2 sections of Viana do Castelo. It is a really cool looking bridge. In walking down the boardwalk and on our way to the bridge, we passed the Monumento ao 25 de Abril (picture on the right). This monument is a huge steel monument which we learned is dedicated to the victims of the dictatorship in Portugal, and celebrates those who rose up on April 25, 1974, in what later became known as the Carnation Revolution. It is a moving sight as you view the broken chains, symbolic of the chains of the oppression of dictatorships. We stood and contemplated for some time the root of the monument’s importance given the many areas of the world still dealing with political and cultural oppression.
Sidebar: why was this revolution known as the Carnation Revolution? I had to research and learned it became known as the Carnation Revolution from a restaurant worker (Celeste Caeiro) who offered carnations to all of the soldiers when everyone took to the streets to celebrate the end of the dictatorship. The crowd caught on and people were buying carnations en masse and placing these in the muzzles of soldiers’ guns and on their uniforms. It was also amazing to contemplate that not a single gun shot was fired as part of this revolution! What a sweet end to an otherwise unhappy story of oppression and fear.
The city is a major player in the Portuguese naval industry and contributes to the economy with its naval repairing and shipbuilding facilities. It is also known for its green energy industry. Kudos, Viana do Castelo!
There are really delightful municipal parks near the city center. There are children’s playground delights, fabulous flowers, fountains and cafes throughout, along with cool looking statues and pedestrian friendly, shaded walkways. Aren’t these flowers beautiful?
Jim and I found the children’s playground, of course, and had fun on the zipliner. We were a bit oversized for the device, although we struggled to get up on the seat! Life is for the young at heart, even if the body if past its expiration date!
Click on this link for the zip lining performance by “yours truly”. I look terrified, don’t I? IMG_2196
Well after the zip lining, everything else paled in comparison so back to Vila do Conde we went. Truth be told, we did stop to see the proverbial medieval castle of Viana do Castelo (meaning “castle”). It lived up to its name!
This weekend, we are heading out of “Dodge” to visit Obidos (OH bee dosh), a city about 3 hours south of us which is known to be one of the prettiest walled cities in the north of Portugal (as reported by the good people of Obidos, of course!). Celebrating our 34th anniversary, we decided to secure a hotel room for 2 nights and see all of the wonderful sights in Obidos and some of the nearby towns.
Minor Detour: One of the benefits of “living” in Europe is being able to get to many beautiful and/or interesting locales in relatively short order. Perhaps a 3-day visit to Paris? or Belgium? or Munich? Well, you get the point. Ryan Air is a low-cost airline carrier in Europe with stops in many European countries’ major cities. Train lines are also plentiful, with high speed travel available between many small and large towns. If you have a car, it is surprising how many places you can easily get to as long as you avoid those pesky little Alps. The next time we visit Europe, we plan to stay in one place for an extended period and use it as the base for visiting other places for short jaunts. It is very doable and a great way to keep #AlohaOnTheMove!
Obidos (pronounced OH bee dosh)
Obidos is a walled city about an hour outside of Lisbon. The city wall was built in the 1300s and is still maintained today. It is known for its history of beauty and wealth going back to the late 13th century when the city was gifted to Queen Isabel on her wedding day. It has always attracted artists, writers and other members of the creative community. We had a great time wandering the streets, visiting the castle, attempting to walk the city wall. The streets are all made of dangerous-to-negotiate cobblestones as slick as an ice skating rink! Flat shoes are highly recommended. Brave the soul who tries to negotiate these streets in stilettos! This street was one of the easier to walk as it boasted the added benefit of slippery cobblestone “stairs”.
Our visit to Obidos started with a 90 minute attempt to get into our hotel, located inside the wall of the city. We drove in circles endlessly. The GPS took us up a steep hill meant for 1 car at a time (why are these damn things always in my life?), which ended at an entry to the wall of the city not accessible by car. We finally drove to the tourist office for directions to the hotel. The person at the tourist office spoke little English. That should have been our fist clue that these directions were not going to go well, which they did not. Following another 20 minutes of trying to get to our hotel using the Tourist Office directions, I suggested we pull over and I go inside the city wall to find the hotel. We knew we were close! Upon locating the hotel, I ran back to the car and gave my version of directions. After plowing through pedestrians gathered at the entry to the walled city, we located the hotel. Yay! Yay until we learned from the hotel desk clerk that no cars are allowed inside the city walls, unless you drive a police car or are a resident of the walled city. OOPS! Jim ran outside to get the car out of the walled city before we were ticketed and car was towed. He plowed through another throng of civilians at the city entry door, received many unpleasant hand gestures and eventually got out.
One of the “dangers” of visiting a place where English is not the primary language is the challenge posed by street signs you are unable to comprehend. It can lead to little mishaps like entering a pedestrian-only locale with your auto causing very unhappy locals who tend to get hostile when getting bumped and hustled by a forbidden automobile. I don’t know why people have to be so sensitive! GEEEEZZZ!
Well, we are finally settled in our hotel and we are delighted to find that the hotel is a lovely quaint, boutique hotel, the Obidos History Hotel. The hotel is in a renovated section of the old castle and part of 4 other “buildings” built within the castle. Lovely lace curtains, double-door window shutters opening out onto the street and lush, comfortable linen. It was going to be a great weekend!
We strolled out to the main street within the walled city, where we found many shops, restaurants, cafes, and monuments worth exploring. We started at the local beer/wine cave (it was happy hour!) and moved on to a delicious dinner at one of the restaurants the hotel concierge recommended, where over a bottle of wine, we plotted out the sightseeing to be done over the next 2 days. We managed the slippery cobblestones back to the hotel for a pleasant night’s sleep and restoring our strength for a day of walking, shopping and sipping Sangria in the late afternoon. Visions of red grapes dancing in my head!
There are a never-ending list of things to see and do in Obidos. Beautiful whitewashed houses, thin cobblestoned streets and alleys, beautiful bougainvillea, and castle walls that can be seen from miles away.
Our tour of Obidos starts with the entry to the walled city, The Porta da Vila. It is a beautiful gateway with a chapel and a balcony right in the middle of the entryway. We learned that this entry was intentionally built in this configuration to prevent cavalry charges from charging the city. You can see the gorgeous tiles that adorn the ceiling and the small chapel, all of which date back to the early 1700’s. The 2nd shot is taken from the castle wall as I am looking down into the gate. You can see the excellent vantage point had by those charged with protecting the castle. Any unauthorized personnel entering would be immediately dealt with by means of arrow, for example. As an aside, this is the area Jim had to drive through to get out of the walled city, where he was not supposed to be with a car. The area you see below was wall-to-wall tourists admiring the tiled altar.
After walking through the gateway, you find yourself on the main street of Obidos, Rua Direita. This street is one shop after another, running the length of the walled city. We strolled down the crowded street and found some really interesting shops, one of them being an incredible and well-known bookstore. It has hundreds of books that line the walls of the shop and are stacked on tables, floors, ladders, any blank space. there is a section in the bookstore with books written in English. I absolutely LOVE bookstores. So, I perused the wall of English speaking books and 2 of them found their way into my bag (after I paid for them, of course!).
Many of the shops are designed with the tourist in mind. So, lots of souvenirs to stuff in your suitcase for birthday and holiday presents.
In addition to the gateway into the city, there are 2 main attractions in Obidos. One is the castle and the other is the city wall.
The wall around Obidos is still in pretty good shape. The wall underwent some restoration work in the 1900’s making it fairly walkable, if you are extremely brave. The wall is about 1.5 miles total. The path is very steep and very narrow and there is NO wall on the inside of the walkway and so you are entirely exposed and unprotected from the drop down to the ground should you unsuccessfully negotiate the walk of the wall. Jim and I took about 25 steps on the narrow path, watched people clutching the outside section of the wall and decided that walking the narrow lane just to say that we did it, was not worth the potentially dangerous outcome. The pathway is not smooth and is a combination of dirt and slippery cobblestones. Nope, not this girl. I want to enjoy that hotel room we rented!
We did manage to get some pictures from the top of the wall as we did venture out about 10 feet before turning back. I have to admit, the view was incredible!
After we decided to take a pass on walking the castle wall, we moved on to check out the Castelo de Obidos. The castle was built back in the 1100’s and is in remarkable condition. Inside the castle, a palace was constructed in the 1500s and is now a luxury hotel (Pousada) where, for a definite premium, you can stay in the restored rooms of the palace and enjoy the historic setting of the castle. The Castelo de Obidos is listed as one of the 7 Wonders of Portugal, so if you are in the area, it is definitely worth the visit. And, if you saved your pennies throughout the year, I’m told that spending them on a night’s stay in the Pousada Castelo Obidos is well worth the investment. We did not make this investment as I spent a lot of our pennies on shoes this year. I LOVE shoes! Anyway, the castle is really beautiful and very well preserved. In the 2nd shot, in the foreground is an amphitheater where entertaining the Royals took place. It too is very well preserved. We also learned that every year, there is a Medieval Fest in Obidos, with the castle providing the perfect backdrop for such a blast to the past!
Back to the main avenue, Rua Direita, it is a little later in the day, and the street is not as crowded as it was earlier. We found a little brew pub where we stopped for a beer and discussed dinner plans. I treated myself to a Ginjinha d’Obidos. The Ginja as it is affectionately called, is a combination of cherries, brandy and chocolate. What the Hades can go bad there??? The liqueur is made of sour cherries soaked in a brandy, diffusing it with all kinds of deliciousness, and then served in a little chocolate cup. Pour the liquor in the little chocolate cup, throw back the liquor and then eat the chocolate cup. It is a delightful combination! Oh, and the liquor is not sour tasting. The cherries diffused in the liquor lose a lot of their sourness well before it reaches your mouth. I say “dive in”!
There are any number of beautiful old churches located inside the walls of Obidos. Some were closed during our visit but we found one outside the walls of the city that is really lovely and worth a short stop, a quick prayer and lighting of a few candles (no plenary indulgence associated with this effort, just a nice, peaceful thing to do and good for the soul).
The other cool building we found was an old church repurposed into a book shop! Even the altars were maintained (except for the statues) and used to display books. It was really beautiful inside. It is also so cool to think about these beautiful old churches being repurposed rather than shuttered up to decay into obscurity. What a library!
Our second day in Obidos, we took a ride to check out the surrounding area. We found a cute little town called Peniche which s situated along the sea with lots of locals enjoying the sun and (cold) surf and some good family time. It was a beautiful day for a ride “in the country” and we took advantage of the warm sun, with the windows down, singing some rock and roll and just enjoying the beauty of the day. Perfect way to end 2 fun days in Obidos celebrating our 34th wedding anniversary! Check out the beauty of the ocean and rock formations. I would love to wake up to this every morning – it would be the cherry on top of the chocolate sundae, give I get to wake up next to Jimmy Flynn every day (hey, I’m angling for a new pair of shoes, so give me a break on the romantic talk!).
Back to Peniche…This small town is starting to gain notice from foreign investors. I’m guessing it won’t be long before this seaside is filled with high rise condos and luxury homes. Too bad because it is so unspoiled and just stunning scenery to take in, with a local population who get to enjoy the scenery unobstructed by modern advancement. That said, I would live on this seaside in a minute!
Nazare
On the drive back from Obidos, which is about 3.5 hours from our flat in Vila do Conde, we drive past the town of Nazare. If you are a surfer, or a big fan of surfing, then you probably have heard of Nazare.
Nazare has become internationally known for having the world’s biggest waves. It is also said to be one of the prettiest fishing villages in all of Portugal. Our curiosity was definitely peaked. We have visited Hawaii just about every year for the past 25 years and while we do not surf, we are quite familiar with the sport having seen some wild surfing action in Hawaii. We had to check this out.
First of all, it is no small village. It is practically a large city. The traffic and crowds are unbelievable! And, we are not here in the “high season”, which coincides with the arrival of the big waves – sometime between October and February. We were told by some folks that the throngs of people who come to see the big wave surfers who come from all over the world, to catch a big wave. An American surfer, Garrett McNamara was seen on social media riding the world’s biggest wave in 2011, 78 feet high. In 2018, a Portuguese surfer is reported as riding the biggest wave in the world, called the “big mama”. It reportedly measured 115 feet but according to my research, that has not yet been proven. In 2024, Sebastian Steudtner claims he rode a wave unofficially measured at about 95 FEET high. You can google “tallest wave at Nazare” and the footage will come up of Sebastian riding this monstrous wave. It is unbelievable!
The story behind the big waves is they are caused by an underwater canyon, a continental shelf and crazy-ass winds. The canyon head is very close to the beach. There are dramatic differences in depth between the continental shelf and the canyon and this difference in depth increases wave height which is then made worse by these crazy wind speeds. I did a bunch of research on the “big waves” and frankly, it was so over my head (sorry, I just had to say it), that I gave up. I really don’t care about geomorphologic variables, litoral drifts or steep vertical variation. I just want to watch the surfers conquer the big waves, enjoy the sun, the sand and a nice cold daiquiri in the process. If this kind of science floats your boat, you may be a bit nerdy and could use a day in the sun and sand sipping a nice cold daiquiri while we watch the big mamas roll in. Care to join me?
We hiked down to the beach on a long steep road. There was a guy in a little tent perched on the side of the hill right off the road strumming a guitar, singing 60’s genre songs; just sitting in the tent by himself and hanging out, enjoying the ocean view and strumming his guitar and singing for every one to enjoy.
There is also this very interesting sculpture that sits on the road down to the Fort and is arguably one of the strangest sculptures we seen in our travels thus far. A plaque nearby reveals the name of the statue to be Veado and was created by a well known Portuguese sculptor, Adalia Alberto. It was erected on this spot in 2016.
Of course, like many things, the statue’s significance is closely tied to a legend. It is said that a knight was hunting on the cliff overlooking the ocean. He was chasing down a deer one foggy day when the deer, blinded by the fog, went hurling over the side of a cliff. The horse and knight, in eager pursuit of the deer and blinded by the fog as well, were about to go over the said cliff, following the deer to their graves. The knight remembered that there was a statue of the Virgin Marie in a cave nearby and quickly said a prayer to The Blessed Virgin, asking her to spare his life. Miraculously, the horse stopped within inches of their respective lives and saved them both from plummeting to their certain death. That’s the legend of this lovely town and the significance of the deer part of the enormous statue. The surfer part of the statue pays tribute to the modern day, legendary waves and the surfers who have made this area and themselves famous for riding the waves. So that’s the story about Veado, the deer surfing statue. No matter how you spin it, it is a strange looking beast, which I suppose is part of its “charm”.
Nazare is truly a spectacular town with a very casual and “hang-ten” vibe rules. It is a really laid-back, cool place to just hang out for a day or several days. We fell in love with this town. I honestly could live there if it weren’t for the thousands of tourists who flock into Nazare 24/7/365 days a year. It reminds us a lot of our beloved Maui! And THAT is a really good thing!
You can see for yourself – the pictures are stunning. The real deal is even better. Enjoy the view! We are heading home to Vila do Conde where I have to get ready for the arrival of our best buds from Chicago, Carmen & Dave. Hang loose!
Carmen & Dave are in the building!
Our best buds from Chicago came to Portugal for vacation this year. They came to Vilo do Conde to visit us for 4 days of their trip, before moving on to Port for 2 days and Lisbon for 2 days. It was so great to see them and we had a lot of fun showing them around Vila do Conde. and Viana do Costelo. We did some sight seeing, drank Sangria and local beers and had a lot of laughs. We took them to the local fish market and the local farmers’ market where we bought groceries for fish dinner and a pasta night. Carmen is a great cook and we had fun putting together dinners, just like we used to do in Chicago. We played some cards, drank more Sangria and beer and told old school, back in the day, do you remember when we did this or that, kind of stories. Even pulled up some pictures from vacations spent together in Maui and holiday parties in Chicago. It was really good fun. This is a nice picture of our buds taken in Viana do Castelo. The picture next to it is a gorgeous chocolate martini served at the Monastery in Vilo do Conde, now the luxury hotel Lince, sangrias at various bars in Vila do Conde, well, you get the picture. Lots of fun was had by all!
We drove them to Porto for the next stop in their vacations. We did a tour of the Port Caves on the Duoro River. They aren’t really caves, although they may have been in days past. Today, they are restaurants and tasting rooms where you can enjoy some delicious port ranging from 5 year to 20+ year old port, tawny, ruby and white ports. It is a great way to spend a few hours over lunch, followed by a stroll along the Duoro River, people watching and checking out all of the market booths along the River.
Porto is a really beautiful city. We spent 2 weeks there in 2023 and really enjoyed our time spent there. It is filled with history, beautiful old buildings, top end shops, little taverns with great music, bakeries, the River Duoro and much more. We only spent the afternoon with Carmen and Dave in Porto so we spent our limited time with them enjoying their company. We did manage to get a few photos of the city of Porto as a reminder of what a beautiful town it is – great memories all the way around.
It came time to say good-by and head back to Vila do Conde. Hugs and kisses all around and best wishes for a fun holiday and safe travels back to the US to our friends, Dave & Carm. Until the next time!
Harvesting of the Grapes
Just when I thought the memories have all been created, we experience one of the great highlights of this 4-month living in another zip code(s) adventure. Our friends, Rick & Beth Zurich introduced us to a friend of theirs, Kathy L., who splits her time between Florida and Portugal. Kathy owns a small quinta (small farm) and grows grapes for making her own wine. Kathy is also friends with a beautiful couple, Nicole & John, who also own a quinta and grow grapes for making their own wine. The wines are strictly for personal consumption and are not available commercially. Anyway, Kathy is in Portugal during our stay here because it is grape harvesting time and she needs to harvest her grapes as do Nicole & John. Rick & Beth sent a letter of introduction to Kathy and we connected with her, offering our services to help pick grapes. OH MY GOD! She said “yes”!
So, with just a few days before we leave Vilo do Conde, we drive to the central part of Portugal and have the day of a lifetime for us oenophiles. It is pouring rain but we do not care. We jump in the car at 7AM and make our way to Kathy’s house where we pick her up and head over to Nicole and John’s to harvest some grapes. We arrive and are immediately walked out to the vines, handed some gloves, a large pail and cutting shears. We pick grapes for about 3 hours before Nicole sends word that lunch is served. Check out the fun!!!
These are the spoils of the groups’ hard labors, to which Jim and I contributed just a fraction. The team had been out harvesting grapes for 2 days prior to our arrival. Following the day’s harvest, Jim and I head back to Vila do Conde but the rest of the team had another 2 days of grape picking at John & Nicole’s before it was declared the end of harvest.
Lunch was an incredible feast. Nicole a retired musician and was very well-known during her active career. When she retired from performing, she took up cooking and farming and is today a successful chef/caterer. She made 8 quiches, multiple salads, grilled meat on the outdoor wood fire stove and fresh fruit for dessert. Most of the food came from their farm, including the eggs laid by their chickens, broccoli, zuchini, peppers, onions, mushrooms and so much more, that Nicole & John lovingly tend too. They also grown olive trees and have the olives pressed into olive oil for their personal use, so even the olive oil was locally sourced! It was so so so good! All of the workers, including us, gathered at a large table and the feasting began. There was so much laughter, talking, recalling past harvesting, and just great comradery. I could have moved in right then and there, if anything even remotely resembling an invitation was laid forth. Jim and I are both in love with this farming lifestyle. Not sure I could do it forever but I sure could do it once a year. In fact, we have already offered our services for future plantings and harvests! Here area a few pictures of the quintas and the group enjoying Nicole’s delightful cooking.
Oh, I forgot to mention. Wine from their 2019 harvest was served with lunch. It was delicious!
One thing I forgot to mention is, the people who work to help harvest the grapes are Work Aways. These are individuals who do a variety of jobs all over the world for free room and board. Most of the work aways that day were young people living a nomadic life and learning all about the many cultures and places to see in the world. Jim and I had the chance to speak with a few of them at lunch. What a rich and exciting life for a young person who has not yet settled down to marriage, a family, a mortgage and all of those responsibilities that change one’s ability to roam the world freely. I wish these types of opportunities had been around when I was 22. But hey, they are available now and nothing says you cannot do them in retirement!
Thank you so much to Rick & Beth, Kathy and Nicole & John for giving us such a wonderful and cherished memory!
Back to Vila do Conde
We are saying farewell to Portugal and heading to London for the last 3 days of this journey.
Take a look at what crossed my path as we were driving to leave Portugal! JMJ!!! It is a good sign!
For now, we bid you farewell, Portugal. The gods and goddesses of travel be willing, we will see you again very soon. Abrigada for the wonderful time, sweet Portugal and aloha for now.
