Portugal part two

When last I wrote, we were driving to Nazare the next day. As it turns out, that is my most favorite place in Portugal! Nazare is a small (10,000 people) beach town that traditionally made it's living by fishing and now has added tourism to the mix. It is picture postcard pretty, with it's white buildings, red tile roofs, golden sand, looong beach, big surf and Oregon coast-like rocks. It is nestled in between two green hills. On top of the hill to the north sits the town of Sitio with it's town praca (plaza) and church, shops surrounding the praca and a hike to the lighthouse perched above the rocks. There is a funicular that connects the two towns most of the year, but during our stay it was undergoing maintenance so a shuttle bus drove the circular route up and back. We stopped to have coffee after our hike to the lighthouse and talked with an elderly woman who was doing needlepoint. With the help of my trusty dictionary, we shared handwork stories. She also knits and quilts! The restaurants serve mostly seafood but I had a delicious steak there. Also present in town are Portugal's elderly ladies in black; they have puffy skirts that in the past had a dozen petticoats that could be pulled around their arms, legs and torso to keep them warm as they waited on the beach for their husbands to come home from the sea.

We stayed 3 nights. On the firstday, Jon walked out to the beach and met Manual who was surfcasting. They discussed fishing experiences. The next day when we were in Sitio they met again where Manual was casting off the top of the 300 foot cliff next to the lighthouse. They had a great time talking and Manual even showed Jon pictures of his wife and children. On one of the days we drove to three nearby towns to see churches of historic importance. Batalha is the spot where the Portuguese army defeated the Spanish and drove them out of the land. A cathedral marks that event. A second cathedral in Alcobaca commemorates two lovers (one of whom was a prince who later became king) who were denied marriage. There is a rather grisly story that I won't go into here, but we HAD to see their tombs! Lastly, we visited Fatima where a famous miracle involving Mary appearing to three children occurred. She made three predictions (warnings) to the children in her first appearance in the early 1900s. Two came true quickly but the third only when an attempt was made to assassinate Pope John Paul. When he heard of the prediction, he visited Fatima and there is a statue memorializing his time there. There is also a shrine where the vision occurred, a basilica, and a newer, huge church. Pilgrims come from all over the world to visit this place, and we did too.

When we left Nazare, we went to Coimbra, home of the second oldest university in Europe. It was founded in the 1200s and still conducts classes and graduates students. There is a wonderful old library there with thousands of volumes of very old books. They are available to scholars by reservation. There is a great pastelaria on the pedestrian street in the Old Town area and you will see a picture of the pastries we just had to taste - Rick Steves made us do it! We also had a delicious dinner of roast suckling pig in the nearby town of Mealhada, renowned worldwide for this dish. Happily, our friend Tom Armitage emailed us in the nick of time to suggest we do this!

After Coimbra, we decided to forego Porto and to spend time in the Douro valley instead. This is where Portugal's famous, delicious port wine is produced. We stayed in a quinta, or vineyard, farmhouse near Peso de Regua where the owners rent 4 rooms as a B & B. We were the only ones there and so had a wonderful time being toured through the production system and getting to know them. Cesar and MariaElisa were extremely gracious hosts who became our friends. For our full day there, they mapped out a driving trip that took us up into the hills through the vineyards and to spectacular viewpoints. Of course we tried some of their port (several varieties!) and ended up going out to dinner together to celebrate the new friendship. Included is their picture and also one of the valley.

We have now left Portugal and have settled into a hotel room in Santiago de Compostela, in Spain. We are looking forward to seeing the great cathedral that we have heard so much about and to learning more about the thousands of pilgrims who come here every year. But we regret leaving Portugal. It is a nation of gentle people, great food and many beautiful places. We would love to come back.

Photos: from the top: Jon's friend Manual, our friends Cesar and MariaElisa, high above the Douro river, pastries in Coimbra, the church in Fatima, and Nazare from the overlook in Sitio.