A Jeanne in the Kitchen

As I mentioned in my previous post, Pieces of Portugal – Part 17 – A Cathedral In Porto, Gaia is just across the Douro River from Porto. We met our tour guide, Jorge, for another walking/history tour of the area at the Cathedral, then walked across the Dom Luis 1 Bridge into Gaia. There is quite a rich history, and rivalry, of these two sister cities. The two cities have been rivals since the 13th century, torn apart by a tragic love story.

Jorge, our tour guide.

A street musician on the bridge.

Looking back into Porto.

One of the 7 iconic bridges of the Douro River.

You can take the gondolas too if you like, but we walked across the river on the bridge instead. In the days of old, these boats used to be how the port was transported from the port wineries to the ships . Today, they are for the tourists as well as the annual boat race between the wineries. Today, they are mainly just for show.

Each of the big wineries have a boat.

Another piece of street art trying to cover up all the graffiti. This was originally done as a spoof, but has since become a famous landmark.

These dates mark the dates of the high floods. As you can see, the worst floods destroyed everything that was at a low level. Only the structures that were on higher ground were spared from major damages and/or devastation.

This is another piece of iconic art. It is on the corner of a building, all made from recycled trash. The building has been marked for repairs, and they are not sure what to do with this famous piece of art.

This was an old convent, with another tragic love story attached to it, like the story behind the rivalry between the two cities of Porto and Gaia.

Our official tour of Gaia ended here at the convent, but Larry and I had so much more in store for the day’s agenda. Before our other activities of the day, we toured around a little on our own too.

Roasted chestnuts are very popular and you find them being roasted on the streets in many places.

Another street musician at the water’s edge.

And just some more odds and ends before embarking on our other adventures for the day.

I will leave it here for now, but I have oh so much more. And this is ALL still our first full, and I do mean FULL, day in Porto. 🙂

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.

Once in Porto, we had yet another very full, jam-packed day. I know, you’re all shocked at that. 🙂 We had yet another fun and interesting tour planned, but before our tour, I will share the cathedral we visited before meeting up with our tour guide.

Porto is on one side of the Douro River and Gaia is on the other side. As per the norm on this trip, there is a lot to share, so I will once again break it into portions. Today I am giving you the “religious” portion of our tour. It would be overwhelming, if I gave you everything we did all at once. 🙂

Porto offers a perfect blend of historic charm, stunning river views, rich culture, and world-renowned wine. It is the second major city in Portugal, behind the capitol Lisboa, and it has a lot more of a relaxing vibe to it than Lisboa. Gaia, or Vila Nova de Gaia, is on the other side of the Douro River and is home to the famous port wine manufacturers. There has been a long rivalry between the two cities that dates back to the 13th century.

We are on one of the bridges in Gaia with Porto in the background.

There are roughly 4300 churches in Portugal, most of which are Catholic. There is no way of of not visiting these beautiful and ornate cathedrals and churches when visiting Portugal. They are everywhere, and are very much a part of Portugal’s rich history. Church and state were, and still are, very much connected and tied together in Portugal. Catholicism in Portugal is not just a religion, but is the way of life.

One of the ceilings in the cathedral.

The rooftop views.

Back inside the cathedral. There are definitely churches in Portugal, but most of what we saw were cathedrals. The difference, as I understand it, is that churches are generally thought of as generic places of Christian worship, whereas cathedrals serve as the seat of a bishop and the central church of a diocese, often characterized by grand architecture and very ornate, elaborate decorations. Cathedrals symbolize teaching authority. Basilicas are churches with a special designation from the Pope due to their historical or spiritual significance.

The rooftop view of the city of Porto

I will leave it here for now. After touring the church or cathedral, or basilica, we met up with our tour guide Jorge, for our tour of Gaia. But that will be next time. Don’t go anywhere. I have so much more to share. 🙂

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.

Our short little intermission is over now, so back to Portugal. From Faro, we flew into Porto. We were in Porto for five days. We didn’t arrive in Porto until the early evening, so all we did was check into our hotel and find a place to eat. Larry really wanted to try one the national Portuguese dishes, Francesinha, and Porto is known for that dish. We asked the reception desk at our hotel where the best place to go was and he told us to go to Brasao. So we did.

Brasao was a hoppin’ place, with 2 floors. We ended up on the lower level floor.

I love plates on the wall as decoration. I have them on our dining room wall too. Many are from our travels and some I inherited from my parents and are antiques. We added a new one from Portugal after this trip too.

Our starter was another bread and olive plate, but this time, the olive dish contained some fresh capers as well. YUMMY.

Larry is not much of a wine drinker at all, but he will drink white wines. I love ALL wines, but whites are definitely my favorites. The wines all over Portugal were very inexpensive, and it was cheaper to buy bottles than glasses. Needless to say, we tried a lot of very good Portuguese wines on this trip.

We needed some veggies since Portugal, like Spain, is very carnivorous, so we ordered a salad. NOT that we needed extra food though, by any means of the imagination! Portugal is known for serving VERY generous portion sizes.

We both ordered the francesinhas, but I had mine without cheese. They made it even meatier than normal by wrapping it in a layer of ham. 🙂

A francesinha is basically a MEAT sandwich smothered in a layer of tomato sauce made with beer, port and brandy, covered in cheese with a fried egg on top. It’s got a piece of bread, a layer of ham, a layer of sausage, steak, more sausage or ham and more bread. Very low in calories too. 🙂 🙂 🙂

Larry loved it so much, he actually had it a couple more times during the rest of the trip too. I will be making some this weekend too, here at home; both versions. 🙂

We thoroughly enjoyed our dinner and the recommendation to Brasao. Everything was delicious and the staff was on top of everything, as busy as they were. Nothing was forgotten and everyone was made to feel very special. That’s exactly how a good restaurant should be too!

We had to take both the train and the bus back to our hotel, and after such a large meal, we definitely needed to walk off some of the calories. So we took our time, and took in the sites. These are from the main train station. There were lots of azuljelos on the walls, telling the stories of Porto and Portugal. I love how ornate everything was.

And we got real used to seeing this church covered in tiles too. When we saw the church, we knew our day was almost over, and we were just a short distance away from our hotel. After long days, with tons of walking all around, at the end of the day, it was a very welcomed sight. 🙂

I still have lots more to share. Don’t go anywhere. Stay tuned. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. Have a great day and make everyday great. ‘Til next time.

I see and hear the little black-capped chickadees all the time, but they are usually pretty evasive and hard to catch with my camera. This time, I got lucky though and one was kind enough to let me get a few good shots before flying off. It’s just a few, but I will take what I can get. 🙂

Have a great day and make everyday great. Take life’s opportunities while you and make the most of them. 🙂 ‘Til next time.

In yesterday’s post Pieces of Portugal – Part 16 – Faro I mentioned it was a good opportunity for another “intermission” since we moved on to the Northern part of Portugal, into Porto. So I will give you some of my cooking instead today. I hope you are not too disappointed. 🙂

Spring in Colorado is all over the place. One minute it is cold, then it is warm, then it snows, and back to sunshine and shorts, and then rain; all in one week. With weather like is, it makes it very difficult to plan meals, yet somehow I manage, and we always eat well. 🙂

On one of our very warm days, I made another delicious Mediterranean salad. This one was loaded with chicken, olives, artichoke hearts and much more.

Chicken, Artichoke and Olive Salad

Mixed baby greens

1 cup mixed olives, sliced in 1/2

1 tomato, diced or sliced

1/4 red onion, sliced very thin

2 cooked chicken breasts, sliced thin

1/4 cup sliced beets, optional

feta cheese, optional

pepita seeds, optional

lemon herb vinaigrette

Larry’s salads always get cheese, since he is a big cheese eater. I vary his cheeses depending on what kind of salad I am making. Since this is a Mediterranean salad, and feta cheese is very Mediterranean, feta cheese is what he got on his salad this time.

Assemble the salad, adding the sliced chicken on top and add the dressing. I added beets and pepita seeds to mine.

Lemon Herb Vinaigrette

1/3 cup olive oil (my olive oil is some we brought back from Portugal this time)

2-3 TBSP lemon juice

1 TBSP capers

2 tsp fresh herbs – I used oregano, thyme and tarragon

fresh ground black pepper

Mix everything together well, and let rest a bit before using. Delicious!

This is a simple, easy-peasy vinaigrette that went very well with this light salad. It is very Mediterranean. A lot of the Mediterranean dressings are very simple like this. They are very light and refreshing, especially when the weather gets warm.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Life is what you make it, so make it great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.

Faro was our last stop in the Algarve region. It is also the capitol of the Algarve region. Once again, Faro is a very old, Medieval city, surrounded by the old Medieval walls. We had yet another tour, which turned out to be another private tour. This time our guide was Flavio. He was great, and again, very knowledgeable, informative and a lot of fun. He took us all around his home town and shared a lot of fun information, about the city of Faro and about is own personal experiences.

Our tour with Flavio actually ended here, but sometimes endings are good places to start. 🙂

We met Flavio in the park and while we were waiting, of course I was busy taking pictures. The Moorish influences are all over.

Faro was originally built by the Ancient Romans as the Roman town of Ossonoba, becoming a crucial Moorish port, and finally falling to Christian forces in 1249. Known for its resilience, the city survived significant sackings by English troops and the devastating 1755 earthquake, eventually becoming the Algarve’s administrative center and a modern tourist hub.

The protected storks get free reign. If they decide to make a nest somewhere, nothing can be done or changed about it. They liked this crane, and built a nest on the bricks. Everything is at a stand still for as long as the storks keep their nest here.

Entering through the gates to the old walled city of Faro.

Storks in art.

These were once fishermen’s cottages. Today they are abandoned and covered in graffiti.

The first Christian King after defeating the Moors in 1249, with the church and monastery behind him.

More azuljelos telling the history.

The story behind this beautiful building was that it was built by a wealthy businessman, but he never got to live in it. He died right after the construction of the house was finished. Today, it is a government building.

Before returning o sapo and heading to the airport to fly into Porto, we had time for a quick little snack at Faro Beach, where we were joined by some friendly sparrows who were begging for some scraps.

The Faro airport, while waiting for our flight to Porto.

This ends our southern tour of the Algarve region of Portugal. I fell in love with the whole Algarve. It is just stunning. It is also a good place for another intermission. Porto is our next destination. Porto is up north.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.

Eating in Silves wasn’t really an option for us since most of the restaurants were closed at the time we were there. No problem. He got back into o sapo, and off we went. We just drove around until we found something that looked appealing. Beleive it or not, I don’t think I even got the name of this delicious restaurant. Nor do I really even know where we were. All I know is that we were on the road somewhere between Silves and Albufeira.

Larry is checking out the menu. We thought about dining out on the patio, but it was getting a little chilly outside, and opted for the indoor dining instead.

The restaurant was pretty empty at first, but really filled up later. As I’ve said, the Portuguese tend to eat much later than we do, so no surprise that it filled up later.

I have no idea why there was a giraffe in the middle of the dining room, but it certainly added character.

For starters, we had a bread, olive and vegetable plate. Larry was driving, so no wine for him, and I ordered a Portuguese steak, so I went with a red wine.

Larry ordered grilled octopus, which was delicious.

Everything was delicious and our server was very friendly and helpful.

The kitchen was actually on the outside, by the door, instead of “the back of the house” like they usually are. I got a quick pic of the chefs at work on the way out as we were leaving.

It was yet another jam-packed, fun filled day, but it was time to call it a day and to head back to our hotel.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.

From Sagres, we headed towards Silves, which is more inland. We were off to see yet another castle or castelo. We were going to the Se de Silves, A 13th-century Gothic cathedral built on the site of a former mosque.

Silves is a historic city in the western Algarve region of southern Portugal, renowned as the former Moorish capital and home to the region’s most impressive red sandstone castle. Located about 25 minutes inland from the coast, it offers an authentic, quiet alternative to coastal resorts, featuring medieval architecture, a cathedral, and citrus groves.

Maybe we are so fascinated by castles because we don’t have them here at home. We went to as many castles as we could on this trip.

There was a commanding view of the area from atop the castle walls.

The castelo gardens.

After the castelo, we walked around the town of Silves a bit too. We were looking for a place to eat, but decided to move on and find something closer to our hotel instead. The main reason was because most everything was closed. It was an in between time, since most Portuguese eat late. Silves is a very cute, quaint little town though.

I love how they dress up their electrical boxes too.

Next destination – Faro.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.

After leaving Lagos, we continued our day’s journey, exploring more of the gorgeous rugged coastline of the Algarve region. We headed to both Sagres and Silves and beyond. It was such a beautiful day.

Sagres is a destination shaped by the raw power of the Atlantic Ocean. Sagres was once known as the end of the world because it was the extreme western point, where the sun, at its setting, boiled the ocean waters – The end of the inhabited world to ancient mariners. It became known as Sagres because of the  Romans Cabo de S. Vicente and Ponta de Sagres were known as the Promontorium Sacrum, which gave rise to the name Sagres.

This old fort was one of our stops. There isn’t too much left of the old fort itself, but the coastal views are spectacular. We enjoyed our walk around the fort grounds.

How can one NOT enjoy these spectacular views????? The water was so many different shades of blue and green. Blues and greens are two of my favorite colors, along with purples. Why you may ask. Because they are the colors of the sea, and I grew up loving the sea. Like my daddy, the seas are my home.

The old church was still standing, but it was closed for repair.

We found these two perfect Nautilus type sea shells, but they still had critters inside, so we threw them back into their home, and back to the sea they went.

The lighthouse and a little maze.

These views are just AMAZING. I hope you like gorgeous sea views because I’ve got a bunch of them. 🙂

There were also some pretty flowers scattered about and some friendly birds who felt they needed their pictures taken too.

After taking in all the gorgeous sites at the fort, we started heading towards Silves. We made some more little stops along the way too. We had o sapo, aka Freddie, and we were making him hop all over the place.

Things we saw along the way. This must have been a plate factory. Whatever it was, it was definitely colorful and whimsical and caught our eye.

I think this was another Spanish border.

This is a good stopping point for now. Silves was totally different, so I will make it a posting on its own.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.

Lagos is a very beautiful, old coastal town in the middle of the Algarve region. We took yet another morning tour, this time with Arturo. He gave us the history of the town as we walked up and down the narrow, Medieval streets. We met Arturo outside the walls of the old castle. I know, right?! Another castle in Portugal. 🙂

Arturo grew up in Lagos and still lives there today. So this was his personal history too. It was fascinating.

The only parts that remain of this castle are the outside walls. The old city of Lagos is behind these walls.

Lagos is an old fishermen’s town. Originally, most of the inhabitants were connected to the fishing industry. Not so much any more though. It is becoming gentrified and is now place for a lot of people of all kinds of backgrounds who like to work remotely from home. There are also a lot of B & B’s there too. it is a cute, quaint and charming town wit a rich, diverse history.

These small, tiny houses were some of the original houses, with traditional designs, with the low roofs and the simple designs on top of the buildings.

Once again, the streets were beautifully decorated depicting the lifestyles of the region.

Everything has a story. These door knockers represent the home of a wealthy married couple. There is a knocker for the man and a knocker for the woman. Even the knocks had their own meanings. Often times you could tell who was knocking and the message they were sending by the knocks and codes that were being used.

This is an old water station. The little house contained fresh water for people to drink and to use. It came in very handy during the hot summer months. Today, it is just a beautifully decorated reminder of the past. The gate behind it opens up the world between the old city and the new, modern city.

Arturo said his dad helped construct it in 1932.

These little round windows at the top of the house also indicates a very traditional building style, particularly for the wealthy.

Since graffiti is a big problem all over Portugal, more and more cities and town are encouraging street art through street art festivals to try to clean up the graffiti problem. This is nice. I like it and I like the idea behind it.

But I still prefer the “old” street art. I think it has a lot more personality and character. 🙂

This is one of the oldest churches in Lagos, and like so many other old churches, is still in use today. One of the fun facts Arturo shared with us is that most churches in Portugal have the Saints and other statues outside on the tops of the churches. You can see the spaces for them. But in Lagos, most of the churches do not. When Napoleon and his soldiers invaded the area, they stole a lot of the statues, as well as many other things. So as a way of saying “no more”, the people of Lagos left the statues off the churches when they were rebuilt after the terrible earthquake of 1755.

This building is one of the original buildings that is still owned by the same family in the town square. The green tiles, and the design of the railings are French, back from the Napoleonic days. The family lives above and their store is on the ground level.

Wine anyone? How thirsty are you?

Our tour ended at the old fish market, that is still thriving today.

Storks are all over the place and are protected. They were once endangered, but through Portugal’s protections, they are once again thriving. Portugal hosts the only known white storks in the world that nest on sea cliffs, particularly on the Alentejo and Algarve coasts.

This was only the beginning of our day. We were off galavanting around the area all day. I have lots more coming your way, just not today, not right now. Anticipation my friends, anticipation. 🙂

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.