Who feels guilty about a vacation...well ... we are doctors
and my boy is taking his boards this year....so anhedonia is what we should
feel all the time and here we were headed to a voyager nirvana
Portugal had a real strong contender...our guilty
conscience...
Portugal was a vacation planned by the confluence of cosmos
for us ...we are Goans ,so we think we are quasi Portuguese...Amol’s Nephrology
paper got selected for the Porto Clinical Nephrology Update ,the only Indian
amongst 25 other papers.....ADi ‘s 10
days school break coincided perfectly, (so what if we landed from the airport to
the Examination Hall)....Hence we had to do this...so perfectly planned by the
cosmos cannot be let go by mere mortals.....
We did our usual Qatar airways route, where we Chandran
Mahaldars believe that the journey is more important than the destination
itself. We landed in Lisbon in good time, to experience the funicular, Elevador
de Santa Justa. The Elevador de Santa Justa was designed by Raul Mesnier de
Ponsard , a student of the great iron craftsman Gustav Eiffel(The Eiffel tower
guy) and just as popular . This Iron Masterpiece is a work of art that leads us
to the most romantic photo point with the finest views of central Lisbon,
against the setting sun spreading sepia tones are memories to be held on
forever
Our next destination was the day long trip to the mystical
city of Sintra...A train ride away from the city transports one into an
erstwhile royal sanctuary replete with forested terrains , castles and opulent
mansions.The Palacio National da Pena has a Disneyland feel to it with a
vividly painted exterior . The most beautiful green Chandelier of morning glory
vines and an ornate Kings bed were my favourites.
A winding walk along the castle ruins of The Castelo dos Mouros was long, tiring but exhilarating...did not know that was even possible.
The Quinta da Regaleria , a lavish mansion that
contain hidden tunnels and secretive religious symbolism...The nine platforms
of the well of initiation quickly pointed out as the Dante’s nine circles
of Hell by my teen son without any
prelude set me questioning.... am I the
Devil and is he the Devil's son ...hence knows all about Hell...symbolism, enchantment,
mysticism QdR has it all.
A winding walk along the castle ruins of The Castelo dos Mouros was long, tiring but exhilarating...did not know that was even possible.
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| Castelo dos Mouros |
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| Quinta da Regaleria |
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| well of initiation |
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| kiss under a holly |
A late night tram 28 ride around Lisbon with my leaden legs but Amols unebbed enthusiasm(never the case), made sure we did not miss any “touristy things to do”. Our souls were resuscitated only with wafting varied Portuguese cuisines in the Time Out Market..a Gastronomic Gourmet Extravaganza which runs all night
Our last day in Lisbon had us taking a bus in the opposite
direction due to a moments disagreement in the family . But local travel in a
bus full of geriatric population (the
bus was headed to the Hospital de Santa Maria, probably they were busbound to collect their meds) was just as amusing.
When on a holiday even wrong things seem so right.
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| Jeronimos monastery |
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| VdG tomb |
Padrao dos Descobrimentos , a grand monument on the banks of Tejus Estuary romanticises the voyages of Age of Discovery . For our side of the world it was the age of the complete elimination of Arab traders and silenced Indian Kingdoms.
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| Padrao dos Descobrimentos |
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| Tower of Belem |
A walk by the river to reach Praca do Comercio holds so many Buskers, Street art, photo stops.
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| A photo of the photographer@Praca do Comercio |
Portuguese have this crazy affinity for cod fish...they have so many dishes churned out of that one fish, starting from starters to dessert I was left wondering if they have a toothpaste of bacalhao flavour as well....start the day with their fave flavour.
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| Ajulejo tiled corrider @ our accomodation |
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Good Morning Lisboa
view from our apartment
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Our accommodation in Lisbon was in the old Alfama district
famed for its traditional cafes. The apartment was old but the amenities so
futuristic and ergonomic that NASA would be inspired. The smallest kitchen I
had seen till date but had all the appliances fitted in a 3*3 sq feet area. The
unrivalled views of the river Tagus and the
red tiled rooftops, the white apartment,
Ajuleo tiled corridor, the old flatmate who “bonita”ed my gown ..Cabbies of Lisbon are probably the best car parkers in the world....narrow cobbled streets with such tight parking...they aced it all like a scene from the movies....Lisbon made me feel like the Bond girl....beautiful blithe bimbette in an exotic locale....
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Acting the Bond Girl
Our ride in POrtugal
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We picked our car from Lisbon and headed to Lagos...Well that was the intention but ……..We circled every flyover out of Lisbon , Amol tried his best to keep calm, I played out the bimbette bit to the hilt and Adi blissfully unaware of the rising tension in the Merc wanted to play music till we got out of town, (musical navigation maybe). Finally we got out of Lisbon(probably Lisbon just rearranged her roads so that we could just drive away) and reached Sines. Completing the entire life cycle of Vasco da Gama with some lovely local fresh grilled fish served with beet looking sweet potaoes from a local Café.
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| Sines-Birthplace of VdG |
Along the western coast of Portugal...Google maps figured out finally, a song on our lips and a proud chest we reached Vincentine coast. Europe's lands end and the vast Atlantic ocean ….lending the monicker "the last sausage before America" to a food van there
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| Praia @ Lagos |
Lagos was our night halt....a beach town where our self check in had a key in a number locked container....written Instructions to the T from the host like Bond movies again. I half expected some secret documents hidden in the microwave.
We got Merc bound to Faro ….interesting limestone rock formations by the sea, most photographed Portuguese landscape . We picked some stones that had shells embedded in them, got lots more photos...even the boys cooperated this time...
Nossa Senhora Fathima...her elusive secrets that beats the Da Vinci code....the religious fervour that transcends all faiths was the right break for a 350 km in 3 hours ride
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| Fatima |
Batalha has a Gothic monastery but of greater interest are cycling routes which someday I hope to return to fulfil my pedal dreams
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| cycling routes @ Batalha...pedal list |
Porto- raison d'etre
The reason of our visit, Amols Nephrology Congress,
The origin of the country's name Portugal
The source of Porto wine
The home of FC Porto
Adi and me explored it mainly by foot along the Duoro river, over popcorn and lots of mom son bonding.
The sights of note are the Palacio da Bolsa, erstwhile stock exchange of the rich port .The guided tour by a good humoured youngster, opulent Arabic room kept intact along with the Gustav Eiffel room when he lived in POrto , plaster feigning as wood, a ton weighing chandelier doubles up as a venue for banquets for the HNWI and state heads
Porto has 6 bridges along the Douro river.
Dom Luis 1 the double decker bridge designed by Gustav Eiffel partner and hence influenced greatly by the master. I am an Eiffelophile ...so kindly bear the Eiffel excesses
Livraria Lello bookstore , the most beautiful bookstore in the world, frequented by Jk Rowling has an entry fee to step in to the wonderland.
The narrowest building , between the Carmo and the Carmelite churches , blends right in , almost hidden, has a broad impact.
We drove along the grapevine countryside of the Douro region....winding roads drive up to the heavens almost , the car kissing the clouds intoxicated by the POrto wine....we ate The francesinha a typical Porto dish, consisting of multiple layers of beef, ham, bacon, sausage, egg and dough, drenched in tomato and beer sauce, in a countryside cafe
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| foosball @ a local cafe |
Coimbra - the university town of Porto had the Latada festival on the day of our visit. The freshers are welcomed with a week long festivities and baptized in the Mondego river. The number of students that spilled onto the streets that day could have easily finished the waters of Mondego. A small snack in Church converted to a Cafe, right in the eye of the boisterous Latada had us screaming at the top of voices to be heard The Harry Potters long black cloak is influenced by this festival when JkR stayed in Portugal.
Nazare - Another beach resort , cold green waters, home to 100 feet waves attract the best and bravest surfers. We were happy sampling live barnacles and bolos de Belem.
a diva moment...…
saying our vows again...…
We reached in good time to Mafra luckily......luckily because it was one the most exotic stays in all life and we would not have been able to appreciate it at night. We stayed in a windmill.
Yes , you read it right...an old windmill now converted into a 2bhk, kitchen and bath...with all the amenities...swimming pool, love seat under the full moon, landscaped gardens and horses on trot.....A freezing swim in the pool by moonlight, an occasional dog howling at the moon, moonlight dinner...what a fine finish to a fantastic holiday
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| chilling in the afternoon sun |
a diva moment...…
saying our vows again...…
We reached in good time to Mafra luckily......luckily because it was one the most exotic stays in all life and we would not have been able to appreciate it at night. We stayed in a windmill.
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| A windmill we called home for a night |
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| windmill attic |
The Portugal trip was meant to be......guilt tried hard...….but Portugal won hands down
PS- I have to acknowledge all things that went wrong too
Adi had his head buried in books in the car and every night(we had exams to answer), we left Alexa remote in Porto, we forgot a Thank You gift at the airport and it compounded my sadness of a vacation ending many more times, Adi developed red eyes from watching too much inflight entertainment and an ophthalm friend suggested dehydration could be a cause, and I had Adi drinking so much water that the poor kid was running to the loo like a diabetic, we had our usual skirmishes vacation or Portugal notwithstanding, I realised my A2 level in Portuguese is only worth saying Obrigado but still....Eternal Voyagers we remainPS- I have to acknowledge all things that went wrong too
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| poor lad had exams the next day |
