Food, Beautiful Food

I love food. One of the best things about travelling is having the opportunity to sample new restaurants and different cuisines.

As you know, Rob and I have just returned from travelling in Portugal. We started in Lisbon, made our way north to Porto via Sintra, did a driving loop to visit three northern pousadas, and then returned to Lisbon.

While we were in Lisbon, we we went down to the Bairro Alto, the old downtown core of Lisbon, for dinner the first few nights. This is a picturesque area of narrow cobblestone streets, traditional architecture, clubs, Portuguese restaurants, and fado singers. The area is filled with tourists.

The restaurants here feature traditional Portuguese cooking, which I love. Rather than elaborately plated fine dining, the food is hearty in a "farm food" or "fisherman's food" kind of way, and menu items may be served "family style." This means that you order à la carte, and share with the table (the servings are large!). The photo below shows a rabbit pie that I ordered one night. It was fabulous!

Rabbit Pie

As a sea-faring nation, Portuguese restaurants offer many kinds of fish and other seafood on their menus, which made me happy. I ordered fish more often than not, whereas Rob indulged in all manner of meaty dishes. One of the most delicious dishes we shared while in Lisbon was an octopus salad (which I forgot to take a picture of, I was so intent on eating it).

I can't write about traditional Portuguese dinners without mentioning the appetizers that are laid out in front of you when you first sit down. They always set out olives, bread, and soft cheese, along with a variety of other tasty items. They only charge you for the ones you choose to eat, and you can ask them to take the rest away. Our Portuguese friends tell us that experienced diners wave away the couvers (I am not sure about the spelling of that), but Rob and I discovered so many interesting dishes that we didn't always send them away. We ALWAYS  kept the olives, as Portuguese olives are so much better than the ones you can get in North America. And so is the wine, but I am not going to write about the wine here, although we sampled quite a lot of it.

On this visit, we also spent quite a lot of time exploring the newer part of the city around the Parque das Nações area. This is the huge area where the 1998 Expo was held. It has all been developed into an area of public parks and public buildings, restaurants, museums, and so on, and also there is a huge shopping mall there. It was interesting to experience modern Lisbon culture and more contemporary cuisine in this area.

Although our hotel was near the airport, it was easy to get anywhere in the city via the Metro. Each day, we bought a daily Metro pass for 6,30 Euros, and with that we could ride anywhere on the Metro trains, and transfer to buses as well.

All of the pousadas and other hotels that we stayed in (except the little pension in Sintra) came with a full breakfast buffet. The three pousadas all offered spectacularly good breakfasts, and so did the Lisbon Marriott hotel, where we stayed on our last night in Portugal.

The pastries in Portugal are divine, and there were always many freshly baked pastries on offer for breakfast, as well as in every coffee shop. There are many regional specialties (which we did our best to sample), but I think my favourite is Pastel de Nata, an egg tart pastry that is considered to be the national pastry.

The photo below shows the breakfast table at the Pousada Viana do Castelo. Not only was the breakfast really good, but also it was a very beautiful dining room. The views out the windows over the city and ocean also were great, as this hotel is located on top of a mountain.

A Beautiful Breakfast Buffet in a Beautiful Room

The food was also good at the Pousada de Canicada-Geres. In particular, I enjoyed a really tasty gazpacho as my first course. Rob ate a cabbage and sausage soup, which he liked.

Possibly the Best Gazpacho Ever

Our dinner in the Pousada Mosteiro de Guimaraes was perhaps the most "haute cuisine" meal that we enjoyed. The first photo below shows us sitting at our table, and the next one zooms in on my chicken dish, which was as delicious as it was beautiful.

Dinner in the Historic Monastery in Guimaraes 

Beautifully Presented and It Tasted Delicious

I haven't mentioned the dessert buffet yet. Each pousada also offered a table groaning with the dessert selections, many being specialties of the area. How could we have room for dessert after appetizers, soup, and an entrée? Somehow, we managed.

If you are thinking of going to Portugal, one thing you should be aware of is that people dine late there (by North American standards). Most restaurants do not open for dinner until 7 pm, and more fashionable diners tend to eat even later than that. If you get hungry in the late afternoon or early evening, it can be hard to find any place open even for a snack.

On our first trip to Lisbon in 2011, we stayed at the Lisbon Marriott. We both remembered the breakfast buffets there fondly, and when we returned there on this trip, it did not disappoint us.

Kitchen at the Lisbon Marriott

We also had good dining experiences in Sintra and Porto. And I confess that I have dozens more photos of food that I have not included here. It is not only millennials who like to take pictures of their food ;-)

In Porto, we dined at outdoor restaurants along the quay each night. It was lovely to look out across the river at the twinkling lights, sipping wine and enjoying our dinners. I will leave you with a final photo of a dessert we shared in Porto. It looked even prettier before we started to eat it!

Orange Cake With Tangerine Ice Cream

The Ribeira District, Porto

We are no longer in Portugal. However, I wanted to write about our visit to Porto in northern Portugal. We went there after visiting Sintra and stayed for two nights in the Ribeira District. This is the old section of Porto along the Douro River. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site, and it is very picturesque.

We stayed in a hotel located right on Praça da Ribeira, the old town square down by the quays. We had an amazing view onto the square and the river. Because vehicles other than taxis are prohibited in  the old town centre, we had to park the rental car in a shopping centre parkade several blocks away, and parking the car there for two days was fairly expensive. However, that was balanced out by having very walkable streets with little traffic.

View From our Room

As you can see in the photo above, we had a great view from our room.

A Boat Tour on the Douro River

The first day that we were there, we went on a 50 minute boat tour up and then down the Douro, and saw the six bridges over the Douro that join Porto with the city across the river, Vila Nova de Gaia. It is said that the name of the country, Portugal, derives from the Roman name for this settlement at the mouth of the Douro, Porto Cullis, which may be a derivative of an even earlier place name.

Picturesque Porto Along the Douro River

From the boat, we were able to get a great view of the colourful neighbourhoods along the river, as well as the bridges, skyline, and many significant buildings and monuments.

Enjoying the Boat Tour

It was fun to be out on the water on the Douro River, after having been a longtime fan of wines from the Douro Valley. Also, I admit to being a bit of a geography geek. It somehow seems really special to actually see and travel on important rivers around the world. (I have been similarly awed by the Mississippi, the St. Lawrence, the Thames, and the Stikine rivers, to name a few.)

Walking Across the Dom Luis I Bridge to Vila Nova de Gaia

Later, we walked to the Dom Luis I Bridge and rode the funicular up to the top level of the bridge. This bridge, built by the same company that built the Eiffel Tower in Paris, has a lower level for cars, and an upper level, 60 meters up, for light rapid transit trains. It is possible to walk across the top level of the bridge, which we did. The views from up on the bridge were fantastic, and the height did not bother me too much, except I did hang on to the railing when the trains rushed by and everything vibrated.

Looking Down into Back Gardens From the Bridge

As we started walking across the bridge, we could look down onto the buildings, streets, and gardens on either side.

View of the Douro River From the Bridge

The photo above shows the view from the bridge looking downriver at the Ribeira quays (Cais da Ribeira).

Dom Luis I Bridge seen from Vila Nova de Gaia

I took this photo from the far side of the bridge, looking back at the bridge. If you look very closely, you can see tiny specks on the bridge. The specks are people, which gives some perspective of how high the bridge was.

View of Praça da Ribeira from the Bridge

This photo from the bridge shows the buildings around the square. Our hotel was the pale yellow one on the far right, next to the deeper yellow one. I can even see the windows of our room.

Visiting the Port Caves in Vila Nova de Gaia

After crossing the bridge, we rode the Telecabin (gondola) down to the river level and explored sections of Vila Nova de Gaia. This area is famed for its port cellars, or caves. Being on the north side of the river, the caves dug into the hillside remain consistently cool as is needed for aging the port, which can take decades.

The Boats that Tradtionally Transported the Port Down the Douro River

The photo above shows the type of boats that were used for transporting the port from the vineyards of the Douro Valley down to the port caves where it is aged, bottled, and then shipped all over the world. The port no longer comes down the river on boats, but rather by truck and train. The traditional boats (rabelos) are now used for racing on the river, each boat sponsored by one of the port houses.

At the Port Tasting

We did a tour and tasting at one of the port cellars. The photo above shows the three ports we tasted - from the right, a white, then a ruby and then a tawny port. As you may know, Port is a wine that is fortified with aguardente.

In Front of an Oak Barrel Used for Aging the Port in the Caves

The port is aged in barrels of different sizes, some very large. It was an interesting tour, and I enjoyed tasting three of the types of port made by the Calem port house.

Then we walked back across the bridge, this time on the lower level.

We were glad that we included a visit to Porto in our tour of Portugal.

A Visit to Sintra

Sintra

We have been doing a fifteen day tour of Portugal. After five days in Lisbon, we went to to Sintra for two days. The Vila de Sintra is a city in the municipality of Sintra, located in the Sintra Mountains on the west coast. The area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its historical importance. This area just north of Lisbon is also known as the Portuguese Riviera.

We stayed in a small b&b in the town of Sintra, and spent the first day exploring the area on foot. We hiked through the town past the municipal administration building, some large gardens, the National Palace Of Sintra (which served as the summer palace for royalty for a couple of centuries until the end of the 1600’s), and the Quinta da Regaleira (which unfortunately had just closed to visitors by the time we made our way there). The photo above shows a small alcove along the main roadway.

Near the Quinta da Regaleira, we took in the view over the Vila de Sintra. Looking in the other direction, through the arch behind us you can see the Palace of Pena on a nearby mountaintop.

Throughout Sintra, there were many stores catering to tourists. For example, these iron items looked interesting, although a little heavy to transport home via airplane in a suitcase.

Castelo dos Mouros (Castle of the Moors)

On the second day, we bought tickets for the “hop-on-hop-off” bus, and boarded it to take us to the Castle of the Moors on one mountaintop above the city, and the Palace of Pena on another nearby peak. It is also possible to hike up to the castle via a walking trail and then over to the palace, although it would be a long, steep route. The road was very narrow with many switchbacks to get to the top. We were amazed to see how the well the bus driver negotiated the narrow twisty road, and were glad we had left the rental car parked down below.

The Castelo dos Mouros was a military fort built in the tenth century during the time that the Moors occupied the Iberian peninsula. In this photo, you can see the keep.

From the castle, you get a good view of the Palace of Pena.

The views in all directions from the castle are amazing.

We climbed up and down many stairs as we hiked around the castle.

This photo shows the castle wall going from the keep to a second high point. I walked all along the castle wall, even though the ground fell away below in a rather breathtaking way. Rob took an alternative route to the far side. After exploring the castle, we hiked back out the road and hopped on the bus again, which dropped us off at the wall around Pena Palace.

Palacio Nacional de Pena (Pena National Palace)

Pena Palace is built upon the foundation of a former monastery on the site, and it incorporates many elements of the former building. It was built under the initiative of King-Consort Ferdinand and Queen Maria II in the mid-1800’s. It is considered to be the preeminent example of Portuguese Romantic architecture.

From the wall around the palace to the palace itself there was another long hike up a hill through the Pena Gardens. If we had been so inclined, we could have paid 3€ each and ridden up in a shuttle bus. But we walked, needing to balance some of the eating we had been doing with some vigorous exercise. We certainly achieved more than our 10,000 steps on this day.

Pena Palace is like a fairytale palace, and it is equally beautiful on the inside.

From the palace, there are fabulous views over Sintra and the mountains nearby.

The photo above is of a small niche in the interior. The wall mosaic dates from Moorish times. If you look closely, you can see that seashells were used in the mosaic pattern. Later, this space was used as a storeroom for the palace.

Some brave souls were doing the exterior wall walk. Not I.

There were elaborate carved details throughout the palace. Above you can see a representation of Triton, god of the sea. He was located on the exterior, just above the main entrance.

We were astounded and delighted with the beauty and history in Sintra. We are glad that we made it to this area during our time in Portugal.

The Fabulous Pousadas of Portugal

Rob and I have been enjoying 15 days travelling through Portugal. We started in Lisbon, where I attended an academic conference. Although quite a bit of my time was taken up with the conference, we also had plenty of time to tour parts of the city that we hadn’t seen in our last visit here in 2011. In particular, we visited the Tile Museum and explored the Parque das Nacoes, which was the site of the World Exposition in 1998. We ate at many traditional Portuguese restaurants, as well as some featuring new cuisine, and enjoyed listening to fado singers.

From Lisbon, we went on to Sintra and then north to Porto. I will write about those parts of the trip in a separate post.

When we travelled to Portugal in 2011, we discovered Portuguese Pousadas, to our great delight. The pousadas are luxury inns throughout the country, situated in buildings that are national monuments, or that are significant because of their history or natural beauty. They are run by the Pestana group, but I believe that they were initially established as an initiative by the government of Portugal. In 2011, we stayed at Alcacer do Sal, on top of a hill at the mouth of a river where the Romans traded in salt. At various times it was a castle, a Moorish palace, and a Roman fort. There is an archaeological dig under the pousada with artifacts going back to the Bronze Age. Later in that trip, as we toured through the Alentejo region, we stayed at a pousada in Evora which had been convent and before that a beautiful Moorish palace. The third pousada that we stayed in was in Elvas, next to a fabulous walled city, and very impressive Roman aqueducts.

Our experience with the pousadas was outstanding. So on this trip, we decided to book a four-day tour of some pousadas in northern Portugal. (We were aware of their special offers because they have been sending us emails since 2011. If you become a Pestana member, you are eligible for discounts and special offers.)

We started our pousada tour at the Pousada Viana do Castelo. It is located on top of Monte de Santa Luzia in an elegant 100-year-old hotel. From the pousada, there are fabulous views out over the Port of Viana do Castelo. The pousada is decorated in the Belle Epoch style — very beautiful. We rode the funicular down to the city and spent an interesting day wandering around the city, looking at the busy modern port, and walking around the ruins of the old castle on the shore. Viana do Castelo is one of the places on the route of the Portuguese pilgrim’s way, on the Camino to Santiago de Compostela, nearby in Spain.

A lovely sitting room

The view from the window of our room

We also enjoyed the gardens of the pousada. I swam in the outdoor pool, although the water was very cold. We sat and enjoyed the view from the salon, read, and sipped port.

From Viana do Castelo, we left the coast and drove east. After a stop in beautiful Ponte de Lima, where we walked across a Roman bridge and toured through a Roman garden, we passed through the north side of Braga and headed up into the mountains. Our next destination was the Pousada de Canicada-Geres, a chalet style inn high in the mountains looking over the National Park Of Peneda-Geres.

A chalet in the mountains

View from the bar out over mountains and a lake

Now we have travelled to the third pousada— Pousada Mosteiro de Guimaraes, also called the Monastery of Santa Marinha. The monastery dates back to the late 9th century, although the building is older than that. It was founded by Dona Mafalda and named for the patron saint of women in childbirth. It is surrounded by gardens.

Me standing in front of the pousada.

The other thing that I haven’t mentioned are delicious breakfasts included in the cost of the room. A North American breakfast will never look the same after this. We also have splurged on several pousada dinners. I think my waistline is going to pay for it, even though we have been doing a great deal of walking, hill climbing, and clambering up many staircases inside of castles.

A final note. I have found a slow and tedious way to write this post using a tablet, and to import photos off my phone. However, writing on a tablet does not allow for for formatting options, and editing functions are limited. So please pardon any errors you find.

Art, Family, and Food onThanksgiving Weekend

Last weekend was Thanksgiving weekend in Canada. Thanksgiving, for me, has always centered around family coming together from wherever we are and enjoying good food. Now that I have retired and moved back to BC, it is much easier to enjoy holiday celebrations together. I live near my oldest daughter and her family, and my two other (grownup) children are just a ferry ride away. Rob’s two kids and that set of grandchildren live farther away, and we are planning to travel to spend Christmas with them. 

But, this Thanksgiving was a little different from past years. The studio art tour group that I belong to hosts three events a year — a Spring Showcase, a Thanksgiving Studio Tour, and a Christmas Crawl (which is also a studio tour). I participated in the Spring Showcase, and wrote about it here. The Thanksgiving Tour includes all three days of the long weekend. 

For the tour events, artists open their studio/galleries to the public. People drive from studio to studio to view and purchase art, including paintings, pottery, handmade glass, wood carvings, jewellery, fabric art, and soap. Twenty studios were open for our Thanksgiving Tour.

This is the first time I have been part of a tour. It required lots of preparation.

This photo above shows my new sandwich board sign. There are also photos below showing the sign I now have in front of my studio. My daughter, the net artist designed the logo, and Rob built the cedar signpost and sandwich board.

I had lots of visitors to my studio over the three days, and even started a new painting.
Read more about Nanoose Bay Thanksgiving Studio Tour here.

My younger daughter, her friend, and my son came over on the ferry for the long weekend. Because of the tour, I did not have time to cook a big Thanksgiving Dinner. Instead, my daughter had the whole family over on Thanksgiving. She cooked an amazing feast! We also went out one night to a local English style pub and had a great dinner there, followed by some goofing around.

The weather has turned to Fall, and the leaves are brilliant colours.

I am grateful for my family, good times together, the chance to make art, and the beautiful place that I live.

The Last Good-Bye

My Mom died this summer.

She had been in poor health for a long time. She had a couple of close calls last winter, and a rough spring. But she bounced back this summer. She gained back a few pounds. She resumed her busy social life and many activities with new vigour. We stopped worrying quite so much.

And then one day on a sunny morning in August, Mom went downtown for a hair appointment. She was chatting with people. Suddenly, she gasped, collapsed, and stopped breathing. That was it. The end. Neither CPR, nor anything the paramedics did could bring her back.

It took me by surprise. It took us all by surprise. We were not ready to let her go.

Mom with her Youngest Grandchild

Mom and Me in 2014

I went back to my hometown to visit Mom earlier in the summer. I stayed with her in her spare bedroom, and we spent a lovely week together. I went with her to have coffee with her coffee buddies, and to lunch at the seniors' centre, followed by an afternoon of playing cribbage. I accompanied her as she purchased flowers and we went up to the hospital so she could give bouquets of flowers to patients who needed something to brighten their day. She used to do this every week.

We had some lovely dinners at my brother and sister-in-law's place, cooked at home some nights, and went to the Legion for beer and burgers on Friday. Mom's two youngest granddaughters came for a visit on Saturday afternoon, and we all went over to the playground across the street. Mom and I also did several drives out into the country to all of Mom's favourite places. We even did a short hike to the fossil beds. 

Mom and Granddaughters Returning From the Playground, July 2018

At her initiative, we went to tour the two seniors' residences in the community. Mom wanted me to see the places so I could see for myself that she was not at all ready for that type of living arrangement. She talked about her plan for how she would manage to get out and around this winter once the snow became deep. (She did not drive, but used a scooter for mobility. However, the previous winter, there had been some weeks that the snow had been too deep for the scooter.)

In the late afternoon of July 25, I gave my Mom a hug, jumped into the little white rental car, waved good-bye to Mom who was standing at her window waving, and drove away. That was the last time that I got to hug my Mom good-bye.

I was planning to visit again soon, in August. Rob and I were going to drive up north and arrive in time for the Fall Fair. We planned to celebrate my mom's 85th birthday with her on August 31. But just days before we were about to leave on the trip, my brother phoned with the news of her passing. On August 31, instead of celebrating my mom's birthday, we held a Celebration of Life service. 

Her one surviving sister, and every one of her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren came to the service. It was the first time in I don't know how many years that all of the family has come together.

Dad, Mom, Me, and My Baby Brother

I flew up the day after Mom passed away and stayed at her place in the same spare bedroom in which I had stayed just three weeks earlier. It felt peaceful being there at Mom's place, surrounded by her stuff, remembering her. It gave me a chance to grieve. As well, I spent lots of time with my brothers and other family who live in the area, and we supported each other, and made the arrangements together.

At my age, I now have had quite a few experiences with death. But there is nothing like losing your mother. It is so stark and irreversible. I am now the oldest generation left in this branch of the family tree.

I spoke at the service. I said that I can always come home to Mom because I have her in my heart.

Something You Don't Know About Me

Something you don't know about me -- what could that be? I have been writing this blog for ten years now, and I have written about a lot of different aspects of my life. But not everything. For example, I have hardly written anything at all about the kind of work I did before I retired, even though it consumed 40-60 hours a week of my life for 35 years.

But that is not what I am writing about today.

A thing that not many people know about me is that I do not watch TV. At all. Ever. With a couple of small exceptions.

I watch elections, including Canadian provincial and federal elections, and American presidential elections. I watch the Winter Olympics (but not the Summer Olympics). And I watch FIFA World Cup soccer, both the men's and the women's competitions. Other than that, nada.

We do actually have a television. It lives in the basement, where we mostly use it to watch movies. These are not movies on TV, but selections from Rob's huge collection of DVDs. Recently we began to subscribe to Netflix, and sometimes watch Netflix movies on the television. I occasionally watch an episode from a Netflix series on my iPad, but not very often.

Cycling the Local Trails

Rob watches lots of movies every week, usually on his computer. He is a bit of a movie buff. But he doesn't watch much TV either. We do have a digital cable package, and when my son lived with us, he used to watch hockey.

My experience with the TV is so limited that, until the recent World Cup competition this summer, I didn't even know how to use the remotes to turn ours on, or how to find channels. I do not have any interest in TV. I am so unused to being around a television that when I am in a place where there is one blaring, such in a bar where several are playing, I find it hard to mentally tune them out.

A Visit From Our Good Friends Blanca and Vaughan

I grew up in a house where the TV was turned on all day long, and as a child, I did watch TV. However, on the northern frontier where I grew up, TV did not come to our community until I was in primary school. When it did finally broadcast to the north, we only received one channel and there was no cable. It was CBC, our Canadian national television station mixed with some local programming. Eventually we got two channels, CBC and CTV.

Yoga on a Log

When I left home at 18, I stopped watching TV, and never felt the lack of it. When I got my own apartment, I did not get a television. My life was so busy that I did not want to "waste" time watching TV programs. I read a lot instead.

My first husband brought a TV back into my life, but I still rarely watched it. I did have a brief interest in LA Law and Star Trek, Next Generation in the late '80s. My preschool-aged children watched children's programs like Friendly Giant, Fred Penner, and Sesame Street. When I became single again, the TV went down to the basement and we no longer subscribed to cable, until the kids became teenagers and begged me to get cable once again. Occasionally I would watch something with them -- Friends, That Seventies Show, Seinfeld, The Simpsons, or Family Guy.

Rob's High School Buddy Comes to Visit

Because of my lack of immersion in TV programming, sometimes I feel like a bit of a cultural idiot. Back in the days when everyone was breathlessly following a series such as Dallas, or Survivor, I was unable to contribute to conversations at coffee break or at a social gathering. I don't know the names of television actors or the characters they played. Similarly, I can't say who won the Stanley Cup this year, nor do I know which player was traded to which team for what outrageous sum of money.

A Trip Up North to Visit My Mom

But, strangely, for the three things that I do like to watch -- elections, Olympics, and World Cup -- I become totally obsessed. This year was a year in which both the Winter Olympics and the men's World Cup took place, as both of them are on the same four-year cycle. So I had a period of excessive TV watching in February for the Olympics, and another period in July, watching World Cup.

One of Several Yummy Dinners on the Deck

I think the reason that I like the Winter Olympics so much is that I do (or used to do) several winter sports -- alpine skiing, nordic skiing, and figure skating, and my daughter used to be a freestyle skier, and my son snowboards. Similarly, World Cup interests me because I played soccer on and off from childhood through until I was 55. I also coached soccer for a couple of years.

Helping my Son With a Move to a New Apartment

I was so motivated to watch World Cup this summer that I learned to use the TV remotes! Rob subscribed to on-demand programming for the sports channel so I could follow the World Cup matches. (Have I mentioned that he is a sweetie?) I even downloaded an app onto my iPad so that I could watch matches if I had to be away from the TV, which I was frequently as we travelled a lot last month.

A Visit to Victoria to See a Dear Friend

 One thing that I know for sure is that retirement hasn't turned me into a television aficionado. The photos throughout this post show some of the fun things that we did last month. We did lots of travelling and had some visitors. I think that not watching much TV has made my life more rich and interesting.