You know that a trip is going to be special when you start in the middle of the night. Usually that is the case. And it was the case this time.
We headed out a few minutes into the new day, that being Monday. Collecting all the passengers on our way and then heading towards the airport near Austrian capital Vienna. Arriving there very early meant that we were in for quite a wait. I am way more comfortable travelling with some spare time than rushing on the roads and pumping the nervousness to an unbearable level. All the airport logistics and paperwork went well and we were off to the next level waiting. Now we at least were able to have a cup of tea or coffee no matter the price and quality. We were expecting to see a man painting hands in a huge clock at our next stopover, but it didn't happen. Obviously he got tired or bored.
Landing in Porto airport meant that we have arrived to our destination country, Portugal. Not at the final destination yet, so another hour drive and there we were. The anticipation was rising and tiredness wasn't a factor anymore. Meeting our hosts and settling into our hotel was a blessing of a kind. We were all a bit eager of the coming week as we were in a foreign country, relatively foreign people, culture and even the weather forecast wasn't all that promising.
Weather forecast proved not so accurate after all, and we were able to experience Portugal as much as it was promised to us. What was one of the themes of the week was hearing a few interesting stories of villages' and towns' name etymology. The village were we were mostly staying is named Pone de Lima, which is by the way the oldest village in Portugal. The name means literally a bridge oiver the river Lima. The next town we've visited and has gotten its name by an interesting set of circumstances was Viana do Castelo. There was a man in love with Ana who lived in a Castle. And when people saw her in the castle they told that to this poor man. And it stuck as the name of the town and it literally means 'I've seen Ana in the castle'.
How to better start a day than early hike around the place you stay, discovering it in the pitch dark some mornings and in the misty, foggy and rainy the other mornings. The hotel I have stayed in was a Golf resort hotel (not by my choice :-) ). That meant that the surroundings were colourful to say the least.
After the hefty breakfast in the hotel the programmed activities could start. We've had a lot of outdoor activities planned for the week, that is why we were sensitive to the weather forecast. However, we have learned or harden our believes even further that there is no bad weather, just bad gear or attitude 😃
Our partner school in Correlhã was a really nice experience for us as we've noticed some fundamental differences as well as a lot of similarities. The pupils there were all very curious and eager to swap their social network handles with all the visiting students. The hospitality of the school and the community can't be described. We felt warm and safe.
Another aspect besides friendliness and hospitality that impressed me was the Portuguese love of tradition. It has been seen everywhere. We were greeted with a folklore dance and on the evening of the farewell dinner there was a presentation of folklore dances of different groups from surrounding villages.
The Lima River offers a nice opportunity for paddling or having a boat ride up and down the stream to see the town and the landscape from a different perspective. And that is what we did. Students got a canoe per pair of them and the teachers got into a replica of an old boat that was used to transport the goods, mainly wine barrels up and down the rivers. The boat was faster and we were able to go further up the river under the old Roman bridge, which the village is named after. We have been told many interesting stories about it as it is around two thousand years old. A couple of arches on the left bank are still from the Roman period. The rest of the boat trip was calm observation of the nature, wild life and on the way back watching students struggling with their canoes.
The village of Ponte the Lima, Correlhã and the town Viana Do Castelo are all full of old stone buildings, remnants of the guarding walls and Romanesque churches. They can be an excellent starting point for discovering the Minho Province in the north of Portugal. Wine lovers know the region nowadays by the name Vinho Verde. Vinho Verde refers to the wine produced in Minho region plus some adjacent areas to the South. It literally means Green Wine, but the wines can be white and red. The word green comes from the luscious green landscape because of huge amounts of rain it gets during the year. We have visited the Vinho Verde museum in the village centre and one of the winegrowers in the region. It was a great experience of exploring the landscapes and culinary delights.
Being so close to the sea was promising and tempting even though I am not a ‘sea’ person. I rarely swim in the sea. What promises and temptations did the vicinity of the sea bring? Of surfing. To be more precise, body surfing. I wasn’t all that enthusiastic about the surfing myself, but rather about taking photos of an activity that is fast paced and I have never take photos of before. Weather forecast was mentioned before and it delivered. Cold, wind, rain. A real test for me and my camera equipment. I didn't get scared as it was huge fun not just for me, but especially for the students and teachers on the surf boards. Wearing the neoprene suits meant that they were better off than me standing on the shore getting hit by the rain and wind. It was fun no matter what.
As there is a lot of history in these small towns and villages we have visited a couple of museums during the week. I cannot say that I was especially impressed by any of them, but the biggest impact at least on me was made by the Costumes museum - Museu do Traje in Viana do Castelo. Why did it make such an impression? I can't exactly explain it, but it was again in a way so similar to our costumes on one hand and so different on the other that it was an amazing visit. Maybe it was also the fact that it was located in a bank and a part of the exhibition was placed in an old bank vault, maybe the fact that I didn't know until then, that bride’s dresses used to be black. Who knows? We have also visited a Toy museum which was more of an exhibition of Portuguese manufactured toys from the olden days ‘till today, than a modern museum. We have expected to be able to play with some toys, but no. No playing here :-) I have to say that the cobbled streets and stone houses with ceramic tiles instead of the usual facades take a visitor back to the history more than many museums. And usually I prefer exploring narrow streets to museum visits. This way we have found a fantastic place where we had lunch for a really low price. I have even managed to get all the necessary souvenirs for the family and my wife easily.
As with my previous visit to Portugal I was lucky this time also, because we have had the opportunity to stay in Porto on the last day of our trip. And I love Porto. Only a visit to one of the port wine cellars on the left side of the River Douro, Vila Nova de Gaia was planned for the day. The visit of the Calem cellar has cleared some doubts about the Port wine. The rest of the day we were free to do what ever we wanted. Being in Porto for just one day, we used the time wisely. First we explored the main attractions on foot. From Fonte dos Leões square with Igreja do Carmo and Igreja dos Carmelitas Descalços churches with only a connecting building in between to nearby Parque das Virtudes which caught our attention every time we have passed it with its ‘underground’ scent. We have passed Livraria Lello which have had numbers of people in queue waiting to be amazed by the art nouveau interior of the famous library. Next on the way was a little square with Igreja e Torre dos Clérigos, a baroque church with marble altar and 75-meter-tall bell tower being the symbol of Porto. Another symbol of Porto is Porto Cathedral located in the historical city centre with a fantastic view over the Douro River and the setting sun. A walk over the most famous Ponte de D. Luís, a bridge connecting Porto and Vila Nova de Gia over the River Douro. The bridge was the longest of its type at the time of its constructions and the famous Gustave Eiffel had his part in the construction of it as well. It is a double-decked arch bridge so we used the upper deck to go to Vila Nova de Gaia and lower deck to get back. The upper deck is also used by trams and it can be scary when a tram honks just behind you. Being back on the right bank of the river we headed back to the hotel for our well deserved rest. The feeling of needed rest was easily surpassed by a delicious dinner in a small restaurant of many narrow streets near the hotel. The GH Restaurant is a precious discovery and highly recommended to people looking for a gourmet meal in a not so crowded part of Porto. Now we were ready for the night stroll along the banks of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia. We have experienced many of the aspects of this beautiful city and now we were ready for our comfy beds.
Flight back was more or less without any complications except additional expenses for overweight baggage which was my fault as I wasn’t paying attention when booking the flights. Otherwise we have had a very interesting week of lazy mornings and active afternoons. It was a mix of everything one could say.