Europe highlights 2017: Part One

July

France
Flying from Portugal to France led us to the next leg of our Europe adventure, meeting my brother on the way to add to our family travelling band! We were aiming to eventually end up in Greece, so France especially was a bit of a blur, with a few short stops along the way. A champagne tasting in Hautvillers (which I can't recommend enough!) This little village is known as the cradle of Champagne, as it was here that Dom Perignon perfected the bubbly drink in the 1600s!

We followed our gastronomical tour up with a mustard tasting in Dijon (a beautiful medieval town in its own right). Trying mustard flavored with truffles, lemon, blue cheese, and about everything else you can think of was great fun!

Chauvet Cave
My favourite stop however was the Chauvet cave. It is impossible to visit the original cave - for good reason, as the high number of visiting tourists within the cave leads to an increase in temperatures, causing mold, and irreversible deterioration to the precious cave paintings. Luckily, experts have spent years creating a perfect, beautiful replica of the cave, and honestly, you would never know you weren't in the original. To be able to experience it, exactly as it looks but without damaging the original, is to me, priceless. So in fact I should point out we visited Caverne du Pont-d'Arc (opened in 2015), the replica cave, a few km from the original. Having already visited the replica of Lascaux, which was also amazing, I think I would actually recommend Chauvet as my favourite, though they are in close competition!

Italy

Cornea
Our sole reason for this stop in Italy was for rum chocolate (It was worth it).

Lake Orta 
The Lake region in Italy is just lovely, though horrifically busy with tourists (and rich tourists too!) we were unpleasantly surprised by how expensive campsites were, and by how much was booked up. Orta was my favourite of the three lake areas we visited, and the town was lovely. We enjoyed walking around and taking in the sights, as well as a delicious pasta dinner, which was cheesy and I ate far too much of, but well, when in Rome! And by Rome I mean Lake Orta. And by Lake Orta I mean Orta, because we weren't in the lake. Obviously. Moving on..

Lake Como  and Lake Maggiore
We found these areas overpriced and overwhelmingly touristy, perhaps coming in September or May one might beat the crowds and get to enjoy the beautiful landscapes,but we felt overwhelmed by the tourism here.

One of the coolest things we did here however was to visit some of the islands in Lake Maggiore, and that was well worth the crowds! It's not cheap at 15 euro for the ferry ticket, but it does include all the islands.

















Isola Madre and Isola Bella were our first two stops, and with a palace on the grounds, it's very impressive! The gardens were lovely to wander, and the white peacocks made it all the more ostentatious.

















Our next stop was Isola superiore dei Pescatori, the fisherman's isle. It was also very touristy, but cute and worth a visit. Every restaurant looked like a tourist trap, so instead we bought homemade sandwiches, with ham and pecorino. The fillers were delicious, though the bread was quite possibly made by the giant in Jack the Beanstalk, and could have broken teeth.

















We were planning to pop into Switzerland, but upon ringing ahead to campsites and finding out they were all charging about seventy euro a night, we decided it was madness and headed for fair Verona instead.

Verona 
Verona has of course become famous due to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. The locals cash in on this, with 'famous sites' such as Juliet's balcony, and Juliet's grave. These places throng with excitable tourists, and I was tempted to stand on a box and shout 'Juliet wasn't real!!' but thought I had better not dash their dreams.
Aside from that ridiculousness, (I don't even want to mention the sanitary pads that had love messages scrawled on them and then stuck to the walls of 'Juliet's house'), Verona was a pretty and very pleasant town to wander. With a lunch break of pizza and prosecco, what more could one ask for!?

Vicenza
A quick stop for a wander in this town is well worth it, as the architecture is something quite special. The Teatro Olimpico (Olympic Theatre) should also be checked out!

Portugal: Lisbon

July 2017

We spent 4 days in total in Lisbon, which was a good amount of time, though I felt like we only scratched the surface! As we had gone to explore Lisbon on a Monday, and most museums were closed that day, we decided to get introduced to Lisbon by simply wandering around the city. From our airbnb, we took tram 28, a historical tram that ran from just outside our door. It was really crowded, but pretty cool!


















Lisbon has its own distinctive architecture, lots of yellows and painted buildings, and a specific scent in the air, a mix of the smell of fresh washing hanging out, and sardines and fish. It's not unpleasant strangely enough, but for me it certainly became the smell of Portugal.

















The Alfama neighborhood was one of my favourite to wander, and is the oldest in Lisbon!

We popped into Gelato Santini, where I had the best coconut icecream I've ever had, and then headed for the Convent of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (not the most catchy name I've ever heard). It was destroyed in the big 1775 earthquake of Lisbon, though some of it still stands, dating back to the 1400s! After the bustle of the city, there is something lovely about stepping into such a peaceful place.

Our last stop for the day was to sample Ginja, from the A Ginjihna bar, where shots are only 1.40 euros each. This fortified wine is infused with cherries and sugar, creating this delightfully sweet drink. It was so nice, we had two! It's clearly a winning recipe (created by a friar) as its been in business since 1840!

The next day we headed for the museum of Aljube, exploring resistance and freedom in Portugal, documenting the dictatorship that ruled Portugal from 1926-1974. This building was once a political prison, and the cells are still visible. Highly informative, this is well worth a visit to see the struggle Portugal underwent, not to mention we had a lovely museum assistant who let us out onto the roof for one of the best views in Lisbon!

A stop at Gelato Davvero provided a perfect break, where I tried a lovely ricotta, walnut and honey flavor. Their coconut was not as good as the previous gelateria however.
Our next visit was to the tranquil English cemetery, created in the 1700s, it is very peaceful and quiet. A monument to Henry Fielding (the English novelist) can also be found here, though where he was actually buried is unknown.

For me the food highlight of Lisbon was Cantinho lusitano, a tapas bar that was probably my best food experience in all of Portugal! This tiny, simple family restaurant had only a few tables, served delicious bread and cheese and an insanely nice spiced pumpkin jam, we ate way too much of everything. Best of all it was very reasonably priced! We finished with gelato from Nannarella, which was probably a mistake as we were already far too full. It was very enjoyable however!

Belem

Belem is another worthwhile visit, and an easy half day trip from the centre of Lisbon. One of the highlights here is without a doubt the Jeronimos Monastery, the cloisters were amazing! This structure took a hundred years to build, beginning in 1501, and was built by King Manuel I. Funnily enough, it was then filled with monks whose purpose were to pray for the eternal soul of the king. What a coincidence. (In his defense, they also prayed for sailors leaving from the port in search of new lands, so I suppose he wasn't completely selfish). irritatingly (especially when paying ten euros) a lot of the monastery was off limits, so although what we did see was amazing, it did become frustrating to be barred at every turn.

We also walked to Belem tower and admired it from the outside, though we didn't feel the need to go in. A stop in Belem wouldn't be complete without a visit to Pasteis de Belem for delicious pasteis de nata. The recipe belonged to the monks at the aforementioned monastery, and was sold to the bakery in the 1830s. 

Speaking of food, back into Lisbon we went, to try the Time Out mercado da Ribeira, a covered market full of local specialties and amazing food by the best local chefs. My dream come true. There was so much choice, everything looked delicious, and I wanted to eat EVERYTHING. Sometimes life is hard. 

São Jorge Castle

Having not yet seen the iconic São Jorge Castle that crowns Lisbon, we decided to make this one of our last stops for the trip. Having heard how busy it gets, we went first thing in the morning as it just opened, which was an excellent idea! It's about a 45 minute walk up, but worth it! Not only are the views awesome, but the castle is pretty cool too. We admired the crenellations. 

I really enjoyed going to the castle also from a personal note, as my mum had visited many years before. It's always strange to think of your parents having lives before you, but I had photographic evidence! I therefore decided to take a photo as similar as possible, because why not! It was interesting to see how much Lisbon must have changed, even the castle wall had been rebricked!

Portugal: Highlights Part III

July 2017

Evora
Yet another well preserved and beautiful medieval town, Evora has its roots back in Roman times, which means it has multiple layers of history to explore!
One of the most impressive ruins is that of the Roman Temple of Evora, which one stumbles across almost by accident if heading for the main square. Popularly known as the Temple of Diana, it was wrongly attributed to the goddess in the 17th century, a myth apparently perpetuated by a priest. It was in fact devoted to the emperor Augustus, and built in the 1st century AD. Used in the 15th century as a medieval slaughter house, it is now a UNESCO world heritage site, and is just one of the awesome things to check out in this town. 

A second must see, is the ossuary (also known as a charnel house) Capela dos Ossos. Not for the squeamish, this chapel contains the remains of about 5,000 people. In the 16th century, a common problem was the lack of space for burying the dead, leading to mass relocation and often transforming the remains into macabre art. 

Three Franciscan monks - who were also later incorporated into the mountain of bones - followed this trend to solve the city's problems, and thus this ossuary was born. Although it may seem strange to us now, people would often request to be buried in these places, as this would increase their remembrance (and thus hopefully the number of prayers for them, speeding them through purgatory). The idea of being dug up and reburied in bits also may seem rather abhorrent to us, but it may not have bothered the medieval psyche so much, as it was believed the soul had left the body, and that disarticulation was inconsequential, as on Judgement day God could reunite the body, no matter how scattered it was. In which case, why not make art with human remains, I suppose? 

How public these charnel houses were is unclear, and probably differs from place to place. However in many of these places, some of the bones have become shiny, as they wear from continuous touch. This at least seems to suggest some reverence or ritual attached to visiting/touching the bones, not unlike saint's relics. It only costs 2 euro to enter (3 if you want to take photos) so is well worth it in my opinion. 

Onto more cheerful surroundings, the huge and beautiful cathedral of Evora is awesome to visit, and its really worth paying to see the cloisters, as they were my favorite part. Built the 13th century (though continually added to until the 18th) this is Portugal's largest cathedral!

Sneak a peak at Evora's Roman Baths, hidden in the Town Hall! It's not really signposted, but well worth a quick look.

Cuba
Leaving Evora behind, we headed here on the recommendation of Lonely Planet, simply for lunch. I have to include it however, because it's one of the best meals we had in Portugal! Taberna do Arrufa. Go there. We had red wine from the amphorae sitting right there in the room, which has been made like that for hundreds of years. Talk about tradition! We had cheeses, a sausage on fire at our table (which we were all too terrified to do anything with until the flames had died), octopus from the oven, the best sweet potato fries of my life, and then chocolate mousse for dessert! The waitress was so obliging that when I couldn't decide on caramel or strawberry chocolate mousse, she brought me half of each. I can't recommend this place enough (and I was so busy eating, of course I forgot to take photos).

Serpa
We only made a brief stop in this town, but it has some crazy old walls (which seem somewhat dangerously balanced in places) and is lovely for a short wander.

Sao Domingos Mine
This abandoned mine was deserted, and felt like something from a wild western. It has a surprisingly long history, having been mined by the Romans. It wasn't closed until 1966, and the smell of sulphur hung in the air as we wandered under the hot summer sun. Luckily its not a long walk (unless you really want to explore everywhere) and you can park pretty close by. Still, water is definitely needed!

Mertola
We stopped on the other side of the river from the town of Mertola for a spot of lunch. Casa Amarela was a lovely location with good views (though it was so hot we sat inside with the air conditioning) and dined on cheeses and meats, a house red, and an insanely good jam chutney that tasted like Christmas, and was somehow perfect with sheep cheese. The food here is simple but delicious, and the red wine so good that we asked to buy a bottle!
Feeling refreshed we decided to explore Mertola, though it was a struggle in the heat of the day, hitting 38 degrees. We enjoyed a wander of the ruins of the Almohad neighborhood from when the city was under Moorish control, and got to peek beneath the ground at roman ruins too!

Praia da Marinha
Hitting the coast, the views from the cliffs are stunning from here. Though for swimming, praia do camilo is better suited.

Cape St. Vincent
This cape is the southwesternmost point of Europe, and would have been the last piece of Portugal sailors would have seen before they sailed into the blue unknown.
 Its busier than you would expect, but has beautiful views and dramatic cliffs (Don't fall in, there's no barrier!)

Praia de Galapinhos
This was probably my favourite beach that we went to, though we got a little lost in the scrub on the way down!

Sintra
Sintra itself is a pleasant town to wander, but we went there for the park and national palace of Pena, a whimsical and beautiful palace set in stunning grounds, featuring caves, fountains, forests and waterfalls. It feels like a micro-climate too, because as soon as we entered, the mist dropped in and a very light rain started, providing plenty of atmosphere.

















It's all thanks to King Ferdinand II, who had the palace constructed in the 19th century. Clearly someone read too many fantasy books.

















Apparently it is actually still used on occasion for state matters by the president, which must be pretty damn cool. Pictures really don't do this place justice, the call of birds, the tendrils of mist hanging through the forest, the paths leading in all directions meaning you feel you can get lost in this strange and beautiful place... It's well worth spending half a day exploring. But go early in the morning, to try and beat the crowds!

We finished off our time in Sintra by popping into Casa Piriquita, to try the local specialty called travesserios (pillows in Portuguese) a pillowlike (hence the name, one supposes) puff pastry filled with almond cream. It sounds simple, but boy is it tasty! Open since 1862, this is the place to try this dessert. Apparently the granddaughter of the owner stumbled upon the old family recipe book and found the recipe within, bringing it to the fame it now holds today (and the recipe remains top secret!). 

Convento dos Capuchos

Although it costs 7 euro to enter this monastery, and it's somewhat off the beaten track, its worth going. It's not popular with tourists, which meant we had the place to ourselves.
Founded in 1560, it housed only eight monks, and must have been freezing in winter, though apparently it was lined with cork to try and insulate it from the cold. The entrance to the monastery is dramatic in itself, with two giant boulders resting against each other, and you walk beneath them.
 It's a stark difference from the building itself, which is dark, cramped and claustrophobic. Segregated away from the outside world, this must have been a hard, harsh life. The monk's cells were tiny, the doorways only reaching to my shoulder, and to enter one had to go in sideways (that's one way to keep the monks from eating too much, I suppose). I felt so out of place in these tiny rooms, it was like something from Alice in Wonderland, where I had grown too large for my surroundings!
Interestingly there seemed to be some on-going archaeological undertakings underway, and some areas were cordoned off. I wonder what the current research is?