jaderin Bespoke PORTUGAL June 15 -22 2019 Trip Notes by Joan Mahony Painting by trip participant Tan Lim Heng Painting by trip participant Tan Lim Heng The 2019 trip to Portugal by the 26 lucky Jaderin members had been planned since the previous Jaderin trip to Naoshima in December 2017. With the invaluable help of Maria Pereira de Melo Antunes (Jaderin overseas member who lives in Portugal), Patricia Chiu (Jaderin’s administrator) and Joan Foo Mahony (the erstwhile Portugal enthusiast having been to Portugal at least 5 times) got cracking to ensure that Jaderin’s Portugal Bespoke trip will be unforgettable. And, it was! Portugal is a big country blessed with great weather; the waters of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean; fabulous Port wines; scenic countryside; historic castles; medieval cities; interesting culture and food; and a friendly people to match the warmth of the Portuguese sunshine. Our trip started in Lisbon on 15th June and ended in Porto on 22nd June, a distance of around 330 km as the crow flies. But we did this leisurely, driving first north-westwards towards Obidos and Coimbra; and then north and due west along the grand vistas of the Douro Valley to Porto. 1 LISBON JUNE 15 Saturday The Lisbon visit started with the most delicious lunch at the elegant and traditional fine dining restaurant GAMBRINUS at the pedestrians only Rossio Square. There, Jaderin members had its first taste of the ‘very long lunch! We had fabulous prawns followed by a gigantic seafood risotto washed down with lots of Portuguese wine (more on Portuguese wine later) and dessert. After lunch, we were taken on a walking tour of Rossio square beginning at the historic Lisbon Cathedral, the oldest (1150) church in the city and still the seat of the Archdiocese of Lisbon (a very Catholic City), which the locals fondly refer to as ‘Se’. There were loads of oohs and aahhs as we admired the gothic (cloisters and the ceiling vaults; Romanesque (the rose windows) and baroque (the sacristy) architecture; the different architectural styles being the result of much re-building after many earthquakes and a fire or two? And inside the Cathedral, we were treated to an impromptu a capella choral performance by a visiting American school group. Great fun! After the Cathedral, we took the ‘elevator’ up to the old town where we walked along its cobbled streets past the Jewish quarter and the delightful Moorish quarter of Alfama. We admired the breath-taking panoramic view of Lisbon halfway up to the Castle of Sao Jorge. No, we did not climb all the way up! Dinner at ‘Eleven’ with its magnificent view of Lisbon ..through the window 2 LISBON JUNE 16 Sunday was an action-packed day! We toured the 16th century BELEM TOWER at the mouth of the Tagus River, listening avidly to our guides (Eduardo and Luis) tell the exciting stories of the explorers - Henry the Navigator, Vasco Da Gama and Magellan – immortalized in stone at this imposing 30 metre high fortress with bastion terraces, turrets and cupolas - celebrating the golden age of Portugal’s Age of Discoveries. After this, with special fast track tickets, we visited the fabulous and extravagantly magnificent, JERONIMOS MONASTERY (1501) named after St Jerome, the saint who made the first translations of the bible from Greek to Latin (the Vulgate). The late gothic Manueline architectural style of the monastery with its ornate sculptural themes; the cloister and the gardens; the chapels – all took our breaths away! So much to see – we had to return after lunch to complete the monastery visit to see the Church of Santa Maria at the south portal of the Jeronimos Monastery. We gawked at its entrance with its 32 metre high portal, imposing gables, pinnacles, ornately carved figures everywhere and the enormous tympanum above the double door showing the bas relief of St Jerome – removing the thorn from the lion’s paw and on the right, the saint’s experience in the desert. Lunch was at DARWIN’s Café at the FUNDACION CHAMPALIMAUD. This was a visit (not only for its breathtaking design and views) but also its food – which took everyone’s breath away! Especially after lunch when we walked everyone over to see the incredible outdoor architecture (designed by the Indian architect Charles Correa) of the Fundación Champalimaud, the foremost cancer research and treatment centre in Europe founded by the late Portuguese philanthropist, banker and industrialist, Antonio de Sommer Champalimaud. 3 After this, we were treated to more architecture and art at the MUSUEM OF ART, ARCHITECTURE AND TECHNOLOGY (MAAT), a very modern and innovative building designed by the British architect Amanda Levete. With the long summer daylight, we headed to the station to Lisbon’s equivalent of the ‘Star Ferry’ to take a ferry ride across the Tagus River to the small fishing village on the other side of the river called CACILHAS. The ferry ride was only 8 minutes but just as in the case of the Hong Kong Star Ferry, these 8 minutes were amazing as we drank in the incredible views of both sides of the Tagus river! At CACILHAS, we strolled through the fishing village, indulging in local snails, beer and little shops before we headed ( walking past port go-downs filled with fun graffiti ) to the evening’s great dinner event – dinner at the Atira-te ao Rio – at the edge of the Tagus river facing Lisbon – as we were treated to a FISH dinner at a local Portuguese restaurant and watched the sunset. It was a scene worth photographing – there we were at a local taverna right at the water’s edge, the sea immediately in front of us, the city of Lisbon on the opposite bank bathed in evening glow, the night sky cloudless and clear; and high above us on a hill, the enormous white statue of Christ the Redeemer that later inspired a similar statue at the Corcovado in Rio De Janeiro. Enjoying a jovial, delicious and hearty dinner at Atira-te ao Rio restaurant, and desserts well waiting for. We were a very happy bunch of people that returned (by bus) to our hotel. 4 LISBON TO OBIDOS & COIMBRA JUNE 17 Monday We were ready for our big Portuguese road trip – driving north for 90 minutes from Lisbon to the medieval city of Obidos. Billed as the Portuguese gentler version of the Carcasonne fortress town in France, Obidos did not disappoint. This beautiful tiny medieval city of little white houses, cobbled streets enclosed within the fortress walls, Obidos is also known also as the ‘wedding city’, being the bridal gift of the Kings of Portugal to their queens. Entering the walled gates of the city, the tiny cobbled streets lead you upwards to the very top where the fortress stands. There are no guard rails on the ramparts at the top but this did not stop many Jaderin members (Philip, Bobby …rom going all the way up! The rest of us ‘shopped till we dropped’ for lovely Portuguese souvenirs (cork handbags, linens, sardines, cheese boards and so on). All too soon, we had to leave and we headed northwest to a small taberna near the town of Caldas de Rainha - to the Restaurante Taberna do Manelvina where, at a small local restaurant, Jaderin members gorged themselves on all kinds of sausages, and grilled meats – especially amazing roast suckling pig! It was unbelievable how much we all ate. Anthony Lo said this was pig heaven!! Finally, after our very long, hearty and delicious lunch, we headed to our destination for the night – the well-preserved medieval university town and former Portuguese capital of COIMBRA of 150,000 people by the Montego river with its romantic and tragic love story of the King Pedro and his beloved mistress Ines. Most of us slept through the dramatic story of ‘Pedro & Ines’ which our long-suffering guide, Eduardo tried to tell us on the way to Coimbra. However, everyone had already done their ‘homework’ about the history of this town and we arrived with great delight and anticipation at our incredible hotel – Quinta Das Lagrimas – the 19th century Palace of Tears. This luxury hotel and grounds (18 hectares of gardens) was once the home of King Pedro I, his mistress Ines de Castro and their children. It was at this palace that Ines was assassinated and her grieving lover, the King married her corpse (after her death) to ensure she had the title of Queen. For those who stayed in rooms at the old wing, they had a sleepless night, not just thinking about how Ines was killed but also from staring at the ceiling paintings of her death. Gruesome artwork? But this did not detract from the tranquility of the beautiful gardens and the beauty of the palace itself. 5 COIMBRA TO PINHAO JUNE 18 Tuesday The next day, we headed to the university to visit the famous, very grand and most unique baroque library – the BIBLIOTECA JOANINA, with its sumptuous, wooden, gilt and lacquered bookshelves housing more than 250,000 titles of books, fabulous ceiling paintings. All more than glorious and the visit simply took our breaths away! The university allows only small groups to visit the library so for our visit, everything was arranged in advance! After the library, we walked through the ancient cobbled streets of the university town of Coimbra, visited the Cathedral, the Se Velha and other medieval buildings. We boarded our bus to drive to VISEU – for a late lunch at a charming Portuguese restaurant, O CORTICO – where we had mountains of local Portuguese tapas called ‘petiscos’.