A Portuguese Love

The beautiful ship Sagres celebrates 50 years of service to the Portuguese Navy this year and 75 years of life. The ship Sagres was built in the shipyards of Blohm and Voss in Hamburg in 1937. She was baptized Albert Leo Schlageter. In 1948 Sagres entered the service of the Brazilian Navy and was named Guanabara. In 1961 it was acquired by Portugal in order to replace an old ship named Sagres. Her name comes from the Sagres Cape, the site of the world's first marine school, established by Prince Henry the Navigator in the 15th century. Its sails feature the Cross of Malta, which was emblazoned on the sails of Portuguese vessels during the Age of Discovery. She first hoisted the Portuguese flag on February 8, 1962. Since then Sagres II has ensured the training of Naval Academy future officers sailors, supplementing the technical and academic knowledge taught at the Naval Academy. She made ​​more than 150 trips and sailed the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, the North Sea...

To those who are already bored with my postages about Oporto here's something new with a taste of Summer. Buarcos is a fishing village, or, at least it was. When I moved to Figueira da Foz in the '80s there were lots of boats like this you can see in the photo below and maybe bigger, the dory boats, in the beach sand in front of this ancient XVIII century fortress wall. I remember fishermen sewing fishnets too. That's all gone. I believe some still live in the village and some live there and have bigger boats, like  traineiras , that are used to fish sardines. Many were dedicated to codfish fishing and sailed away for the high sea for months.  Buarcos has some good fish restaurants, narrow streets, and small houses, some covered in tiles. There's a nice public garden there and some cultural infrastructure too. I have to mention a curious theatre room called Trindade that was built in 1910. Inside it looks like a regular theatre with a stage and galleries....

Portugal in photos - Oporto D.Luís bridge by aportugueselove Browse other Portugal photo Postcards My favorite Portuguese city has just been chosen Best European Destination by 212.688 voters who have made their choice online. 20 selected towns were competing for the prestigious title of Best European Destination 2012 . After a three weeks period of online voting, Porto is elected the Best European Destination 2012 and won the title ahead of 19 big European cities! Congrats to Porto, the best place in the world...for me it is! Discover it and you will fall in love with this old city too! With the variety of resources available Porto conquers all its visitors, from those who want it for its history and authenticity to the ones who seek to explore a new, more cosmopolitan, and contemporary city. Discovering Porto means discovering what makes it different: the famous Port Wine, a Historical Centre designated World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO, Museums, Enchanting parks and ga...

"Fairy Angel & Bunny" Wrapped Canvas  by  jbrommers Browse other  Nursery Canvas Prints Today we're having a great Spring day. Walking for a while at a local city garden after lunchtime has made me think of the art of Joana Brommers. No computers, just traditional media and lots of whimsical flowers and animals. Joana lives in Munich, Bavaria, Germany, but she's British. She's a fine artist and illustrator who specializes in children's and fantasy illustration. She finds her inspiration from storytelling books. Music, nature, and movies also transport her to other worlds. Botanical illustration is also a field she loves due to the extensive details involved. She's inspired by the old classic illustrators during the Jugendstil era. i.e. Arthur Rackham, E. Burnes, Waterhouse, Mucha, and more. She always admired the fantasy/fairy art of Arthur Rackham, Beatrix Potter, and modern fairy/ fantasy artists such as Brian Froud and Linda Ravenscr...

Last Monday I traveled to Coimbra. It's 50 km from where I live. A woman was handing out flyers and invited me to enter a new Coimbra's fado house. I was pleasantly surprised by the discovery. Fado ao Centro is a very nice place. I lived in Coimbra for several years and listen to fado several times but it never crosses my mind to hear fado of Coimbra at home. Why? What makes sense for me is to go out and see and hear fado in its own environment. Perhaps thinking of people like me, a group consisting of current or former students of Coimbra had the idea to create the Fado ao Centro, a space where people can listen to fado right in the middle of the historic city center and at very convenient times. Fado sessions occur during the day so even the older population more reluctant to leave home at night can go there and enjoy it. The room is cozy, with a sober but welcoming decoration. On one of its walls, there's a permanent exhibition on the history of fado and its interpret...

When I was a child my mother instructed me to write letters to my baptism godmother. Then I would go with her to the Post Office building, in Braga, and buy stamps like this one to stick on the envelope. This stamp from 1972 shows the University of Coimbra. "Linda and I had Portugal on the back burner for many years. A mistake! Had we not procrastinated, this would have been a return trip. Portugal is booming. With a strong economy and funds from the EU, the transportation and telecommunications infrastructure is being upgraded at a record rate. Restoration of old and historic buildings and homes as well as new construction can be seen everywhere. Portugal is a country on the move while at the same time preserving its old-world culture, traditions, and lifestyle - its heritage. Language is not a barrier. In addition to Portuguese, the younger generations speak English and at least one other language. There is always someone nearby who is more than willing to help you if you are h...

From time to time I bring some more serious matters to this blog. Yesterday Portuguese workers were on strike nationwide. My country is at crossroads and I can't see the end of it. Portugal's biggest union CGTP called for a general strike to protest against the center-right government's labor market reforms. Portuguese are protesting against exploitation and growing impoverishment. The strike aimed at the erosion of workers' rights, lower salaries, and record-high unemployment. People feel that austerity measures don't solve anything and that we will soon be as bad as Greece. In Lisbon, a small group of young demonstrators clashed with police, and two photographers were hit by the police who charged the group. As you may know, sometimes it's difficult to protest without provocation. I read that eggs were thrown at bank buildings and persons that were near picking money from cash machines in this group. Probably policemen were hit too with anything that was ...

Farsiris Mandala Keychain  by  webgrrl View more  Kaleidoscope Keychains Prepare yourself to be hypnotized!! Firdaus lives down under, right, in far Australia. She operates from Wollongong, New South Wales. She says that she's mostly known as Webgrrl, the girl that takes photos at psytrance events and festivals, event promotions, plus web and graphic design. For me, she's kind of Zazzle's fractal goddess!! I liked fractal art before I discovered her works but I was not into it much. My opinion is that Firdaus has a special talent to master fractals. Fractals really look good on every product she creates. She has a keen eye for color combinations and shapes. She owns several stores at Zazzle, here are just a few that you can check: Alternative wedddings Artdictive Party Posters Electronika Onlinecards Paper Station Webgrrl Every Firdaus store is a great place to find alternative and customizable products you will not find anywhere else - Invitations for all ...

Many of the ceramic Portuguese traditional pieces are hand-painted by incredibly talented artisans. If you're looking for something that is still faithful to tradition you'll find it for sure at Oporto stores. But contemporary pieces are also available. Most popular national brands have preserved the classics and developed new creations. Ceramic and porcelain are used both for household utensils and decorative pieces. Some are rustic, and others are exquisite. Since the turn of the XIXth to the XXth century, the factories in the Caldas da Rainha area have been specializing in porcelain pieces. They create caricatures and many pieces that are unusual for their humor and imagination. Look at this example. They are often inspired in Nature, by animals or plants. I love it! Lots of different pieces on this shop. I think I'll have to write new postage for each one of the ceramics represented here. They come from several different Portuguese regions. This balcony is o...