Nov 5, 2012 - Guimaraes, Portugal

Today Viv and I went by local bus from Braga to the ancient town of Guimaraes which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Founded in the 9th century it has been considered the ‘birthplace of the Portuguese nationality’ as it was the birthplace of the first king of Portugal, Alfonso 1st. The town has many small squares surrounded by cafes and beautiful buildings. There are two fine buildings to see there.The Paco dos Duques de Braganca, a fine restored palace built in the fifteenth century and restored in 1940. It has an extensive collection of...

Nov 3, 2012 - Braga

Yesterday we left Lisbon for Braga in the northern part of Portugal. We traveled by train to Porto then changed to a local train on to Braga. We are staying with Beverly the daughter of Alan and Florence, very good friends of ours in Nanaimo. Braga is the third largest city in Portugal with, as you would imagine many many churches and today we visited two that sit high above the city. Our day started with a walk around Braga, a very interesting city with lots of pedestrian areas. We certainly got our exercise going up to Bom Jesus do Monte...

Sep 17, 2010 - Guarda to Guimaraes (or 2nd birthday)

We woke up in Guarda...yes, I'm capturing that now, because as much as we like and are accustomed to travelling in a whirlwind fashion, I'm needing to remind myself where we've been! Another bad night's sleep, but that allows for trip journal work. I have to admit that this project has a few main purposes: capture our trip so I don't have to write it all-I used to do that, and I got so lazy by the end; keeps Mom & Dad and interested family and friends alerted to our whereabouts, and last but not least, it gives me an early morning project...

Aug 8, 2010 - R&R day 2 coming up

We have just come off of two work days. We think it was 38 degrees the first day and 40 the second. It's really hard to work in the heat. We have been starting earlier, taking a shorter lunch on the work site (instead of going to a restaurant) and finishing at 2 p.m. You just can't take the heat after that. We've had a productive couple of days though. We finished the septic tank. All the wires and drainage and water lines around the outside of the house are laid within about two feet of the foundation. They are then boxed in for a concrete...

Aug 4, 2010 - Wednesday

Today was day 3 of the build. It was 36 degrees yesterday and had to be close to 39 today. It was HOT. The septic tank that Chris and I along with two others have been building is nearing competion. It has 3 tanks, the walls have been parged to waterproof them and the inlet pipes are in. There is a photo of Joyce and Chris in "the pit". Friday, we will put the roof on it. I also included a photo of the house that we are working at. Tomorrow is an R&R day which we are all looking forward to. We are going to huge market and then to the beach....

Aug 2, 2010 - Today was a work day

Today was our first day at the Habitat build. The house we are working on is about 30 minutes outside of Braga in a little village. The house is made of tile with concrete on the inside and outside. The outside walls are about 18 inches thick and the interior are about 8 to 10 inches thick. The roof is all red clay tile. The family moves in on August 23 and there is still a lot of work to be done. The interior walls all need to be parged, the floor needs to have the concrete leveled (the electrical wires just run across the floor and are...

Aug 1, 2010 - What a trip

We left home at 7:55 on Friday night and got to Porto on Saturday night at 9:15. Our flights from London to Lisbon and Lisbon to Porto were both a bit late but we were only half an hour late getting to Porto. The bad news is that Chris's suitcase didn't arrive at all. He's still waiting to hear about but we have a local Habitat for Humanity person going to look into it tomorrow so hopefully she will have some luck. Of the 14 people who came on the trip using various routes on two different days, 7 people's luggage was lost and several...

Apr 27, 2010 - Braga

On our way to Geres, we had to transfer at Braga and thought it was a cute enough town. Little did we know on our way back from Geres, we would not be able to leave Braga as there was a one day bus/train strike. So we found a place to stay in a shopping mall of all places. It was a fantastic room and as much as Tomas dislikes malls,Europe and Asia seem to do them much better than the US. In addition to the regular shops, Europe and Asia often have cinemas, excellent food courts, internet cafes, maybe a bowling alley, other assorted...

Apr 28, 2008 - Braga and Bom Jesus do Monte

There are owls outside my window, calling to one another all evening and into the early morning. It was raining, so I spent some extra time in bed. Got up around 10:00 and walked down the Avenida de Liberdade, and stopped to see the Palacio do Raio before I caught the #2 bus out to Bom Jesus do Monte. This is a site not to be missed. It is a beautiful, peaceful place with absolutely stunning views. It was about a 20 minute drive, and the bus dropped us off at the Entrance Portico. The first section of the religious sanctuary is a steep...

Apr 27, 2008 - If it ain't Baroque...

It was very hot in Braga today, so armed with my hat, my water, and my camera I hit the streets of Braga for a stroll. After snapping some photos and wandering around, I went back to the hotel for a nap. On my way there, I came upon a huge crowd and heard chanting. It appears as though there was some kind of religious ceremony happening in the square. I stopped for a moment to see what was going on, and apparently got blessed in the process. A small procession was circling inside the crowd, and a priest was flinging holy water out into the...

Apr 27, 2008 - A rail virgin's first ride: Lisbon to Braga

My early start this morning was hampered by the dismaying discovery, at 6:00am, that the Metro station didn't open until 6:30. I waited, and managed to navigate the ticket system alright, only to be left behind with one other passenger, when the first train stopped, but did not open its doors. The second train was kind enough to let us board, and I arrived at Estaçao Santa Apolonia with a mere 2 minutes to catch the train to Braga. Running through the station, I found my train and was on the first, and closest car. The seats, however faced...