The Loneliest Liberal:In my mother’s country

On the coast

Four days in Portugal

By James Knudsen

I’ll confess, it is a mystery to me how the serial writers of the 1930’s did it. Keeping details straight over an extended period of time is taxing, and it’s only been a month – less than a month!
    When we left off [“Local Custom,” September 23], I had attended my nephew’s wedding in Prague. After five days in the Czech Republic it was time to head west, to Portugal.
    The column published here on February 28, 2015 [“Mo...m”] detailed the life of my mother, Ernestine. Mom was the Portuguese side of the family, and this side’s origins have had a pull on my siblings and me for some time. This was my first trip to Portugal.
    We arrived in Porto, the second largest city in Portugal, via airplane. I don’t think our decision to fly to Porto rather than to the more popular Lisbon was the result of wanting to be different or because it was cheaper. For me, I’m pretty sure it was the latter. My traveling companions were my sister Morissa and her significant other, Gene Parini. Morissa had arranged accommodations at an Airbnb near the water. The building was a modern high-rise affair with offices on the ground floor and condos above. The trick was to find which elevator served our unit. There were at least four sets of elevators, two per door in the underground parking garage, and it was pure luck that we blundered into the correct one. Each pair of elevator shafts serves two units per floor, but underground, there's no way of knowing which one you should use, except experience. As soon as we dropped our bags, we hopped across the oceanfront highway to the nearest restaurant for a much-needed dinner.

Castle Guimarães

The following morning we began our first full day on the Iberian Peninsula by heading north to the town of Braga. There we grabbed some lunch and saw the first of many old churches. Our next visit was the town of Guimarães. It’s an important location, being the birthplace of the man who is considered the first true Portuguese king, Afonoso Henriques, as well as the 1,000-year-old castle where he was born. After a light repast of flambéed chourice, we returned to Porto and found our way to an older neighborhood on a steep hill with a view of the Douro River. Our evening ended at a small restaurant, Bota & Bira, which specializes in small-plate fare. If asked to find fault with the establishment, I would only say that I fear they’re not charging enough and won’t be there should I return.

    That short evening in Porto – arriving near sunset, joining the locals and non-locals for a beer, the sound of a televised futbol game in the background, dining among those who don’t speak English, or speak it in a decidedly different way – was for this traveler one the best experiences of Portugal.

Douro River sunset

We spent another day in the Porto region exploring the Douro River and then, on our third full day in country, headed south for our next lodgings, in Sintra. On the way, we stopped in Coimbra, home to the Universidade de Coimbra, generally considered one of the oldest universities in the world. As it was early September, the students were engaging in activities that called for them to wear the attire the university is so famous for and which has become more famous through the story-telling of J.K. Rowling of Harry Potter fame. One student took the time to explain to me that Rowling had lived in Portugal and was inspired by the university and its students.

Coimbra University regalia

    In 1972, Ernestine went to Coimbra to study Portuguese at the universidade, 45 years later her children found themselves walking the same streets and steps of this “college” town. In compiling this piece back home, I found photographic evidence that we had been in the very same places.

Ernestine is actually in this photo, front row, 2nd from right,
white outfit, holding dark binder or book

Sometimes you don’t realize what the best experiences were until later.

My last full day in Portugal was spent in Sintra. Part of the region known as the Portuguese Riviera, it includes a national park containing the Castelo dos Mouros and two national palaces, along with numerous gardens. In the 19th century it found favor with the English, who rhapsodized in poetry about its beauty.

...Lo! Cintra’s glorious Eden intervenes
In variegated maze of mount and glen...–Lord Byron

    My first visit to Portugal was just four complete days in length. Though it is only about a fifth the size of California, there is much for me still to see. I hope to return soon.

Castelo dos Mouros

Ubiquitous Portuguese tile

Copyright © 2017 by James Knudsen