Passagem de Ano: The Passing of 2017 into 2018 in Portugal. Our thoughts for those who work to care for all creatures big and small.

The ‘Passing of the Year’ is the expression in Portuguese as the old year finishes and the new one begins. A time of hope and it seems nowadays fireworks to celebrate. We have now enjoyed the fireworks and a walk on the beach for the third year running in Monte Gordo on the Algarve. There is a strong sense of families celebrating together whether in the hotel, the local bars and the marquee for dancing in the New Year.

Fireworks for New Year

However, the sun rose on a sad sight on New Year’s Day but also an incredible sight and an occasion to see how we as human beings in Europe in the 21st Century feel for the plight of a stranded whale. There were tears, attempts to push the whale, common sense and finally the Portuguese lifeboat service with the maritime police all wetsuited up came and towed the whale out. It was spouting and alive. The last photo shows the boats out in deeper water trying to ensure the whale heads out to sea.

After being close to the whale with crowds of people on the beach and a strong desire for the whale to return we then watched from our hotel with binoculars the boat rescue. The hotel staff were all very moved to tears too and we were relieved and thought it was a happy ending. However, I research too much. The whale was a cachalote in Portuguese, a sperm whale, of about 9 to 10 metres long. Many sperm whale can live up to 70 years, mainly on squid, in those cold seas. However, they do suffer from diseases and can get washed up ashore because of this or disorientation. It did seem unusual for a whale to be so near the coast but they do live in the Mediterranean and Atlantic and could migrate through this more narrow stretch between Africa and Europe.

Sperm whale moving its tail and those trying to keep whale in enough water.

Boat out at sea after towing whale. Spouts could be seen.

My ongoing research led me to a news report about 24 hours later. A cachalote had been found washed up dead on Isla Armonia near Olhao. It was about 10 metres and believed to be the same one that had been rescued at Monte Gordo. Cause of death? Not old age it was not fully grown and possibly a young adolescent male.

Thanks to Becky and her blog about living in Portugal I also researched the Portuguese word Presepio. These are the miniature Natavity scenes that are popular in houses and also on a more public scale. I found out about the one put together by the Bombeiros of Tavira, the fire and rescue service. Above is the entrance to the fire station with beautiful wrought iron doors. Inside were really interesting miniature scenes. As well as showing the bible story set around the birth of Christ it’s also common to show scenes from Portuguese rural history with mills, ovens, windmills and plenty of animals, water and miniature local boats. Worth going to if you are in a Tavira from December to January 7th. But don’t expect baby Jesus to be in his crib until Christmas Day!

One of the largest presepios in Portugal is just at the end of the N125 not too far from Tavira in Vila Real. This is called the Presepio Gigante and it was certainly long as seen from the photo with all the blue lighting.

The actual crib scene is quite small but around are many rural scenes. Some were more Portuguese but at the far end the Roman influences and boats being built were more evident. It is interesting to note that at the time Jesus was born there was a lot of Roman influence and empire along the Algarve and near Seville where there are some amazing amphitheatre ruins called Italica and a bit further north, Merida. All easily accessible from Rome by sea and river routes. Rome ruled the seas and made the roads then!

Portugese Christmas crib scenes

Animals did feature in this Presepio too. Wild white birds with an eagle flying above, storks nesting and a rabbit being caught by a lasso! No guns then? However, the fun part which is supposed to amuse children is the ‘man with the red cape or coat’. He is to be found behind a tree or a bush ‘ doing his necessities’ in Spanish or Portuguese and translated as ‘having a poop’ in English! My new camera was quick enough to catch that!

As now its almost two weeks from the year passing over from 17 to 18 I have to explain my delay in posting. I struggle getting the photos from my new camera onto the laptop and I then struggle to upload to WordPress. I have also been submitting my novel to some more literary agents and it really seems like making a job application, which it is and I find each agency sufficiently different in the structure needed. At least these ones have an automatic response email and guarantee a short reply if not successful. Let’s hope for a phone call or positive email soon. One has 100 submissions a week so that does make for a lot of work. Thinking about it though I would mark at least 30 English GCSE essays a week, 20 A level and at least another 30 of the younger classes and all mainly in the evenings after teaching all day. Comments needed!

Here’s some of the last lights of the festive season from Vila Real, Portugal  and wishing you all well for 2018.

The Longest Day. From Sunrise to Sunset. The Castle and its Kingdom.

If we live in beautiful places do we have to travel to find more. It seems we do and it can be so inspiring to see a different kind of landscape and for me it’s flora and fauna. We spent the summer solstice in the fortress town of Marvao in Portugal. Marvao welcomes visitors as there is little need to defend the kingdom by having an impenetrable castle these days. So for people there, their economy is supported by tourism and holiday homes. The only other reasons to go up the hill is for the sheer beauty of the views, sunsets and the quaint old streets. And maybe to see the aerial display of the many house martins, swifts and crag martins.

On the 21st of June we got up at 6 to see the sunrise. We were 5 minutes late and were the only ones about. Not quite like Stonehenge on the Salisbury Plains but the view across Extremadura, flat and with a few rocky outcrops and hills on the border with Portugal from the mountain of Marvao was indeed a sight to see.

Sunrise over extremadura Spain from the hilltop castle town of Marvao, Portugal.

The room for a sunrise view at the Dom Dinish hotel, Marvao.

After many shots capturing the rising sun we realised that there was still two hour before breakfast was served at the Dom Dinish hotel. This is an excellent and friendly place and rooms with views. Our room had a view of the south western side and the sunset if you leaned out rather precariously from the Juliet balcony. However it is not far from the castle and the town’s walls and these all provide amazing views, plentiful birds in swift flight, and vertigo inducing drops.

So with hours to kill and the sun so pleasant we didn’t retreat to the room but decided to meditate on a bench by the castle and gardens. And we did, only to find we had been sharing the bench with a giant grasshopper. As still as could be. Now nature can teach us a thing or two about stillness. The creature remained for a photography session and was there after our trip up to a castle arch to find the Crag Martin family.

Grasshopper stillness on meditating bench!

Grasshopper meditating or Tai Chi position .

After the encounter with the grasshopper we decided to see if we could photograph the Crag Martin nest we had seen under one of the first arches you go through into the castle. This is a busy spot for people but it seems not many noticed this little family. They also didn’t seem perturbed by us observing them. At first it was difficult to spot but as the beaks of the 3 youngsters opened wide in anticipation of a fist from a parent we realised that it was a very active nest! The parent bird returned a few seconds after the opening of the beaks so the little ones had sensed the nearness of the parent bird. It all seemed to happen quite quickly and photographing seemed impossible the evening before. However, on this summer solstice morning the birds obliged, a little. One was on the nest,one was on the nest resting and still. The other obliged by returning to feed the open mouths and not dashing off so rapidly.

Crag Martin under arch of Marvao castle

Parent Crag Martin returning with food for hungry mouths.

After breakfast we had a good long walk around the Castle. There are many shots of that but not many of the swallowtail butterflies, both types and graylings. We even saw a Red Admiral on some rocks by the Convent. The heat was rising and there was a need to withdraw. The renovated Pousada was very cooling for a coffee with views over Spain and amazing coffee table books with beautiful photographs of horses around the world and some in very high places too.

View from the Pousada Santa Maria, Marvao

Coffee and coffee table books

The rest of the day was spent strolling around, touring in the valleys below, and finally another really red sunset. A real glory be to Nature and maybe final farewells to the history of war and now homes for Swifts, Martins and other critters! And for us, love conquering war with a second honeymoon!

Castle of Marvao

Evening Primrose in castle gardens

Rooftops and views, Marvao, Alentejo, Portugal

Sunset from hotel room. Note weather vane is odd!

Portugal: the eastern Algarve in January and February

3 weeks later, no blossom but look for the almonds. It might take till September for them to ripen though!

Almond blossoms around the fort; January in Cabanas de Tavira

Here as promised are some of the photos taken recently on short vacations to Cabanas de Tavira on the Eastern Algarve  along the estuary and  lagoons of the Ria Formosa. The area is a protected national park along the sand dunes and beaches but unfortunately some of the cliff side walks are privately owned.
We enjoy an escape to warmer weather and an earlier spring than in the Sierra Aracena even if it is only about 100 miles away from Navasola it is at sea level. Although it is the Atlantic Ocean it is warmer here because of the Gulf Stream and the climate is more Mediterranean.

Walking around the old fort in January I came across this almond blossom tree full of blossom and teeming with bees. It was very noisy as well as beautiful. 3 weeks later in February the blossom had gone and you can just see in the photo of the same tree the beginnings of the almonds.