Culture, Cuisine, Churches

Trip Start Jan 01, 1972
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Trip End Jul 08, 2007


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Flag of Portugal  ,
Saturday, January 8, 1972

You have to understand that most northern Europeans get 4-5 weeks vacation a year and since we don't get to see that much sun in Holland and our beaches as beautiful as Scheveningen and Zandvoort are more wavy than a serene place to read a book, it is the southern European countries that attract our attention when the time comes to take a break from our harried lives. When my parents decided in 1968 to plan a trip with another family to Portugal they wanted to include a little bit of culture, besides beaches and added Lisbon to the repertoire. Like most European cities, Lisbon has so much history, with dozens of museums, churches and places of interest, hundreds of restaurants, many off the beaten track and of course the boites with its famous hauntingly dirge-like  fado.
This genre of music (meaning fate) is usually linked to the Portuguese word saudade, a unique word that has no accurate translation in any other language, although home-sickness comes close. The fado songs encompass a longing, sadness, pain, happiness and love, originating in a blend of African rhythms, traditional music of Portuguese sailors and some Arabic influences. I remember winding, cobblestoned streets, great meals and my first taste of bacalhau (cod) and first sip of Oportos famed port wine. Opposites do attract.
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