Madeira Mid Term Break

I took off for a week of rest, work has been stressful. I treated myself to a package of five days in Madeira. Madeira is closer to Morocco than Portugal, 600kms from Morocco in the Atlantic Ocean. It is not very big, but it is beautiful and diverse. The main city is Funchal. I stayed in the Lido, the hotel area, with a beautiful sea view, about a mile from town. The lido has great walking and restaurants and gazing at the other hotels.
The town is very tourist oriented. It is a vacation spot for northern Europeans etal. Beautiful embrodiery, Madeira wine
First day I explored town. Next day, I took the cable car up the mountain. Had a delightful lunch and took the tobaggon ride and walked down. They have baskets on runners to take you down the mountain.
The next day I rented a car and explored the western side of the island, Porto Moniz, Sao Vicente and a lighthouse.

The next day I went to the east side of the island, it was amazing the difference in temperature from the ity to the top.
It went from 22 to 9 celsius. In the afternoon, I cruised on a replica of the Santa Maria.

Friday I shopped some more and headed home. A delightful vacation spot, I would like to go again, they have many walking paths throught the mountains, following the irrigation system, called levadas. Walk in the morning, swim in the afternoon, rest and eat.

August 2008

I finished my first school year abroad. I'm still loving Portugal. Summer is beautiful here, blue skies, warm days, cools nights. Lots of wind, that make it different than So. Cal. The beaches are crowded on weekends but still manageable. Lots of activities, outdoor concerts.

I moved this summer to a charming apartment in Cascais, the Laguna Beach of Portugal. I call it my villa. My apt is has 3 bedrooms, an office space, a dining room, and a great yard. Curly can go in and out all day. It has a lemon and orange tree and a garden filled with surprises, roses,l hydrangea and hibiscus. I'm about a 15 minute walk to the train station, 45 minutes into Lisbon. I'm 15 minutes from the beach, many beaches or downtown. Cascais is bustling and adorable.


It has everything you could want, high end shopping, Hugo Boss, Max Mara and many more. It has low end shopping, Chinese stores, mercados, Jumbo. It has ethnic restaurants, Indian, Italian, Thai and McDonald's.
It's sites include a fort, museums and parks. The magical town of Sintra is 20 minutes away by car.


Life has settled down into a working routine except that I get wonderful holidays. Mid term break is next week and I'm off to Madeira.

Friends, you are welcome to visit. I can't be your tour guide, I'm working and off on holidays. You need to be somewhat self sufficient but I have plenty of room, maps and information galore. English is widely spoken.


I'm more and more comfortable here. I love Portugal. The people are warm and helpful if somewhat reserved. The land is beautiful with many, many magnificent sites to see.
Check it out!

July 2008 North

July 16th
Set off at noon, heading for Belmonte. Took the Hwy, listening to Janet Evanovich's "Twelve Sharp". Weird to listen to the street smart, Philadelphian, Stephanie Plum while driving through Portugal. Spent the night in Corvilha, Corvilla Jardim with A/C on the public garden square The pousada in Belmonte wouldn't let the dog stay the night, neither did the Belsol hotel.



July 17th

Went to the Jewish quarter and synagogue in Belmonte, the men were so proud of their beautifully redone shul. One of them watched Curly so I could go inside. Then Curly and I traveled to Almeida, an interesting town/fort in the shape of a star. Had lunch outside the town, then six hours to Geres, beautiful country but very hot. Night at Quinta de Gestacos, no a/c. Slept okay with a fan. Beautiful view from here, peaceful morning except for the granchildren running around the pool. On to explore

Aveiro March 22, 2008

The Venice of Portugal? It is soooooo NOT, right Ms. Epstein. It has its own charm! The hospitality is some of the best in Portugal. The pastries of course are to die for. It that an adjective, to die for? We went on a boat ride, 11,000 acres of salt flats, pyramids of salt bring some resonance, calm, warmth? A university town too, art and music, two libraries. Best Western a name to rely on here too. A great value and we shopped around. Charming streets, great shopping, lunch stop on my next trip to Porto.

Porto

Porto- bustling and beautiful -Buildings with majesty and character. It is holy week, Easter is on Sunday, lots of people are on holiday. Not many rooms available, finally we got a large room with three single beds. Great location, light, airy, Hotel Imperial. I took an early morning walk, watched the sunrise over the Douro. We toured Sandeman port house. I'm learning more all the time, aguardente, fine water. Then we headed off for Pinhao. A small quinta,farm/winery. What was supposed to be a four hour ride turned into 8. The first six hours were beautiful, the last two were work. The marvel of crossing the Douro grew then. There were some highlights. We watched the moonrise. When we arrived in town, I stopped to call the quinta for directions. It was Good Friday. Suddenly coming toward us was a procession led by priests. The car was surrounded by people as Sheila and I sat inside. They passed by. Later, after a bite to eat, they were still going and bowed in front of our car, one of the stations of the cross. We arrived at the quinta for a warm welcome and cozy room by the river. The next morning, I toured the winery/port house and we headed out, back to the ocean.

Queens for a day!

Sheila came to visit! The first night we hung out. The next day we went to Sintra, a very special place. Then we set off on a road trip. First night I had booked a room at the pousada in Obidos. Pousadas are deluxe hotels in historic buildings. This one is a castle. Obidos is a walled town about 100km from my house. After lunch and a hike to castle ruins on the hilltop in Torres Vedras, we arrived in Obidos. We followed signs for the pousada and drove through the town, through gates that looked too small for a car and to the steps of the castle. It was beautiful and as Sheila said, “I feel like I’m in a fairy tale.” The castle dates from around 1500. The room was a disappointment, very small. The bathroom was tiled and efficient. The linens and bathrobes and all were deluxe. We had dinner at a small snack shop, not in keeping with our status but we just felt like something light, cheese omelets. We strolled back through the town which is charming. The highlight was being able to walk along the castle walls and look down upon our queendom. It was a beautiful night, after an afternoon of rain. Breakfast the next morning was in the royal dining room, with spectacular views. Then we set out for Caldas da Rainha looking for bargain ceramics.

Tomar

I had been to Tomar to see the main attraction, the Knights Templar compound and thought it was a cute town. I heard it had a Jewish synagogue and I wanted to see it, as well as check out the town some more. As I came into town on off of this mountain road, I followed the signs for the biblioteca. I parked there and went inside. I needed the bathroom and the internet. Both were nice, they let me use a computer to check my email, there were lots of computers, a wonderfully light filled space with comfortable furniture. There was a high school across the street and lots of kids around. From there I walked into town and got a map and directions at the tourist office. I had a picnic lunch in a wonderful park and walked to the synagogue. It was interesting and depressing. The fifteenth century pillars are there, and the acoustics are interesting but the rest was mostly sad. It was dirty and unattractive with Judaica scattered, maps of Israel, headstones from different parts of Portugal with Hebrew lettering. If I hadn't just been in a fifteenth century church, that looked much the same, I would say Anti Semitism, but it seems to me Portugal has so much history and not so much money. So many places are crumbling and not presented well. Yet it was interesting to visit and Tomar is a charming town.

The good, bad and the beautiful

Walked across the pedestrian bridge, over the River Mondego, to the other side of Coimbra. saw Portugal Pequinitos, a child size representation of Portugal. It was disconcerting. Things out of scale. Boring displays with dolls and produce under glass. Portugal with castles showing a tower from one, a turret from another and a door from another, all in one building. They also had typical houses from each region, not tall enough for adults but surely a 5 or 6 year olds delightful. If not, give it a miss.

Then I drove to Bucaco, the site of a forest, including Sequoias, and a palace.

I found the model for the pergola I would like in my Napa backyard.

I sat under a tree and had a picnic lunch and planned my way out. I choose a mountain road with Tomar as a goal tonight or in the morning. This mountain road was beautiful, twisty, and almost empty. It took me three hours to drive about 60 kms. The highlight was Penacova, at the top. I stopped for coffee and a pastry. The pastry was wonderful. I took a box home. Down and around the mountain for another hour, not it is almost dark. I'm getting tired and hungry, nothing for kms, small towns, beautiful vistas, no hotels. Arrive in Castanheira de Pera, warm, cute pensao, 30 euros, a walk around town and Tomar tomorrow.

How to make a librarian happy?

The things that excite a librarian! I went to the University in Coimbra to see the famous library, Baroque Library, Biblioteca Joanina, Biblioteca Geral, three names, all one library. It was magnificent. They only let a dozen or so people in each 1/2 hour. There were 6 of us in my time slot. I asked the docent questions, like how do you get to the second floor with a balcony around it. Well, I was the only one left and he took me upstairs and took out a volume from 1523! I touched it, he said I could photograph it but I didn't. An almost 5oo year old book, the bindings were deteriorating but the paper was in good shape. He showed me how the ladders were hidden in the wall between the shelves. Honor, Virtue, Fame and Fortune were in one ceiling mural, Fortune had two faces that he pointed out to me. Asian designs on the ends of the shelves.

It was a quiet day here, a national holiday.

Beautiful town and surroundings, very typical Portuguese, wonderful views, accomodating, places for people to walk and talk, and also crumbling tile benches and persistent grafitti. Old and new side by side .

Coimbra

Arrived here about 4 pm, parked by Hotel Dona Ines and took a walk. Adorable, quaint, charming,warm and friendly. Hotel Dona Ines is a few blocks from the center of town. I have a river view room vista rio. Took Filipa's suggestion at reception and had dinner at Taverna de parque, the best salmon dinner I've had here yet. The veggies were crisp and flavorful, salmon cooked perfectly, choc cake desert, too good. The wine 1/2 bottle for 7.50Eeuros cost more than the salmon 6 euros and was yummy. A tipsy walk home, back to the hotel, in 65 weather. On to discover the town tomorrow, famous library at the University.

Work! St. Dominic's International School

Portugal continues to be delightful. The weather has been magnificent, much like southern California. It feels a lot like California still, without the traffic and frantic pace. We have had a bit of rain and the ocean gets very dramatic. It is sunny and a bit chilly today. I have another week off for Carnival next week. I will tour in the north again. I have found a house/dog sitter so I can leave without worrying.
Norm asked about my job and I realized I hadn’t said much. I am learning a lot. The International Baccalaureate (IB) program has many acronyms to get used to. There is much more emphasis on thinking and metacognition. There is not much emphasis on testing, thank goodness. It still makes no sense and costs ridiculous amounts of money to test as we do in California. Here there are tests to culminate the programs, MYP and IB, but very little testing otherwise. That puts a lot of pressure on the final tests. But the tests are only half of the criterion. They also write an “extended essay” and a Theory of Knowledge (TOK) essay. All in all, I love the emphasis on thinking and international mindedness. It is also understood that not everyone will complete the IB diploma, although most do.
So, my job, I teach two English classes, one Year 7 (our grade 6) and one Year 8 (our grade 7). I am enjoying the teaching, again, a lot to learn, assessment criterion and curriculum. The kids are great for the most part. There is always one or two… They are eager to learn. The difference I have found with teaching rich versus poor kids is that these kids have had success and embrace learning. Some of the poor kids I’ve taught have given up by this time. There is more of a drive to succeed here, also partly because of the cost, I imagine.
My library is too small, old and very dated. The circulation system is antiquated and needs a lot of work. I have asked for it to be replaced at the cost of 10,000 Euros. We will see. The collection is very dated, I am weeding many books that haven’t been checked out in 10 years. I’m having fun updating the fiction with my favorites. I have implemented a lot of things I used at Century High School. I’ve started a Graphic Novel collection. I have a Library Advisory Board and library newsletter. Even thought the student population is only 350 students, there is plenty to do. As always, I don’t stop once I walk in the door. There is always something to do, questions to answer, information to find. I do get an hour for lunch and I take it! They even pay for my lunch.
My library assistant, Fatima, is wonderful. Conceicao also works there and is hard working and positive. I have a two year contract but I can see staying longer. I may even buy a house!
I am posting pictures here.

Touring

Happy New Year. Four months in Portugal and all is well. I have been enjoying three weeks off and doing some more touring. My niece, Jessica, came for a visit. After the first two days of rain, it was beautiful. We toured around here and in the Alentejo, area south of here. Then I took a trip a bit north of here. It was good to see the variety. Pine forests meet the sea, grottos, valleys. Beautiful. Here are a few pictures.