Portugal Part II - Cabo da Roca

"I really don't know why it is that all of us are so committed to the sea, - except I think it is because in addition to the fact that the sea changes and the light changes, and ships change, it is because we all came from the sea. And it is an interesting biological fact that all of us have, in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and, therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch - we are going back from whence we came."

President J.F. Kennedy

 

In Sintra-Cascais natural park, at around 140m above sea level you can find Europe's most western point touching the Atlantic ocean: this is Cabo da Roca. We had rented a car that day and drove towards west the first thing in the morning. After five days of clouds and wind, we could only hope for the sun to make the waves around us shine, but we were embraced by the fog like in a mysterious
scene of an old movie. It didn't matter - we were there! And the fog actually helped me pay more attention to everything what was around me. It came and went, revealing each element of the scenery at a time: the lighthouse, the cliffs, the ocean hitting against land, the cross, the hills and the whole nature around us.

The 22 m high lighthouse had been built in 1772 on the highest point of Cabo da Roca, watching over all people who have made their way to see "where the land ends and the sea begins", as written by the Portuguese poet Luis de Camoes.

The whole place was quiet and loud at the same time. I could hear my thoughts hitting the cliffs together with the ocean,...I could have stopped time like being for a second in a bubble without nothing around me. I was there,.... and was anywhere else at the same time. I was mesmerized. And so were WE...

 And if you ever plan to be mesmerized by this beautiful place yourself, here is how to get there:
- rent a car and drive from Cascais to the west - you will see road signs, so it's easy. If you rent the car from Lisbon, then take the highway towards Cascais, and then do the above.
- if you want to use public transportation, then take the train from Rossio station in Lisbon towards Sintra (you have trains every 15-20 minutes, ride is around 40 minutes). Once you get there, just outside the train-station you have bus stops - take bus 403 to Cascais via Cabo da Roca. The busses go every hour. You can return to Cascais by bus, and take from there the train back to Lisbon (Cais do Sodre station). Will surely describe both Sintra and Cascais in the following posts, so stay tuned.

 

Oh,...yes,...of course...how could I forget....: if you choose to rent a car, when coming down from Cabo da Roca, I advise you to drive along the coast, and make a pit stop somewhere...look around...and take it all in...it's all so, so beautiful!!! 

 

(photos taken by me / with my camera)

Portugal Part I - Introduction to Lisbon

After many years of wanting to go to Lisbon, I have finally made it. And yes, I am so very happy I did it!

It's funny, I have been sitting in front of my laptop for some minutes now, trying to structure what I want to share with you about this lovely city, but I cannot decide. It is simply amazing, beautiful and welcoming. What it transmits to me is joy of life and and a sense of being proud of your roots and your past while still embracing development, technology,...short for: the future.
Lisbon is all about steep small rock-paved streets, small boutiques, flavours of the past mixed with new fast-paced modern eating places, castles and futuristic places which, funny enough, were created for the expo 1998 (so go back in the past as well), it's about the celebration of life (street festivals), it's about the wind blowing in your sails...
Although Lisbon has its own character, its own personality, and you can see that for example by the way streets are paved or how houses are decorated (with the famous azulejos), once you step down from Praça do Comércio towards the Tagus river (Tejo), and look west, to your right, and take a deep breath, you will  feel how the whole world opens in front of your eyes and your heart will crave for new, distant places. Maybe this explains the conquerors past of the city, of the country...
All I knew at that moment was, that I wanted to see and learn as much as possible about what was surrounding me, and I was happy the adventure in Portugal had begun for me. I was about to discover many treasures, some exploited by many, others known by few.
Join me the following days for a trip in the beautiful land of the Portuguese.

(Photos taken by me/with my camera)

Fairytale

It all seems like a fairytale, but no, it was real. For almost two weeks I have been charmed by the land called Portugal and by the surrounding ocean, I have enjoyed the local food and flavours, have walked (a lot!!!) on paths walked by other people hundreds and hundreds years before me, have enjoyed the warm sun and the cold winds, and have returned home with a smile and the lust to go back there...one day. Stay tuned for some posts on my Portugal adventure, starting next week. Have a lovely weekend, my dear ones!

(Photo taken by me)

Wanderlust

Oh...that moment when you have a map in front of you, or more old-style, a globe,..and you first identify where you are now, after which you start "travelling"  up and down to places you have been, but more likely to places you would like to be. You then start dreaming of how it could be, seeing the ocean for the first time in Lisbon, walking the streets of an old empire capital - Rome, getting "blinded" by the immaculate, trademark white of Greek cities/villages or learning to see the beauty of flooding in Venice...

I had that moment today,..when I accidentally stumbled upon the picture above on Pinterest. You can see more of these beautiful pictures on architectureartdesigns, from where I have posted these to my blog. Enjoy the beauty and nurture your wanderlust!

(Picture source: http://www.architectureartdesigns.com/30-famous-places-that-you-must-see/)

The Art of Smoking vs. International Security

Even if society has turned more and more its back to smoking and smokers alike in the last years, there is no doubt that smoke has been present as a form of art ( in poems, pictures, movies etc.) and can still represent a laid-back lifestyle (relaxing with a cigarette after a wonderful dinner), a sense of victory (smoking a cigar after signing a profitable contract), it can create mystery and bring a vintage touch to moments of reflection or introspection (associated with smoking a pipe) and it can also transport you to exotic places or give you a feeling of belonging to a social group, a party, to people just having fun (mostly through sharing a shisha/traditional waterpipe).

Reading all this, it might not have come as a surprise that Dubai based Emirates airline would have been testing a shisha lounge starting next month on some of its A380 airplanes. "Premium customers will be now able to relax amid luxurious surroundings with a traditional waterpipe" the airline mentioned. However, knowing all the international bans on smoking, it would be both a rise and a fall for this company, taking this measure. Nevertheless, according to CNBCARABIA the company denies the previous news, mentioning that they have been one of the first companies in the Middle East and the world to ban smoking on board and will not accept any type of smoking on their flights.

It is clear that art has to stay art on the ground, as in the air it will be less appreciated, due to safety reasons. And it is better this way, as YOU would like to be the one to decide, when YOU have your last smoke...

(Picture source: http://q8allinone.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Shisha-Lounges-Onboard-Emirates-A380-Fleet.jpg)
(Video source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbRifIzMth0)

Ice..and Snow into the Spring

 (Picture taken by me with phone cam at the Landesmuseum Wuerttemberg, Stuttgart)

Snow.
It starts with a flake...
Slowly gliding down the winds onto the warmer pavement...
>>>death<<<

Snow..
Two flakes collide and form a bigger one...
Coming down from the skies and meeting their...
>>>death<<<

But when they finally get grouped together, form an alliance, then they know they are here to stay. At least for a bit longer than their brothers and sisters who had ventured before them,...all alone.

It started on Saturday. Sunday was a clear-blue sky but the cold wind felt like the harsh touch of a whip. Then they came...during the night...armies of them...little white people hugging each-other into the cold blanket that covered the rooftops, the cars, the trees and the streets around them. It's nice. It's beautiful. Cold, but beautiful.  Funny thing is, we almost have Easter knocking on our door, but the Easter bunny will have to borrow Santa's beard this year and hide the gifts in our wooly socks instead. The Easter-egg hunt will be canceled until further notice. Spring seems to be canceled. The best time of year, postponed, without even the chance to protest against it. Our voice cannot be heard...it is so quiet..the snow is like a sound proof barrier...it's so quiet...

Inside my room, beautiful yellow tulips still keep the hope alive, still remind me that there can be noise and power and joy, there can be life after this snow, there can be spring.

So I smile.

Hermes Spring Summer 2013

 

(picture source: http://www.designscene.net/wp-content/gallery/012013/hermes-spring-summer-2013-09.jpg)

London Series part 4 - Christmassy Covent Garden

You find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.

Samuel Johnson

 

I feel the same every time I visit this wonderful city.  It has so much to offer, so many wonderful things to discover, so much joy to share. Perfect to take a walk, especially now, in the winter season, and what better, crowded place to pick than Covent Garden? With the sound of French Can Can music played by joyful violinists in the market, I admired the Christmas decoration. I then discovered the Jack Daniels barrel tree which is built for the first time in the UK and is a tradition every year in Lynchburg, Tennessee. It is built from 140 used barrels - a slightly different approach to a Christmas tree. 

I enjoyed the globes, the lights, the great weather (it was sunny - the pics were unfortunately taken with my phone camera) and carried on with some Christmas shopping. It was the perfect day - in lovely London of course!