The Soromenho

2005-02-26

Cape Cod

We decided to take a break from driving round and round and round and round Boston, and take a little trip down to Cape Cod

Views of Provincetown

On Old King's Highway in Cape Cod, there's some amazing New England architecture.

Many houses there seem to have been made from old barns.

2005-02-25

2005-02-24

Boston

We're out visiting Boston for a week.

A typical street in Boston.

the touristy Faneuil Hall / Marketplace area.

2005-02-19

Feira da Ladra

This flea market in an old neighborhood of Lisbon is actually called, in english, "The Theives Market" (Feira da Ladra)

2005-02-13

2005-02-08

Carnaval in Setúbal

Quite a large crowd for the third annual Carnaval parade of the city of Setúbal.

Rio, it's not, but it had charm and some good fun.

Hey. Being a clown is serious business...

Tia Louisa and Jean-Yves with their grandson, Vasco.

There were some truly scary sights:

And nothing beats a school of foam fish... with a dog on a leash.
(I guess sardines need pets too.)

Like the Rose Parade King, this Don concludes the show.
The handle bar moustache is real. He's had it for 40 years I'm told.

2005-02-06

Torre de Belem

The weather may have been undecided, by Téo had no such qualms about wanting to go see the "castle on the water" as he calls the Belem Tower.

The view below is of the Monument to the Discoverers, with one of the supports of the 25th of April Bridge in the background.

2005-02-04

Carnaval at School

Not Harry Potter (Sheesh...)
"Téo the Wizard!"

The Wizard and his anachronostic friends.

2005-01-30

Playing in Belem

Sunday, we decided to go play in the park at Belem. Téo needed to run around a bit after having been cooped-up at home too long...

While there, we visited the Monastério dos Jerónimos, famous for its unique "Manueline" architectural style.

One of the few structures left standing after the devastating 1755 earthquake, its riches were stolen by the French during the Napoleonic invasions.

2005-01-29

The Bairo Alto is a neighborhood in Lisbon. "Bairo Alto" means "High Neighborhood" and it is as ancient as it is high. It's not a usual toursist stop during the day, but at night it comes alive with the inumerous restaurants, bars, and night clubs.

Perched atop one of the many hills in Lisbon, its pictoresque streets are closed to traffic. One way for the locals to avoid the steep climb back from downtown Lisbon is to take the funicular of the Rua da Glória.

There are beautiful views of Lisbon from up there. You can see the Castle in the background.

2005-01-24

To Serra da Estrela

We went to the highest point in Portugal, the Serra da Estrela (1993m), where there are some ski runs with amazing 360º views. Téo had fun playing in the little snow there was.

The trip there, though, goes through some beautiful country.

It's apparent from the geology that the whole mountain range was run over by glaciers, as evidenced by the rounded-out rock surfaces and the many boulders randomly deposited just about everywhere.

It's amazing to think that just tens of thousands of years ago, ice sheets covered much of Europe this far south...

The 1616 Manor House in progress

Update on the restauration of the 1616 Manor House. New roof, but the insides have been removed for the renovation. It looks like one of those excavated roman ruins with a roof on top to protect it...

2005-01-22

Croup through the ages...

Téo had a croup episode last night. I looked online to find the earliest reference of this common children's condition. It seems to many people around here to have become common only relatively recently, but I think it is because now it has a name... In finding old texts and references, I am now only too glad to live in more modern times (imagine what they'll say in 200 years!) Take, for example, this exerpt from 1785...