Aqueduct of Silver Water in Évora

A stretch of the Silver Water Aqueduct.

Although there is grand evidence of ancient Roman civilization in the Portuguese city of Évora - seen in the ruins of the Temple Diana - the huge aqueduct there was not built by the Romans, it was constructed by King João III in 1531-1537 to bring water into the city.  The Aqueduct of Silver Water is a prominent sight throughout Évora, as it stretches for 6 miles and is 85 feet tall at its peak.  

The most interesting thing about the aqueduct however, is the southern section where it weaves through town.  Over the centuries, houses, shops, and cafés have nuzzled themselves into and under the arches of the aqueduct.  Look at this Évora home:

It is fascinating to walk through this part of town.

Homes built right into the arches of the aqueduct.

The Silver Water Aqueduct is considered one of the greatest 16th century architectural structures on the Iberian Peninsula.

It's Halloween!

H A P P Y   H A L L O W E E N ! ! !

Pena National Palace in Sintra, Portugal.

Apartment in the Baixa District in Lisbon

Don't be fooled by the cracked plaster and peeling paint on the exterior of this holiday apartment we rented in Lisbon.  The one-bedroom unit in the Baixa district was spotlessly clean, large and comfortable, affordably priced, and an ideal location for our family of four.  My teenagers loved that there was a little market a block away where they could walk to in the morning for fresh rolls or in the late afternoon for a soda.

Local market in the Baixa in Lisbon.

Marisa, the young owner of the apartment, is extremely kind and helpful and has excellent English language skills.  She takes special care to show you how everything works and where everything is, and provides city maps and books and suggestions.  On our last day, when we departed the residence, Marisa called a taxi and waited with us so she could talk to the driver for us. 

The main living area of the apartment is lovely and well-lit by two sets of French doors which open to small balconies.  The sofa you see here is a futon, which my son slept on:

My daughter slept on a second futon in the hall outside the master bedroom:

The master bedroom is spacious and the bed is comfortable:

The small kitchen had everything we needed to prepare light meals:

My husband was happy that the air conditioning worked very well and I was delighted we had a washing machine right in the apartment:

The Baixa district is a superb location to stay in downtown Lisbon.  This apartment is just a short walk to Rossio Square where you'll find the Rossio train station, cafés, shopping, markets and street performers.

If you would like to book this terrific apartment in Lisbon, you can find it listed on TripAdvisor.  We paid 85€ a night, plus a cleaning deposit.

A Flushing Dilemma

I have been perplexed at times, while traveling in Europe, about a task I consider here at home to be pretty straightforward - flushing the toilet.  I remember when I was a child, entering a public restroom in Europe was often a mystery.  What sort of medieval plumbing contraption was I required to push, pull, turn, yank or crank to finish the job I came to do?

Take, for example, the lavatory below, frequently encountered in many European countries:

If you haven't chanced upon a pull chain device such as this before, certainly you might search all around the commode looking for a button or lever to flush.  If you are a young child, you undoubtedly wouldn't think to look up to do the job.  And if and when you finally do, there's the likelihood - as in this photo, that you possibly cannot even reach it.

Europeans have gone green, way more than we have here in the U.S., and although we are starting to see dual flush toilets here, the different varieties of mechanisms will cause you pause each and every time.

And, of course, you know I have to bring up everyone's favorite foreign commode:  the squat toilet, also known as the Natural Position toilet (yeah, right, natural for men maybe).  Are these still found in civilized countries?  Yes!  The photos below were taken by my friend recently in Italy.  I've encountered them as well in Greece, Hungary, and even France.

If you have a young daughter, do not let her attempt to use a squat toilet without your help.  I never managed these latrines as a child without tinkling all over my pants and shoes.  And let's just say the germs your child might come into contact with if you're not there to avert a slip or a fall would probably warrant a tetanus booster.

Sometimes in a foreign restroom you will read a sign, occasionally in legible English, asking you not to place toilet paper in the trash receptacle.  You may wonder why the need to elucidate such an obviously nonsensical idea.  That is because there are some countries with poor or no plumbing where you WILL be asked to deposit your toilet paper in the trash receptacle because flushing it will clog the toilet.

Men, like always in these matters, have little difficulty finding a place to go in Europe.  Public urinals are an accessory to many historical buildings in Europe, such as this ancient looking urinol adjacent to the Castle of São Jorge in Lisbon (below) and another near the historic center of Gouda, in the Netherlands (also below).

Public urinal in Lisbon.

Urinal in Gouda, the Netherlands.

And always remember to have a bit of spare change on you when entering a WC in Europe because you never know when you might be caught by surprise by a Klofrau wanting to wipe down the seat for you!

UNESCO Town of Évora in Portugal

When an entire town is named a UNESCO World Heritage Site, you know it's going to be an interesting place, and that is the reason we chose to make an overnight stop in Évora on our trip through Portugal last summer.  Medieval city walls, an ancient Roman temple, a 16th century aqueduct, a Gothic cathedral, and even more fascinating history await visitors to this town located about an hour and a half drive from Lisbon.  

After a little bit of a glitch with our accommodations but then finally checking into a lovely hotel, we realized we were just around the corner from the remains of Temple Diana, Évora's most famous landmark.

This Roman temple survived the ages since its construction around the first century A.D. because it was put to various uses since the Middle Ages and regularly restored.  It is considered one of the best preserved Roman ruins on the Iberian peninsula.

View of Temple Diana from the Évora Cathedral.

Besides the Romans, the Moors left their mark on Évora as well.  The city was under Moorish rule for over 400 years.

Dom Manuel Palace

Moorish ruins.

Being the avid steeple climbers that we are, we gladly paid the 13€ for four of us to climb the Évora Cathedral tower up to the roof.

The views over the town are magnificent, as the church was built on the highest point in the city.

The cathedral, a blend of Romanesque and Gothic style architecture, was built in 1186.  It is believed that the flags of Vasco da Gama's first ships to the Orient were blessed here.  Very unique to the Évora Cathedral is the very pretty lantern tower over the crossing with its picturesque windows and six little turrets surrounding the spire.

The central square in town is Praça do Giraldo and it's a nice place to stop for a cool drink or bite to eat.  We had dinner at Café Arcada, which has a large diner sort of feel, and their menu pleased everyone in our family.

Praça do Giraldo is Évora's central square.

Before you leave town be sure to browse the shopping alleys.  Beautiful items crafted from local cork are great souvenirs.

On your way out of town, you can visit the Aqueduct of Silver Water which stretches for 6 miles and was built in the 1530s to deliver water to the city of Évora.

You can drive right through the aqueduct's arches.

Sleeping Cabin on the Train from Lisbon to Madrid

Oddly enough, the only direct train from Lisbon to Madrid, and vice versa, is a night train.  So, since we had no other way to get from the capital of Portugal to the Madrid airport for our flight home, we booked a 4-person sleeping cabin for $110 per person.  Expensive, I know.  When you compare our crowded, bumpy, noisy, 11 hour night on the train with a stay in an equally expensive luxury hotel, it's a little depressing.  But the experience was valuable for my kids, and I'd do it again.

I slept fine (with just a little help from a good pair of earplugs and a double dose of Advil PM), and my son and daughter said they slept alright.  But my husband had trouble.  He's about 6'1", and the bed was too short for him.  The beds are also somewhat narrow.  He said he hardly slept at all.

As you can see from my photos, the cabins are narrow with little room for luggage.  The bed linens are okay and the blankets aren't needed because the room gets stuffy and warm in the summer.  In the corner is a small sink with running water and each passenger is provided a little gift pack which includes earplugs, a bar of soap, a travel toothbrush and toothpaste.  Nice touch, I think.  We felt very safe because the door had a lock as well as a security chain.  I did tell the kids to wake one of us up if they had to go to the bathroom at night, though, just to be cautious.

My husband and daughter, who are early risers, strolled up to the dining car before dawn and had breakfast.  They both agreed it was a good meal, with fresh rolls and orange juice.  My daughter particularly enjoyed watching the sunrise from the train as the Spanish countryside swished by outside the window.

Lisbon Oriente Train Station

Did you know that Lisbon's Oriente train station is as busy as Grand Central Terminal in New York?

Lisbon Oriente Station

On the train platform.

Books for sale inside the station.

My daughter looks like an alien standing in the inner gallery of the Lisbon Orient Station.

This is my Photo Friday link-up post at DeliciousBaby.com.

Stork Nests in the Algarve

Native wildlife is always fun to encounter when visiting a foreign land, and we got a kick out of seeing the multitude of storks and their enormous, high-perched nests all over the Algarve region of southern Portugal last summer!  These Iberian White Storks build their nests in the most precarious of places:  lampposts, electrical towers, church steeples, chimneys, and smoke stacks.  It's really quite remarkable to see.

The white storks thrive in the natural salt marsh environment of the Algarve, so much so that in the last 30 years or so increasing numbers of the birds have chosen to stay in Iberia all year rather than migrate to Africa in the winter.  Storks live for 20 to 30 years in the wild, and sometimes form colonies of hundreds.

Storks will return to the same nest year after year, continuously adding new material, and some nests can weigh nearly a ton!

Thinking about the story of storks delivering newborn babies, I found it somewhat allegorical that the storks in the above photo built their nest on top of an old advertisement reading, "Once upon a time".

Two stork nests visible in this photo.

This is my Photo Friday link-up post to DeliciousBaby.com.

Photo Friday: Everybody Loves a Parade

For the last 12 years or so I've hosted an annual 4th of July parade for the kids in our little neighborhood.  It's probably time I passed the torch to someone else, as my kids are both teenagers now and are no longer interested in decorating their bikes with streamers and circling the tract.

Running into a local parade while on vacation, however, is one of my favorite travel accidents.  The costumes, the culture, and the audience of townfolk are all so endearing.

Portuguese cavalry parade in Lisbon.

Lisbon

Parade in Brugge, Belgium

Grainau, Germany

Grainau, Germany

Appenzell, Switzerland

Near Buckingham Palace in London

London

This is my Photo Friday link-up post to DeliciousBaby.com.