December 2024 – Dave Saari

Pat and Dave’s Intrepid Iberian Interlude – PART 4: Favaios, Lamego, Porto, Quinta Da Aveleda

December 17, 2024 by davesaari

Welcome back for the final episode of this narrative of our recent trip to the Iberian Peninsula. Part 3 described three of the shore excursions we took during the river cruise, leaving off in Pocinho on November 15^th. This episode describes the last four shore excursions and our trip back home.

Favaios and Quinta da Avesado (November 16): On Saturday the 16^th, we disembarked from the Helgrim at 8:30 AM for a 50-mile bus drive through the beautiful Douro valley to the town of Favaios. In Favaios, we visited a wine producing cooperative, a bakery, and a museum, before traveling to the Quinta da Avessada, an impressive vineyard where we were served an excellent lunch. After lunch, we returned to the ship, which had sailed downstream from Pocinho to Folgosa while we were on the shore excursion. After reboarding, the ship sailed on to Peso da Regua where we docked for the night. Here’s a map of the day’s travels:

Favaios is the home of the Adega Cooperativa de Favaios, which was our first stop on the excursion. Adega is a cooperative that produces a popular fortified wine known as Moscatel, produced from the Muscat grapes that thrive in the plateau more than 1,000 feet above the Douro River (Favaios lies at an altitude of 1,800 feet). The cooperative includes some 100 member vineyards that supply the grapes during a short harvest season, typically from late September to mid-October. The cooperative has developed an ultramodern, computer-controlled processing facility that produces well over a million bottles of Moscatel each year, although the majority are the very popular 55 ml “shot” sized bottles that the Portuguese love to mix with beer. The cooperative has an aggressive expansion planned to add another hundred member vineyards and double the processing capacity to account for the ever-shorter harvest season due to the undeniable impact of climate change. The process is similar to that for Port wine, which I described in Part 2 of this series – the highly-sugared grapes are fermented in large stainless-steel vats before fortification with aguardente and then aged in wooden barrels for several years. Our tour of the facility concluded with a tasting of several glasses of Moscatel; we were sufficiently impressed to buy a couple of the little “Favaita” bottles to take home.

After the wine cooperative, we strolled down the street with a local guide to a bakery where bread is baked fresh daily. Eight bakeries in Favaios create 8000 loaves of the famous Four Corner Bread daily, by hand, using only four ingredients, and bake them in ovens fueled by pine branches. The loaves are distributed by the bakeries to bread shops throughout the region, and they sell out the entire lot every day. We watched as a skilled baker demonstrated the time-honored technique for kneading the dough into a time-honored shape. After witnessing the demonstration, I was delighted to sample the freshly baked bread and satisfy my watering mouth.

The final stop in Favaios was at the nearby Core Museológico Favaios, the Bread and Wine Museum. Among the exhibits there was a display of the thick grape root stock from America, to which the native wine plants were grafted in the 1800s to combat the deadly infestation of the phylloxera worm that nearly killed the wine industry.

Near the Wine and Bread Museum in Favaios

Museum Display — American Roots for Grafting Native Grapes

We then rode the tour bus for about 18 miles south to a beautiful vineyard called Quinta da Avessado. This winery is located at the highest point in the demarcated Douro region (1970 feet altitude) on a large, flat plain. Over 90% of the grapes grown on its 60-plus acres of vineyards are supplied to the Adega Cooperative for production of Moscatel. The vineyard and its facilities (including a 100-year-old building) were very beautiful, and we were treated to an excellent lunch, naturally including some of the wines produced from the grapes grown there. As a bonus, we were serenaded by an accordion player as we ate (luckily he had a better technique than my father).

Wineglass-shaped Fountain at Quinta da Avasseda

Lamego (November 17): After a night at the Regua pier, we set off at 8:30 AM for a tour of the town of Lamego. While we were enjoying the excursion, the Helgrim set sail again, moving downstream to Entre-os-Rios, where it waited for the excursion participants to return at 12:45. Here’s a map of our shore excursion journey:

Lamego was first settled before the Roman occupation of the Iberian Peninsula and is known for its historic city center. Legend holds that the first Portuguese Cortes (an assembly of nobility, clergy, and bourgeoise) was held in Lamego in 1143, proclaiming Alfonso Henriques as Portugal’s first King. Subsequent Cortes were called and dismissed by the King at will at places of his choosing.

Our first stop was the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Remedies, built in 1750. The church houses an unusual and somewhat controversial statue of a breast-feeding Madonna commissioned at the request of the Bishop of Lamego in the 16^th century, initially intended as a shrine to ensure fertility and later seen as a cure for various diseases. The Sanctuary sits at the top of a hill overlooking the city center, accessed by an imposing staircase with 686 steps and beautiful porcelain artworks depicting various historical or religious scenes. Pilgrims hoping to be blessed or cured would climb these steps on their knees to show their devotion before reaching the Sanctuary and kissing the Madonna statue. The church includes many other artworks as well, including a statue of baby Jesus that the nuns carefully dress from head to toe, including stockings.

Artworks in the Sanctuary, including Baby Jesus Statue

After touring the Sanctuary, we descended the steps to the city center, which provided the stunning views pictured below. Nerd that I am, I tried counting the steps on the way down and came up two off from the official 686, though I’m sure the guidebooks have the correct number.

Once in the city center, we visited the Cathedral, which was founded in 1129 and still serves as the seat of the diocese of Lamego that was originally established in about 570. From the city, we had a good view of the medieval castle built in the 12th century by Ferdinand of Leon.

In the city, we bought a purse and a wallet made from cork — Portugal is the world’s leading cork producer, accounting for over 60% of world supply, and Lamego had a lovely shop that specialized in cork products. As we were leaving town, I noticed some odd-looking trees, which are a type of oak with no leaves. Cork-producing oaks are the most valuable type in Portugal, but there are also many evergreen oaks and quite a few of these Dr. Seuss-like ones.

After a long drive through the impressive Portuguese countryside, we reboarded the ship at Entre-os-Rios. Once all the excursion passengers were aboard, the Helgrim resumed sailing downstream to its starting point at the pier in Vila Nova de Gaia where it docked for the night.

Porto (November 18): On Monday the 18^that 8:30 AM we left the Helgrim at its dock in Porto for a short bus ride to a bridge across the Douro River linking Vila Nova de Gaia, or just Gaia as the locals call it, and Porto. There we met up with a local guide who led us on a walking tour of the city. The map below shows some of the interesting places we saw on the excursion.

Our tour stops and points of interest included the following.

We began by crossing the Luis I bridge (location 4 on the map above) from Gaia into Porto. Here are some photos looking downriver and upriver from the bridge.

The Luis I Bridge connecting Porto and Gaia

The Cathedral of Porto (location 7). Construction of the Cathedral began in the second half of the 12th century and work continued until the 16th century. There were major Baroque additions in the 18th century, and further changes were made in the 20th century.

Porto Cathedral Viewed from the Northeast

Porto cathedral and Monastery Viewed from the West

Monastery Cloister with Ceramic Tile Murals

Is she looking for the way to Santiago de Compostela? The shell symbol marks the route.

Sao Bento Railway Station (location 8). This is a major rail hub serving all of Portugal. Construction of this building began in 1904, and the entry hall includes beautiful ceramic panels illustrating the history of Portugal.

Railway Station Entry Hall with Ceramic Tile Murals

The Murals Illustrate the Story of Portugal’s History

Various streets of the city, including Rua des Flores (Flower Street), a major shopping boulevard. Here are some photos illustrating the architecture, especially the lovely balconies and ceramic tiles.

On the way from the Cathedral to the Railway Station

Restaurant and Apartments near Flower Street

Well-kept or renovated apartments sell for six figures in Porto

A plaza (location 9) dedicated to Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), regarded as the main initiator of the Age of Discovery during which Portugal explored much of the world.

After the walking tour, we took a water taxi across the Douro River and walked back to our ship moored at the Gaia Pier, arriving about 12:15 PM.

Note that the map above also shows the location of Graham’s Port Lodge, which we visited back on November 12 as described in Part 2 of this series.

Quinta da Avaleda (November 18): After lunch aboard the Helgrim, we disembarked for our final shore excursion at 1:45 PM. We rode a tour bus with a small group of passengers to visit the beautiful winery of Quinta da Aveleda and its amazing garden.

The main building was built in 1671 by a wealthy Portuguese family. Manoel Pedro de Guedes, an important Porto politician, inherited the property and established the estate in 1870, including the vineyards and the incredible garden. The Guedes family still owns the estate and uses the main house for family gatherings, but the estate is open for public tours and has become a highly popular tourist destination. After touring the garden, we sampled several wines produced under the Casal Garcia brand from grapes grown throughout Portugal, but the garden was the truly amazing aspect of the estate, including granite buildings, vineyards, a lake, a teahouse, fountains, gothic ruins, streams, oak trees, camelias, azaleas, eucalyptus, and sequoias. I’m sure readers are getting tired of my verbose descriptions, so I’ll just leave off with some of the photos I took.

The Commercial Winery Building with Gift Shop

The Camellias were Blooming Early due to Warm Weather

An Old Oak Tree (but no yellow ribbons …)

The Family Home, originally dating from 1671

The trip home (November 19-20): Why did it take two days to get from Porto to Minneapolis? Well, we had a glitch, the one and only disappointment of the entire trip. We left the Helgrim at 3:30 AM on Tuesday the 19^th, boarding our Viking bus and heading for the Porto airport to catch a 6 AM flight to Frankfurt, Germany, from where we were booked on an 11:15 AM Lufthansa flight to MSP. All went smoothly through boarding at Porto, but once all the passengers were on board and the doors closed, the pilot announced that our flight would be delayed due to a problem with one of the runways in Frankfurt. So, there we sat, for well over an hour, and by the time we finally took flight and arrived in Frankfurt, our MSP flight was long gone. After attempting to navigate some incredibly long lines at several Lufthansa service counters, we received emails explaining that we were now booked on the 11:15 flight the next day and that we were receiving vouchers for an overnight stay in a nearby Frankfurt hotel. Off we trudged to find the hotel shuttle bus, which deposited us at the Intercity Hotel at 12:22 PM. Unfortunately, our luggage was still in the baggage queue at Lufthansa, including our clothes and toiletries as well as my medications, so we had to go without. Luckily, Pat had a travel toothbrush, so at least Pat didn’t have to abide my schnitzel-tinged breath all night. Thankfully, the voucher did cover dinner and breakfast, but we had to pop for our own lunch.

The only upside to this glitch was that our Wednesday flight to MSP was only about two-thirds full, so we were able to spread out comfortably. I watched a couple of movies while Pat dozed across the aisle, and the flight was uneventful. Once at MSP, we had our first test of the Global Entry system that we enrolled in last spring. After landing, we each submitted a request using the Global Entry apps on our phones, receiving electronic receipts that allowed us to whisk through a special customs line in a matter of minutes – definitely worth the $100 fee, which is good for five years and also includes the TSA PreCheck system for boarding flights.

After another Lyft ride from MSP, we made it back to our condo at 5:01 PM on Wednesday, a mere 31 hours after leaving the Helgrim, rather tired but exceedingly pleased with our Intrepid Iberian Interlude. I hope readers have enjoyed the journey as well.

OK, that’s a wrap. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more adventures in the future!

Pat and Dave’s Intrepid Iberian Interlude – PART 3: Mateus Palace, Castelo Rodrigo, Salamanca

December 12, 2024 by davesaari

Welcome back for Part 3 of this narrative of our recent trip to the Iberian Peninsula. Part 2 described our travel from Lisbon to Porto, via Coimbra, and our journey up and down the Douro River. In this episode, I’ll describe three of the shore excursions we took during the river cruise.

Mateus Palace and Gardens (November 13): On Wednesday the 13^th, after sailing from Vila Nova de Gaio to a pier near Lamego, we disembarked at 2:30 PM for a 20-mile bus drive to the Mateus Palace located in the Mateus parish of the city of Vila Real. After touring the palace and its magnificent garden, we drove back to the ship, which by then had sailed further upriver to Pinhão and docked for the night.

The Mateus Palace was built around 1740 on the site of an estate originally built in the early 1600s by a family of wealthy vineyard owners. The third-generation owner, António José Botelho Mourão, had it designed and constructed by Nicolai Nasoni, an Italian architect widely-known for his work throughout Portugal. It was designated as a National Monument in 1910 and is now a major tourist attraction. The interior decoration includes intricately carved chestnut wood ceilings, furniture from several periods, 17th and 18th century paintings, and an impressive library with hundreds of books.

The Mateus Palace and its Reflecting Lake

Decor, Including Painting, Cabinet of Drawers (with secret codes for opening each drawer), and Chairs

The palace is surrounded by an immense garden originally planted in the 1700s, then modified in 1870 and expanded in 1930. In the 1950s and 1960s, the garden area was extensively modified and a lake was added to act as a mirror reflecting the manor house. A dense planting of chestnut and oak trees was added in the 1970s. Amazingly, the garden is overseen by a single, full-time gardener, though our guide told us that he has help from multiple volunteers.

One Small Segment of the Enormous Garden

We arrived back at the Helgrim at 7 PM, just in time for the usual sumptuous Viking dinner.

Castelo Rodrigo (November 14): We spent the morning and early afternoon of Thursday the 14^th sailing upstream to Barca d’Alva, then disembarked for a tour of an ancient town called Castelo Rodrigo.

It is believed a castle and village were founded on the site in the 6^th century and subsequently inhabited by Romans and Moors before being conquered by King Alfonso IX of Leon in the 1200s. Alfonso had the city fortified and the walls reinforced, placing Count Rodrigo Gonzalez de Girón in charge of its defense, and he became its namesake. It was incorporated into the Kingdom of Portugal in 1297, ceded by Leon to King Denis after extensive battles. The fortress and walled fence were rebuilt, and 13 turrets, a keep, a fortified entrance gate, and moats were constructed by Denis in the 14th century. It has been listed as a National Monument since 1922. Our tour group strolled through the town on the cobblestone streets, visiting among other places a medieval church, the ruins of an ancient synagogue, and a lovely shop where we bought some delicious roasted almonds.

Mothyer Church of Our Lady of Rocamadour

Doors — made as small as possible to conserve heat

Building with Ancient Hebrew Inscription

The church, Mother Church of Our Lady of Rocamadour, located on the path to the famous shrine, Santiago de Compostela, and marked by images of seashells, was established in the 12^th century by the Brothers Hospitallers. It contains some interesting artwork as shown in the photos.

Was the Conqueror a Giant, or was he Riding a Pony?

On the way back to the ship, we passed by acres and acres of almond and olive trees, both of which are major products in the areas outside the Douro Valley. Back on the ship, we were treated to a Flamenco Dance exhibition by a trio of professional dancers to cap off a lovely day.

Orchards near the Agueda River (Portugal/Spain Border)

Closeup of Orchard (sorry for the blur — the bus was moving fast)

Salamanca, Spain (November 15): On Friday the 15^th, we left the Helgrim at its dock in Barca d’Alva at 8:30 AM for a bus ride to Salamanca, Spain. While we and a majority of the 102 passengers traveled to Salamanca, the Helgrim began the return journey down the Douro, and we eventually returned to the ship at its overnight position in Pocinho at 9:20 PM.

The earliest human habitation of Salamanca occurred in the first millennium BCE, and the earliest stable settlement in the 7^th century BCE. As throughout Spain, the city was subsequently occupied by Romans, Alans, Visigoths, and Moors before being recaptured by Alfonso VI of Leon in 1085. It is known for its two Cathedrals and for the University of Salamanca, and these were the primary focus of our tour. The Old Cathedral of Salamanca was built between 1120 and 1236. The adjacent New Cathedral was built between 1513 and 1733. The first school buildings were established nearby to the Old Cathedral in 1134, and it was officially founded as a university in 1218, and many of its current buildings were constructed from 1401 through 1611. Here’s a map of the Old City:

After strolling to the Plaza Mayor with our Viking guide, we had some free time to explore the area before joining a local guide at the entrance to the New Cathedral. This was far and away the biggest and most magnificent church we saw on the entire trip, rivaling anything I’ve seen anywhere in Europe. Maybe the photos below will give you a feel for it, but the scale was so grand that I couldn’t really capture the essence of it with my puny little cell phone.

One of Many Shrines in the New Cathedral

The Cardinals’ Seats in the New Cathedral

After the Cathedral, we strolled with our guide among the University buildings where our guide told us some interesting stories about the history of the place. Many of the building walls sported names and dates inscribed with bull blood; these were written by doctoral students to celebrate and commemorate the day when they survived a days-long period of isolation and intense study followed by severe questioning by the professors to earn a degree. (And I thought my Ph.D. orals were tough!) The University Chapel has exceedingly ornate carvings around the entry door, including a skull on top of which a frog is perched. Many of the carved images, including the frog, were intended as a warning to the students that misbehavior of any sort while attending the University was forbidden (I didn’t quite “get” the frog connection myself). This frog became world famous, and souvenir frogs of all sizes and colors are sold at gift shops throughout the city and in the wider region around Salamanca.

Detail of University Chapel Facade (with famous frog highlighted)

We then followed our guide along Rua Mayor back to the Plaza Mayor before boarding the bus back to the ship, catching a glimpse of the crumbling old walls as we drove past.

OK, that’s it for Part 3. In the final episode, I’ll describe the last four shore excursions we took during the river cruise and our travels (and travails) getting back home to Minneapolis.

Pat and Dave’s Intrepid Iberian Interlude – PART 2: Coimbra, Porto, and the Douro River

December 7, 2024 by davesaari

Welcome back for Part 2 of this narrative of our recent trip to the Iberian Peninsula. Part 1 left off as we completed a walking food tour of Lisbon on November 11^th. In this episode, we’ll head north to Porto, with a stop at Coimbra along the way, and begin sailing along the Douro River.

Coimbra (November 12): On Tuesday the 12^th, we set our luggage outside our Lisbon hotel room for collection by the Viking team at 6:45 AM before heading down for our final excellent breakfast at the Corinthia. We boarded our Viking bus at 8:15 AM. During the two-hour, 130-mile drive north to Coimbra (with a rest stop for snacks and the all-important restrooms along the way), our Viking guide gave us some background on the history of Coimbra and the places we were going to visit. The city, located on a hill by the Mondego River, was originally founded by the Romans during the reign of Augustus (63 BCE – AD 14). It was later conquered and ruled by Germanic tribes including the Visigoths beginning in the 400s and then by the Moors beginning in the 700s. It was recaptured in 1064 by the king of León. The subsequent king, Alfonso VI of León, gave Henry of Burgundy stewardship of Coimbra and the surrounding territories when he married Alfonso’s illegitimate daughter. Henry’s son, Alfonso Henriques, later rebelled from of León, consolidated power in the territories and had himself declared the first King of the newly independent Kingdom of Portugal in 1131, establishing Coimbra as its capital and continuing to expand Portuguese territory by driving the Moors out of the south. Coimbra remained the capital until 1255, when it was relocated to Lisbon.

When we arrived in the city, we first had a short break as we strolled down a long, commercial street. Our guide suggested we stop at a pastry shop to try Coimbra’s famous custard tart, the Pasteis de Santa Clara, or St. Claire pastry, originally invented at the Santa Clara convent and popularized when the nuns began selling them to University students. However, when I asked for a “Saint Claire pastry,” the clerk sold me an éclair instead, so I unfortunately didn’t get to taste the proper thing.

How one Coimbra Restaurant Adapts to the Hilly Terrain

Christmas is Big in Coimbra, as in all of Portugal

The University of Coimbra was founded in Lisbon in 1290 but relocated to Coimbra in 1308 and transferred to the premises of the Coimbra Royal Palace in 1537. Since then, city life has revolved around the state-run university, which we toured during our visit. Of special interest was the Biblioteca Joanina, or the Joanine Library, founded in 1717 by King Joan V. It is home to more than 70,000 volumes, including many priceless historical documents and first editions. It is registered as a National Monument. The library is carefully climate controlled and taking of pictures was forbidden, so you’ll just have to believe me when I say it was a beautiful and impressive place. A resident colony of bats protects the books from termites, but this aspect of preservation does dictate covering the tables at night and daily cleanup before tours are admitted. Some say that the library was used as the Harry Potter film set for the Hogwarts library; it was not, but its appearance is quite reminiscent of the movies. Also, the University students’ traditional uniforms are said to have inspired the Hogwarts uniforms in the Potter books, as author J. K. Rowling resided for a time in Porto.

Here are some photos of other parts of the University.

Overlook of Coimbra from the University Plaza

Entrance to the University Jail formerly used for Recalcitrant Students

University Student Wear — Said to be the Inspiration for Hogwarts Students

After visiting the University, we stopped for an excellent lunch at a restaurant called Republica da Saudade. As we ate, we were entertained by a trio of musicians performing what is known as Coimbra Fado – a genre of music born of the late-night love serenades made famous by university students over the centuries. Here’s a sample:

Fado Singer and Musicians: a nice extra touch for our lunch

Porto (November 12): After lunch, we boarded the bus again and headed north for some 80 miles . We arrived at the river dock in Vila Nova de Gaia (a suburban city across the river from Porto) and boarded our ship, the Viking Helgrim, at about 4:30 PM. After we settled into our stateroom and walked around the ship a bit, we were called for a mandatory safety drill during which all 102 passengers reported to the lounge area with our safety vests for instructions should an emergency occur. Once properly trained, Pat and I and a dozen or so other passengers departed for an optional tour of Graham’s Port Lodge, a major wine production house built in 1890 by a Scottish wine importer and located high on the nearby bank of the river.

At Graham’s we learned about the history and production of Port wine. First and foremost, a wine can only be called Port if it is produced in the Douro Valley. The Douro valley was defined and established as an official appellation in 1756, making it the third oldest wine in the world (after Chianti, 1716, and Tokaj, 1730). It is named for the city of Porto, where much of the wine is produced and from where much of it was initially exported to England. Port wine is produced from grapes with a high sugar content, which are fermented in large wooden barrels. After several days of fermentation, the wine is fortified by the addition of a tasteless and odorless grape spirit known as aguardente (78% alcohol content) which stops the fermentation, leaving residual sugar in the wine and boosting its alcohol content. The wine is then stored in barrels. This technique for producing so-called fortified wine was developed in the late 17^th century to prevent spoilage during transportation by ship from Portugal to England. These two kingdoms first signed one of the oldest existing trade agreements in the world, the Treaty of Windsor, in 1386, establishing terms for the trade of English cod for Portuguese wine. English and Scottish merchants subsequently set about perfecting the methods for producing wine – and eventually Port wine – in the Douro Valley.

There are three major types of Port wine:

Ruby Port is filtered after fermentation and stored in steel or concrete barrels to prevent oxidation and preserve its bright red color and full-bodied fruitiness. Once bottled, it does not age further. Once opened, a bottle of Ruby Port should be consumed within three to four months.
Tawny Port is aged in wooden barrels after fermentation, allowing it to mellow to a golden-brown color and pick up nutty flavors. These wines are typically blended to produce a desired style and character, then filtered and bottled. As with Rubies, Tawny Ports do not age further after bottling. Once opened, a bottle of Tawny Port should be consumed within three to four weeks.
Vintage Port is made only in certain years when the growing conditions are deemed to be of the highest quality by the Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e do Porto (IVDP), a government organization overseen by the Minister of Agriculture. A wine producer may decide to declare a Vintage Port if they believe the wine from a specific harvest year meets specified criteria. The producer then submits samples of the wine to the IVDP for analysis. The IVDP assesses the samples, and if the wine receives a rating of 9 out of 10, it is certified as a Vintage Port. The wine must then be bottled by the end of the year of certification, but it is not completely filtered so that it continues to age in the bottle. A Vintage Port may be aged in its bottle for decades, but then should be consumed within three or four days after opening.

Here are some photos of the Graham’s climate-controlled production and storage facilities:

After our tour of the facilities, we were treated to a tasting of five Graham’s wines: a Ruby, two Tawnies, and two Vintages (2000 and 2014). Various member of our group preferred one or another of them, but Pat and I were in agreement that the 2000 Vintage was the best, so we bought a bottle to bring home. (Now all we need to do is decide what special occasion to choose for opening it.) To close out the evening, we were served a fantastic three-course dinner in the restaurant on the top floor of the building, which provided a spectacular view of the Douro and the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia.

Douro River with Porto on the Left and Vila Nova de Gaia on the Right

Douro River (November 13-18): On Wednesday the 13^th, the Helgrim cast off and headed upriver. Here’s a map showing details of the river portion of the trip:

Over the course of the river journey, the ship sailed upstream from Porto to Vega de Terron and then back downriver to Porto again. It passed through five locks in each direction. Here are the technical specs for my fellow geek readers some photos of our passage through the lock of Carrapatelo, and a video of the upstream lock gate being retracted (more geeky stuff).

An Eastbound Ship Emerging from the Lock

Lock Gate Retracting After the Lock is Filled with Water from Upstream

As you can see from the photos, the maximum width of the river ships is restricted by the width of the locks. I determined from walking around the ship as we passed through at least one of the locks that the ship could also not have been any longer. Here’s another one that shows that the height is also limited by various bridges spanning the river, even with the superstructure lowered – the lucky crew member holding a stick is there to alert the captain if the ship is riding too high to fit beneath the bridge — more evidence that the Viking Helgrim was custom built specifically for travel on the Douro.

The *Helgrim* Passes Beneath a Low Bridge

I’ll close out this episode with some pictures of the scenery along the river as we sailed upstream to Vega de Terrón and back downstream again to Porto.

View from the *Helgrim* between Porto and Lamego (Nov 13th)

The Riverbank between Pinhao and Pocinho (Nov 14th)

View from the *Helgrim* between Pinhao and Pocinho (Nov 14th)

View from the *Helgrim* near Peso da Regua (Nov 16th)

View from the *Helgrim* between Entre os Rios and Vila Nova de Gaia (Nov 17th)

OK, that’s it for Part 2. In the remaining episodes, I’ll describe seven shore excursions we took during the river cruise and our travels (and travails) getting back home to Minneapolis.

Pat and Dave’s Intrepid Iberian Interlude – PART 1: Madrid, Toledo, Lisbon

December 2, 2024December 11, 2024 by davesaari

Winter temperatures have arrived in Minneapolis with highs in the low teens, though we only have a light layer of snow so far. Fortunately, I can conjure up some warmth by fondly reflecting on our most recent travel experience and writing this latest installment of my travel blog series. Perhaps your first question might be “why are you calling it your ‘Intrepid Iberian Interlude?’ ” So, let’s start there.

The travel blog series was born back in 2018 when, at the urging of family members, I began documenting a 10,200-mile RV trip during which Pat and I visited 11 states, 9 National Parks, 2 National Monuments, 1 National Recreation Area, and 12 or more State Parks in Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. Since then, I’ve documented a total of fourteen trips. Here’s a list of the travel blog series so far:

Pat and Dave’s Excellent Adventure (12 parts)
Coming Soon to a Blog near You – Another Winter RV Trip (1 part compendium of 4 trips)
The Saaris’ (Sorta) Safe Sojourn (10 parts plus Summary)
Pat and Dave’s Eastern Escapade (4 parts)
Pat and Dave’s Eclectic Electric Road Trip (4 parts)
Pat and Dave’s Post-Covid Continental Caper (4 parts)
Pat and Dave’s Tremendous Tropical Trek (3 parts)
Pat and Dave’s Magical Maritime Meanderings (3 parts)
Pat and Dave’s Easy EV Road Trip (3 parts)
Pat and Dave’s West Coast Wayfaring (2 parts)
Pat and Dave’s Nifty National Park Lark (2 parts)

(For the convenience of readers who may be real gluttons for punishment, the list provides hyperlinks to the final part of each installment.)

You’ll notice that, beginning with the third one, I took to naming the narratives using clever alliterative titles that provide hints about each trip. So, in keeping with this approach, the current narrative’s title includes: 1) “intrepid” because traveling abroad at our advanced ages seems rather bold and daring, 2) “Iberian” because we visited the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal), and 3) “Interlude” because the last four trips have been in North America as will be our next one (to Arizona), so going to Europe was a sort of interlude. (And because I couldn’t think of a better word that started with I, OK?) Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get on with the story.

The trip was booked with Viking River Cruises, and included pre-cruise stays in Madrid and Lisbon before boarding a ship in Porto and sailing up and down the Douro River, described poetically as Portugal’s River of Gold.

ASIDE: We’ve become huge fans of Viking, this being out fourth journey with them. Previous trips included numbers 6 and 7 in the above list and a 2014 cruise down the Danube before I began blogging about our trips. The beauty of Viking is that all we need to do is arrange one booking, and all the details are planned and executed for us, efficiently and luxuriously. We truly can “travel the world – in comfort,” as their tagline says. (Sort of diminishes that “intrepid” business a bit, but hey.) Just to be clear, I do not receive any compensation from Viking for writing this blog even though I may deserve it; I’m sure they don’t even know the blog exists.

Here are maps showing the main places we visited along the way. I’ll provide more detailed maps of specific areas when appropriate as the story unfolds.

We left our condo in Minneapolis on Wednesday, November 6 at 7:28 AM CST, catching a Lyft ride to MSP airport, then flew to Chicago O’Hare and then on to Madrid on Iberia Airlines, arriving at 7:45 AM CET (Central European Time) on November 7.

Madrid and Toledo (November 7-9): On Thursday the 7^th, Pat and I were met at the Madrid Airport by a Viking driver, who drove us and our luggage to the Hyatt Regency Hesperia Hotel in the Paseo de la Castellana neighborhood of Madrid. There we met our Madrid Viking Host, Susana, who explained that we were the first of a dozen Viking tourists to arrive for this pre-cruise extension and provided us with a map of the area and suggestions for exploring on our own before meeting with the entire group later that evening. Thus armed, we trundled off to wander the streets of Madrid, observing many interesting buildings and sculptures. I confidently led us off in the wrong direction, but after Pat activated the Google maps app, we made our way to the Retiro Park, established in the mid-17^th century for the enjoyment of King Philip IV. The nearby Puerta de Alcala, erected in 1778 by Italian architect Francesco Sabatini, is a triumphal gate that was once the main entrance to the city. It was commissioned by King Charles III (later nicknamed the Best Mayor of Madrid), who was unimpressed by the gate that welcomed him when he first arrived in 1759.

On our way back to the hotel, we passed by a large plaza including a sprawling monument to Christopher Columbus, including inscriptions of the crew members’ names from the famous 1492 voyage.

After returning to the hotel and taking a brief nap in our room, the Viking group was briefed by Susana on the plans for the next days before she led us on a brief walk around the neighborhood. Later, we went to a local café that Susana had recommended. The two young men manning the place spoke no English and were convinced we wanted beer, but with the aid of Google translate to decipher the menu and much gesticulating, we managed to order some delicious jamon de bellota sandwiches. The meat was carefully carved in thin layers off a huge pork leg, from a free-range pig fed only on acorns to produce the best Iberian ham.

On Friday the 8^th, we had a bus and walking tour of Madrid, during which we visited the Mercado de San Miguel (a bustling marketplace) and the Plaza Mayor, a huge square established in the 17th century by King Philip III, whose bronze equestrian statue stands in the square. We then passed by the Royal Palace and other landmarks before heading to the famous Prado art museum.

We spent a couple of hours in the Prado, including lunch in the cafeteria. Photos were not allowed except in a few rooms, so I can’t show any, but some favorite things we saw were “The Washing of the Feet” by Tintoretto and “Las Meninas” by Velazquez (amazing perspective works), “Garden of Earthly Delights” by Bosch (intricate details, some bizarre and unsettling), and a series of paintings by Goya throughout his career, including the disturbing “black paintings” from his early 70s and his later return to using vibrant colors after moving to France. After the Prado, we elected to return to the hotel on our own by city bus rather than with the Viking tour bus. Unfortunately, we missed getting off at the bus stop nearest the hotel and ended up walking an extra eight or ten blocks. All in all, we found Madrid to be a clean, bustling, pleasant city. That evening, we had an excellent dinner of seafood paella at a restaurant near the hotel called La Gaditana.

On Saturday the 9^th, we rode a bus some 45 miles south to Toledo, the original capital of Spain before Philp III made Madrid the capital in 1603. Toledo is strategically located on a high hill on the north bank of a bend the Tagus River.

Toledo is known as the “City of the Three Cultures” for the cultural influences of Moors, Christians, and Jews throughout its history. Toledo has long been known for its production of fine steel for weapons and jewelry, so we first visited a touristy factory/retail outlet just outside the town and saw how some of the products are made today. We then traveled into the city and rode to the top of the hill on a series of conveniently located escalators before beginning our walking tour. While the streets of the old city are very narrow, many houses have beautiful courtyards just inside their doors.

Our first visit was to the gothic style cathedral, which was begun in 1226 and completed in 1493. Among its treasures is a magnificent gold artwork called the monstrance, made for Queen Isabella in 1515-1523, that is carried through the city during annual festivals.

Another highlight was the Church of Santo Tome, the lobby of which displays the El Greco masterpiece “The Burial of the Count of Orgaz” which commemorates a local legend and is known for its use of multiple schools of art and for inclusion of a self-portrait of the artist as one of the funeral attendees.

“The Burial of the Count of Orsaz” by El Greco

We also visited the Jewish quarter, including a former Jewish synagogue that has been established as a national monument although given the unfortunate name of Santa Maria La Blanca (St. Mary of the White Virgin).

But at Least the Synagogue is a National Monument

We then strolled through the old town area and emerged into a street with modern shops, even one in which Pat and I encountered some friendly inhabitants.

… and Pat Meets a Knight in Shining Armor

Lisbon (November 10-11): On Sunday the 10^th, we were transferred by a Viking bus from our hotel back to the Madrid airport, where we boarded a flight to Lisbon operated by a regional carrier for Iberia Airlines. We were again met by Viking representatives and were driven to the Corinthia Lisbon Hotel, where we met our Viking Cruise Director Tamara and the local Viking Host. We spent some time wandering around the neighborhood and ate a light lunch in one of the hotel restaurants, then joined the Host at 3:30 PM for an introductory walk-and-talk, then attended a welcome session by Tamara at 6:00 PM for an overview of Lisbon and plans for our time there. After a short walk to a nearby restaurant for a delicious meal, we retired to our hotel room. My only complaint about the elegant five-star hotel is that the electronic safe in our room did not operate properly so we could not store away our passports.

On Monday the 11^th, we headed off on a bus and walking tour of Lisbon, during which we took in the sights and learned quite a bit of Portuguese history. (Now known as a well-functioning democracy, Portugal was actually ruled by a dictator, António de Oliveira Salazar, from 1932 until he died in 1970. His successor was deposed in the bloodless Carnation Revolution in 1974, and Portugal transitioned to a constitutional democracy by 1976). We drove through the hilly city to the tourist area called Belém near the Tagus River – the very same river we saw in Toledo, by this point grown very wide before discharging into the Atlantic – where we saw the Belém Tower, a 16th-century fortification that served as a point of embarkation and disembarkation for Portuguese explorers and as a ceremonial gateway to Lisbon. It was built during the height of the Portuguese Renaissance, and is a prominent example of the Portuguese Manueline style, but it also incorporates other architectural styles, such as the minarets inspired by Moorish architecture.

After visiting the tower and a surrounding park, we moved on to the Maritime Museum, dedicated to all aspects of the history of navigation in Portugal. Our guide pointed out many of the interesting features and explained how Spain (Castile at the time) and Portugal signed the Treaty of Tordesillas in 1494 to divide the world in half – Portugal was given the lands to the east and Spain those to the west of a line of demarcation. The two countries explored and claimed much of the world, with Portugal establishing colonies in Africa and India and conducting trade as far east as Japan beginning in 1543. Portuguese explorers continued to sail the east coast of North America – an inscription carved on Dighton Rock in 1511 supposedly commemorates Miguel Corte-Real – but did not settle there in accordance with the treaty. Portugal was allowed to establish their colony in Brazil since it lay to the east of the treaty’s demarcation line, although the western part of what became Brazil is actually to the west of that line.

World Map in Maritime Museum (Line of Demarcation Highlighted)

Following the museum visit, we had free time to visit the Jeronimos Monastery, erected in the early 1500s near the launch point of Vasco da Gama’s first journey, and nearby shops, including the Pastéis de Belem bakery, established in 1837 to make the original, world famous Pastéis de Belém from an ancient recipe developed by the monks of St. Jerome at the monastery. The recipe remains secret, and these delicious custard pastries are made every day “by hand,” supposedly using traditional methods. Amazingly, they produce and sell 20-40,000 of them per day. Pat and I each had one, and they more than lived up to their reputation. We explored the nearby Vasco da Gama Garden while savoring them, before returning to the tour bus.

Another stop on the tour was the Parque Eduardo VII, the largest park in central Lisbon, covering 62 acres. The park was named after King Edward VII of England, who visited Lisbon in 1903, and provides a gorgeous view of Lisbon and the Tagus River.

View of Lisbon Overlooking Parque Eduardo VII

Once back at the hotel, we spent some time exploring a nearby park before heading off on a 3 ½-hour walking tour of Lisbon restaurants, where we sampled a variety of Portuguese delicacies and libations. One of the spots was called the Pastéis de Nata bakery, where they make a custard tart very similar to the Pastéis de Belém, using a non-secret recipe well known to millions of Portuguese. We were told by our Viking host that the Portuguese people are divided on which of these delicacies is better. For my part, I thought they were equally delicious.

Lisbon Street View During our Tasting Tour

OK, that’s it for Part 1. Thanks for reading, and stay tuned as we head north toward the Douro River and our ship, the Viking Helgrim, coming in Part 2.