That's good morning in Portugese and one of the few phrases that got me around Portugal, where I was vacationing for the last 2 and a half weeks. It was a fantastic trip! We rented a car and drove all across the country, putting almost 3,000 miles on our little rented Fiat. Portugal is a fairly diverse country in landscape, with beautiful beaches to the south, river valleys and wine vineyards to the north, mountains and old villages in the northern interior, and vast agricultural plains along the border and the central region. It's also one of the poorest countries in Western Europe. Nearly a quarter of the country's workforce makes its living by farming, forestry or fishing. If you are looking for a beautiful, atmospheric country in Western Europe that is affordable, you must go to Portugal. Just be careful if you rent a car - Portugal has the highest accident rate in Europe and the drivers are insane! It certainly added to our adventure. We basically treated the vacation like one long photography expedition. Here's a little excerpt of some of my photos from the trip. You can see more here .
Thanks for your patience while I was away. I learned of Paul Newman's death one evening from a bunch of Italians on a city tram traveling through Lisbon. One of them was holding a newspaper with Newman's picture on the front page. I pointed to it and he started yelling "Morte, morte!" We then all tried to figure out how old he was and talked about our favorite Newman movies. Mind you, I speak little Italian and they didn't speak English. We just started naming movies, gesticulating dramatically, smiling or shaking our heads. Cool Hand Luke was the clear winner. I think they may have also talked salad dressing, but I'm not sure. It was, in the end, a memorable moment on a trip full of them.
Maya
from Santa Cruz, CA
November 21, 2008 at 06:40 PM
I HEART YOUR BLOG! These pictures are so amazing. You are very talented. Thank you for sharing your skills and experience.
