Les Escargots

These little guys are fresh! They are just looking for butter; garlic, parsley--and a crunchy baguette.

*****Suzette raced along in her green VW, sporting a big S on each side. Nigel exclaimed, "Wow! Look at that S car go!"

Try This at Home: Creme Brulee

Jean-Louis and Elisabeth L. are great cooks, in the French tradition. After an evening dinner they served us a delicious creme brulee. Jean-Louis used his special blow-torch to caramelize the top. I am sure Curtis will head right for his truck for the equipment to do the same.

Family Gathering in Dordogne

Jean-Louis and Elisabeth invited some 20 people of the L. family for their traditional Tunisian coucous dinner. It was delicious and we enjoyed seeing many family members we know, as well as meeting others.

Crustacean Alert

Bilbao, Basques and Portugalete

The Biscay Bridge - A bridge with a history

We are in Basque country. Bilbao is very interesting; the people are well-dressed and friendly. We traveled by metro to see a UNESCO designated bridge. It is high enough to have allowed tall-masted sailing ships. We crossed the river in this hanging car and people "ferry". Alberto Palacio, a local architect and disciple of Gustave Eiffel (remember the Eiffel Tower?) designed it. The Biscay Bridge was the first in the world to transport passengers on a hanging gondola.

We leave Bilbao in the morning for France.

Bilbao, Spain

Last night we stayed in the medieval village of Santillana del Mar and this morning we visited the Altamira Caves with replicas and a museum of the prehistoric cave paintings.

This afternoon we arrived in Bilbao, in Basque country. We are off to visit the Guggenheim Museum. Our friends will go their separate ways from here. Glen and I will leave Saturday, May 26 for our house in Montagrier, France.

Pontevedra, Galicia, Spain

We arrived in Pontevedra yesterday evening. The dialect spoken here is Gallego, which is like a mixture of Spanish and Portuguese. We are with friends, two other couples, who all lived in Brazil and speak Portuguese and Spanish, so we are having fun with the language. This is the city of the great mariners of Spain and is very interesting. Glen finds communication here easy.

University of Coimbra, Portugal

When I went to school in Santos, Brazil, in my childhood and teens, the University of Coimbra was spoken of with reverence and in awed tones. The University of Coimbra is a public university in Portugal, and was established in 1290. It is one of the oldest universities in continuous operation in the world. Glen and I got to visit it today.

Leaving Sintra, Portugal

This is Quinta Verde, Sintra, where we have spent a week with our friends, four other couples. Glen and I leave Sintra tomorrow and will spend one week driving through northern Portugal, northwest Spain, and then on to Montagrier, France, where we will spend four weeks. It will not be as easy to find internet access and time for posts during the next week, but we should be able to check our e-mail every two to three days.

Our Car Was Burgled in Sintra

We parked one block from the main street in the Historic Center of Sintra and had lunch. Our Peugeot has only one keyed lock on the driver's door. When we returned to the car there was no longer a key hole but rather a slot where a screwdriver had been inserted. The only thing that now allows us to lock and unlock the car is one electronic remote.
The thief(ves) left all the car doors unlocked and our binoculars were stolen out of the back where they had been tucked away out of sight in our backpacks. The car would have been burgled even if they had not been in it because nothing was visible. There must have been at least two thieves~~one look-out and one to cooly go through the car and pick and choose. They left the backpacks and my gortex jacket. This has never happened to Glen or me in our lives. Tough luck. Guess we won't be looking at any Spring birds soon. :-(

Euro $hock!

We have a Peugeot 307 Station Wagon on a purchase/sell-back program. The car rides beautifully and only had 2 kilometers on the odometer when we took delivery. We went to fill the car up with gas. It took 46.92 liters and cost Euros 64.70--at an exchange rate of 1.36 the tank of gas cost us U.S.$87.99. Gasp. We had braced ourselves for Euro Shock, but it still was a shock.

Beyond Words

What more need we say. Yum.

Loving Lisbon!

We arrived May 10 and felt groggy after flying all night, but today walked miles. The variety of fresh seafood is delicious and quite a treat!
Beijos, Tracy & Glen

Portugal

Portugal. Slightly smaller than the state of Indiana in the United States, population just under 11 million. The climate is maritime temperate and the reported annual average temperature is 61F, the latter information being of no practical use. We look forward to a variety of good seafood which will certainly include cod (the Portuguese must fix cod at least 365 different ways). We plan to abandon ourselves to the maudlin yearning and longing provoked by the beautifully plaintive fado singers. Que saudade já tenho.

Portugal juts out into the Atlantic. The lure of the ocean must have been strong, causing Portugal to spawn intrepid seafarers. The Portuguese were the first Europeans to explore the unknown world and the first to sail around the southern tip of Africa.

To Lisboa May 9, 2007

On May 9, Glen and I leave for Lisboa. Finalmente vou visitar o Portugal!
Then on to the Perigord in France.