I still get just a little rush when I settle into the right train. I can’t remember taking a train in the USA, but here, with each journey, I celebrate the ease of not having to drive. And after all these years, train travel still comes with a twinge of risk: Do I have enough time for a cup of coffee? Is my wristwatch in synch with the official station time? Would these locals really point me in the right direction? Am I on the right train?
The European Union has pulled Portugal up to its standards now. The country has plenty of freeways, and Brussels is telling it how hygienic its markets must be. Portugal has taken lots of money from Europe and is now a net giver rather than receiver, as the EU is on to spiffing up the infrastructure of poorer new members in the east.
Yet Portugal is still a humble and relatively isolated place where locals proudly point out, “We now have three places where you can buy foreign newspapers.” Apparently George Clooney’s agent doesn’t care too much for his image here, as he’s all over the country on TV and billboards — selling martinis and coffee like a greedy Joe DiMaggio.
Many things just don’t change in Portugal. Women still squat on the curb at the road into Nazaré. Their hope: to waylay tourists from reserved hotel rooms with signs saying, “Quartos!”— rooms for rent…cheap. (By the way, simple hotels all over Portugal rent decent double rooms for $60. And sleepable dives can be had for $40 per double.)
Service is friendly in the hole-in-the-wall restaurants where menus come with two columns: “half dose” and “full dose” (€4 and €6, respectively). “Full dose” is designed to be split by two…giving traveling couples meals for less than $5 each. When I resisted a special dessert drink, the waiter told me, “Don’t be a camel…have a drink!” With a line like that, how could I refuse?
I’ve noticed all over Europe that monks are famous for their ingenious knack for brewing beer and distilling liquors. And in Portugal, nuns round out the menu with fine sweets (see previous blog entry for “nuns’ tummies” and “angel’s breasts”). For a good sampling, I’ve taken to asking for mixta dulce, and waiters are happy to bring a nibble of several of their top sobremesas(desserts).
Young Portuguese people don’t go to church much these days. But the country is remarkably Catholic for the sightseer (for example, my last stop, Nazaré, was named for Nazareth). The main sights of most towns are the musty old churches — those Gothic stone shells slathered in dusty, gold-leaf Baroque altars.
In 1917, three kids encountered the Virgin Mary near the village of Fátima and were asked to return on the 13th of each month for six months. The final apparition was witnessed by thousands of locals. Ever since, Fátima is on the pilgrimage trail — mobbed on the 13th of each month through the spring and summer.
On my visit, the vast esplanade leading to the basilica and site of the mystical appearance was quiet, as a few solitary pilgrims shuffled on their knees slowly down the long, smooth approach. Staring at a forest of candles dripping into a fiery trench that funnels all the melted wax into a bin to be resurrected as new candles was evocative in this spiritual setting.
Huge letters spelling “Queen of the Holy Rosary of Fátima Pray for Us” in Latin ring the ceiling of the basilica. John Paul II loved Fátima and visited it three times. (After the attempted assassination of JPII, the Vatican revealed that this event was predicted by Our Lady of Fátima in 1917.)
Wandering around modern Fátima and its commercial zone, I’m impressed by how it mirrors my image of a medieval pilgrim gathering place: oodles of picnic benches, endless parking, and desolate toilets for the masses. Just beyond the church, thirty uniform stalls lining a horseshoe-shaped mall await the 13th. Even without any business, old ladies still man their booths, surrounded by trinkets for pilgrims — including gaudy wax body parts and rosaries that will be blessed after Mass and taken home to remember Our Lady of Fátima.
Glad to read another entry! I am one of the quiet ones that read your blog but don’t usually respond. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
As one who has sometimes objected to what I felt was a negative tone toward Catholicism in your blog, thank you Rick, for an insightful and entertaining entry on Fatima and its history. You struck the proper tone of respect without sacrificing your usual “Rick Steves” light touch. It would have been easy to fall into an atitude of condesencion toward the Fatima pilgrims, and to the miracles themselves, but you avoided that and were still able to entertain us as well. Bravo.
Well Rick, it takes all kinds. Are there still huge billboards advertising “Humbert Wine?†I love to drive in Europe. In Portugal I remember meeting and passing horse or donkey carts with huge wheels, and a family on their way somewhere. I have driven 6 different RVs 87,000 miles in about 29 European countries, and loved every “klick.†We also rented a car 15 times, and drove maybe 12,000 miles. Even my French and Italian friends can’t imagine driving an RV in Paris (9 times) and Rome (4 times), but I have driven all over and loved it. For us that was the way to see the people, the way they live, the way they shop. In Poland, we saw farm families going to church, dressed in their Sunday best, some riding on a tractor, some being pulled in a wagon, others on a horse drawn cart. We have driven to hilltop towns, otherwise reachable only by a special bus. At least 50 ferry rides sailed to and from perhaps 70 spots in 20 European countries. I can understand the hesitation in driving in Europe, and I wish at least half of the drivers we met weren’t driving. If we watch the drivers in Paris, Berlin, or Rome, we can see how their Army acted and reacted during WW II. Most countries have traffic “Laws and Regulations.†Italy has traffic “Hints and Suggestions.†It’s nice we both agree our way is the best way, the only way for us to travel, but I would not recommend it for anyone else. The camping and the RV equipment are not important, the convenience and the sightseeing are all important. ==== A comment from our 1979 Journal: At one place, hundreds of men got off a train and ran in a steady stream across the street, blocking traffic, waving their hands in the air, and hollering as they went. Don’t know if it was a Portuguese political rally or a sporting event. We just don’t feel comfortable when we see people acting in this manner. We do remember that Portugal is their country, and if we don’t like it, we don’t have to be here!
The writing in the last two blog entries is gold. Bravo. I kind of want to see Portugal. Maybe a day or two tops. Humberd- nice work.
Great post…..5 days between posts is way to long….please post sooner..it gets a little boring, waiting…safe travels..
I agree With jm. 5 days is too long–I start going through withdrawals. While I don’t often comment, I enjoy reading your blog and the corresponding comments. Thanks for helping me through until my next vacation which are also way to far apart!
Rick, Just got back from Italy, so am catching up on the blog. By the way stayed a couple of the days at the Aberdeen in Rome with one of your week in Rome groups, and they were really great met some really nice people! But I noticed you are doing the Cinque Terre, please review the hikes again, we did the hardest one and we called it the double death march. Your book down plays it a lot from the what the people at the park office say, and I cannot help but agree. We met some pretty scarred people who did not expect by your guide book to be so hard. Also the Pasquale hotel in Monteroso what excellent! Judy
Thanks Rick for writing the blog … no matter how often you have the chance to write, it’s interesting to have insights into your life. I appreciate you taking some of your precious time in Europe to write it.
My wife and I were in The Netherlands in March of 2005 to see our granddaughter who was studying at the University of Masstriecht. We left by train from there to travel back to Amsterdam and the airport. I got off the train to get some coffee….that took to long and the train door was closed when I got back….no conductor in sight and soon the train left with me outside watching it go. I had no passport and no Eurotrain Pass as it was on the train with my wife. I caught the next train and stayed close to the restroom just in case the conductor happened by. Made it alright!! My wife was happy to see me and scared to death something had happened to me. Thanks Rick for your great blogs!! Enjoying everyone!
I can’t remember taking a train in the USA Shame of missing a wonderful opportunity in your own home town. Perhaps next time you’re home in Edmonds you’ll check out the Sounder train to Seattle and further south. The station is just a few blocks from the ETBD offices and drops you off in Downtown Seattle. Perfect for that trip to the Seahawks or Mariner’s games.
I can’t remember taking a train in the USA . . . when I was growing up I sometimes took a 14 mile train trip to visit my G’ma in Centralia, MO. I would walk from the train station to her house (3 blocks).Alas, those days are gone. However the train fro LA – Chicago stops in La Plata, MO and train buffs should take this trip. There is a rail museum, a wonderful inn (The Depot Inn) and La Plata is an adorable little town smack dab in middle America! I love taking the train in Europe . . . and yes, I have gotten on the wrong train (the milk run instead of the of fast train). Happy travels to all!
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Mini Cooper parts Company became a part of Ford body in 1928 and most of the trucks produced by Mini Cooper parts had the Ford body parts brand on them. One of the most popular trucks available was the Mini Cooper parts D50 Series; utility companies and the military of tenused this medium duty truck. M series used for ambulances, heavy-duty military trucks, jeeps and commercial vehicle brands such as Freightliner. Thanks Nissan body parts http://www.iautobodyparts.com/mini_cooper/