Day 6 – Bound for Spain

We said good-bye to Portugal with a day of travel to Spain.  Of course, being a more mature bus load this included several stops.  One of our stops was the ancient city of Merida, once the capital of Lusitiana  (Latin for the kingdoms of Spain and Portugal).  Merida contains more Roman ruins than any other city in Spain.   The buildings were reconstructed from the ruins.  It included a Roman theatre, amphitheatre, circus and roads, bridges, streets and aqueducts galore.  We also began to understand the Spanish rules a bit better.

We began our visit in Merida with a class on gypsies and pickpockets.  After the class, Debbie walked around with her purse tied to her body ready to shout “No, No”.  While waiting for tickets, the group was immediately approached by a gypsy under 5 feet tall dressed in black.  She circled the tour group with hands out.  Evidentially, the group was not very convincing with their “no’s” as the circling continued.  One member, Gail, is convinced that she was cursed.  After observing Jesus’ technique,  Debbie successfully got the “No”  down when shouted with a mean look.

Charlie, Charlotte, Larry and Debbie began their Roman tour by following the numeric map.  They spent significant time at stop 1 and 2, the Roman theatre and amphitheatre.  Larry really enjoyed being the center of the theatre and then amphitheatre.   The group had trouble getting Larry to leave the stage. Issues occurred with  stop 3.  The site had blocked off areas for work but no signs.  After circling stop 1 and 2 multiple times, no success.  (Did I mention that stop 1 and 2 were really large?)  The group concluded that there are no stop 3 or 4 available.  This really bothered some of our more structured members.  At this point, the group decided that they might be getting fussy as it was after 1 and no lunch yet.  How on Earth do the people in Spain wait so long to eat lunch?

Lunch was awesome!  On the bus to Merida, Spanish ham was discussed.  Not a nice thing to do if you don’t eat until 1:30.  Jesus helped us get a ham platter.  (We were approached by the gypsy lady again.  Debbie lay on her purse as a defensive action.)  After  lunch,  three of the group went to the Roman bridge while Charlie searched for the non-existent Jewish section.  The plan was to head back to the Roman ruins to complete the tour but discovered that they had closed down for siesta until 4.  Surprise!  Let me introduce you to siesta. 
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At the end of our tour of Merida, Charlie saw the gypsy lady waiting for the bus.  (Siesta time?)  He approached her with this hand out but was given the stink eye.  We think he was not aware of Gail’s curse incident.

 

 

Running with the Bulls

Jesus has run with the bulls across Spain since he was 15 years old.  He was even injured when he was 16.  Jesus explained how to run with the bulls.  He even gave us running guidelines.  The more he talked about running the bulls, the more it became apparent that running with the bulls and tourists running with the cars are the same.

First, the sound of the adversary is heard.  You hear tons of meat or steel thunder toward the brave souls waiting in the street.   The anticipation and fear begin to grow.    As one begins to run, you search for an open doorway to throw your body into for protection.  Another strategy is to run hard turning left or right away from the path.  One must never, ever go straight.  Remember if someone gets in your way, shove them out of the way.  It is either you or them.  Finally as a last resort, assume the fetal position huddled against the wall.  If they see you move, they will accelerate and run towards you.

How are you able to cash in on around the market? 1 selection is usually to link with buy professional viagra colleges through offering your own unique function available with an eye for outstanding design. In accordance to researchers damage can be caused by electromagnetic radiation emitted by cell phones or the heat generate by cell phones. getting viagra in australia amerikabulteni.com The blood becomes extremely fast as a result of which amerikabulteni.com buy cheap cialis the blood supply to the pelvic region is increased. It also improves your energy to perform cialis price http://amerikabulteni.com/2011/10/17/new-york-times%E2%80%99in-ilk-kadin-yayin-yonetmeninin-gunleri-nasil-geciyor/ better and satisfy her with enhanced sexual pleasure. Now that we understand the rules, how does the Texas group handle the cars?  Charlotte runs down the street daring the cars to touch her.  Charlie goes with the doorway method while Larry goes left or right.  Debbie has started wearing white so she can plaster herself to the wall and blend into the surrounding area .  She is threatening to start touching cars as they pass and may want to be a matador..  Luckily, no fetal positions yet for anyone.

 

I am a Monk?

After racing around Monsaraz, we arrived at our hotel, Pousada dos Loios.  The hotel is located in the city of Evora, Portugal next to Roman ruins.  You walk out of the door and directly to the Roman ruins.  It was a former 15th century convent for monks (I don’t know why it is called a convent).   Our rooms were upgraded from the days of the monks.  Larry and Debbie were in cell 111.

History is everywhere you look.  Our tour guide, Maria, takes us on a walking tour with highlights which include the Cathedral of Evora, Roman ruins, and the Chapel of Bones.   The Roman aqueducts are built into many of the current house.

So what did we learn today?

  • Larry begins to make a serious bid to challenge Charlotte as social king.  He uses Debbie as an aid asking for names of the other people.  If he could just get an ear piece to be fed the names more discreetly, the job would be easier.
  • The convent/monastery bathtub can be challenging.  Really?  Take a look at it.  The shower curtain attaches itself to any wet portion of your body.  If you drop the soap, you are in serious trouble.  It takes several minutes to disentangle one’s self.  Debbie also sprayed the room with the shower head several times assisting the maids with their work
  • The University classrooms still contain tiles from when the monks attended classes.  It would be difficult to concentrate in the rooms.  Maria said that algebra and astronomy were in small rooms as the classes were too hard and no one wanted to take them.
  • Taller members beware of lower arches in the hotel.  Several head smacks could be heard up and down the hall.
  • The Chapel of Bones makes one step back and think.
  • People from New Hampshire can swim in colder water than the rest of us. 

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I ate beet soup and I liked it

Katy Perry’s first big song was “I Kissed a Girl and I liked It”.   You know the tune – start to hum it.  Now substitute the words ” I ate beet soup and I liked it”.   Actually, it was beet soup with ice cream on top.  Charlotte and Larry will belt out the song at the top of their lungs.  Charlie will tap  his feet and Debbie  will turn the music off. 

The last few days have been all about tapas, Spanish appetizers.  The group spent time in Seville tapa bar hopping.  Yes, you read it correctly.  Two and a half hours of eating lunch in different locations.   How wild can they be?

In the first tapa bar, an immediate split became apparent.  The vegetable group leaned toward healthy tapas later named the “Beet Soup Gang” and the second group the more conservative  meat group.  Larry was actually all over the place siding with whoever had food and would let him eat it. 

The second tapa’s bar was all about presentation but the groups continued to align. The groups got carried away eating for 2 solid hours before staggering out of the bar and back for a siesta on the bus in preparation for the 2 hour dinner at 8:30.

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Perhaps the new song should be to the tune of Old McDonald’s “I ate fried eggplant dipped in honey.  EI Ei Oh!”.

 

Monsaraz

Today was a travel day.  We loaded the bus and took off for Evora with a stop in Monsaraz.  On the way, Jesus pointed out cork and olive trees.  The cork trees are harvested (think skinned) every 10 years.  Wine corks but also purses, hats and wallets can be made out of cork.  Debbie was not impressed until she got to touch a cork product and then became quite excited.  She was able to fight back the urge to buy a purse at the truck stop when she saw the price and instead took pictures.

Our lunch stop was Monsaraz.  It is high above the border plains, a tiny village, fortified and contained in a walled village.  It has two main streets which some people insist on driving down.  If you are a pedestrian and see a car turning down the street, our advice is to run.  You feel a little like you are in a James Bond movie running down the street or throwing yourself against the wall.  There is a Roman tower as proof that the Romans were once there that you can see as you run by.

A bullfighting ring exists that everyone checked out.  We can’t figure out how you get any bulls up to the ring.  Charlotte took a quick power nap outside the bullring.   While only two streets, Debbie did manage to get lost for awhile until she discovered the group while running from a car.

 The tour group decided that they could never storm the castle as they could not make it up the hill especially carrying any armor.  We also had lamb and a lot of wine for lunch which may also contribute to not being able to make it up the hill.

Exploring Lisbon

We begin our day with getting hit on the head with the shower head and surviving.  Saturday was the first real touring day. The awesome bus takes us to our stops.  Our planned stops  are:

  • Tower of Belem. –  The towers was originally built to protect Lisbon from pirates.   (Note: Pirates have been replaced by pick-pockets)
  • Monument of Discoveries – Commemorating Portugal’s seafaring and literary history
  • Jeronimos Monastery
  • National Palace at Queluz – Former summer home of Portuguese royalty

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We went to dinner at a restaurant  that had Fado performers.    Part of Portuguese culture, Fado is a usually melancholy series of songs about unrequited love, longing, and unfulfilled dreams.

What did we lean today? 

  • Order a ham sandwich with fries and gets a steak sandwich with chips – Check server’s English skills
  • The Second in line to the throne gets a pretty fine house but has to give the big rooms to his Mom and Dad (Queen and King)
  • A whisper is a communication system that the tour guide speaks into and you hear on your headset.  You must be within touching distance of the guide for it to work .  If you are not within touching distance, one might get shocked by ear splitting static making one gasp and clutch their heads
  • They bring you things to eat you did not order and then charge you.  Following is an actual conversation that took place.
    • Charlotte: “Can I eat that bread?”
    • Waiter:  “You can if you want to.”
    • Charlotte:  “Are you going to charge me for it?”
    • Waiter:  “Well if you eat it”
    • Charlotte:  “Take it away”
    • Debbie:  Looks longingly at the bread as it leaves
  •  Bathrooms often charge an entry fee.  Larry has this problem a lot
  • Taxi drivers should not drive and listen to soccer games at the same time.  It causes them to almost run lights, miss turns and pound on the steering wheel.
  • Charlotte is a social whiz.  She knows everyone’s names.  Larry and Debbie know names as well. Two names, Charlie and Charlotte and use them quite often even if your name is Tom and Pat.
  • They put tiny fried eggs on your meat.  The entire egg is one inch in diameter. Debbie didn’t know chickens could lay eggs that small.  Tonight we were asked if we enjoyed the quail eggs?  Our reply was “Oh”. 
  • Fado performers all seem to wear black
  • Larry and Charlie are not overly fond of the Fado Genre.  This causes one to be the first to leave.

We’re Here!

By Friday night, almost everyone in our group had arrived.  Charlotte and Charlie arrived in Lisbon early Friday morning.  They got settled, found Starbucks, the train station and went on a day trip.  Debbie and Larry, meanwhile, are sitting in Amsterdam waiting for their flight to Lisbon.   They find that they need a geography lesson.  Debbie thought that Amsterdam and Lisbon were a hop, skip and a jump apart.  Well, let me tell you they are not.  Debbie spent the 2 hour 45 minute flight dozing off and bumping into Larry waking him up.  They finally dragged into the hotel around 4:00 in the afternoon. 

Debbie and Larry had a very hard time unpacking for 2 days.  Their room looked like a clothes explosion.  Every discussion went something like this. Person 1 – Expletive!  Have you seen my (fill in the blank?) This is followed by frantically unpacking a bag, a backpack, searching through all drawers.  Expletive!  “Oh I found it”.  Next  step, repeat process above. 

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After fighting through the room issues, we meet the other members of the tour.  There are 23 people in our group.  We were missing 3 with a passport issue in Frankfurt.   Our tour guide is Jesus.  He gave us an overview of the trip and said he was a “Foot Specialist.  Charlotte finally had to explain to Debbie that he was a “Food Specialist”.  At the meeting after “Food” recommendations from Jesus, we made our meal choices for the trip.  We are all curious how this is going to work.  They usually come out and say who ordered the “fish”? We can’t remember what we ordered except Debbie’s tactical error of “Pig Cheeks”.   I can’t wait for that meal.  Everyone fell into bed exhausted.

The Adventure Begins – May 9th

Debbie and Larry began their trip early with good cheer.  Lindsey graciously agreed to drive them to the airport.  On the way, Lindsey coached them with some key Spanish phrases that they might need on their trip.  Debbie feels that she can now say the following:

“My name is Debbie.  I don’t speak Spanish.  Where is the bathroom?”  This outburst is followed by the pronouncement “you have trash”.

Lindsey did not help us with Portuguese so we are on our own.  We are hoping that we do not find any trash that needs pointing out in Lisbon.

Lindsey also suggested that we be more forceful when we speak and that probably no one would understand us.  It was suggested that perhaps we should download the app that shows pictures on your phone.  Nonetheless, she did not seem unduly worried about us.  We are not sure if that is a good or bad thing.

We have made it to Atlanta!