The rain clouds were closing in as I left my hotel in Porto this morning, following a last coffee looking out over the old town. Destination Lisbon via Nazare and Obidos. Nazare is fishing village just north of Lisbon which has transformed itself into a surfing town based on the enormous waves that are generated off the town in January and February. The clouds parted and the sun came out as we dropped into the village, allowing for some walking around and photo ops.
Once we arrived I walked down to the Sao Miguel Arcanjo light house. Although the surf was nowhere near as high as shown in the photo below that I took from the Nazare website, it is still a beautiful spot. Spinning wind turbines are on the hills behind the town, both lit by the moody skies prevalent today.
The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Nazare is a lovely Baroque church with a magnificent pipe organ. It was founded in 1377 and I imagine used a lot by the local women over the centuries as the Nazarene coastline is one of the most dangerous in the world for local fishermen. I certainly wouldn’t want to push a small boat off the beach into those conditions. Contest Alert !!!! A prize will be awarded to the best comment about the far right hand photo in the first row below 🙂
Obidos
Obidos has been a fortress of some kind from Roman times and is a wonderful example of a medieval city within a fortified wall, sitting high on a hillside with a superb view of the surrounding countryside. Drifting along the narrow cobbled streets, walking the castle walls it was easy to imagine life here. Slitted areas on the wall tops protected archers from attack, the presence of a battering ram of the type used by attackers of long ago was an interesting touch. The ringing church bells and myriad tile roofs added to the ambience. A wonderful couple of hours walking through echoes of the past.
I am now in Lisbon and preparing for the next part of my journey.
