Marvao

After a long break since our last work exchange, it was a really good feeling rolling into the bus station in Portalegre, Portugal, knowing that our hosts would be there to pick us up. Our home for the next couple of weeks included our British hosts, Irene and Nick, their three girls, burping champion Meggie the dog, two horses and Frankie the foal.


In exchange for food and very comfortable accommodation in a separate studio apartment, we spent our mornings working on a variety of jobs, mainly constructing a fence for the planned jumping arena for the horses. This involved digging holes in hard and rocky ground with a pick axe and spade (think prison workline minus the cotton picking songs!), cementing the posts in the holes, cutting out rails from the cleared trees, and then attaching the rails using hay-bale wire. Hard work but we were pretty satisfied with our efforts when we left - we'd completed 2 full sides of the arena, ready for the guy with the tractor to come in and level the rest of the space for the other fence sides.


In our spare time we did a lot of lounging around watching videos (tv is a wonderful thing once you've gone without it), walked around and swam in the dam/lake, rode the horses, and visited some gypsy markets where the women compete to see who can yell with the loudest and most annoying voice. We also checked out the tiny town of Marvao and its castle perched high atop a hill that can be seen from Spain, and walked back to the farm via an old cobbled path down the mountain that has been there for centuries.


Next we're off to the Czech Republic for a brief visit before meeting up with friends in Munich for some well deserved beer.

Portugal

Our first stop in Portugal was the capital Lisbon. After getting off the overnight bus, we managed to catch the first metro train of the day, which was a first for me given my normal sleeping habits. We found a room, which unfortunately was at the top of 9 flights of stairs, totalling 92 steps. After 3 days of that and I think I am the stair master....I mastered the stairs.


We found out that the cinemas in Portugal subtitle their Hollywood movies, instead of dubbing. Although this doesn't seem that big a deal, we got to see our first movies in English in months. And see them we did, I think we watched 3 in 2 days. Here, you can actually choose where you will sit in the cinema, enjoy an alcoholic beverage, and top up at intermission.

Walking down one of the main streets passing the countless shoe polishers as we went (which seems to be a tradition here!), I think I was offered drugs by 8 different people in the space of 15 minutes. I guess I did need a haircut and shave but I didn't think I was that bad.

After foolishly trying to go to the Brazilian embassy to organise our Visa's we discovered a waiting line that went out the door and literally around the block. The tail of this line was within a couple of meters of the entry, unfortunately it was headed on the scenic route before heading in. Needless to say we skipped that, and figured we'll try getting our Visas in a less, Portuguese place...say, Germany when we get there.


After a couple of days in Lisbon, we randomly headed for Evora. This turned out to be a nice little place, and we managed to catch a full blown fashion parade, and also headed to the 'Capela Dos Ossa', which translates as the Chapel of Bones. It has this name for a good reason, being that the interior is completely covered with thousands of human bones! Being here was very very creepy.


The inscription on the entrance to the chapel says (translated) 'We bones that are here, we are waiting for yours.' The idea behind this place is to remind people of their mortality, and provoke them to consider their actions in life knowing that they will ultimately end up the same as those on the wall. It certainly achieved those goals....we didn't hang around this place too long!

At one point I realised we were the only people there, and I took this video for those who are interested and game....yes pretty much everything that looks like a brick or anything is a human bone of some sort.

Our last stop in Portugal has brought us east to a small town called Rasa, near Portalegre, not far from the Spanish border. We are currently in the middle of another work exchange, and it has been nice to do some physical work again for the first time in months. The place is beautiful, with a nearby creek, barage, and an imposing castle (in Marvao) that overlooks the entire area.