Alentejo

March 5, 2007

Alentejo…even the name of this region rolls off the tongue with slow ease…Alentejo is a large, gently rolling expanse of land just south of Lisbon. It is known for its olive trees, cork trees, good wine, sheep, cheese and lazy inhabitants. I would be lazy too if I lived here. In every direction is beauty. Lush green hills dotted with healthy olive trees and cork trees unfold in every direction. There are sheep or cattle happily grazing here and there. Like Montana, the sky is big and open. It seems that the landscape rolls on forever. After watching too many episodes of Teletubbies with Marcos when he was younger, I kept joking with Duarte that I expected to see Tinky Winky hop out from behind a tree at any moment as the perfect landscape was very similar as it is in that odd children’s tv show.

Duarte was invited to speak at a sustainable tourism seminar for the day in a town called Avis. The foundation paid our way to Alentejo and offered us an incredible suite in a beautiful rural hotel. This town where we stayed was called Alter de Chao. It is known worldwide for the Lusitano horses that are bred here. We enjoyed three nights at this hotel. Each day was filled with exploration. While Duarte spoke at his seminar, Marcos, Jenna and I wandered through the ancient streets of Avis. The first place I stopped was the tourism office. When I asked how where I could find some attractions of interest, the young woman working there offered to show us around. She literally closed up her office and walked us around using her chain of keys to access the medieval tower which is the central point to the town, the agricultural museum and the monastery. In the agricultural museum, the young employees were incredibly kind. They would actually open the display cases for Marcos to try on or try out some of the different items on display. Marcos was truly engaged.

We visited the famous stables where the Lusitano horses are bred. The stables were originally built in the 17th century. We saw one hundred of the dark brown horses in a large barn. The horses were groomed to perfection and they were enjoying a very nice meal. Over half of these horses where pregnant. The others were tending to their newborns who were freely roaming about the hall.

Meals in Alentejo are divine. Typical to the Portuguese culture in general, when one sits down to a meal, the waiters put three or four “snacks” upon the table. If you choose to eat them, which one usually does, then you will be charged for them. The typical snacks include fresh bread, local cheese, olives and presunto. The cheese of this region is goat cheese. They say here that the best cheeses are the cheeses that taste the most like “feet.” For some odd reason, this cheese is really good. The wine is amazing and served with lunch and dinner. One of the more popular dishes of this region is a soup called “Acorda” which consists of bread, olive oil, garlic, egg, fish and parsley. We ate a lot of good food in Alentejo.

We encountered Americans while we were having lunch in a little town we were passing through on our way to meet a friend. It was strange for me to see them after so much time and I am still unsure of my reaction. I was standing at the counter of the café, waiting to pay for our meal, when I noticed two people who looked different from everyone else. The man was tall with grey hair. He was wearing a polo shirt, khakis, tennis shoes and a waist pack. The woman beside him was short with dark hair. She wore colorful clothing. I watched them try to figure out the whole eating process. They didn’t speak Portuguese, nor did they even try – which embarrassed me a little bit. They were in the middle of Alentejo – representing all of America and they were standing there clueless in the local café trying the figure out how to order and pay for a coffee and a pastry. I felt a little bit ashamed of our culture. We stand out so much, we are so privileged, and we typically only know one language. We pass through these cultures with travel without taking any time to understand those around us. We just look, buy and move along. I didn’t speak to those people though I could have helped them. I just watched indifferently as they struggled at the counter, ate their pastry and then moved along to go shopping.

Duarte surprises me often over here and I think this is mostly unintentional. Driving from place to place, we stop in one city or village or another and he always has an interesting tidbit of information about a building, a bridge, a church, etc. This country is small but its history is big. I enjoy learning about the famous kings, sailors, explorers, warriors, architects, etc. It is awe-inspiring to stand inside the walls of a building that have been standing since before the year of Christ. So many people have stepped where I stepped. What did their lives mean? With each experience that I have and each place that I see, I become more and more pensive about my place in this world, my contribution to the future and what my life truly means.

On our way to Portalegre we stopped in a large historical city called Evora. This city attracts many tourists from all over the world as it is a national heritage site with many ancient buildings still in tact. I knew nothing of Evora before our arrival and we ended up having a great day roaming through the streets, taking in the sites. One of the churches we visited had a small chapel attached. Inside the chapel the entire interior was made up of human bones…there were piles and piles of femurs, ulnas, skulls and more.

In Portalegre, we stayed two nights with a friend of Duarte’s and his daughter. DiDi’s daughter “Magarida” is three months older than Marcos. For the first time in 8 weeks Marcos had a playmate. They were wonderful together and Marcos was happier than I’ve seen him in a long time. Though Marcos’ Portuguese is still a bit rough, they found a way to communicate. Together they ran through the streets of the city. They ate meals side by side and sang songs that they would make up in the car. They played in the high castle of Martao which overlooks the city and they read books together before falling asleep. Marcos has requested that Margarida stay with us forever.

Our days in Alentejo were beautiful. The travels with Marcos and Jenna were easy. We played and laughed and overall enjoyed the treasures of this region. These days together as a family, exploring this old country are so very rich.