I MISS ROME, I MISS HOT WEATHER!

When I think of hot weather, Rome in summer comes to my mind. It was extremely hot that walking outdoors was only pleasurable either early in the morning or in the evening. It was precisely early in the morning as I strolled through the Navona Square that I took the above photo of the Fountain of the Four Rivers that collectively represent four major rivers of the four continents: the Nile, the Danube, the Ganges and the Rio de la Plata for Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas, respectively.

Fortunately, Rome has so many ice-cream shops at which we can get our palates refreshed.

I miss Rome, I miss hot weather!

Thank you!

MOORISH HERITAGE AT SINTRA CASTLE

The Kingdom of Morocco has come for ten days to Sintra (a small town located not far from Lisbon) with the aim of organizing several cultural activities, ranging from traditional products and handicrafts to workshops of calligraphy, not missing a nice buffet of Moroccan food and music performances. 

All of these were held at a very symbolic site, the Moorish Castle that reminds the Muslim past of Portugal to whoever visits it. Mind you, the Castle was built during Moorish occupation, 8th to 9th centuries. It seats on the top of Sintra hill, prviding a panoramic view that spreads from the old town to the farming area till the Atlantic coast.

It seats on the top of Sintra hill, providing a panoramic view that spreads from the old town to the farming area till the Atlantic coast.

Inside the Castle, normally a bit gloomy, there was a colourful atmosphere that for a while made me get the illusion I was somewhere else in the enchanting country that Morocco is. 

The weather was very co-operative with the event and I enjoyed every moment of the time spent over there. As soon as I saw a calligrapher at a stall, I didn't hesitate to ask him to write my name in Arabic letters. Surprise of the surprises: Queen Leonor had been written in the paper! I could not help but smiling at him!

I returned back home crowned, yet not feeling the weight of the crown. Maybe it was made of paper!!!

Thank you!

Have a very enjoyable weekend!

SWEET Birthday Cake

A birthday without a cake is not a birthday, don't you think? Well, last saturday, my daughter who, sometimes is in cooking mood, decided to make the above cake for a special relative, whose birthday was on the following day.

She got up earlier than the usual, went to a nearby farm and got very fresh strawberries and of a good size: neither too big, nor too small. As she didn't know the exact age of our relative, she thought the best way would be to buy candles simply reading 'FELIZ ANIVERSÁRIO' (Happy Birthday). Perhaps I wouldn't have ever had such idea. As soon as she returned back home from her errands and showed me the candles, I fully agreed with her shopping. It was a smart way of not unveiling our ignorance about the precise age of the birthday person.

She spent a few hours in the kitchen while I was watching her meticulously decorating the cake that had been home baked, too.

Once it was ready,  I looked at her and I saw a soft smile on her face. 

When we go to a birthday party, shouldn't our goal be to make the birthday person feel special? At the moment of handing the cake to our relative, I realized that my daughter's goal had been achieved.

I felt proud of her and for her!

Thank you!

MOBILITY IN URBAN CENTRES

  

Sustainable mobility means "Satisfying the needs of the current generation without compromising the ability to satisfy the needs of future generations", Brundtland report (1987)    

There are several modes of transport, either in a big or a small city. 

Some are really cool...

Others are romantic...

Not to mention walking that is an excellent physical exercise. 

But... we appear not always to care about sustainability.

However, there are not many but a few people that show concern about it.

FROM SPRINGFIELD TO CASCAIS. WHY???

Cascais is a lively resort all the year round, yet in summer more lively than ever. Last week, in the evening, one of its beaches that is often dotted with fishermen had turned into an atelier for two foreign sculptors who looked delighted as they were making not sand castles but Homer Simpson lying on a couch grabbing a bottle of beer in one of his hands.

As Homer looked a bit homesick, despite being free from the family piling on to the couch, he soon had two family members lying on the floor...

Why on earth, a middle class American family living in Springfield (ILL.) flies to this side of the huge Pond and lies on the fine sands of a Portuguese beach? Perhaps Homer was tired of doing nothing or very little. Had his wife and children pushed him to board on a plane and as they regretted it later, they decided to take a cheap flight with destination to Lisbon?

Questions I'll never get the answer, unless you stop by and let me know them.

~~ Thank you! ~~

TGIF

Great, the weekend is off the corner... I wonder the three ducklings are on the way to reach their destination in time so as to get their Xmas gifts...