Weekend Getaway to Setubal and Evora

I had a 4 day weekend because of the Carnaval holiday in Portugal. My rooommate wanted to take a trip to Seville, Spain but the amount of time on a bus to get there would have been about 8 hours so we decided to look for a closer option. Friends recommended that we travel south to a small town on the coast - Setubal and then on to Evora a city further inland. There were a lot of legs to our trip starting with the walk down the hill to catch the train, the 40 min. train ride to Lisbon where we took the metro for about 30 min. to the train stop where we caught the train that would take us to Setubal.

Once we arrived in Setubal we were a little lost because the train dropped us off in a different location that we thought. One of the first signs we saw was pointing towards a bullfighting arena. It's not often you see that on a sign so I snapped a picture. After wandering for about 10-20 minutes with no success we asked someone for directions and the lady was kind enough to walk us right to the bus station. She spoke some English and was very friendly. She thought I had a good Portuguese accent (from all of the 3 Portuguese words that I said)! She shared a little about herself and asked where we were from. Gina and I grabbed sandwiches for lunch from a small cafe and decided to see if we could find our way to the coast. In our wandering we did make it to the water and then worked our way back to the bus station wandering through the narrow twisted streets of the old part of town.

At the bus station we caught a bus that would take us to Evora - our final destination. Evora is a walled town since Roman times but has a Moorish influence that shows in much of its architecture. The bus ride was about 3 hours total. It stopped a lot in little cities along they way picking new people up and dropping others off. It made a stop at 2 different bus stations along the way. The bus driver would turn and look at Gina and I and shake his head that this wasn't our stop. When we finally arrived in Evora he turned around and nodded his head. Probably thought we were somewhat crazy!

At the bus station we were hoping to find an information spot that would have a map to point us in the right direction but that didn't happen. Outside were a bunch of taxis so our fallback plan was to get a taxi to take us to the hostel address if we couldn't navigate our way there. After about 10 minutes of wandering we finally stumbled down a road that gave us a view of the city walls. Once inside the city walls we found some street names that matched up with our map and made our way to the hostel. The hostel was nice, although it smelled a lot like smoke. We ventured out in the few hours of daylight that remained. I'll show you some of the highlights in pictures below:
Giraldo Square - our hostel was on a side road off the main square. These 2 buildings were on either end of the square. Gina buying some roasted chestnuts from a street vendor.

 

Views from the roof of our hostel and a picture of the inside of the hostel.

Ruins of a Roman temple from the 1st century

 
Cathedral

Church of Graca - interesting carvings on the top - representing the world powers at the time

S. Francisco's Square - a Gothic cloister with a chapel made of the skulls and bones from 5,000 bodies. Very interesting and unique! I don't have any pictures from the inside - but the chapel was off to the left of this picture.

Water Aqueduct - it started out small inside the walls and got taller and taller. It was interesting to see how they'd built right into the arches.

Public Garden - with ruins of a palace from the 16th century. Peacocks and other birds were roaming around the park.

Other miscellaneous shots from the city!

It was really cold Saturday night - probably in the 40s and no heater in our room. We bundled up for bed and were ready to head up and out the next morning. It's been different adjusting to the cold being inside and outside and feeling chilled all day long. Sunday we wandered through the rest of the city before catching the bus back to Lisbon and retracing our path on the metro and finally the train back to Cascais. It was a fun weekend of adventures. I'm thankful now for 2 more days this week to rest before school begins again on Wednesday!

Friday Faux Pas

Friday afternoon my students were taking their English test during the last period of the day. I was hoping that they'd be able to finish with enough time to get all the desks, chairs, and boards into my office before dismissal. About halfway through class an alarm went off. I noticed it, but then decided to ignore it thinking it was something out on the road (which is about 15 feet outside our classroom door). A few more seconds went past before one of my students said, "Miss Mapes, that's the fire alarm." Oh....I quickly told the students to get up and head outside. I grabbed my attendance book and headed for the door behind the students. I felt really embarrassed that I had "ignored" the fire alarm. I'd never heard it before and it wasn't very loud compared to the fire alarm at my previous school. Turns out that pastor wanted to have a surprise fire drill to see how quickly everyone could get out (it was a surprise alright!). Everyone was able to get out in less than 2 minutes. He congratulated everyone on the quick response and I just chuckled to myself! Despite the interruption my students finished their test and helped move everything before dismissal. Now I know what they fire alarm sounds like. If we have another drill I'll be prepared! :O)

Sintra Sights...and weekend happenings

Saturday my roommate Gina and I were taken on a tour of Sintra, Portugal! The Portuguese teacher along with his wife and daughter took us out for lunch - traditional chicken, salad, and french fries. The chicken was delicious and it was fun to experience some of the Portuguese culture. After lunch Danilo, Ava, and Sara took us through the center of Sintra. Sara is one of the students in my 8th grade class. There are a few pictures of from the town center. Lots of little shops were off the streets that twisted and turned around corners.

We got to walk through a fancy hotel that's part of the Tivoli chain. It was fun to see the ornate decorations and furniture. The walls were painted with different scenes and in some rooms the paintings went up onto the ceiling. There was a double staircase that reminded us all of a fairytale.

Our afternoon finished off with a drive over the mountains to the coast. Some of the roads were so narrow (they'd only pass for a one way road back home), but oncoming traffic would come barreling past us. Most Portuguese drivers are excellent at maneuvering in tight spots! The countryside was beautiful and fun to get some of the history from our tour guides. Two of the beaches were stopped at are considered some of the best for surfers. It was fun to see some surfers in the water catching waves in. At the last beach we drove by I saw some paragliders! That brought back fun memories of my paragliding experience in the Alps. It was fun to see more of Portugal and also get to know Danilo, Ava, and Sara better. Danilo and his wife don't speak much English so Sara was our translator and did a great job.

The sun shining on the water was beautiful and I snapped a few pictures along the road on our drive back.

Saturday night I got to babysit for Robb and Anna - the couple who teaches in the high school. They have 3 kids. The girls were so excited to have me come and didn't wan to go to bed. We were in the middle of a game so I let them stay up a few minutes later than their bedtime. It was fun to play with them and give their parents a chance to go out.

After church today the Pastor and his wife had lunch for some of us. It was a delicious traditional Portuguese dish with fish, potatoes, onions, and hard boiled eggs served over rice. I enjoyed the lunch and the fellowship too. It's been a busy weekend, but I've enjoyed having a chance to get out and see some more of this area and get to know people better.

January Happenings

Well...the time has slipped by and I've been bad about updating you on what's been going on. I've settled back into my routine at school. This past week the high school and middle school had midterm exams. I was busy getting those tests written and then graded this weekend. The tests are all graded and I'm just about finished with report cards! To celebrate the end of the 2nd quarter my class had a fun afternoon on Wednesday since Thursday and Friday were both half days with teacher in-service in the afternoons. I brought in some chocolate chip cookie dough and baked fresh chocolate chip cookies for my class. Some of my students had never had a chocolate chip cookie before! They were gobbled up quickly so I think they enjoyed them! My class also had a ping pong tournament (I came in 2nd place), played volleyball and the "bowl game", and enjoyed some time outside.

It seems we're getting a break from the cold, rainy winter season here. We went quite a few days without seeing much of the sun - but the weekend has been beautiful with lots of sunshine. When I'm out for a walk and end up taking off my coat - people just stare at me like I 'm crazy. I suppose the cold is relative. It still makes me smile to see people all bundled up in 50 degree temperatures!

Last night I enjoyed some time with the Santos family. Marcia made a delicious chili dinner. We had lots of fun playing some new games the boys had gotten for Christmas - Indiana Jones Life game and a Portuguese version of Monopoly with credit cards (much more high tech than what I grew up with!). Lucas and I were on a team for Monopoly and managed to beat the others!

My visa situation seems to be settled. I paid a visit to the SEF office again (on my birthday of all days!) and the lady we spoke with was very nice and helpful. She said there would be no problem to come back at the end of my 90 day tourist visa to get an extension till I leave at the end of June. I'll be able to keep using the tourist visa rather than apply for a long term visa between now and June. God is good and I'm thankful that that issue seems to be resolved.

There's No Place Like Home!

It's been a busy 2 weeks! I was so thankful for the opportunity to fly home during my Christmas break. My flight went smoothly and was not affected by the east coast snow storms since I flew in and out of Chicago. I left Rochester in the middle of a snow storm Sunday morning and am amazed at how the planes are able to cope with the snow, cold temps, and blizzard-like conditions. I arrived back in Portugal on Monday about noon without any problems. I still have to report in to the office in town and will get more information about the next steps to take with my visa.

My time in Rochester certainly went by quickly. What a blessing family and friends are. I had a great time celebrating Christmas with my family. We were ALL together including Grandma Managan from North Carolina. I enjoyed seeing my sister Kim and her husband Jason. I can't wait to meet my little nephew when he arrives in March. I was able to feel him moving and kicking - and can't wait to see pictures when he is born. Ellen and Allison made room for me at the apartment and it was great to be back with them. The string quartet played at Chapel Oaks, my grandparents senior living place and I also got the chance to play with the worship team at church. My mom outdid herself planning, preparing, and cooking for all of us. I enjoyed lots of favorite foods while I was home. Dad took me on a few tours to see the progress in the new worship center at church. It's exciting to see the progress since August and how it's all coming together! I was able to get together with many friends and catch up on what's been happening the past few months. I'm so thankful for friendships that bring me encouragement and those I was able to see! Another highlight of my visit home was getting to meet little Elijah VanHeukelum. He is the sweetest little baby and loved by his big brother and sister.

Spending time together with friends and family, laughing, and playing games were some of my highlights from the trip home. After looking through my pictures I realized that I didn't do a very good job of taking my camera everywhere I went - oops - Allison gets the credit for taking most of these (thanks Al)!

A new year has begun. God has seen me through many changes in 2009. I'm thankful for His faithfulness and strength each step of the way. I look forward to the new adventures that await in 2010. Happy New Year!