Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - August 2014

Today I cannot give you an update on my Algarve garden because I'm spending a few days in the north of Portugal, where I used to live. Hopefully my very helpful neighbour has been keeping my garden watered and I will have blooms to photograph when I get back.

In the meantime, here are some of the blooms in my old garden.

I have tried to take some of these south but they got lost somehow. I'll try again.

In the north we managed to multiply this hydrangea many times without any problems but my two attempts at moving fully-rooted plants south have failed. I'm not giving up yet!

Given enough space, this bougainvillea could be a tree like the one we had in Salisbury, many years ago.

The unusually wet weather this spring and summer has been good to my bottle brush, which is in a very dry and windy part of the garden.

These blooms are not fully open, because they are getting too much shade. The plants I took south were looking much prettier last week but, oops, I was too busy to take photos. 

I have to downsize so this house and garden will become just a memory soon.

I hope you will visit again in a couple of weeks when I post again from the Algarve.

Meanwhile, why not pop over to May Dreams Gardens, where Bloom Day is hosted every month.

With Musical Instrument

There is no religious procession in northern Portugal that is not accompanied by a band or two - drums and brass instruments usually play an important part in the festivities.

In contrast, here are some interesting musical instruments from Zimbabwe.

Whatever the instrument, music is something I cannot imagine life without. This Sunday post was of course inspired by Jake.

Shades of grey

Have I mentioned I miss the tropics at this time of year?

The view from my car window this morning (just south of Porto)

 It won't come as a surprise to you that grey is not exactly my favourite colour...

The view from my favourite cafe, at lunchtime (Praia da Granja)

This was as blue as it got!

If I had to attribute a colour to the year I am leaving behind, it would definitely be grey.

Here's hoping 2014 will turn out more bright and colourful in every way.


I am going to use a word that special blogger, Carol, uses often (hope she doesn't mind):

I wish all my visitors and fellow bloggers enough of the good things in life in the New Year! Happy 2014!

Window

Window is Jake's theme for today's Sunday post.

My selection of photos consists mainly of windows from older houses:

South of Porto

Silvalde/Espinho

Praia da Granja, South of Porto

Armacao de Pera, Algarve

Armacao de Pera, Algarve

Castro Marim, Algarve

This is a stained glass window from a church:

Armacao de Pera, Algarve

And this is one of the windows of the train station at Praia da Granja:

Praia de Granja train station

Before I send you off to Jake's blog to look at windows from all over the world, let me tell you that Maluda, who was a famous Portuguese artist (1934-1999), loved painting windows. 

Why don't you visit the Maluda site's archive for "janelas"(windows) category" and click on each "janela" title to see her window paintings.

Christmas Lights

Those Christmas lights light up the street

Down where the sea and city meet  

May all your troubles soon be gone  

Oh, Christmas lights, keep shinin' on

These lines from Coldplay's song "Christmas Lights" are perfect for this post.

My photos today are of the Christmas lights in the town of Espinho (a seaside town, packed in summer with beach-goers, year-round thriving commercial centre, where many shops have closed or are struggling under the effects of the crippling recession in Portugal. 

Lighting up the Casino

23rd Street

Also on 23rd Street

19th Street - main shopping area (bad photo)

My favourite

Those Christmas lights light up the streets

Down where the sea and small town meet  

May all our troubles soon be gone  

Oh, Christmas lights, keep shinin' on

Architecture

For this theme I have chosen examples from different regions of Portugal.

From north to south...

In Arouca, granite is a common building material.

Traditional house in Arouca, district of Aveiro

Granite again - Arouca

In the fishing town of Torreira, stripes and colour are traditional.

Fishing village of Torreira, district of Aveiro

In the posh town of Praia da Granja, these pretty houses are set amongst ornate mansions of the early 20th century.

Some of the smaller houses of Praia de Granja

And in the Algarve, ceramic tiles and ornate trimmings are common in older houses. 

Tiled house in Castro Marim

Ornate trimmings, Algoz

Which do you prefer?

Visit Jake's challenge for many more takes on architecture.

Favourite Spots

Favourite Spot is Jake's suggestion for this week's Sunday Post but I couldn't choose just one favourite spot, so here are three:

My favourite corner of the garden

I love having breakfast or tea with this view before me or lying on a sun lounger under the orange tree.

 My favourite beach

This is a great spot to swim and sunbathe or to go for a relaxing walk at low tide.

The Aveiro Lagoon

This is the view from the coffee shop I like to stop at when I'm up north. I have to confess that I have better photos of the lagoon but I can't find them at the moment. This one was taken around Easter on a cloudy day.

To join in the challenge or see other bloggers' entries,  visit Jake's Sunday Post.

Before... and after... pics

No, I'm not going to post pictures of me/a celeb before and after my/our diet/liposuction/facelift or whatever. You know me better than that!

It's about structures which were part of the landscape in northern Portugal at a time when many families worked in agriculture.

Now you usually see them in ruins but before farmers used them to store and let the corn/maize cobs dry, safely out of the reach of rodents. Both sets of my grandparents had one and in their area they are known as "canastros". They fell into disrepair because now no one grows maize in my family. Fortunately my cousin decided to restore the one he inherited and here are the pics.

Before...

... and after...

I think it looks fantastic, don't you?

People

Playing a pauper

For those of a sensitive nature, let me reassure you - this guy's sores aren't real. It's all make-up and he's an "actor" playing a beggar at the Medieval Journey.

He looks so much like the real thing that a visitor stopped to have a chat and congratulate him.

This is my response to Jake's Sunday post challenge: People.

You'll find lots more entries if you click on the Water Dragon below.

Activities galore at the Medieval Journey

As I said in a previous post, there were many activities for visitors in 20 different areas: at the castle, along the way to the castle, at the bottom of the hill, by the stream and along some of the city streets. 

Here are some photos to give you an idea of some of the things you could do.

 

• You could watch strange contraptions go by...

 

•  You could go for rides...

• You could see the exhibits...

• You could visit the many stalls...

 

   Below is the Moroccan 

   section (always crowded).

 

• You could try you hand at making paper in the old-fashioned way at the "Paper Museum".

 

• You could try to hit the target using a bow and arrow.

 
 

• You could try scaling the castle walls.

 
 

• You could try using this bridge (children)...

        

     ...or this one (adults).

Hunger and thirst would be sure to hit everyone at some time, so there was an enormous food "court"...

Suggestive, isn't it?

• You could also visit the many cafes along the streets...

 

• You could dress up as king or queen and have your picture taken on a "royal set".

 
 

• And you could even have your palm read by "gypsies" at the "Pond of Spells"!

I really recommend you visit the official site (it's in Portuguese, Spanish and English) because it is fantastic - it has so much that I haven't even mentioned!

Related posts:

Medieval Journey - Procession

Top Medieval Journey in Portugal - to the castle!