Saturday, September 29, 2018

Folkestone, England

We will be on our way to France on Monday but for now we are in Folkestone visiting friends. We take an hour walk most days and today we brought a camera along and took a few photos.

 

Part of our walk is along a hill above Folkestone. This is a train bridge in town.

 

 

And this is the gathering of train lines just before the Channel Tunnel.

 

 

There are lots of fields around us growing rape seed oil plants (called canola oil in the U.S.).

 

 

This is what the lovely country lanes look like that we are walking on.

 

 

 

Sunday, September 23, 2018

Gijon, Spain

We made the long trip (6 hrs) from Oropesa to Gijon today so we would be closer to Santander for our overnight ferry journey tomorrow back to England. We went from blazing sun and 90°F (33°C) temperatures to 62°F (17°C) with overcast skies and showers. What a relief! We head to France for part two of our trip on October 1st. Gijon is a seaside town with a lovely promenade along the water.

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday, September 22, 2018

Lagartera, Spain

A few photos from around Lagartera ....

 

 

 

 

This is the courtyard of the Municipal Museum which has an excellent collection of embroidery and other items but does not allow photos.

 

 

This is the entrance hall of a typical house.

 

 

Many people have dolls dressed in traditional costumes.

 

 

We visited the home of Olvido Iglesias who is an embroiderer and also sells embroideries (www.olvidoiglesias.com). Most of the items we saw were table cloths.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our hotel was in nearby Oropesa right next to the castle.

 

 

The coat of arms of Oropesa is based on a local legend about a kidnapped princess.

 

 

Friday, September 21, 2018

Nisa & Castelo Branca, Portugal

First stop was Nisa and the Nisa Embroidery and Pottery Centre.

 

The little white bits on the pottery are crushed rock where each piece is carefully placed by hand.

 

 

 

 

I love the little jugs on top. And for the embroidery .... they seem to do a little bit of everything.

 

 

 

 

 

We then moved on to Castelo Branca to visit the Embroidery Interpretation Centre. This is an example of their type of embroidery.

 

 

Thursday, September 20, 2018

Sintra & Lisbon, Portugal

Just a few pictures from Sintra and Lisbon today.

 

These are the azulejos at the train station in Sintra.

 

 

And this is the town hall.

 

 

Back in Lisbon .... this is a close-up of the clock on the Rua Augusta Arch.

 

 

This is the Santa Justa Elevator, also known as the "Elevator of Carmo". This structure was built in 1902 by the Portugal-born French architect Raoul de Mesnier du Ponsard (an apprentice of Gustave Eiffel, which explains the structure's similarities to Paris' Eiffel Tower), to connect downtown to Bairro Alto (the lowest and highest points of the city).

Originally powered by steam, it is 45 meters (147ft) high, and remains an interesting example of post-Eiffel iron architecture. The top of the Neo-Gothic tower, reached via a spiral staircase, has a splendid view of the city.

 

 

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Arraiolos & Évora, Portugal

Our first stop today was Arraiolos, famous for its carpets. It was a great little place with a small town square. The wet area has numerous small fountains that turn on and off in patterns.

 

 

 

Embroidered carpet making was well established in Arraiolos by the seventeenth century. Wool dyeing here was active between the thirteenth and late fifteenth centuries in the town square.

 

 

The carpets are hand embroidered in merino wool.

 

 

We then went on to Evora, which has a history dating back more than five millennia. It is still partially enclosed by medieval walls, and has a large number of monuments dating from various historical periods, including a Roman Temple and an aquaduct. I wish we had had more time here.