Archive for March 15th, 2010

To celebrate Anthony’s birthday Lynn and John, with the help of two Portuguese friends, Luiz and Fernando, organised a meal out at the Italian restaurant in Castelo Branco.

We had a fun and very convivial Portuguese evening; all first meeting in Silveira and opening a few bottles of red while we waited for Fernando to drive over. Consequently we reached the restaurant already very jolly at 21.30, as other diners were leaving. At the end of the meal Luiz ordered Beirao, a popular Portuguese liqueur, and we toasted the staff, a Portuguese tradition we were told, and wished Anthony a very long life. A Tiramusu birthday cake with candles was produced and everyone sang. As we left the restaurant the staff had their coats on to go home, but our new Portuguese friends considered the night young and we were taken to the nearby Rock Café; a dark cellar full of loud rock music with young and older music fans, sitting at tables on plastic chairs, enjoying the sounds. We tumbled in to bed tired and slightly giddy in the early hours after a birthday to remember

Lynn and John live in Silveira, a hamlet on the northern banks of the River Tejo, with their beautiful cat Jagger. As well as their own house, they have two cottages they let as holiday rentals for the perfect, away-from-it-all retreat. Hopefully the photographs of the area do justice to the rural charm of this area. You can find more details and book your own trip to this beautiful part of Portugal on the Owners Direct website, property reference P6367.

Kayt and Zohra flew over from the UK to join us for a long weekend and Lynn and John were faultless hosts, taking us all for walks and trips locally; we met other villagers as they were out working in the sunshine, we spotted a Short-toed Eagle and a tiny snake, we walked through olive trees and past rushing streams, we admired the village bread ovens and covered well, we stood on a high crag above the river watching the Griffon Vultures circle below us. In the evenings we shared the cooking, drank Portuguese red wine and brandy, caught up on all the news and gossip and enjoyed plenty of laughing.

We had a day trip to Marvao, a walled hill town with charming houses and a warren of a castle perched at one end, a magnificent spot with panoramic views over fields and villages to every side. The day also provided another fantastic Portuguese café experience; Zohra and Kayt had to be dragged out of the cake shop salivating after purchasing only a small selection of the delicious, sweet Portuguese cakes.