When we came back from Barcelona, there was a procession in front of our building. It went from the top of Rua de Santa Catarina to the end where it concluded at Igreja de Santo Ildefonso. The procession was for Santo Ildefonso. Fun fact, some times you see São in front of saint's name and sometime you Santo/a. If the saint's name starts with a consonant, it will be proceeded by São and if the saint's name starts with a vowel, it will be proceeded by Santo/a.
Most people think of pastel de nata when they think of pastries from Portugal. However, there's also another pastry or technically pastry ingredient for which they are known. It is doces de ovos (a cream made from eggs and sugar that translates to sweet eggs). The cream's bright orange color comes from the egg yolks...unlike eggs back home, the eggs here are not pasteurized and have a bright color and actual taste.
The history of this sweet treat dates back to the 16th century when nuns in Aveiro created it. Back in the day, the nuns would use egg whites to starch clothes. Not ones to waste, they figured out a way to use the egg yolks and thus a delicious treat was born.
This guy provided me great entertainment last summer and I was thrilled to see him again this summer!
LuLu has become a fan of the Humana stores here!
They're a 2nd hand store and some days everything is €2!
I've said it before but it bears repeating. The pride and care the Portuguese take in their work is so admirable and I wish we saw more of it at home. It is common to see shopkeepers washing the sidewalks in front of their buildings and their store windows. All the little cafes with outdoor seating put away their tables and chairs each night so the street sweepers can clean and then put them back out each morning.
We took the funicular down to the river and headed back over the Dom Luis I Bridge to Gaia. Can't resist taking a funicular anytime there's one around...just something about it.
The Chapel of Souls is about a block from our apartment and is a popular spot for folks to take their Instagram photos (not sure why folks do sexy poses in front of a church...go figure). We got up just before sunrise to be able to get a photo without the hundreds of folks there every day. It is really a beautiful church!
Sunset on the Douro is the perfect ending to a day. You can book Douro Sailing through AirBnB but it is one Elaine found earlier this year and of course has become friends with the owners.
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