Friday, 11/01/2024

 

We got to sleep in a bit today because the bus pick-up time is 9:45. So, we ate a leisurely breakfast, did some blogging and e-mailing (and an hour of TVA work). We met the group and started our way to Cascais (Pronounced Cash-Kish) for a visit to a Jewish center called Casa Chabad.  Karl’s Rabbi friend in Chattanooga is close with the Rabbi who runs the center.  A tour and talk were arranged. 

 

With no visible signs on the outside of the building that would suggest anything Jewish, we were met at the gate by the Security person. He meant business and after giving us the once over with a practiced eye and ensuring no large bags (other than Karl’s bag of Kosher candy) we were allowed in. We were greeted warmly by Rabbi Elie and Cookie Fischer, the librarian.

 

After some pleasantries we were shown into the library, a small-ish room maybe 20x20, and we were treated to Cookie’s story. Cookie is a polyglot, knowing 9 languages and good at 6. She was raised multiculturally – she called it being a third country kid. She wound up as the librarian for Rabbi Elie due to a long and connected story involving her mother and the Holocaust.  It was a very moving story.

 

After we toured the facility and met Rabbi Elie’s wife, we drove to lunch.  Cascais is a very posh area. Kind of like Carmel by the sea is to San Francisco.  Christiano Ronaldo is building a 30M Euro mansion quite near the place we ate lunch. The establishment is called Furnas do Guincho. In the parking lot were Ferrari’s, Maserati’s, Porche’s, BMW’s, Mercedes’ and really, there was no poor car there.

 

Our waiter recommended sea bass and turbot with a nice wine pairing from the Porto region. Of course we agreed.  

 

 

The lunch took 2 hours and then we drove to the Palacio da Pena, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It had been described as a fairy tale castle and it did not disappoint.

 

The weather looked a little iffy.  We boldly struck out up a steep incline to the shuttle area where we bypassed a long queue of visitors and were queued up for the shuttle that would take up us the hill to the Castle.  It was a small wait and the shuttle ride was quite bumpy but thankfully short. Once the shuttle let us off, it was another loooooong incline to the entrance.

 

There Rafaela explained the history of the building.  Once a monastery then summer place, then a palace fit for a queen – the second wife of the king Emmanuel. Before the monastery was constructed, a shepherd found a statue of the Virgin Mary under a rock there and the word for rock is close to Pena and they called the place Our Lady of the Rock.  Two hundred years later in 1499, King Emmanuel hiked to that place from which he gazed out over the ocean and saw Vasco de Gama’s two boats approaching.  He saw that as a sign from God and ordered 12 monasteries to be built in Portugal.  The one built here was a monastery for many years and later was convert to the Pena Palace.

 

The architecture was a combination of Moorish influence, contemporary castle and the king’s imagination.  This is the king that saw the 2 ships of all that was left of Da Gama’s great voyage of discovery return from this castle.

 

 

 

It began to rain as we were exiting the grounds.  We gingerly hiked down the shuttle route to an awaiting mini-bus. We were back at the Hotel by 6:30 and made plans to meet in the lobby in an hour to taxi to dinner.

Our taxis showed up on time and we were whisked away down the bumpy Cobblestone streets to Lisboa de Noir - another recommendation set up by the hotel concierge.  Our Cod encrusted with cornbread was just right.  Shirley and I have been splitting these large entrees.

The cabs arrived as planned and we were back in our room by 10:30, and we registered 5809 steps and 7 flights of stairs.  (It seemed more, but them we were tired from yesterday.)