Serra da Estrela

I’ve been driven up the wall recently by midterms and studying, and also by not having done anything “touristy” (or for that matter, leaving Lisbon, or even my apartment). Three weeks ago, before the midterm stress and boredom, when I saw that Erasmus was offering a weekend trip to Serra da Estrela, home to some of the only mountains on mainland Portugal, and also the highest point on the mainland, I signed up right then and there. I knew then that the mountains would be what I needed at that point in time. The peace and quiet of the countryside would help reduce the stress I knew I would be feeling. I was right (something I’m not usually when it comes to predicting my future moods). This trip was everything it needed to be: A chance to relax, to get back in touch with nature, to get away from the city, to meet new people. Overall, this region of Portugal was beautiful with such ease.

Village Life

This trip left from Lisbon early (6:45 am!) but this was necessary as Serra da Estrela is about 3-and-a-half hours away, in the northeastern part of the country, the border with Spain very close. Our final destination was Covilhã, a city built on the lower slopes of the mountains But, before then, we had three stops to make. Stop number one was the quaint village of São Simão, located near huge deposits of the same schist that makes up the entire village. Beautiful stone walls line this sleepy hamlet. So sleepy that our only company from the village was a cute dog that followed us all the way back to the bus (poor fellow just wanted attention from someone, seeing as it seemed to me we were in a ghost town). We winded our way through the narrow alleyways surrounded by the typical red roofs (still beautiful no matter how many times I see them). Vines laden with grapes hung tantalizingly above our heads, just out of reach. A ornate stone fountain yielded pure mountain spring water for this thirsty traveler. We reached the edge of the precipice that the village is built on, and descended down into the river valley below. The river was roaring, swelling over the banks thanks in part to the heavy rain Portugal received the week before. Real trees (sorry Lisbon, your trees are very puny) lined the river, becoming the frame for this picturesque brook. Farther upstream, towering cliffs (made of, you guessed it, schist) made me feel insignificant. I marveled in the beauty of this area, and then marveled at the huge hill I had to walk up to get back to the bus. Here we left the beauty behind (as well as the little doggo) and we zoomed off to our next mountain destination, Belmonte. This village is striking for many reasons. Alleyways wind their way through the city like terraces, all leading to the high point of the city, in which a beautiful castle sits perched, watching over the mountains (at this time covered in fluffy clouds) to the west, and the farmland to the east. Here, the only sign of life is the group of grandpas sitting in the park, probably gossiping about the large group of college students who have invaded their serene scene of a town. In this town, we experienced the “golden hour.” Sunbeams lit up the red roofs so that they looked like they were on fire, and made an already beautiful town even more so. It was with a heavy heart I left this beautiful town, but not too heavy. For, our next destination was a wine tasting! Our Erasmus guide was practically giddy (he had done this same trip last year). The winery was a little off the beaten path, and called Quinta dos Termos. Here, we got a quick tour of the grounds, and then feasted on Iberian ham, cheese, bread, and jam, while trying three white wines (one with flavors of passion fruit and pineapple, probably my favorite) and four red wines. It was a lot of fun (for many reasons; you can guess them). With that done, we retreated to Covilhã to check into our hotel, eat dinner, and enjoy the night. The mountains (using the cloak of nighttime to hide from us) awaited us.

 Into the Cold

A 8:30 wake-up call got me into the mindset that I would be in the mountains again, and potentially frolicking through the snow. Of course, I didn’t know if their would be snow or not, since the tops of the peaks had been shrouded in clouds since our arrival in this wonderland of lush countryside. Luckily, the weather came through. Actually, it was probably a little overzealous. The thumbnail for this post shows the mountains about 1500 feet below the top. There, it was around freezing, but some vistas were viewable, and all the snow was very compact. But, driving up the winding road perched precariously on the sides of cliffs, barren except for the odd shrub, things changed. We ascended into the clouds, and arrived in an entirely different clime. This clime was colder (probably around 25) with 45+ mph winds and 6 inches of fresh snow covering the ground. Here we stopped at the Senhora da Boa Estrela, a rather frosty monument representing the patron saint of the mountains. Here, we climbed down into a short dip (with an icy creek to boot) and walked back up some treacherous stairs to see the monument. That’s about all we could see, as the whipping wind blew powdery snow in every direction. After that, we drove to the top, the highest point in continental Portugal. Here, a 8 meter tall tower stands, to ensure that the tallest point is exactly 2000 meters above sea level (although I’m not sure that’s how measuring elevation works, Portugal). Here, a market full of fresh Iberian meats, the cheese native to the region, and every piece of equipment or clothing that could be used for the snow, bustles with activity. You can also buy lunch, and alcohol (two very important things if you get stranded at the top; that happens quite frequently, as the roads take a while to clear). It was too cold to enjoy the snowy fields at the top, begging to be used for snowball fights and building snowmen. We escaped the mountains (not before seeing two gigantic reservoirs used to store the pure mountain water the reserve has in abundancy) and headed home. We made a final stop at Castelo Novo, a village in which the main (and only attraction) was the castle at the top of the hill (seems familiar, huh?). This castle also had stunning views of the valleys below, maybe even better than our first castle of the trip. This village also had a unique feel; trees overladen with fruit were everywhere, and lemons, mandarins, and pomegranates were free to be picked at leisure. All in all, these village and mountains can be described with every stereotypical superlative used for such things. I won’t use words to give them justice. Enjoy my photos, or look up some (since I am an amateur photographer).

Expanding my Passport

Something I left out of this post so far is my interactions with the other people on the trip. I promise they existed; they just earned and deserved their own section in this post. I was going on this trip with no one I knew; I was forcing myself to get out of my comfort zone. I was nervous about this; I really shouldn’t have been. My seat partner (since the bus was full) ended up being an amazing person, who I spent basically the whole trip with, and who also introduced me to other amazing people! My seat partner, Arseni, is Belarusian, and was immediately interested in learning about my perspective of Europe, and telling me about his homeland (he was the first ever Belarusian I’ve ever met). His sense of humor was superb, and he was always making song references at random things. I found that endearing. He also introduced me to his friend, Anastasia (also Belarusian), and her roommate Martyna (from Poland). Those two were both super friendly and welcomed me like they’d known me for ages. I had fun venturing with them in São Simão, and chatting with them on the bus. In Belmonte,  my circle of new friends got larger. Joining us for lunch was Gajus (a Lithuanian with a wicked sense of humor, and also the first Lithuanian I’ve ever met), Marta (from Spain, actually the first Spaniard I’ve met in Portugal so far), and Tomasso (an Italian also with a good sense of humor; I sense a common theme here), as well as Anna, a Russian who knew both Arseni and Anastasia (they attributed that connection to every Russian speaker knowing each other). We bonded over lunch and guessing what the old men across the street where gossiping about. We explored an abandoned house in Belmonte. We formed a squad at the wine tasting, and pretended to critique the wine like real connoisseurs. I ended up rooming with Gajus and Arseni, and taking them each back to the room respectively after they had enough to drink for the night. I also met a group of cool Portuguese high-schoolers in the bar (yes, they were underage, even for Portugal; I didn’t question it; I assume its normal in small towns like Covilhã). They all had good taste in music, and were also interested to learn about our university experiences. On our mountain trip, my new group of European friends started impromptu snowball fights, and cheered us all up as we got stuck in a terrible traffic jam on the way back (we moved about 3 miles in an hour). They made the experience worth having. I will be sure to keep in touch with them for my last 4 weeks in Portugal. Also, after meeting people from Lithuania, Belarus, and Spain, I have now made friends with people from over 20 countries of the world. That in itself is why I have loved this experience so much. The amount of knowledge I have gained from making these friends will undoubtedly benefit me for life. These people are just so friendly. I’m sorry if you disagree with me, but especially in Seattle, the people are not that friendly, and not willing to talk to a new person so freely. I have appreciated that about Europe. But, I think living in a place that has a term for how unfriendly the people are doesn’t help my perception (thanks Seattle Freeze). Cheers to the European people for being so welcoming!

That’s it! It was good to get back to blogging. I forgot how much blogging had become an outlet when I needed a break from studying and doing homework. But, this trip was fantastic, and exactly what I needed! The next upcoming blog post will be about the wonderful 3 days I will spend in Amsterdam. I am very excited to go there! The weather looks like it will be amazing, and the city will be lit up for the first time for Christmas this year. Also, have a happy Thanksgiving! I know I’m thankful for the opportunity I have had to explore Europe and meet new people. Until next time,

 

Jeremy Caldeira