Thursday July 2
The view from the ship. We are supposed to sign up if we want to paint a tile. The desk attendant explains that the two slim round brick towers with the pencil tip looking roof were formerly used to fire the tiles.
Every evening we find a paper on our bed with the plan for the next day. Today at 8:45 am the green group leaves the ship with a bus to visit the town Guimarães. Of we go to were the busses dropped us of the previous day.
Our trip leader Sara gives us information during the drive "in pieces". Here she talked about the situation about wild fires. Every year they seem to be a huge problem. She also said that most of the time they are not by nature or accidental. This is a very distinctive cloud.
The bus brings us to the top of the town which history calls the birthplace of the nation.
Our local guide Anna Marie is very good. The "whispers" each of us has around the neck with a piece for the ear to hear her is great. We don't all have to crowd around the guides.
At one point we stop because our trip leader Sara is passing out a piece of something baked. This is called "Tortas de Guimarāes", crispy dough, filled with a custard made with egg, spaghetti squash and almond. I found the filling quite tasty and different.
We all enjoyed the walk, seeing the midieval houses and hearing the stories. This was the city center.
On the side of the church was this. Every church had one and also a bell in the tower. My photo is not very good but on the front is a list of all the churches in the town with a number behind. If a church is on fire you know how many times to ring the bell. If you hear a church bell ring at an unusual time you should count the times it rings and you know where to go to help with the fire. Quite genius.
We went into the church. There was an entrance fee of Euros 2 each for seniors.
We paid which cash which was a 5 paper Euros. The one dollar change was the right amount to light two candles.
We were rewarded for the visit because the organist happened to be there practicing / may be teaching a singer. She had a lovely voice and it was very nice to hear both.
The lace on the altar was lovely handmade filet crochet.
The monument in front of the church was our meeting point.
We were guided back to the bus at a different place. Just when we past this place with a very pretty glass sculpture somebody started closing the door in front but when he saw me wanting to take a photo stopped and hid for me to take it.
It was all gentle down hill ending in a lovely view of a newer looking part of the town and our buses around the corner.
Lunch is always buffet like breakfast but as much as dinner. How in the world should I manage this? And the servers are always so nice.
I had signed up for the first tile painting session at 2:30 pm and almost missed it if James would not have reminded me.
We got a totally white tile which somehow is prepped to receive the paint for firing. Our "teacher" had a selection of motives out of which we were supposed to pick one. This is the one I picked. With some tape you fix it on top of the tile. You use s pencil and trace the outlines pressing as hard as you can going forth and back a few times.
When you take the motive off you can see the lines when you hold it against light in a certain way and can mark the lines a bit with the pencil. The pencil line will disappear in the firing.
Each of us had two little cups with blue pigment in water. Some so the blue will turn out darker and some lighter. We really had no exact idea. This is how mine ended up. I assume we will get the tiles before leaving for home.
The ladies on my table. Everybodies' tile looked really nice.
Katharina, our teacher. She said she was from the Ukraine.
I had taken a lot of photos today so there is going to be a Part B!
