I’ve always lived by the sea, adoring the calculus curves and humbling power of waves. I had seen footage of the largest surfed waves in the world at a Portuguese fishing village called Nazaré, and was eager to include it on our tour of the Iberian Peninsula. It didn’t take much to get my foodie partner onboard, as she was on a personal pilgrimage to eat as many sardines as possible.
Continue reading “Climbers have Everest, Surfers have Nazaré, Cath has Sardines”The Ten Albums Thing
Ok I’ll bite. A few friends requested I do the ten albums thing, but I couldn’t abide by the rules, in particular the “no explanation” one. So here’s a list of ten albums that have influenced me, with a wee bit of explanation. The order is chronological by year of release:
:format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-5872494-1405033211-9825.jpeg.jpg)
Fado and Flowers
Thanks to Mike Burns for reminding me that today is the anniversary of the Carnation Revolution in Portugal. Mike, a Freo muso and ethnomusicologist, is an exponent of Portugal’s emotional Fado music. On 25 April 1974, a relatively peaceful coup took place in Lisbon overthrowing one of the longest-running authoritarian regimes in Europe. Restaurant worker Celeste Caeiro gave carnations to the revolutionary soldiers who placed them in the muzzles of their guns, as people took to the street to celebrate the end of the dictatorship. It also spelled the end of the Portuguese Colonial War that was bankrupting the nation, with African territories gaining their independence.
Continue reading “Fado and Flowers”