“Now is the time to become a myth.”
— Diane Von Furstenberg
The original plan was to spend my birthday in Évora, celebrating past, present, and future, but when a dear friend’s birthday gift was bestowed upon me in the form of a special birthday lunch treat in the Castle of Óbidos, we switched plans, and it was the best decision ever! Muchísimas gracias YTL!
But I am getting ahead of the story… the celebration began last night with the traditional popping of the bubbly, much to the consternation of the cats. Maike presented me with two very special and unique gifts that mean the world to me. As some of you already know, she launched her own official website last month, Maike Herzog Art, and I couldn’t be prouder of her! When your daughter is an artist, your gifts are definitely not the round of the mill flowers and chocolates, but instead, art work created from the soul to move the soul. She knows how special my bond to my mother was, and a while back she asked me for some of my favourite shots of my mom, which I sent over. She took those, plus a few of my portraits as references, and came up with this masterpiece, combining details from several photos. Any of you reading this who knew Mommy, will feel the love that continues to live through Maike:
The second gift was a perfume sampler from a perfumer that mixes scents intended to evoke or recreate memories. So Maison Margiela offers aromas named “By the Fireplace” or “Beach Walk”, “Under The Lemon Trees”, and my favourite, “Springtime in A Park”. The scents are unique and non-conformist, and Maike’s intention in her selection was to help me in writing some scenes in my books.
We left the Shire early enough, knowing that we would run into rush hour traffic in Lisbon. This gave us ample time to have a lovely salmon and avocado toast at one of my regular cafes in the area, Cafe Jeronymo, before boarding the bus. Many of the day trips out of Lisbon offered by organised tour groups offer a day tour of Fatima, Óbidos and Nazaré or Peniche, and I have no idea how they manage that. You need at least a day in each of these places, and for Nazaré or Peniche you would be better off with at least three if you want to do the island tour and cave explorations in Peniche. Furthermore, today I discovered that if you want to make the most of your stay in Óbidos and really explore everything the area has to offer, you have to allot two days.
We have been travelling mostly by FlixBus, which is the more economical way – with current gasoline prices, you can’t really complete with FlixBus’ rates of EUR 2.99 per person one way. Sure, the car is definitely more convenient, but it also means that the designated driver can never indulge in the wines of the area or the Ginja (cherry liqueur), not to mention the sangrias and mojitos! In any case, travelling by bus often means that you need to organise an additional cab into the old city or city centre. In Évora this was a matter of five minutes and you remained within the city limits. With Óbidos, however, the bus station is in Caldas da Rainha, the next town over, and then you need a 15 minute car / cab ride into the old city of Óbidos. Word of caution, the history of this area extends all the way back to the Palaeolithic age, later on settled by the Celts, before the Romans moved in, therefore it is not wheelchair or stroller friendly. It entails mostly narrow cobbled streets and all inclined. There is no wheelchair access to the castle that I saw.
Like most other tourist hotspots, there is always a Main Street full of restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops, but Óbidos is by far one of the quaintest little historical towns I have seen in a long time. It immediately reminded me of Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Germany. The town is preparing for the Medieval Market which will be from July 20-30, 2023 so the mood is festive and as early as now some of the medieval touches can be seen, starting with the troubadours at the entrance to the old city, a fully clad knight in shining armour greeting all and sundry a few meters later, and the fellows with live owls (who have the patience of saints) and falcons (squawking louder by the minute) who set up a photo “booth” of sorts.
Much of the souvenirs carry pretty much the same fare as any other tourist town around Portugal, but the unique twist to this city is their love for books, which culminates in a literature festival. So it is no surprise to have bookstores combined with fruit markets or the more unique variation, books and sardines! Churches are plentiful in this little place, lest you lose your soul to the alcohol, and I love the fact that most of them are still active parishes.
The highlight of the day was trekking up to the castle, which is now a boutique hotel and has a restaurant with a view that takes your breath away. As we stepped in I wished I could have been wearing some medieval gown and a tiara! And because I had booked a table well in advance and informed them it was a birthday lunch, they went all out for us, beginning with the best seat in the house, with a window that overlooks out into the Óbidos valley:
The chef went all out and started us off with a birthday cocktail of Spumante and Ginja, before the food started arriving. I felt incredibly special and pampered, truly removed from daily life as I know it.
Needless to say, we slept all the way back to Lisbon out of sheer exhaustion (and full bellies). But we woke up refreshed and still managed a quick shopping trip at the mall before heading back home to the Shire. It has been one of the most memorable birthdays ever, full of blessings and joy. Chapter 56 begins, full of promise, hope and gratitude.
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