Getting Juiced On Mateus And Hanging Loose*

If you're of a certain vintage, that is, Baby Boomer, you may recall Mateus, a rose' popular in the 60s and 70s which was the introduction to wine for many of us in that generation (I preferred the cheaper sweet whites from upstate NY). A candle burning in a Mateus bottle is a great 60s image. Although Mateus is not nearly what it was then, the chateau (casa) Mateus was just on the other side of the hill (an hour's drive), and I thought it would be a fun visit and tour and maybe tasting. For old time's sake. Sort of.

But when we got there we found that parking was 8.50E, admission 12.50E (and
no discount for Boomers), the garden 4.50E, and a single tasting, 4.00E; I think
I have been to many of the great vineyards/breweries/distilleries in Europe but
never have I felt as prospectively ripped-off (60s term) as here; we had lunch in
the camper and drove on

Later, at a Continente in Porto, I bought a bottle of Mateus
(for old times' sake) and an accompanying 187ml bottle (an
offerta), all for 2.68E

*Not. But the line is from Elton John, 1973.

On The Douro

The Douro is a great river, extending from the Atlantic all the way back well into Spain. It is also Portugal's answer to Germany's Rhine (and Moselle, etc.) providing grapes, vineyards, castles, and river cruises to those so inclined. Instead of Riesling, you get Port, great port. From Trancoso, we drove to Lamego and its fine riverside aire de camping-cars (under three bridges; 3 euros, including electricity). Next day, we drove up one of the tributaries to Vila Real to see the Casa Mateus (next post), then back to Lamego and, on the Douro a bit, all the way to Porto and a campground there on the ocean (another post). All this was May 31st/June 1st, for those of you keeping score at home.

Note sleek 21st century bridge surmounting Romanesque bridge

Railroad bridge (no traffic)

From the aire

Portugal's answer to the Veterano bull...

The ruby is great (for those of us with
extreme sweet teeth)

Camping by the Douro

Every hill and mountain is terraced and planted from river to
summit

OK, so we have driven hundreds (thousands) of miles
(kilometers) on the Iberian peninsula, seeing nothing but
buildings that are white with tiled roofs; everywhere; nothing
but; and then here, on a tributary of the Douro, this little
neighborhood of color pops up, then fades away; Vicki suggests
they probably had to drive to France to buy the paint

Fade to white

Interesting non-Incan terracing

The Douro, downstream from Lamego; great river

It was, alas, a day of extraordinary haze

And the demands of the ridiculous road kept me from getting
pix of any of the river cruise ships

Incredibly steep all around; we can hardly believe there is a
mechanized harvest here

Trancoso

It was to be a 2 town-and-castle day. After Belmonte and the day's anta, we drove to pretty Trancoso, a small walled town with a small castle, dating back to Moorish times, 9th-10th centuries, and which, among other things, offers ample shaded and level parking right outside the Kings Gate.

It was here, in Trancoso, in 1282, that the king Dom Dinis
married 12-year-old Isabel of Aragon

Outside the King's Gate; the walls are pretty intermittent

Where the wedding took place (we surmised)

Big plaza

Similar to the hankie tree we so admired in England

More nice public landscaping

More walls and tower

Handrails were not invented until the Enlightenment

Sic transit, Gloria (someone's wash hanging out)

Portal for Gothic cars and trucks

At last, the castle

Most interestingly, the castle's history is inscribed onto the steps
(I'll spare you the next thousand years)

10th century Keep

21st century Medieval fair

Partial-pano

Ditto; it's actually quite small for a castle, not much larger than
some of the fortified residences we have seen

 

Burn this image onto your retina (the cross and the castle)

It's on all the city lamp posts

Beautiful lanes and alleys throughout (a kind
resident actually hid behind the bushes for me
to get this shot) 

Tile street signs

In the former Jewish quarter, the doors and
windows on this building are tromp l'oeil;
there is a museum and memorial

This, we construed, was the sign put on a
"convert's" house (after the Portuguese
Inquisition arrived)

Shot of the day: Flutterment; all kinds of flutterment going on

Another Day, Another Anta

We were driving down the road, minding our own business, when all of a sudden another "Anta" archaeological sign appears, right on the road, and of course we had to turn around and park to see it. It was the Anta da Pera do Moco, a smaller one, by Portuguese standards (would have been huge in some other places), but well worth the stop.

Thus

Nice interpretive signage, although not in English too

Bit of a fixer-upper, but the roof was still good, especially for
6,000 years old

Further down the road, after Trancosa and en route to Lamego,
we followed other signs, but never found this one, despite
signage and GPS; oh well, maybe next time; we have had very
good luck finding megaliths on this trip