Portugal. A Very Neat Place (Part One); September 2019
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Portugal is a small country with a large, adventuresome history of discovery and exploration and a nice mix of fine beaches, culture, city life, and scenery.
I first visited in 1961(!) on a CAP Cadet Exchange and had a great time wandering around Lisbon with other cadets, hearing Fado, visiting museums, and getting rides in biplanes and gliders. I always wanted to return but higher priorities intervened. Things finally worked out in September 2019.
Portugal fronts the Atlantic and backs up against Spain and its coast ranges from many fine beaches to dramatic rock headlands. The Atlantic is implacably energetic, sometimes lapping at fine sand expanses and sometimes smashing. We never saw stormy weather, but it must get very exciting along the coast in bad weather, and the surfing can reputedly be extreme. Portugal was one of the great exploring nations and is still tied culturally and productively to the sea.
A brief introduction: figures on Lisbon's monument to discovery
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The Algarve mixes dramatic headlands and fine beaches.
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After a lifetime of mainly expressing myself with words, my postings here will mainly rely on images. They will speak for themselves to some extent, but I'll usually add a few comments of explanation. I've taken photographs for decades, since the 1950's, inspired in part by my father's photographic skill. Four years of photo assignments and quality darkroom time eventually gave way to decades of casual and family picture-taking. I re-immersed myself when I left film and turned to digital.