RIVER AFTER PORTO

 

RIVER AFTER PORTO

 

ON THE RIVER

Lunch was in the more relaxed lounge with a buffet.  There was plenty on my diet to eat:  octopus salad, some wonderful Portuguese stone soup with chorizo and cabbage, wine, wonderful expresso, a green I could not recognize. I skipped the pizza and cookies and cakes and such.

Our pianist played while we ate and we talked to Dennis, a college mathematics professor, and his Chinese wife Jen about teaching.  I defended the union to folks who I think have always been antiunion and are Republican from Virginia.  We enjoyed each other.

 

I'll work backwards from now until breakfast.

We are now in our first lock and moving out into the river again.  I spent a couple hours wrapped in my nice winter hat and huge scarf watching Portugal drift by.  There are plenty of water birds here:  anhinga, blue heron, mallards, sea gull, and I think I saw some kingfishers, three of them in one tree. 

Along the shore these small towns were scattered with rather rich looking summer houses looking out on the river.  There was very little agriculture, just a garden here and there.  In one spot fisherman tried their luck from the shore, but no other kind of boat of any kind passed us.  I could see the little boats moored, some of them taking in design the front of the famous boats that once transported port wine before it was done in trucks.

I don't know which lock this was, but I thought I'd toss the photo in here.

I was so pleased to have prepared for winter.  It is cold out there today.  The sun warms us, but we are more often shaded by hills and trees.  Sitting behind the Captain's steerage area did cut the wind and lessen the impact of the cold.  My wonderful winter hat really did the trick although next time I'll add a layer under my jacket.