We bid an early morning farewell to our cushy Marriott digs, after the usual chow down at the breakfast buffet. Such lovely smoked salmon! It's so hard to say goodbye...the salmon and I were getting into a serious relationship, but we had places to go, religious icons to pay homage to, and lots more lovely wine to drink. Onward to Fatima and the Douro Valley!
We piled into the car and got comfy for the 3-hour drive that lay ahead. Google instructions displayed on Pete's laptop and on we went with some last lingering looks.
Did I mention that it was really hot.? I mean hot. Which became apparent after we rolled into Fatima to see the spot where the 3 young children had several visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1917. Blazing.Hot. Not that we ever felt we were in the other place down below...but let's put aside thoughts of a religious crisis.The legend is inspirational for religious pilgrims across the world, and on the 13th of every month they gather in the massive plaza that has a traditional cathedral at one end, and a very modern sanctuary at the end. Around the perimeter there are monuments to the three kids, the Holy Family, important people, stations of the cross, and a lovely religious gift shop. One of about 100 that we saw in the town. Along with lots of pastry shops.
We strolled through the plaza and visited the church. Being there made me think of my mother and sister, who had made a pilgrimage to Lourdes back in the 60s. They wanted to go to Fatima as well but never made it. I got my sister a murano glass icon, and one for myself to remember my Mom and it was time to move on to Vila Real and our farmhouse apartment in the Douro Valley. We had an iced tea in the pastry shop and the guy gave us two tasty apple pastries...just because. Portugal is awesome.
After an uneventful drive climbing ever higher in the mountains, the directions to Casa Levada pointed suspiciously to the city of Vila Real. Where were the vines? The hillsides? The bucolic natural splendor? Not to mention a swimming pool...
We went through roundabout 1, then roundabout 2, took a left by the housing project, circled back for 2 km and finally saw a sign for Casa Do Levada. We took the sharp left turn and approached the stone farmhouse with trepidation. It WAS a farmhouse, and it WAS on quite a bit of acreage, but I gotta tell you my friends, websites can lie. If you care to - here's a link to the website.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/casa-agricola-da-levada.en.html
Now, dear friends, check out the reality below.
2 Bedroom guest cottage had NO WINDOWS! And no screens on the doors. See above for the heat index. NO AIR CONDITIONING AND NO FAN. Also. the toilet bowl was cracked and there wasn't even a sofa to sit upon. Just an old day bed and some very rickety wicker chairs.
These spoiled Americans that had just left the Preia Del Ray would have none of it. We had a conference by the charcoal grill and decided to throw caution to the winds and bid Vila Real goodbye. Too bad that Pete and Linds lost the deposit, but what was that compared to our comfort, and actually having some air circulation? We are now talking about 6-6:30 in the evening. Keep in mind.
We set off for the town of Pinhao, which is supposed to be the nexus of the Douro Valley experience. Unfortunately, we missed a turn on one of the roundabouts and wound up circling through many small towns and twisting and turning around the mountain. It's now getting later and no place to stay. Just a little tension rising...
The Force, and the Hertz map, were with us and we got back to Vila Real, passed by Cas Da Levada again and got ourselves on the right track. Mission accomplished! Now to find a place to stay.
Driving. Driving. Driving. Passed the town of Sabrosa heading towards Pinhao. Sun is getting lower. '
Danny pointed out a modern wine cave as we passed by, and then slammed on his brakes. "I know this place," he yelled. Backed up, saw a sign for a restaurant and hotel. As we pulled up to the restaurant a beautiful Portugese young lady came down the steps and asked if she could help us. Could she ever!
Dinner? Yes. Rooms? Yes. Ana- how we love you! We wound up having the most wonderful dinner you can imagine, complete with a Porto tonic cocktail to begin with, appetizer, main course and dessert, and their own wine served with every course. We thought we dropped dowon into heaven as we were sitting on the terrace viewing the vineyards and watching the sun go down. Honestly, this actually would be a good model for your heavenly reward. It doesn't get much better.
Feeling relieved and relaxed we wound our way down the road to the spectacular small inn. Two gorgeous rooms, a lovely breakfast, and a cool swimming pool with a massive fig tree made us say "Yes! We'll stay here for the next four nights!" I do think our lady of Fatima, and my Mom were looking out for us. Thanks, my ladies for bringing us to this most magnificent spot of Quinta Do Portal. We couldn't be happier.
We piled into the car and got comfy for the 3-hour drive that lay ahead. Google instructions displayed on Pete's laptop and on we went with some last lingering looks.
Did I mention that it was really hot.? I mean hot. Which became apparent after we rolled into Fatima to see the spot where the 3 young children had several visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1917. Blazing.Hot. Not that we ever felt we were in the other place down below...but let's put aside thoughts of a religious crisis.The legend is inspirational for religious pilgrims across the world, and on the 13th of every month they gather in the massive plaza that has a traditional cathedral at one end, and a very modern sanctuary at the end. Around the perimeter there are monuments to the three kids, the Holy Family, important people, stations of the cross, and a lovely religious gift shop. One of about 100 that we saw in the town. Along with lots of pastry shops.
We strolled through the plaza and visited the church. Being there made me think of my mother and sister, who had made a pilgrimage to Lourdes back in the 60s. They wanted to go to Fatima as well but never made it. I got my sister a murano glass icon, and one for myself to remember my Mom and it was time to move on to Vila Real and our farmhouse apartment in the Douro Valley. We had an iced tea in the pastry shop and the guy gave us two tasty apple pastries...just because. Portugal is awesome.
After an uneventful drive climbing ever higher in the mountains, the directions to Casa Levada pointed suspiciously to the city of Vila Real. Where were the vines? The hillsides? The bucolic natural splendor? Not to mention a swimming pool...
We went through roundabout 1, then roundabout 2, took a left by the housing project, circled back for 2 km and finally saw a sign for Casa Do Levada. We took the sharp left turn and approached the stone farmhouse with trepidation. It WAS a farmhouse, and it WAS on quite a bit of acreage, but I gotta tell you my friends, websites can lie. If you care to - here's a link to the website.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/casa-agricola-da-levada.en.html
Now, dear friends, check out the reality below.
2 Bedroom guest cottage had NO WINDOWS! And no screens on the doors. See above for the heat index. NO AIR CONDITIONING AND NO FAN. Also. the toilet bowl was cracked and there wasn't even a sofa to sit upon. Just an old day bed and some very rickety wicker chairs.
These spoiled Americans that had just left the Preia Del Ray would have none of it. We had a conference by the charcoal grill and decided to throw caution to the winds and bid Vila Real goodbye. Too bad that Pete and Linds lost the deposit, but what was that compared to our comfort, and actually having some air circulation? We are now talking about 6-6:30 in the evening. Keep in mind.
We set off for the town of Pinhao, which is supposed to be the nexus of the Douro Valley experience. Unfortunately, we missed a turn on one of the roundabouts and wound up circling through many small towns and twisting and turning around the mountain. It's now getting later and no place to stay. Just a little tension rising...
The Force, and the Hertz map, were with us and we got back to Vila Real, passed by Cas Da Levada again and got ourselves on the right track. Mission accomplished! Now to find a place to stay.
Driving. Driving. Driving. Passed the town of Sabrosa heading towards Pinhao. Sun is getting lower. '
Danny pointed out a modern wine cave as we passed by, and then slammed on his brakes. "I know this place," he yelled. Backed up, saw a sign for a restaurant and hotel. As we pulled up to the restaurant a beautiful Portugese young lady came down the steps and asked if she could help us. Could she ever!
Dinner? Yes. Rooms? Yes. Ana- how we love you! We wound up having the most wonderful dinner you can imagine, complete with a Porto tonic cocktail to begin with, appetizer, main course and dessert, and their own wine served with every course. We thought we dropped dowon into heaven as we were sitting on the terrace viewing the vineyards and watching the sun go down. Honestly, this actually would be a good model for your heavenly reward. It doesn't get much better.
Feeling relieved and relaxed we wound our way down the road to the spectacular small inn. Two gorgeous rooms, a lovely breakfast, and a cool swimming pool with a massive fig tree made us say "Yes! We'll stay here for the next four nights!" I do think our lady of Fatima, and my Mom were looking out for us. Thanks, my ladies for bringing us to this most magnificent spot of Quinta Do Portal. We couldn't be happier.
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