how to be portuguese, part v

rule number five: drink ginjinha.

ginjinha is a sour cherry liqueur, a typical drink near the square in rossio in lisbon. there's a place called a ginjinha where people get it, served in a small plastic cup, with a few actual cherries in the bottom. it's overwhelming, full of alcohol, and the cherries are practically inedible.

rule number six: eat a lot of fish. and pork. the portuguese diet is full of codfish, sardines, pork, and very few vegetables. and a lot of salt. yes, i tried the codfish. yes, i am happy to be back and eating vegetables; my body really missed them.

how to be portuguese, part iv

rule number four: let the tourists drink alcoholic beverages made of grapes, and then have a beer. apparently, the portuguese don't drink that much port; it's mostly leftover from when the british had a lot of influence, hence the names of many of the cellars: taylor, croft, sandeman.

don't get me wrong, i drank quite a few beers. but, in porto, there was quite a bit of port.
port wine comes in many varieties: tawny, ruby, colheita, vintage, late bottle vintage (LBV), even white. the whites were incredible, potentially the best of the bunch, though i loved the LBVs as well. apparently, portugal does not export many of its wines; they are an exclusive treat to be had only within the country. and while port is usually an after-dinner drink, the white ports are typically apéritifs.
the vineyards are not in porto, and the the cellars (caves) are across the river in the vila nova de gaia. the vineyards are far up the river.

the caves mostly looked the same, but varied in size and type of ports. the barrels are enormous.
the instituto do vinho do porto regulates the wine and promotes the industry.


while i thought sandeman had the worst ports of those i tasted, this is pretty good image of the extensiveness of the area.
vintage wines are named for the year they were made; usually, there are only a few per decade. they must be stored sideways, as they are unfiltered. they also must be decanted.
i wish i had found this wine shop/bar, vinologica, sooner. it had a really impressive menu of bottles to try.

how to be portuguese, part iii

rule number three: like really old things.

(i know you are thinking, this is a blog about food. like, what is she doing? but, to know the visit is to know the food and everything else. it all leads into the wine, i swear.)

sé de lisboa. the oldest cathedral in the city, built in 1147.
there's a cloister in the back. and an excavation. apparently they have found proof of things centuries older than the cathedral itself.
castelo de são jorge. fortified (as shown by the cannon) castle high above lisbon.

monasterio de jerónimos, in belém, west of lisbon. created in the manueline style. includes vasco da gama's tomb, or so they say.
museu arqueológico do carmo, lisbon. once a church, now a museum of archaeology.
i ventured to sintra, which was truly beautiful. first, i visited the palacio nacional, but then took a very windy bus ride up to the palacio & park da pena.
it was so far north that i was in the fog.

and, oh, the portuguese love these blue tiles. they are everywhere. there's even a museum dedicated to them.
ok. onto the wine. the port.

how to be portuguese, part ii

rule number two: live in a hilly city with various forms of transportation. especially enjoy elevators and funiculars.

stairway, lisbon, alfama. alfama is the hilliest neighborhood, where fado music originated. (this is why the portuguese can eat all those pastries.)
elevador da santa justa, lisbon. designed by a student of gustave eiffel. very charlie and the great glass elevator, but not quick enough to break through the top. there are 4 elevators.
river douro, porto. it used to be that the casks of wine traveled on boats from the valley to city. now, they use trucks. the boats are for show. for the tourists. also, the portuguese are very proud of henry the navigator and travels westward to the americas.
funicular dos guindais, porto. ludo will tell you that i love a funicular. it's an easy way to travel to a much higher point in the city without walking. it is part of porto's public transit system. this photograph was taken from inside the funicular.
and, we have almost reached the top. it's a very steep funicular.
buses, everywhere. this is lisbon.
but there are trains and trams, too. so san francisco.

how to be portuguese

rule number one: eat pastries.

the portuguese love pastries. every few steps in portugal lies a pastelaria or a confeitaria. they are huge fans of sugary, bready delights with powdered sugar or custard or powdered sugar and custard. you can get a pastry and an espresso for less than $2.
pastry 1: lisbon, cake partially covered in chocolate with apricot jam filling

pastry 2: sintra, queijada. this is what they are known for in sintra. it's almost like a tart, with a thin crust and sugary cheese filling.
pastry 3: lisbon, puffy brioche-like pastry covered in powdered sugar.
pastry 4: porto, similar to pastry 3 but with custard inside. EVERYONE sells these. they are in all of the shop windows. it came from a place called pastelaria basptista. i like to think it was a religious act to eat it.

did it.

i joined a csa. it's in dumbo, which is a bit of a hike, but i received no response from the carroll gardens csa. so, there you have it. we'll also be getting a fruit share, in addition to the vegetables. starts june 8th. ready.

the return.

before i get to the details on portugal, it must be noted that i returned to an almost-empty refrigerator. even my roommates had almost no food in there. i did have, luckily, the eggs! and some random small potatoes and half of a loaf of grainy bread.

yesterday's breakfast: egg salad on toast with roasted potatoes. and coffee. but that's a given.