The Pantzers parlay Portugal

June 20: Castelo Rodrigo

Our boat is moored in Spain, right on the border with Portugal and there is a 1 hour time difference between the two countries. This has greatly confused my Apple Watch which keeps adding 1 hour and then subtracting 1 hour! It has also confused Vodafone which keeps sending me messages about activating my $5 roaming agreement in Spain, and then Portugal, and then Spain…you get the idea.

Today we boarded a bus in Spain and two minutes later we were in Portugal on a visit to the historical village of Castelo Rodrigo. It is one of the 12 historic villages of Portugal, sitting atop an isolated hill with splendid views of both countries.

The most valuable features of its historical heritage are the old walls, the ruins of a palace, a 16th century pillory, and a medieval cistern.

The castle perched on top of the hill had some interesting aspects. The first photo shows a “treason” door, and the other pictures show more of the ruins.

It had an old Jewish quarter and in the past, it was always a place where Jews, Muslims and Christians lived in peace and harmony. During the Spanish Inquisition, this was a safe place for the Jews. The Jewish quarter was recognisable by having lower door entrances than the other buildings, so that you would have to bow to enter the home. Directly across from the houses was a huge cistern which, among other things, was used as a mikveh.

The village, which only has a population of 50 now (it is slowly dying) is paved with cobblestones, and there are a few little shops selling the wares from the area – almonds, olives and cork.

Did you know it takes something like 29 years before you can harvest cork from a cork tree? And did you know that green olives and black olives are grown from the same tree- the green olives come first, and then later in the season, that tree produces black olives.

While I was at the village, Warren and Diana were in the pool on the ship because it was another very hot day.

After lunch, we went through our first lock which was on the side of a big dam.

You can see from where Warren is standing how far the ship descends into the lock…it looked like a descent of about 3 storeys.

And finally the lock door opens and we sail off into the lower waters. Amazing!

We went through another lock a few hours later. 15 dams have been built on the Douro to regulate the water flow, generate hydroelectric power and allow navigation. The installation of river locks has made the Douro River navigable by river cruise boats. In a sense, the locks are like water elevators. There are also locks for the fish, to improve their migration!

Time for a rest before freshening up for another round of drinks and dinner as we sailed through the beautiful Douro valley. We have met some lovely people, including Tony and Lyn from Canberra.

After dinner, we were entertained by a harpist who played and sang beautifully.