Notes from Portugal: Hanging Santa

by Iva Skoch on

I discovered that Portugal has the finest collection of hanging Santas in the world. It is always interesting to see how other nations celebrate holidays and how they decorate their homes. If only one could make psychological profiles based on people’s Christmas decorations!

After a few days in Portugal, I have noticed that there is only one Christmas decoration here: the hanging Santa. Unlike in the Czech Republic, they seem to really like Santa here. I just took this photo today in the picturesque town of Alte, about 20 miles northwest of Faro.

Santa hangs from everywhere in Portugal – window sills, restaurant signs, rooftops…There must be some sort of association that manufactures the demand for hanging Santas, otherwise I have no idea why the Portuguese–arguably, people with very good taste–would want to decorate the beautiful facades of their homes with them.

Notes from Portugal: Jumbo Shopping Mess

by Iva Skoch on

Visiting southern Portugal and stuck in a traffic jam? It’s probably just your local JUMBO shopping mart.

I´m in Faro, Portugal, finishing off the year, seeking a little warmth. Faro is a small town at the southern-most tip of Portugal. Here, it’s in the 60s(F), sunny, and beautiful, but you can’t escape traffic or the end-of-the-year shopping hoards even here.

The most annoying thing in the whole region? On the sole major roadway to this old fishing village with the pretty old walled center town, at the first roundabout, is a shopping center called JUMBO. It lives up to its name. It blocks traffic in a mile in either direction. Seriously, there’s no way around it. And, from the looks of it last night and tonight, everyone in this town, and maybe even the whole region, is there. Shopping.

What’s going on? It’s low season, relatively, here. All the tourists have gone. And yet, it is an all-consuming black hole of noise, traffic, and shopping carts, you’ll find this monstrosity. What happened to all the local markets?

Happy New Year! Eat well. Don’t Jumbo.

Notes from Portugal: West Coast of Europe, Dude!

by Iva Skoch on

Greetings from Portugal. I am spending this week with friends in Faro, in the Algarve region of Portugal, and will undoubtedly post a few notes from here. If I can handle this internet cafe or find a new one, that is. To give you an idea, I am surrounded by about 10 men, age 20-25, talking to friends on Skype really loud in some angry-sounding foreign language. One of them is watching old people engaging in kinky sexual acts at the same time. Why, oh why, didn’t I bring my laptop instead?

Yes, I agree that going to southern Portugal just barely counts as adventure travel but it is a good place to warm up one’s bones. It is if you live in Prague or New York, at least.

I don’t have much to report just yet. I have noticed that the climate and landscape here is remarkably similar to that of Southern California. I can see why Portugal is trying to brand itself to Americans as the “West Coast of Europe.” They claim they are very environmentally-savvy, although the house where we are staying recycles just glass. It is not too hot in the summer and pretty warm in the winter. Not nearly as many blonds though. And a lot more sardines!

Even with the weak dollar, Portugal is pretty affordable. A cup of coffee will cost you about one euro [$1.40]. You might have noticed that I typically go by the “coffee price index” when traveling abroad. Gotta keep my priorities straight!

Stay tuned for more on Portugal.

New Poets Hostel in Oporto, Portugal

by Kelly Amabile on

The folks behind the very sleek and cozy Lisbon Poets Hostel have opened a new location in Oporto. It doesn’t look like their website is up yet, but according to the email I received, they officially opened on June 15. (Good reviews are beginning to appear.) From the photos I’ve seen (click below to see more), the new Oporto location has been designed in the same artsy relaxed fashion as their flagship Lisbon location.

That’s a good sign — and I hope the staff in Oporto is as nice as the crew I met at the Lisbon location. They were all fantastically kind (and hands down the hottest hostel staff I’ve ever seen!) As one staff member, Lily, explained to me when I arrived in Lisbon last year, the folks behind the Poets Hostel (opened in 2006) are all artists — writers, painters, sculptors — who went into the hostel business as a way to supplement their artistic endeavors (and make sure they can pay their bills!) The investment seems to be paying off for them, and making travelers happy too. Nice to see…

Amenities include free security lockers, five showers and five toilets, 1 living room with TV and DVD, a resting room with lounges (hopefully with a full bookshelf like the one in Lisbon), a guest kitchen, 2 free computers for using the internet, and a big garden where they will host barbecues.

Warm and inviting huh? Okay backpackers, we’ve given you the goods, now get to it: Head to this new outpost in northern Portugal along the Douro, where the port wine will be flowing! The hostel is located at Travessa do ferraz, 13 in Oporto, not far from the Jardim Joao Chagas. Nearest metros are Sao Bento and Aliados.