November has arrived
Hello Figueira!
November has arrived, Figueira; it’s a little chilly and a light drizzle “edges” my coat with tiny drops. The sun, which comes and goes, takes its place as a star and plays “hide and seek” with tufts of white clouds that look like cotton candy, in an exuberantly blue sky.
Photo: Cesar Angelo || Buarcos Beach|| Figueira da Foz Municipality – PT
I walk along the boardwalk to Buarcos Beach. The waves are gentle and beautiful, although the weather is cold. So you’re all mine, Figueira? That’s a lie!!! Where are the visitors? Well, some brave ones on the sand, others in the bakeries and restaurants, sipping hot chocolate with pastel de nata, a good wine. Or even indoor attractions such as museums, churches, and artistic and historical exhibitions that you, Figueira, offer.
Foto: Cesar Angelo || Buarcos Beach || Figueira da Foz Municipality – PT
Figueira in the summer and… in the winter, too
There are not as many at this time of year as the so-called “summer vacation tourists”. These visitors today seek the city’s beauty in a more peaceful context, with less traffic congestion, shopping, and sightseeing… Everything is calmer at this time of year.
They are special guests who enjoy, in addition to the beach, historical aspects – monuments, music, art exhibitions – with a touch of the Figueira da Foz way of life”. Parked vehicles boast distant origins on their license plates. Old ladies with famous European (or not) shawls, and neck and head protectors, surprise everyone with their bare feet on the beach sand.
A cinematic setting
Buarcos is very interesting. Its beach invites you to swim in the sea and relax on the sand. Looking at the clock tower, on my right is the Buarcos Fort, “a long stretch of wall punctuated by three bastions – 16th and 17th centuries” ¹. On my left, there is a cluster of houses, with narrow and winding streets, which looks more like a film set.
Foto: Cesar Angelo || Buarcos Fort || Figueira da Foz Municipality – PT
The wall tiles
And, as expected, since these are “definitely Portuguese houses”, the tiles on the external facades of the houses are present.
Foto: Cesar Angelo || Buarcos Facade Tile || Figueira da Foz Municipality – PT
The fisherman and the sea
The variety of tiles displayed on the façades of massive, thick, centuries-old walls, which sometimes extend onto the sidewalks, demonstrates a historical testimony to the commitment between the fisherman and the sea. The Church of São Pedro Pescador and the Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Conceição, from times gone by, remain well looked after, full of flowers, and are much visited.
Foto: Cesar Angelo || Chapel of Nossa Senhora da Conceição || Figueira da Foz Municipality – PT
The tower of Castelo dos Redondos
Foto: Cesar Angelo || Buarcos Tower of Castelo dos Redondos || Figueira da Foz Municipality – PT
Behold, against this backdrop, in the upper part of the community, the top of the tower of Castelo dos Redondos displays what time has been preserved of the monument built during the time of Dom Sesnando (1091),² governor of the city of Coimbra.
For the evening, tea or wine?
For the evening, there is nothing more cozy than a hot tea or even a glass of good Portuguese wine, but not before having enjoyed the art exhibition offered to visitors of Figueira da Foz at the CAE – Center for Arts and Entertainment, available to the public until the beginning of 2020, day and night, with free admission. These are unmissable works available to those who enjoy them. And you, Figueira, continue to be beautiful.
To you who follow me in this column, take care until our next meeting.
Author: Ana Valentina Ângelo
Language: Brazilian Portuguese
The author does not practice the changes of the new Orthographic Agreement