CASA DO VALLE

The 46th edition of the Sintra Music Festival opened this weekend. This year the special focus and central theme is Liszt and Mahler , both known for musical romanticism, fitting so well in Sintra, the capital of Romanticism. This classical music festival hosts its concerts not only in the Cultural Center of Olga Cadaval, but also in the palaces, churches and manor houses. From June 24th until the the 10th of July, there are numerous concerts and recitals, talks and movies, performed by a large and varied group of national and international artists. The list is enormous, please check the official site of the Festival for further information; schedules and venues http://www.festivaldesintra.pt/. Some of the concerts are free, to others the tickets average 10-15 euros. Great opportunity to indulge in classical music! In case that you are not familiar with these composers, here is an address to a youtube video of a romantic piece by Liszt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGw4c2YGGB...

Summer is here. We have temperatures of nearly 30 daily, and have had a few thunderstorms, which is great to get rid of the heavy humidity we have had. Plus it is giving extra water to the garden! It has been very busy here in many ways. The rooms have been quite full, and we have people from all over the world: from Australia to America, Belgium to Holland, Norway to Singapore. We start having 'regulars', people who come every year, and it is very nice to see their faces time after time! We are busy 'up-keeping': several of the rooms have gotten a cote of paint - there are always marks from the suitcases on the walls and stains that do not come off. This has been quite a challenge, to find a day when the rooms are empty and the painter has time, at the same time! Mainly we have been busy in the garden. We have planted 60 new fruit trees: apricots, peaches, lemons, passion fruits, apples, pears, grapes, oranges... (...

When I was studying speech communication at OSU, we were taught that when at the end of the speech you are answering the questions raised, the first thing to do is to repeat the question to make sure you got it right - and to make sure that everyone else in the audience heard it. Otherwise they will just hear an answer without knowing what the question was. Then you answer the question; and finally you summarize the question and the answer to the benefit of all. Recently I have been asked several questions repeatedly, and as the 'audience' (read: the clients) are normally with me one at a time, there is no benefit of hearing others' questions. So, I have decided to answer some of them here, so that more of you can benefit, and do so before arriving to be better prepared... (sorry, no repetition of question here, as you can all read it...) Where can I exchange money in Sintra? There is a money exchange bureau inside the tourism office that is open during the weekday...

Many of our clients are surprised by the wine lists of the local restaurants: in addition to the division of 'Reds' and 'Whites' there are the 'Greens'. The Reds and the Whites then are divided into the wine regions; Greens, if divided at all, may be divided into Green Whites or Green Reds. So what are the Green wines, the Vinho Verdes? The most known Greens are white, but there are reds as well. They are best served chilled and make a great aperitif - and go very well with fish, seafood, salads, white meats, sushi, sashimi - and are great drink on a hot summer day. As their alcohol content is lower than that of the other wines (8-11,5%), so is their calory amount, and this makes it an 'easily drinkable' wine. Vinho Verde has great digestive properties due to its freshness and special qualities. The reds are full-bodied wines with an intense colour and a rosy or lig ht red foam. The whites usually present a lemony or straw colour. The strong disti...

Here are three pictures - before, during and after. Unfortunately, even the 'after' picture will need to become a 'before' picture. Why? The work has just started, and a lot work needs to go in, still. SO, BEFORE: DURING: and AFTER: These pictures have been taken from the newer part of the ground. Well, from the part that we acquired after the main house's grounds, and is the part that we have much slower started to take care of. Actually, 'take care of' is not the correct term here. We have been taken care of the ground and this is the reason of the 'Before' picture. The heeps of green you see are branches, cuttings, and other garden trash accumulated as the older fruit trees were pruned and wild bushes cut. That and the fast growing Morning Glories and other plants covering the garden trash under a blanket of green and blue and orange. Here, too, the undesirable plants grow faster than the rest... But it has been a blessing, in a way; th...

As I have mentioned before, I frequently walk in the mornings with my dog; up and down the hills, into the forest and mountain roads. Recently there has been an extra burden on my walks. It is lent, the 40 days between Carnival and Easter. Tradition says you give up something for those 40 days that is like an addiction. Some people give up coffee, others chocolate or cigarettes. I decided to give up bread and pastries made with white wheat flour. And this is the reason that climbing up the 400 meters to town is now doubly difficult: the bakeries and pastry shops open their doors even before Pandora and I take off from home, so we walk up to town with the irresistible scent of freshly baked goodies lingering over the town center, calling my name - which I am patiently (more and less) ignoring. Sintra is famous for its pastries. The pastries of Piriquita, travesseiros , are famous all over Portugal, and people cue up to buy them to take home by boxes. These long, sugar coded ...

While a big part of Europe is covered in snow - this is what our forests are covered in right now! It has been awhile since I 'blogged' and have wanted to do so for awhile now! It has been a busy season, more so than usual in February. Casa do Valle is in those Gift Voucher Packages called Smartbox and 'Life is Beautiful', and the last few months we have been very busy with people coming to spend a night away from routine - which is great for us! An interesting issue has been raised and I have noted, which is 'What's the weather like'. One of my sisters gave me for Christmas a bit over 4 years ago a 5-year agenda/diary. I am now in the last year. Every day in 5 lines I write what has happened: Lots of paperwork, shopping, first fresia of the year bloomed, ate the first cherries/plums/pears/figs.... and very importantly - what the weather was like. In the last 5 years there has not yet been a fool-proof pattern in January/February. The old people around...