Page 21 - fdo_5dec15

Oporto: Tiles in Sao Bento Train Station.

very unusual double staircase in the center, and a stained glass ceiling.
J.K. Rowling lived in Oporto for 10 years teaching English, and her
Hogwarts library could have been modeled on this one in combination
with the university library of Coimbra.
Our last stop on this day was the São Bento train station, the main
downtown terminus for suburban trains. However, its massive and
magnificent azulejos (tiles) in its huge concourse were the reason for our
visit. From 1905 to 1916 Jorge Colaҫo painted and installed 20,000 tiles
which depict scenes from history, landscapes, royalty, workers, etc.
We moved on the next day to Guimarães, considered the cradle of
Portugal because it was originally settled in the ninth century, and its
first king, Alfonso Henriques, was born here. It is a UNESCO heritage
site and its castle, located in the middle of the city on a high hill, was
built in the tenth century, and is very well preserved. We were able to
explore this structure: spacious, well-laid out, with eight towers and
crenellations. Guimaraes was the northernmost point of our visit in
Portugal.
In Vila Real we visited the famous baroque Palace of Mateus, which
is seen on bottles of Mateus rosé wine. One can visit this aristocratic
dwelling to see how the other half lives; in addition to the grand rooms,
there are pieces of furniture imported from Portugal’s various colonies.
Again there was an amazing library with 3000 books in French and Latin
from the 15th and 16th centuries. The gardens behind the property
Folk Dancer Online — 21 R e t u r n t o T able o f Cont ents www.ofda.ca