Not so long ago, if you came to Portugal you’d see hundreds of windmills with canvas sails.
Now you’re more likely to see windmills on tiles than the actual thing.
This rather sad structure speaks to the general state of Portugal’s windmill heritage.
In the village of Carrapateira, I wonder if this windmill is a replica.
However, if you enjoy chimneys, then the Algarve is the place for you.
Even the hard-to-impress author of my 1875 Murray is complimentary: ‘... the manner of building their chimneys is quite peculiar and by no means untasteful (sic)'.
Something I didn’t expect is an enthusiasm for kitschy roadside advertising …
… as with this somewhat faded lady hoping you’ll visit her pottery shop …
… an extraordinary display promoting a - what else? - dish shop …
… and unlikely pirate touting a seaside souvenir store.
The Algarve also lets me add to my collection of signs.
The spiffy waiter is a touch out-of-place at an unpretentious, small town eatery.
Sagres is a popular Portuguese beer.
And when did you last see a shop, one that's open, advertising film?
Cobblestones are as Portuguese as pastéis de nata.
I spot a likely looking cobblestone for a Portuguese ‘souvenir’. Cobblestones have long been favoured by European rioters. Ferg suggests a new Toronto business marketing genuine Portuguese ‘riot rocks’, although I fear Canadian customs might not look kindly on such an import. And anyway, the Portuguese, a gentle people, are not known for violent demonstrations. On the other hand, Portuguese doorstops may present profitable possibilities. This provides for much speculation.
(April 27 - My 'borrowed' cobblestone is now in Toronto. It may occasionally find use as a doorstop or perhaps a paperweight. Or perhaps it will just sit in a drawer and, when I’m dead, those clearing out my effects will be flummoxed by what exactly it is.)
