Learnings from Portugal

From the huge, fascinating Carriage Museum in Belem outside of Lisbon:  Men who rode the horses pulling carriages needed two kinds of boots: a seriously reinforced one for the side next to the other horse (on left, above) so the leg doesn't get crushed by the big horses, and a regular one for the outside foot.  Of course.

Two more of the reinforced inside boots.

Gentried girl's sidesaddle from the 1700s, with a seat belt.

This royal Portuguese boat was used for state occasions.  I didn't know they did this.

Tiny, delicious donut.  Portugal is known for its pastries, indulgences, and with good reason.

Calouste Gulbenkian, an Armenian, once the wealthiest man in the world.  A major force in art collection and a philanthropist.  His generosity graces much of Iberia, thanks to a major kerfuffle with the Brits.

Portuguese penmanship leaves much to be desired. -- as indecipherable as their spoken language is unintelligible.  Okay, user error. 

Random pharmacy window -- shaving with a brush is alive and well in Portugal.

Typical electrical wiring arrangement.

The Holy Family are often dressed very finely in coordinated outfits donated by the wealthy.  We saw a display of  one  Holy Family's wardrobe, ca. 1800s.  

Because Mary's standing and Joseph's kneeling, her stuff is bigger.  Jesus' clothing consisted of mostly a blanket.

And they even wore undergarments.

Dog food, sold in chubs.  

Refrigerator doors sometimes have a slip guard. 

TP in vibrant colors.  I assume they've conquered the color transfer issues.

Bacalhau, dried salted cod, the Portuguese national dish.

Bacalhau is a huge section of any grocery - smell is sooo big.
 I tried a few different ways, but don't like bacalhau.  At all.  

Cuttlefish bones we found on a barrier island in southern Portugal.  

Happy skeleton from Mexico, 500AD.  From Lisbon's Pharmacy Museum.

 Bones can be used as a lovely decorative element.  These are from a chapel in Faro, Portugal, the parts of over 1200 monks grace this chapel. We saw another bones chapel in northern Portugal -- with the femurs used for longitudinal emphasis.

Ceiliing. 

Some traffic lights are large at the top, and with a smaller one in easy driver's sight lower down.  Nice.

The device on the wall is the hairdryer.

Called a trash island, and all over Portugal.  For trash and recycling.  No household trash pickup necessary.    Makes sense, given the highly concentrated urban dwellings and narrow inner city streets -- a concentration which is not unlike Portland's green approach.