After yesterday's shots of that most unhinged of royal palaces, the hallucinogenic confection that is the Peña Palace, here are a few shots to show that Portuguese architecture is not always quite so bonkers.
This still-not-quite-sane house is just outside Cascais where the Atlantic starts getting wild. It's built in a little cove, protected from the waves by that sea wall with the arch in it that lets the lagoon flood calmly with each high tide.I want this house so badly. What a fantastic place to retire and go quietly mad, cackling to myself in the tower.
Back in Cascais, this is the Queen's Palace. Ana's dad, Jose works there as a gardener, the lucky sod.
Inside the palace courtyard. Beautiful.
Of course, with all the money being spent on palaces, most Portuguese live in places like this. Picturesque but not exactly palatial.
Head further west, out to Cabo de São Vicente, and the architecture gets seriously "mad fifteenth-century Jesuit".This is the hang-out of Don Infante Henriques; Henry The Navigator to you, and from here Vasco da Gama set out on his epic voyage - immortalised in Camõens' "Os Lusiades" - around the southern tip of Africa to India and the Portuguese forged their empire, spanning from Brazil, through Angola and Moçambique to Goa and the Spice Islands, ending up in China and Japan.
His chapel gives Jo, Lee and me a chance to pose like we're in a mail order clothing catalogue.
The most westerly point of Europe. Next piece of land is Brazil.Jo is bemused to find that the End Of Europe is actually shaped like a cock.
Which says rather a lot about our empire-building tendencies.
I've decided to include the odd piece of music from people that I really like but that most of you may not be too familiar with.
First up comes the wonderful Mr. Howe Gelb, king of lo-fi, messing around with his friends from Giant Sand in a part of America that looks a lot like southern Portugal.
Nice relaxy music.
Though watch out because it's just black for the first ten seconds before it starts …
Enjoy your respective Wednesdays.
18 comments:
I love the concept of giving us a sountrack while we're reading your posts! Giant Sand are wonderful and perfectly appropriate for these serene pictures.
Catalogue Man - there's a fertile theme for a million amusing blog postings!
.. and possibly a new super-hero - "Catlogue Man unnerves his opponents with his confident but slightly unnatural poses."
Ah, Catalogue Man! Now THAT's an excellent idea for a comic strip, Pea! Hee hee. What a superpower to have!
A comic strip, yes! He'd be inexplicably wearing completely different (and occasionally incongruous) garb in each frame. Occasionally underwear too.
In slightly creepy poses.
Gosh, I wish I had a few months to spare with a bunch of catalogues, the scanner and Photoshop! Hee hee.
Are you on hols old boy? Wish you jolly good ones if so! I adore the pics. Portugal's beautiful.
Shh! Don't tell everyone, Lynn!
I'm chilling and watching girls in miniskirts bouncing around and grunting.
Or today I am watching the rain.
I do hope you get your computer problems sorted out soon, so you can post something prettier than royal weddings. Hee hee.
You just reminded me I need to buy and axe and an executioner's block.
What a nice variety of architecture photos! Nice to see how the common folk live as well. (And how the catalogue people pose.) I agree that the place with the tower would be cool to live in. When you retire there, let us know and we'll come annoy the mad hermit. Maybe play loud disco music until you come out and shout obscenities until you're worn out, then you'll invite us in for tea.
Thanks for introducing me to a new group! Loved the video and the music and will search them out. Perfect for a Wednesday! Luckily Friday is a holiday, so only two more days of work this week. Speaking of which, crap I'm going to be late!!
Ah, the poses … I must confess that your postcard this morning inspired me to dig around for a silly poses photo, Katie.
And you're more than welcome to join me for tea, disco music or not.
Giant Sand are still around, though occasionally dormant, but Howe is still producing lots of mad home studio stuff and sending out to his fans on-line. They're due to release a new album in September.
The other two guys in the video, John Convertino and Joey Burns went on to form Calexico who you may well have heard of.
Now hurry off to work! I mustn't make you late.
Yum on all counts.
Hee hee. And yum right back, Prudence.
The Reverend Al just came out with a new CD.. he is still ooooohhhh so swooney.. is that a word?
What an action-packed post today Dive. I enjoyed all of it. Love the palace where you'd like to cackle in the tower! In Jane Eyre I think it was the mad wife in the tower though.
Love the clothing catalogue poses - nice muscles.
Love all the other photos including the end of Europe - hee hee.
The music was great; I liked the guitar work. Looks like those boys had a lot of fun making the clip and that bicycle was spectacular. Very amusing twist at the end too. I think I'll just go out and pump up my bicycle tyres and go for a ride. Do you know where the clip was made - I'm assuming America but I might be wrong.
Anyway, a fabulous post to cheer me up on a dreary winter's day. Thanks, mate!
Al Green! "Lay It Down."
That's just been ordered from Amazon, Prudence.
As you say: Thanks for the heads up.
And yes, swooney pretty much describes him.
Mme: glad to be of cheer on a grey day.
Howe is based just outside Tucson, Arizona and the band name "Giant Sand" came from the landscape he grew up in.
If you're going to buy an album I'd heartily recommend "Chore Of Enchantment".
I love that kind of lo-fi Americana, from Giant Sand right across to The Handsome Family (who might well figure later in this series).
lol you're incorrigible, Dive. Off with your head. To the tower! (not in that order)
Yes the rain was interesting wasn't it. I too was watching from time to time, though i was staring at tanned muscley men bouncing around in fetching bandannas and sporting convincing sex faces. Fun in capitals.
At least we should have better weather today, Lynn.
Here's to watching lovely legs a'leaping.
My spine relaxed completely while I listened to that one...
They are kinda relaxing, aren't they?
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