sunnylisbon

Today is Mother's Day here in Portugal. However, in Korea May 5th is always Children's Day. As Koreans don't celebrate Easter like here in Portugal, children don't get presents on that day. Instead, they get all the presents on Children's Day. I wondered whether Portuguese have children's Day or not. So I googled it. Well, Portuguese Children Day is on June 1st. But I don't recall seeing any big promotion at shopping centers last year. Usually for Mother's Day, they have promotions. I think Mother's Day has become too commercialized. In Korea, there is no Mother's Day or Father's Day. Instead there is Parents' Day which falls on May 8th. When young, I used to make paper carnations with my siblings. On Parents' Day, we put the flowers on our parents' chests. You can see people wearing carnations on their left heart all over Korean on May 8th. Like Freedom day here in Portugal.

On Freedom Day, São Bento Palace opened its gate to all, welcoming everyone. I went there with my husband. Even though we had to wait in line more than one hour, it was worth the visit. When we entered the building, they offered us a folder with all the info, which was available both in English and in Portuguese. There are 15 places to visit inside and we had a blast. As I have been studying Portuguese history, especially on kings and queens,  I could tell who's who inside just by watching the sculptures or paintings. Carlos I Carlos I Manuel II Maria II Luis I However, as I am not that familiar with current history, I couldn't tell who's who. Inside the Monk's Refectory are beautiful azulejos on São Bento's life. It was very very impressive. Sao Bento's birth Outside in the garden there were many events for children and all. I could tell how well prepared they were for these events. a work of Vilhs, one...

Today is Freedom Day here in Portugal. Yesterday I visited Comercio Square with my husband to see the video art and the concert. It was very impressive to see everybody singing the same song all together. My Portuguese is not good enough so I could catch only a few words. But they were very moving. Since Korea has been through a similar situation, this song touched my heart deeply. My husband suggested learning the song together. It's such a brilliant idea. Next year, I will be among the Portuguese singing the same fado. The background of the concert showed the scenes from Carnation Revolution 45 years ago. While listening to the song, I was mesmerized by the scenes. This morning I watched the movie "Night Train to Lisbon" again with my husband. When the dictatorship is a fact, the revolution is a right. That line rings true.

MAAT stands for O Museu de Arte, Arquitetura e Tecnologia. As an 'Art, Architecture and Technology' museum, there are various programs changing from time to time. There are two buildings; one used to be a power station and the other is a white tiled building I just love to take pictures of. I visited the museum again on a rainy day. There were a lot of people enjoying the exhibition due to the inclement weather. Last time the exhibition was meaningful but kind of hard to understand. Sometimes I feel like modern arts escape me. Way beyond my grasp. Overflow, it used to be exhibited at the museum, now gone. The exhibition I enjoyed this time was titled 'Fiction and Fabrication.' As technology develops, photography doesn't only mean fact. Photoshop has become available at your finger tips, photos can express the creative and ingenious perspectives of artists. photos by  Carlos Garacioa photos by  Carlos Garacioa  I especi...

Cais do Sodré is a station where you take the train to Cascais. And you can also take a ferry to cross the Tejo river. Around the station, there are some interesting murals. There is an interesting azulejo you shouldn't miss inside the metro station Cais do Sodré. It is a rabbit from the famous book Alice in Wonderland.  The name Cais do Sodré came from the Sodré brothers who used to own a lot of lands around here. It means the pier of Sodré brothers. There are comfortable chairs right next to the station where you can enjoy the sun and peace. (1) Time out A magazine company called Time out bought the Ribeira Market and use it as a food court and a market. The market usually closed around 2 in the afternoon so if you want to see it open, get there before that time. (2) Dom Luis Garden Right next the market is a garden called Dom Luis named after King Luis. If you have been to Porto, you must be familiar with the bridge called Dom Luis, also named afte...