Wednesday, 20 April 2016

納扎雷女士們的傳統打扮 / The traditionally dressed ladies from Nazaré

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【納扎雷女士們的傳統打扮】
【 The traditionally dressed ladies from Nazaré 】

比起首都里斯本和北部第二大城市波圖 , Nazaré 看來好像是寂寂無名。但如果你是一位衝浪迷, 那沒有可能你沒有聽過Nazaré 這個大名。

Compared to Lisbon and Porto, Nazaré seems insignificant to many visitors. But if you're a big fan of surfing, there's no way that you have never heard of the town called Nazaré.



Nazaré 位在葡萄牙中部海岸, 寧靜的小漁村在夏天卻變身為擠滿渡假人士的著名海濱小鎮; 更是世界著名的衝浪天堂!

很多衝浪選手都喜歡在這一帶衝浪, 是因為這帶海域的巨浪。我就某天在 Nazaré 遊玩期間, 在餐廳碰到兩位西班牙男生, 他們專誠從馬德里附近駕車來到 Nazaré , 為的就是要衝浪! 美國衝浪專家 Garrett McNamara就曾經在2013年1月時, 在 Nazaré 對出大海創造出世界最高的100呎 (~30米) 的衝浪紀錄, 使 Nazaré 的名字更廣為人知。

Nazaré - a coastal seaside town in central Portugal. A quiet small fishing village turns into a popular and packed summer vacation resort every summer. Plus, it is a world-famous surfing paradise!


Many surfers like to surf on the super big waves off the coast of Nazaré. One day while I was in Nazaré, I met two young Spanish guys at a restaurant. They drove all the way from the vicinity of Madrid to Nazaré for the pure purpose of SURFING! In January 2013, American professional surfer Garrett McNamara broke the world record by surfing an estimated 100-foot (30m) wave off the coast of Nazaré, making this town even more well-known.

來到 Nazaré, 你會感到那種強烈的小漁村風味, 鎮內居民仍保持著極為傳統的生活習慣。 不少當地女性, 都穿著傳統服飾, 更有趣是, 街上經常會見到女士頭頂重物走過, 一些更是邊走著邊唱歌。暫時為止, 在葡萄牙我只在 Nazaré 見過這種特別的情景。

說起來, 這些穿著傳統服飾頭頂東西的女士, 是稱做「Varinas」, 他們的丈夫以前 (或現在) 都是漁夫, 出海打漁, 在以前, 丈夫在海上得到漁獲回來後, 就交給太太們擺賣。過往, 頂在她們頭上的都是漁獲; 今時今日, 可看到她們也有把其他的東西都頂到頭上去。 

Talking about Nazaré, people there still maintain a very traditional lifestyle. Many local women in this village still dress in their traditional costumes, and more interestingly, many of them even carry heavy things on their heads while walking on the streets. Nazaré is by far the only place in Portugal that I have seen such a particular scene.

Those women in traditional costumes and walk with things on their heads are called "Varinas" - meaning wives of fishermen. In the old days (or maybe until the present), fishermen - their husbands - went fishing on the sea. Fishermen returned from the sea with big hauls of fish and the "varinas" would sell them on the streets and in the markets. In the past, "varinas" put their catches on their heads whereas nowadays, other things can go on top of the heads too. 

Wednesday, 13 April 2016

里斯本地鐵之旅 / The Lisbon Metro tour

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【里斯本地鐵之旅】
【The Lisbon Metro tour】

也許你聽說過俄羅斯首都莫斯科的地鐵站非常美麗, 到當地旅遊時都特意要去乘搭參觀一下; 不知有沒有人聽說過, 其實里斯本的地鐵站, 也被很多到過當地遊玩的外國旅客高度稱讚, 怎至認為它活像一所「地下美術館」呢?







Perhaps you have heard that the metro stations in Moscow, Russia are very beautifully decorated, and many tourists to Moscow would pay visits to the metro stations there. I'm not sure if anyone has heard before that the metro stations in Lisbon are highly praised by many foreign tourists who have been there, and even thought that they have entered an "underground art gallery"?

葡萄牙是個較為低調的國家, 試過好幾次, 私下收到讀者們發給我的郵件, 說計劃到葡萄牙旅遊, 卻不易找到資訊 (特別是中文資訊方面), 想請問我可否介紹一下到葡萄牙有甚麼好看。相信葡萄牙需要更高調去宣傳自己。:-)

Portugal is a rather "low-profile" country. I have received private messages from readers several times before, telling me that they were planning a trip to Portugal but encountered difficulties getting travel information on the country, in particular information in Chinese, and would like me to suggest things to do and see there. I guess Portugal really needs to promote more for itself. 
可以提議大家, 如逗留在里斯本的時間充足的話, 去買一張地鐵一天票, 搭地鐵到不同站參觀 (就像到莫斯科的旅客會做的事情一樣), 你應該會對葡萄牙的文化和藝術程度大開眼界。

I would suggest you to visit the metro stations in Lisbon too - just like many tourists would do when they are in Moscow. If you have sufficient time in Lisbon, then buy a one-day metro ticket to see different metro stations. You would be surprised by the art and culture of Portugal. It would be an eye-opening travel experience!


Tuesday, 5 April 2016

馬德拉島 ~ 一年一度花卉節 / Madeira Island ~The annual Flower Festival

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【馬德拉島 ~ 一年一度花卉節】
【Madeira Island ~The annual Flower Festival】

【花卉節 // Flower Festival // Portuguese 葡萄牙語: Festa da Flor】

時間又到了! 為慶祝春天的來臨, 馬德拉島每年在復活節後第二個周末, 都會舉辦大型的節慶 ~ 花卉節 (Flower Festival), 今年的花卉節即將在今個星期四展開。

為期一個星期的花卉節, 重頭戲是在星期日舉行的盛大花車巡遊, 真正由朵朵新鮮花朵堆砌而成的花車會在街上逐一巡遊, 並伴著當地居民的現場勁歌熱舞! 有機會有時間的話, 大家一定要去欣賞一次。




To celebrate the springtime, Madeira organises a spectacular Flower Festival every year, two weeks after the Easter. The festivities for this year's Flower Festival are going to kick off this Thursday April 7.

The highlight of this week-long Flower Festival will be the grand Flower Parade on Sunday April 10, when dozens of floats decorated with fresh flowers will take to the main streets of Funchal, accompanying by live music and traditional dance from local Madeiran people. An impressive experience!


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2016年馬德拉島花卉節時間表 / Schedule of the 2016 Madeira Flower Festival:
日期 / Time: 4月 7-13日 / 7-13 April
地點 / Venue: 馬德拉島首府 豐沙爾市中心 / downtown Funchal

特別節目 / Featured events:
4月9日 - 希望之牆儀式 / 9th April - The Wall of Hope Ceremony
4月10日 - 花車大巡遊 / 10th April - Great Flower Parade

Saturday, 2 April 2016

葡萄牙飲食 (一) ~ 葡萄牙黑毛豬火腿 / Porco preto presunto /Black pig ham of Portugal (1)

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【葡萄牙飲食 (一) ~ 葡萄牙黑毛豬火腿】
【Porco pre
to presunto /Black pig ham of Portugal (1) 】

談起風乾火腿, 最多人想起的, 相信會是意大利的 Parma ham和西班牙的黑毛豬火腿, 卻其實, 葡萄牙亦出產珍貴而且味美的黑毛豬火腿 (porco preto)。

Talking about ham, most people would think of, I believe, Italy's Parma ham and Spain's 'Jamón Ibérico'. But in fact, Portugal produces also top quality and precious (and needless to say delicious) Portuguese Iberico ham called 'porco preto' (=black pig ham).








店員替我切出一片肥瘦適中、薄得透光的火腿片, 並提議配搭葡萄牙砵酒一起享用, 當然聽從她的建議, 兩樣配搭確是完美。:-)
The shopkeeper cut out a slice of porco preto - thin and translucent flesh which is neither too fat nor too lean. She suggested to enjoy 'porco preto' together with a small portion of Portuguese port wine. Of course, I listened to her advice. Portuguese black pig cured ham + Portuguese port wine = a perfect match! 
Manteigaria Silva 這間在里斯本的老字號, 始於1890年, 已經開業超過100年, 除了售賣黑毛豬火腿, 還有葡萄牙芝士、葡萄牙紅酒、葡萄牙馬介休魚等。他們還可以替您把食物真空包裝, 方便您可以帶到國外去, 回家後還可繼續留戀在葡萄牙的美食中。:-)

'Manteigaria Silva', established in 1890 in Lisbon city centre, is a great popular place to buy a great selection of Portuguese gourmet products including cheese, codfish and ham. You can find some of the finest and most expensive 'porco preto' there too. They can pack everything in vacuum so you can take abroad with you and continue to enjoy some great Portuguese gourmets after you are back in your own country.