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28/3/2020 1 Comment

Following the Path of the Marys

A Magical Treasure Hunt

During our travels through Portugal, Lief asked me a number of times why I am so fascinated with Mary and with churches. Once he said "I didn't know you were so religious Mom". Well, me neither!  I told him that 'religious' is not the right word, but that I am curious about, honour and respect the sacred and Divine energies that can be found in the churches I was guided to visit.

I believe the artworks, sculptures and paintings that we saw in these churches were created with the utmost reverence and purest intention by the artists.

It feels a bit like a treasure hunt, or a vision quest, where I am being led by an invisible guide to different keys, signs, symbols and images leading to different message, insights and creativity. 
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I think it all started in August 2018, when I embarked on an Opus project that I titled 'The School of Wonder', as part of the year long art & yoga mentorship with Hari Kirin/Joan Hanley. The self-unfolding curriculum and classes of the School of Wonder brought a magical quality with it, leading from one thing/treasure to the next.

It was then that through meditation and daily art expressions, the symbol of the Seal of Solomon came into my awareness which eventually led to the exhibit 'Living Sacred Geometry' atEIGHT X EIGHT Studio in Daajing Giids, Queen Charlotte, November 2019. 

Simultaneously, I was introduced to the ancient Sumerian goddess Inanna and the Egyptian goddess Isis. Isis took me on a bit of a transformational journey, bringing the Neteru (deities) of Egypt with her: Sekhmet, Ma'at, Thoth, Anubis, Ptah, Hapi, Khnum and Seshat. Some of these found their way into artworks and poems. 

Isis also brought with her Mary and Mary Magdalene, but I didn't quite hear or feel them in quite the same clarity.

To be honest the Christian and Catholic stories and history lessons that I heard in my childhood caused me to close myself off, and I had trouble with the words God, Jesus and Mary as painted by the Catholic Church. 
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Swan Embrace (with faint Seal of Solomon), acrylic on canvas
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Hapi, Egyptian God of the Nile, gouache on cotton

The time spent in Sintra and our biking pilgrimage through Portugal opened me up to a different perspective on Mary. Different and sometimes hidden stories, symbols and keys revealed themselves, that led me on a journey that embraces the Divine Feminine and Mary. Well, I should say the Marys. As there have been so many Marys that introduced themselves to me. ​

First introduction

Our journey in Portugal started off with being neighbours of Mary, as we found ourselves living right next door to a church dedicated to her. 'Igreja de Santa Maria' dates back from the time of Portugal's foundation as a nation. Dom Afonso Henriques, the first king of Portugal, conquered Sintra from the Moors in 1147. At that time, a small chapel was built here. It is sparkly decorated, with an ancient plaque dedicated to Inanna/Ishtar. 
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Blessed by Ishtar/Inanna
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Inside Igreja de Santa Maria
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17th Century gilded statue of ​'Our Lady of Conception'

Symbolic Keys leading to Mary

While browsing an antique store in Sintra, I came across a collection of large antique bronze keys. I asked the owner what these were about and she explained these were from the 1800s. Some had quite elaborate decorations and one of them in particular stood out. The key with the coat of arms of Coimbra, which featured a crowned woman in a cup, surrounded by a serpent/dragon and a lion. On the back it had 7 towers.

Since the key had a price tag of 198 Euro, I left it where it was but for weeks it had a magical pull (it still does actually), I marvelled at it, curious about its meaning. I started to see more and more keys around Sintra, when I entered the Church of Sao Pedro (Saint Peter), the whole blue tiled wall was covered in stories relating to the keys of heaven, lined with Marys along the wall:
So keys... it told me to pay attention to symbols and signs and to be curious about the crowned lady in the cup. ​

Flowers guiding the way

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The Periwinkle
In Sintra, the hillside path leading up to the Moorish castle is covered with Periwinkle. As a school project, Lief looked into the use of the Periwinkle in fairytales. He found Hans Christian Andersen used it many times with a reference to magic. At that time I did not know the Periwinkle is associated with the Marys. 

"The Periwinkle or "Virgin Flower", is an emblem of the Blessed Virgin. Blue is also associated very closely with Mary as one of her colors, traditionally her main garment being colored blue. Some species of the plant bear flowers with more pointed petals so that the shape resembles a star for Mary, Star of the Sea." [1]

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Rose Seal at Igreja Santa Maria Dos Olivais, Tomar
The Mystic Rose
In February, this precious pink rose was the only actual blooming rose I found while on my way to the Sanctuary of Fatima. 

The Catholic church creates this association with the Mystic Rose:
"The mystic rose, symbolizes Mary's mystical participation in the Holy Trinity as Heaven's Rose or Mystical Rose. The Mystic Rose was developed in her honor. In medieval times the mystic rose symbol was drawn with four petals on a stain glass background(...)" [2]

During our travels we saw symbols of the Rose everywhere. From the beautiful rose windows of churches to the Templar Rose Cross as ceiling seals at the Quanta da Regaleira in Sintra and is a reference to Mary Magdalene instead of the Virgin Mary.  

In Tomar we likely found one of the oldest remnants of the Rose symbol, at the church Santa Maria dos Olivais. Also named 'Templar Mother Church', I spotted a defaced Seal of Solomon embedded in a 5 petalled rose below its rose window.

To find the Seal of Solomon placed within the Rose makes sense, as the church was built in the middle of the 12th century by Gualdim Pais, founder of Tomar and a Master of the Order of the Knights Templar. He had served in the Holy Land and this seal is a reference to the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem and the Temple Mount, from which the name Knights Templar originates.
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Four petalled roses
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Templar Rose Cross in Lisbon
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Rose window at Basilica da Santa Luzia, Viana do Castello

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Fleur-de-Lys and Iris
In front of the entrance of the Basilica of Fatima, we found a beautiful tile floor in the shape of four Fleur-de-Lys. The municipality of Azambuja has two Fleur-de-Lys  on either side of the Tree of Life embedded in its coat of arms. 

The Catholic created the association of Fleur de Lys with The Virgin Mary:
"The Fleur-de-lys is a symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary because it resembles both the Iris and the Madonna Lily. The iris or "Sword Lily" is an emblem of Our Lady's Seven Sorrows. The Lily, symbol of virginity and purity. There is also a white day lily which only blooms during the time of the Assumption in mid-August and is known as the Assumption Lily among horticulturalists." [3]

On a beautiful monogram of Mary, hanging in the Igreja de Lapa (Church of the Rock), is decorated with the same Fleur-de-Lys symbols, which is actually a double M, symbol for Mary Magdalene. 

​This beautiful dress of Saint Anna (mother of Virgin Mary) found inside the Church of Santa Maria dos Olivais in Tomar, is covered in Fleur-de-Lys symbols and had a bouquet of fresh orange lily's by her. 
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The Tower

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Original tower at Quinta da Regaleira, Sintra

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In Portugal there are several towers dedicated to Mary and even show up in the Coat of Arms (as you may remember from Sol'sBlogpost of the Coat of Arms of Porto). I didn't find out about the symbolic meaning and connection of the tower to Mary until now. 

In Christian tradition, the term Ivory Tower has been used as a symbol of noble purity. It originates in the Song of Solomon, and was later used as a epithet for Virgin Mary. 

​The name “Magdalene” did not mean merely “from Magdala”, but actually meant “The Tower”, as Mary’s nickname and title of prominence and importance among the Apostles. [4] Magdala means “tower”, “watch-tower,” or “fortress” in Aramaic.

​In Tomar, the Rotunda (round tower) in the Convent of Christ is dedicated to Mary, as the elaborate entrance reveals. There are rumours this rotunda is connected by a tunnel to the tower in front of the Igreja de Santa Maria dos Olivais. 
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Tower in front of Igreja de Santa Maria dos Olivais

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Mary above entrance to Convent of Christ, Tomar

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Rotunda in Convent of Christ, Tomar

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Porto Coat of Arms


The Cave

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The Marys have a reputation of either appearing in caves or having lived in caves. Creating our initial travel plans I had hoped to explore caves in relation to Mary, and more specifically Mary Magdalene in Southern France, but that may have to wait a while.... 

Instead I found three caves in Portugal (so far) dedicated to her. 


The first cave to call my attention was the 'Gruta da Virgem' (Cave of the Virgin, empty of any statues)  at Quinta da Regaleira in Sintra. Then there was a surprise find of a cave dedicated and actively devoted to the Virgin in the Parque da Liberdade (Freedom Park).  It has an interesting appearance echoing the Virgin and child on the ceiling. 

It wasn't until we reached the north of Portugal that we found more appearances of the Virgin in caves. After seeing a statue of Nossa Senhora da Abadia in the Basilica of Santa Luzia in Viana, we headed to her Sanctuary located inside the Peneda-Geres National Park. Considered the oldest Marian sanctuary in Portugal, originally built between the 7th and 8th centuries but which no longer exists. Here Friar Lourenco and his companion found a sculpture of the Virgin hidden by hermits of the Monastery of the Mountain during the Arab invasion in the 8th century 

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'Gruta da Virgem', Quinta da Regaleira, Sintra

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Gruta devoted to Mary in Parque da Liberdade, Sintra

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Gruta da Nossa Senhora da Abadia


Mary is everywhere!

When I grew up Mary didn't have a large role in the stories I was told or in the images seen in churches. The most familiar images I recall are the Virgin Mary depicted as  the mother of Jesus, birthing him in the stall in Bethlehem and mourning him on the cross. Mary Magdalene was not mentioned as far as I can recall. 

In contrast, here in Portugal, at least on the path that we travelled, Mary is everywhere! It seems she is revered above and beyond Jesus. Usually you find at least three Marys in each church.

Mary is looked towards for her soothing love and guiding light. We often saw people lighting candles in front of her and praying quietly to her in churches.

In 1640, the Virgin Mary was crowned by Portuguese King John VI as for him, she was the real Queen of Portugal. 
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Wedding, flanked by Marys in Coimbra

Marys in order of Appearance

So many Marys and a few female Saints!! Click on image or scroll through to see full images and descriptions. 
A lot of Marys indeed... I am curious where else we will be led, whether we can continue our pilgrimage into Spain, and perhaps into Southern France, exploring more caves, or perhaps that is not in the Divine Cards at this time. Time will tell. 

To each of these Marys I brought prayers for our family, for our planet and for friends who had requested so. I will continue to do so when I can. If you'd like to be specifically included, just send me a message. 

If you read this far, wow... I'm impressed. Many blessings to you. 

Our Mary Biking Pilgrimage so far

1 Comment

26/3/2020 1 Comment

foggy last hike before lockdown

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Last Saturday, Mar 21, was the final day of free movement in Portugal. We had rented a car for a 2-week block, thinking we would be able to see some of the country this way. This was before most of the country had shut down. Then on March 21, we learned that lockdown would begin the next morning, with all essential services closing for a 15-day period. A hike I'd been interested in was to a nearby hillside, to a site of a paleolithic settlement with over 100 rock art carvings - an area now called "Gravuras Rupestre do Giāo". Not much on line, and all in Portuguese. 
It was forecast to rain, and the drive up to the area brought us into the clouds. We spent a fruitless 3 hours trying to find the rock engravings, in the end, without success. But that didn't stop us from having a surreal time above the treeline, exploring under granite boulders and imagining paleolithic life with stone tools, goats and likely, harder times trying to survive. Kiki recorded a meditation while the boys and I searched and tried not to get lost. The entire area is covered with gorse, so it's a prickly walk. Maybe take some time to have a little sit. 
Be carried on your breath into a short meditation guided by Kiki.
On top of Balance Rock surrounded by thick clouds
With complementary sound effects offered by birds, wind, water, Lief, Sol and Tracy. 

Burial / Initiation Mound & Chamber

Though we did not find what we were seeking, we did find a "mamoa" - an ancient burial mound and chamber dating back to the same time period. The boys were a bit disappointed to not see the skeleton of the royalty that must have been buried there. 
1 Comment

22/3/2020 2 Comments

Medicine from Sleeping Beauty Mountain

May the following reflections from Sleeping Beauty and my ten year journey with vertigo serve to perhaps see our current world wide situation in a different light. 
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The boats have come to shore, tied up to their anchor, quietly waiting.
A soft blanket of clouds moves into the inlet
Tucking Sleeping Beauty in for a good rest
The Sun (Ra) is ready to go down
But he is still out of reach
Not quite ready to touch her face yet

As the days grow longer
Slowly and steadily
He will move closer

Closer and closer
Until Ra touches her forehead
And kisses her awake

Her Lessons in facing illness

The past ten years Sleeping Beauty has quietly steeped me with her guidance and lessons. Living right across from her, I would often look to her to find calm and peace, to be soothed by her beauty, to be moved to a state of awe and wonder. 

Vertigo first appeared in my life in February 2010.

I remember the first episode clearly, coming out of nowhere, my vision started to swirl so fast, all I could do was lay down as quick as I could and try to find stillness in the swirling. I had to will not only my body but also my eyes to stillness, for even moving my eyes under my closed eyelids caused nausea. 

Episodes would arrive without notice, sometimes with months of peace and quiet in between, sometimes for days and weeks on end without much relief.

At first all I did was to wish the vertigo to go away and tried everything I could to make it go away. I took medicines to try and deal with the nausea, and continue life as if nothing was happening.

I would continue to paddle across into town, oblivious to Sleeping Beauty's message.

I visited doctors to try and understand what was happening. I learnt this was not the usual vertigo that most people experience, this was a rare form caused by an imbalance of pressure of water in the inner ear. It was labeled 'Menieres Disease' and even the ENT (Ear Nose Throat) specialist at St.Pauls hospital in Vancouver admitted this to be the most poorly understood disease in her field. She offered a few options, from medicine to injection of medicine into the inner ear, to surgery. None of them guaranteed to heal or would have major and permanent damaging effect on the hearing in my right ear. 

During these years, yoga was my steady go-to support, oblivious to Sleeping Beauty's message. 

I thought I could continue. My daily practice turned into a job, by teaching classes in town, opening Sun Studio. 

With each episode of vertigo, my family was affected. From one moment to the next I would not be available. I would crawl up the stairs to lay in bed, unable to move, bucket beside me. At times Lief and Sol would have to cook their own dinner, entertain themselves for a full day, while Tracy would be at work and I would be in bed, barely able to talk or give directions. 

At times I wondered what I had done to deserve this. Wasn't I doing everything I could to make this illness go away? I tried to find the reason for it all. I thought if I would understand why this was happening to me, then I could cure it. At times I would enter this place of feeling a victim. and I would feel beaten down by it, as if I was punished for something. ​

Still I continued, juggling motherhood, family life, with yoga and running a business. 

But after 4 years of teaching I was forced to reduce teaching Kundalini Yoga to the point that eventually I did not teach at all. I declared 2019 the year of being an artist in residence at home, on Robertson Island. I finally came to full stillness, for even the artwork came to a halt. Most days I would sit under a tree, leaning into its trunk, soaking up the peace and quiet, listening to the birds and sounds of the waves. 

Finally after 8 years of vertigo knocking on my door, I started to hear Sleeping Beauty's message. I have been a slow learner. 

Finally I heard her call for deep and complete surrender.

Not just in the moments of vertigo,
Not just in the moments when my ear is screaming at me
Not just when I'm made to stop by my physical body

No, I was asked to surrender all my activities, all movements that were not leading me to rest at home.
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I have finally come to understand that this call to rest at home means

To rest within my body

To rest within my heart
To rest within my love

Looking at Sleeping Beauty
I see the message, I see her story, I see her medicine

Rest deeply my child
For the Light is on its way
To kiss you awake

And while you're resting, the dolphins will join you
Dancing in the waters with joy and anticipation
​For you to wake up and spread your light
​

~ Felt creation by Kiki
2 Comments

21/3/2020 2 Comments

Drawing class - the hand

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The other day at school, Sol asked Mr Morton how he could draw better hands. "Pup, my hands suck!" Off to youtube for a lesson!
In 30 minutes, here's what we came up with. I think we're going to focus more on art in the coming days. 
The Hand, by Sol
The Fist, by Sol
Elegant hand, by Sol
The Hand, by Lief
The Fist, by Lief
Elegant hand, by Lief
The Hand, by Pup
The Fist, by Pup
Elegant hand, by Pup
2 Comments

20/3/2020 2 Comments

Update COVID-19 portugal

Like the rest of the world, Portugal is being challenged, though with less impact than the rest of Europe. Numbers as of writing are 3 deaths and 785 cases. But what is clear is that the numbers reported on the numerous tracking sites lag actual circulating cases by about 10 days. Keith from home shared Tomas Pueyo's excellent article published on Medium describing the lags. 40 million views. Not bad for an epidemiology article!
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March 12 paper: National hero, Renaldo, at home in Portugal on isolation. Teammates infected in Italy
And like the rest of the world, social distancing has been incremental. It began with admonishments to wash hands and avoid large groups. Then all sporting events were cancelled, particularly affecting the boys, since that was the primary reason for them to come to Europe. Porto was one of the first affected areas in the country, and the northern part of the country has the highest numbers of cases (381 of total 785). Beaches and all parks closed soon after, and this is now countrywide. This morning, a state of emergency was declared. Portugal is not yet in lockdown, but this is likely. Next door Spain is following Italy, having just surpassed 1000 deaths. 
Life in Ponte da Barca is quiet. There is little foot or vehicle traffic. The normally busy cafes are nearly empty, but are still open. The restaurants, for the most part, are closed. Most businesses are closed. Public spaces are empty. Masks are on the faces of about 1/4 of the people we see. Supermarkets are open, but with quotas, with guards allowing new customers to enter when existing shoppers exit. Shelves still have food, and there is still fruits and veggies, milk and cheese and bread. Antiseptics and hand sanitizer is sold out. The longest lineups are at the Farmacias. A few days ago, on March 17, I rode to Braga to buy some English books, and it was closed, but the owner inside, finishing up with paperwork, let me in for a last-minute book purchase for us. 

So how are we making out? Well, for the most part, we are calm and happy. We focus on the day-to-day routine, like everyone now. Home school is a big focus. News site browsing is rationed for sanity's sake. We are staying put, aware of the fearful stories of expats fleeing European countries, battling cancelled flights. We are aware of Air Canada's many flight suspensions. We would not be the most welcome at home right now. Even if we were to plan to return home, how can one do so when everyday brings a new reality?

​The house is happy and we are getting along. And we're healthy. We get out for hikes in the surrounding hills. We have a car rented now. Our accommodations here are booked until April 1, with the possibility to extend to April 16. This is a good place to be for a lockdown, if and when it comes. Our hope is that things let up so that at least we can get to Holland for a visit with Kiki's family. We all would like to see Oma Gesman. We have nearly 3 months before our flight home...
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Stay calm and carry on
Again, we are not suffering. We are grateful for the work of all the world's governments, scientists and health care workers, working to have us all come through this in as good condition as can be. Signing off with the new "yours truly" - stay safe!
2 Comments

20/3/2020 2 Comments

Mountain Medicine

As we are watching the world being in different phases of transition adapting to its call for stillness, we are aware it may be any day now that we may not be able to physically move around anymore. Already stores have closed doors, or are limiting numbers of people allowed in. 

We have decided to stay in this northern part of Portugal. We decided to create a sense of peace and stability and calmness for our children, rather than entering a chaotic 4 or 5 days of travel to scramble to get back to Haida Gwaii in time.

This storm will pass. And we trust that when the storm is passed, it will be clear what our path is. Whether we can stick to our original plan to end our travels in the Netherlands in June: visiting my grandmother, my Dutch family and friends, or not. Two months from now is a long time, especially looking at the swift changes that are occurring each day. 

So now that it's clear we will stay in Portugal for an unknown time, we decided to rent a car while we still can. To be able to drive deeper into the beautiful nature parks that surround us and to take in nature's medicine. We experienced such a healing, peaceful and soothing energy on the Peneda mountain. 

This week we explored Castelo de Aboim close to Ponte da Barca. Tracy prepared an 11km route to circle the 2431 feet high mountain:
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In the mountain village of Sampriz, we started our hike at the church where we found a chapel dedicated to a 'Mounted Knight slaying the Dragon' with a beautiful view of the valley. From here we trailed our way through forests and fields, resting at refreshing water falls and creeks and finally ascending to the large boulders on top.

​Along the way we were herded up by a troupe of goats and greeted by the gentle bell sounds of a lone but friendly deer-eyed cow:
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On the top of the mountain we found the Star of Bethlehem! It is amazing to me that after hours of hiking and a brief brake for snacks, the men in my family continue to move.... Boundless energy! So grateful for them spreading their joy, laughter and light!

While I enjoyed leaning back against the generous top boulder, soaking up the light and energies of this peaceful environment, Tracy practices yoga and the boys run around throwing sticks.... some going nowhere... some going somewhere....: 
2 Comments

16/3/2020 17 Comments

the iberian Grass snakes in barca (by sol)

I saw a snake. It has a ring around its head.  It  has dots on its back. It lives in Portugal and Spain and France. It is the most common snake in Europe. They live by the river or a stream or a pond or a lake. They also  live  by edges of forests and woodlands, grasslands, and gardens. They like to eat  frogs and toads and fish. Some grass snakes lay from 8 to 40 eggs. They can live up to 15 years.          
Drawing of a grass snake
My picture that I took of a grass snake
17 Comments

16/3/2020 11 Comments

Coronavirus and how it affects ME

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     I will be writing about the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and how it is affecting not only Portugal, but how it is affecting me and my life. So far, worldwide, there are 164,837 cases and 6,470 deaths. These numbers are growing exponentially every day.

​Portugal

   Yesterday, in Portugal, there were 41 cases, today I woke up to 112 cases. The only thing that they show on the Portuguese news, (and probably all of the news) is the coronavirus. But compared to other countries, Portugal has it easy. France and Spain have both tripled their cases and Italy’s a mess. But enough about other countries, we’re talking about Portugal. Most major cities (Lisboa, Porto, Braga, etc…) here have the majority of the cases. We’ve been to most of the major cities here before the cases appeared, so I think we’re good. Currently, there have been no deaths from the COVID-19 in Portugal, but that might change at any moment.

If you would like to keep up to date with how many cases the world has please click here. It’s a really reliable source and it uses sources from all around the world. It is the World Health Organization (WHO).

My life 

  So, the coronavirus is simply completely obliterating our plans for this trip. My parents say that we are not going to any other country besides Portugal, we’re not going to any more football matches, and we can’t go to any major cities.

​Worst of all, we’re staying here in
Ponte de Barca where there was an amazing football pitch that we played for hours on, each day. Yesterday, though, we were playing 3 on 3 with some Portuguese boys, when these two officials walked up to us and said something in Portuguese to the boys. The boys motioned for us to come off the pitch and said, “Coronavirus.” Today Sol and I went to check on the pitch. The doors are locked. We’ll try to find another pitch. 


   I guess that we’re not going anywhere. We can’t come back to Canada without being in quarantine, and the airports are sketchy. At least, at the place where we’re staying, we have wifi.

   We have rented a car for 15 more days so we can explore the surrounding area a bit better. Probably more hikes and churches. Last time we rented a BMW and had fun with that. The roads here are really windy so we can’t go super fast, as there are cliffs on the side as well.

   Anyway, I just feel that we’ve seen Portugal already and I’m ready to leave, but now we can’t. In Spain, it is actually against the law to cycle. I’m really disappointed because this is a once in a lifetime experience, that has just been ruined. Yes, we still have Portugal, but it will become just like the other countries. 


conclusion

   Portugal is doing okay, compared to other countries. It has been growing a lot in the past few days, but is still under a thousand. We’re stuck in Portugal until further notice. The coronavirus has annihilated our trip. We’ve rented a car to see the area, and I would like to leave Portugal, however we can’t. This virus is taking so many lives. I sincerely hope that they find a cure.


PS: Just for comparison, I've written out a fraction for you to see how many people are infected versus how many people there are in the world. I've done some calculations and the percentage of the people in the world with coronavirus is 0.002%.
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11 Comments

15/3/2020 4 Comments

A 3-day trip to the mountains

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We've been cautious about crossing the border into Spain, so lingered in northern Portugal. We've been in Ponte da Barca for nearly a week, and rather than head north, we headed east - to the relatively unknown Parque Nacional Peneda Geres. An area of hills and mountains running along the Spanish border. ​We rented a car, booked a base camp in Soajo and off we went...
First stop was the Nossa Senhora da Abadia - remote sanctuary established in the year 883 after a visitation by Mary in the form of an apparition in a cave to one in prayer. Like Fátima, it's a shrine to Mary, and therefore, of real interest to Kiki. We spent a very pleasant few hours exploring the sanctuary, the cave of the visitation and the surrounding hills. 
Soajo seems carved into the mountainside. The mountains are granite. Monolithic rockfaces and huge boulders. Soajo is one of about 100 small villages scattered throughout the park, with signs of habitation back to paleolithic times. A Roman road still runs through the park. The villages are all stone, many made with rough hewn granite blocks, dark and damp with small windows. The people tend goats and raise cattle and work terraced fields. It's a place where time feels slower than elsewhere. People sit out in the squares and talk about the rain and smoke cigarettes. 
Our basecamp: traditional stone house
The garden out the backdoor
Cozy kitchen table
Looking east, to Spain
How one gets around, humans, goats, chickens...
We did two super sweet hikes: the Caminho do Pāo e Fe (literally, the 'way of bread and faith', a 5km loop up a valley) and the longer PR17 Peneda trail, which begins at another gothic sanctuary, then runs up around Peneda mountain, a stunning granite mountain with a dammed lake at the top and a climber's crag. Peneda is the name of both the mountain and the village sitting in the valley beneath it. Peneda is Portuguese for boulder, so good name for the place
Nossa Senhora da Peneda
Cold this time of year
No coronavirus here, dad
We came down from the mountains, back to the relative busyness of Arcos de Valdevez, where we quickly learned about the state of the world with respect to the pandemic. And then, we went for lunch to have a family chat and think long and hard about things. 
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4 Comments

7/3/2020 6 Comments

Novel coronavirus-19 + european trip = ???

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Shortly after arriving in Portugal, the outbreak of the novel coronavirus-19 (COVID-19) began in Wuhan province in China. We've been following this expanding infection closely, and the question of concerned family members is, "When are you coming home?" [To protect the privacy of concerned parties, names have been withheld.] We ask that question ourselves every few days. If one looks at headlines, we should be getting out of Europe, right? 

Factors in decision-making

We are trying to make a rational decision, based on:
1. How serious is this infecton?
2. The likelihood of us becoming infected, given known location and numbers infected
3. Our personal risk of serious illness or death in the event of infection
4. Our present location. Currently, this is northern Portugal.
5. Our planned itinerary, which presently, is to northern Spain, southern France, northern Italy (yikes!), Switzerland, SW Germany and Holland. 
6. Consequences of our returning home, even being healthy, having traveled to one of these areas, especially with respect to quarantine and other hassles

There are two sources of information used to come to the conclusion that, at this point in time, we are going to continue traveling. For now.
1. The lay press - a good source for up to the minute information on present community transmissions in areas we've been or are going to go. As a good example:
https://www.theportugalnews.com/news/four-more-confirmed-cases-in-portugal/53264
As of yesterday afternoon, 13 cases in the country, all having traveled or having been in close contact with a known positive case. Italy being the suspected source for the first cases. 

The NY Times website is also good:
https://www.nytimes.com/news-event/coronavirus
Latest numbers, as of March 7, show global infections at 102,000 and 3500 deaths, with the vast majority (85%) in China. This article presents a fantastic look at the numbers
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/05/health/coronavirus-deaths-rates.html

2. The medical literature - I am still receiving a steady stream of email related to the public health response in Canada, and from the medical journals that are reporting the scientific understanding we have of the behaviour of this virus. The New England Journal of Medicine is probably the most authoritative journal out there, kind of like the New York Times, but for health practitioners. It maintains a page: www.nejm.org/coronavirus, which shows its recent publications on this pathogen. About a week ago, a paper was published of the clinical course for about 1100 infected patients in Wuhan, China, the ground zero for the infection. Most were infected at the infamous animal market where the virus originated. 

Looking just at today's emails, here are some other sources for the scientifically and morbidly curious:
1. BC Centre for Disease Control - mostly BC-based numbers: BC has 21 cases, as of March 6. http://www.bccdc.ca/about/news-stories/stories/2020/information-on-novel-coronavirus
2. World Health Organization - this organization declares the pandemic, defined as sustained human-human disease transmission over many geographic areas. See figure below. https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
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So how serious is this infection? The mortality rate is 2%, according to multiple sources. Meaning a 2 in 100 chance of dying if infected, though largely in the elderly, those with immune deficiencies and those with lots of other health issues (like COPD, heart disease or diabetes). 

What about the risk of getting infected? Our mingling in the general population is low. The best estimate for the risk of close contacts being 
We have not spent time in close contact with any Portuguese, and our mode of travel is, for now at least, the bike. We are in areas with a low burden of illness. We are well rested, fit, young(ish), taking no medications and have no significant medical history. I think our current risk is close to zero. 

What will we do differently?

Northern Italy is out, much to Sol's chagrin. His hero, Renaldo, plays in Turin, Italy, for Juventus. This city is in the no-go area. We're avoiding this area. 

France and Spain are still ON. Once we bike to Santiago, arriving in 2 weeks, we will train to Bilbao, then to Bordeaux in France. The plan then is to bike to Narbonne on the Mediterranean. From there, as long as the coast is clear, we'll stay put for some time and then see. If the Canadian Government issues any travel advisories, we will follow them. We may be home well before June...
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