Travel Corkplantations After leaving the Algarve and driving north along the West Coast, we discovered cork plantations and vineyards that still characterize this agricultural region today. Some of the cork will stopper bottles of excellent Portuguese wines, ranging from the slightly sparkling Vinho Verde to fortified Port wines. In 1974, we watched farmers ploughing fields with long-horned cattle that wore bells around their necks. Along the coast near Sesimbra, we examined gutted and splitopen codfish hanging from wooden poles and drying in the sun. Nowadays, with the depletion of cod stocks and the dismantling of the cod-fishing fleet, dried cod is mostly imported from Norway and Iceland. Bridge to Lisbon When we arrived in Lisbon on our first trip, we crossed the Tagus River into the city on the Salazar Bridge. It was named after António de Oliveira Salazar, the leader of Portugal’s dictatorship from 1932 to 1968. After the Carnation Revolution on April 25, 1974, its name was changed to25 do Abril Bridge to celebrate Portugal’s return to democracy. Although its colour and shape make it look like the Golden Gate Bridge, Lisbon’s 2,278-metre bridge has a longer central span. Unlike San Francisco’s suspension bridge, it carries cars on its upper deck and trains on the lower deck. Driving across the bridge, we enjoyed a panoramic view of Portugal’s capital city spread out along the river. We drove up to Castelo de São Jorge to stroll through the gardens inside its Moorish walls, which have dominated Lisbon for more than 1,000 years. Before driving down to explore the city, we enjoyed bird’s-eye views of the red-tiled roofs of Lisbon below us. 1974 1974 1974 20 | www.snowbirds.org
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