In the past few days, when you travel to Macao, you can still see the historical traces left by more than 100 years of Portuguese administration.
Remembering my first trip to Lisbon, Portugal when I was younger, I stayed for three more days after the conference for sightseeing.
The tight schedule and the need to deal with some follow-up work made me just find a few places I wanted to go without much planning.
One day I woke up early and took the train to Sintra, a fairytale wonderland.
The centennial manor Quinta da Regaleira is not far from the train station, so I decided to walk there. Passing through the center of the town along the way, I bought a cup of hot chocolate and drank it while walking, and under the sunshine and breeze, my mood was exceptionally smooth, and my steps were light. Carefully pick up beautiful dishes in the ceramic shop, stop at roadside stalls to watch the painters paint, and enjoy the music on the street, which looks like a mandolin but the sound of the piano is more melodious and low, this walk is very pleasant.
As the first independent nation-state in Europe, Portugal was located at the western tip of the Iberian Peninsula, but for a long time had clear borders, a single population composition and a unique national culture.
In the 8th century, the Moors occupied most of Iberia, opening the curtain on the "Reconquistas" for more than seven centuries, and the establishment of Portugal was a product. In the 12th century, a military revolt led by Alfonso Enrique (1109-1185) both expelled the pagan Moors and resisted the joint strangulation of the kingdoms of León and Castile, laying the foundation for the birth of a new state. Since the Pope first officially recognized the Kingdom of Portugal in 1179, except for several brief annexations and invasions, the Portuguese nation has a continuous national history of more than 800 years, and Portuguese has become a world language spoken by more than 200 million people.
The manor seen in Sintra was originally a private summer resort, with lush mountains and forests, and the whole seemed romantic and luxurious and ancient mottled.
The large area and various spiral stairs make it like a maze. After visiting the main palace, chapel, underground patio and cave, I had spent half a day intending to return to Lisbon when I accidentally stumbled upon Incomum near the train station.
The clerk patiently explained to me that Portugal has 26 wine regions and more than 250 grape varieties, and it is said that the further south you go, the stronger the taste. I tried a few and was pleasantly surprised to find white wines similar to those I had tasted at an event before. This one, produced in small quantities at a winery in central Portugal, is a blend of two grapes with a smooth and soft taste that makes up for the cancellation of the winery tour. After that, we went to the restaurant next door to eat, and it was already sunset when we stepped out of the restaurant, and the purple-orange sunset added a quiet and tranquil touch to the town.
The next day, the author took the browsing car through Badajoz, Madrid, Zaragoza, and took photos of all the good scenery and scenery along the way, coupled with the careful explanation of the tour guide, the mutual care and understanding of the travelers, everyone had a lot of fun.
The car took us to Barcelona, Spain, the capital of a revived Catalan nation.
Barcelona is a city facing the Mediterranean Sea and is as important as Shanghai, China. Barcelona itself has a population of 1.4 million, plus 4 million foreigners. It is also the hometown of former Olympic President Samaranch. He was also a hero and outstanding activist in Spain. Samaranch is very friendly with China, and hosting the 2008 Olympic Games in China is inseparable from Samaranch's support. So Barcelona is very clear in my memory.
The main tour of Barcelona is to see the curvilinear wonders of the architect Antonio Gaudi (June 25, 1852 - June 10, 1926), and on a guided tour, first visit the "Sagrada Familia", which is a landmark of Barcelona and is 70 meters high. As soon as I arrived there, my eyes lit up, it was really different, and the appearance was very beautiful.
It was built in 1882 and is not expected to be finalized until 2026. Unfortunately, Gaudí died prematurely in a car accident in 1926 and did not see the architectural effect of the Sagrada Familia. But discerning people can see that the design concept is unique, and religious stories are reflected in the architecture; Coupled with the guide's vivid explanation of the process of Jesus from birth to crucifixion, it also reflects the architect Gaudí's ideas and skills in designing the Sagrada Familia.
Then the guide took everyone on a tour of Park Güell.
It turned out that Count Güell bought the land in the area commonly known as "Knife Hill" in order to build a manor-like community for wealthy families, and asked his friend Gaudí to design and build it; But Gaudí took 14 years of hard work in a naturalistic artistic style, using fairytale mushrooms, candy houses and colorful scorpions scattered on the undulating terrain, all collaged with mosaic fragments on the surface, and the whole structure has no edges and no straight lines to create a completely dreamy park.
The park houses the building where Gaudí lived for 20 years, which has now been converted into the Gaudí Museum. In honor of the contribution of the Count of Güell, Park Güell has been renamed Park Güell. It was listed as a World Heritage Site by the United Nations in 1984. The tour of the park is a special treat to gain a better understanding and appreciation of Gaudí's design and architectural concepts.
In the evening of the same day, the guide took everyone to Glesia Street again.
Admire Gaudí's masterpieces in another style mainly from the exterior, namely Casa Milà and Casa Batlló. After watching it, I really lingered, and the mobile phone shot continuously. Gaudí is indeed an architectural genius, whether the doors, windows, balconies are curved, there are no straight lines, in the shape of waves and waves. These two masterpieces have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Through the tour of Barcelona, you can also appreciate that Gaudí's design and architectural concept is unique in the world and unparalleled. This is like China's innovation, you must have a dream to come true. This is an indisputable truth.
After a day in Barcelona, I set off for a tour of Valencia and Granada, visiting the Plaza Mayor, Plaza de la Virgen de l'Virgin, Gare du Nord and Valencia Cathedral, the City of Science and Art, known as the alien architecture, and the Alahampla Gardens.
On the last day, the coach took us to the Spanish mountain town ---- the small town of Mijas.
As soon as I got off the car, I saw a statue of a donkey, and I heard that the donkey was the symbol of Mijas, and everyone rushed to ride it to take pictures, and they were very happy.
Due to the ample time, the tour guide took everyone around and set a meeting time in the afternoon to disperse the experience of the elegant environment.
I went with a few travelers to the highest point of the mountain town to see that Mijas is really beautiful, it is located on the slopes of about 400 meters on the Mediterranean coast, it has been for thousands of years, it is very dazzling with its undulating, staggered terrain, red tiles and white walls.
Blue pots and red flowers can be seen everywhere on the walls, and the whole town is full of romance; The streets are full of shops selling colorful vases, clothing, leather goods, and many cafes where tourists can relax. The laid-back people of the town are basking in the sun and chatting, and the happiness is overflowing on their faces, which is really enviable.
I later departed from Mijas and went to Seville, visited the bullfighting arena, Seville Cathedral, the Golden Tower, Plaza de España, and on the last day I took a bus back to the place of departure - Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, hurriedly looked at the Sintra Royal Palace from the outside, took photos, and glanced at the humble but important Bellinta from a distance, and finally visited the university town of Portugal.
That's probably the charm of browsing the scenery alone, wandering aimlessly, stop-and-go, whatever you want, and what's easy.
Of course, sometimes food can only be ordered selectively, people are limited in taking photos, and you always have to bring two power banks on the road, so it is not a habit, but I like this freedom to go.
At the Grand Hotel de Lisboa, see a mural depicting the old Portuguese era in the lobby, looking back 800 years, although Portugal is isolated in a corner of Europe and sparsely populated, but historical causes have become the opening protagonists of truly global history.
The glory of the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries is rooted in the Portuguese nation's courageous opening of the boundaries of human spirit, and its open-mindedness, lofty vision and pious feelings have also blossomed in the field of art, and at the same time, the images of Portuguese and Spanish navigators have also condensed into the core of the national temperament and identity of these two countries.
The Portugal and Spain that Shenchi had traveled to in his dreams, lying on the bed of the Grand Lisboa Hotel in Macau at night, looking at the ceiling, seemed to travel back in time to 1514, when the Portuguese came to China, when China was a powerful country and was under the rule of the Ming Dynasty.
Portugal wanted to seize the situation, so it changed its strategy, borrowed Macau in the name of drying wet clothes, cowhides, and goods, first settled down, and then bribed local officials to pay "rent". The Portuguese occupied Macau without cannons, but with silver bribes and came in. And has been occupying for hundreds of years. In December 1887, Portugal signed an unequal treaty with the corrupt Qing government in China, officially leasing Macau to Portugal.
In 1755, the capital of Portugal Lisbon suffered a magnitude 9 earthquake, the famous Bellin Tower and Cathedral were razed to the ground, and the death rate was as high as 100,000, this terrible earthquake seriously affected Portugal's national strength, so that the Portuguese Empire continued to decline, and the trauma of the earthquake still affects Portugal's recovery. The Carnation Revolution in Portugal in 1974 forced the government to abandon its overseas colonies.
In 1975, Portugal wanted to return Macau to China, but the mainland government at that time believed that Macao, like Hong Kong, was part of the Chinese territory occupied by the Portuguese and British authorities, and that the settlement of the Hong Kong and Macao issues was entirely within the scope of Chinese sovereignty and did not belong to the usual colonial category at all, and chose an appropriate time to resolve the Hong Kong and Macao issues by peaceful means. Remain as it is until resolved.
In fact, Macao was already under the control of the mainland at that time, and it was not until December 1999, after Hong Kong's return to the motherland, that Macao officially returned to the embrace of the motherland.
"Take off, Macau! 》
Long thoughts away from your time,
The moment approaching you is tearful.
Four hundred years of honor and disgrace, four hundred years of vicissitudes,
Macau, don't come unharmed?
The lights are not what you look like,
The tornade is still hanging high on your door.
Four hundred years of ups and downs, four hundred years of growth,
Macau, don't come unharmed?
Approaching you by water,
How long is the waterway?
Ten miles and thousands of miles, family affection is full of Hao River.
Admire the lotus flowers in the dust,
How beautiful is the lotus flower?
Yesterday, today, tomorrow and forever, the beauty of the lotus is in my heart...
……