Good Fences

In Portugal once again.... where we holidayed a couple years ago.

This is the Quinta do Seixo...  in the Douro region of Portugal.  A very modern visitor centre for Sandeman port.  Even though it was not open for the season, there was staff there, and, they did open just for us..... we had our tour and then we tasted some port.  Several varieties of port....  and, of course, we bought a few bottles to take home.

This is their trademark motif...

I love this photo because it looks like two people dressed like the "Don" as they call him... they look like they are whispering to each other...

It is so weird how this photo turned out... it is actually the door handle (inside and out) on a clear glass door leading out onto the front area of the visitor centre...

... and, even though I stray a bit...there is a fence in the background...

Here is the story of "The Don" ..   taken from the Sandeman site.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In 1928 George Massiot Brown was an artist working for the Lochend Printing company, who approached Sandeman for business.  Sandeman requested some designs for posters, and the remarkable silhouette of the Don was born.

Dressed like the Spanish caballeros de Jerez in a Portuguese student's cape and wide brimmed hat, the Don cuts a dark, dramatic figure within glass of ruby coloured Porto.

George Massiot Brown was well aware that French poster artists were very much in vogue, so signed his artwork as G. Massiot to hide his Scottish origins.

Little did he know that The Don would be the very first iconic logo for a wine.  Recognized throughout the world, The Don represents the mystery and sensuality that communicates the Sandeman brand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

............ and, here are a few more fences ..although the fences were barely there.. some fine wire and posts ...

A short wall that surrounds the visitor centre... just below steps from which you look down upon the river Douro and terraced hillsides of grapes..

View from the other side of the centre..

... another cement wall...

and, a stop on the way out to get a better shot of the entrance to the centre...stone and cement ...

If you want to check out some other great fences, click on the button below and it will take you to Tex's site... the Run-a-Round Ranch

Good Fences

Totally missed Wild Bird Wednesday.... and, Thursday's Good Fences has disappeared too.... hmmmm....it's Friday already!!

My excuse is the same...   there is just too much going on...most of it not all that much fun.

But, I want to put in my two cents worth of fencing ... cuz I do love me a good fence, or "stuff" going on around one!

I'm taking you on holiday with me this time.  C'mon....

To Portugal.  This is a desert type flower that we saw growing in sand at the tops of cliffs near the ocean in various areas we visited.  It had bright yellows and lovely pinks for flowers.
This is a little beach town close to Nazare...oh, I hope Maria shows up to remind me of the name of the town...

UPDATE:: okay...got it!  Maria wrote to say ....it is  'Vale das Paredes'.  It is between Nazaré and S. Pedro de Moel.

Thanks Maria...

... and, when you get to the bottom of all those steps... this is where you are...

What area we waiting for??  Let's all go !!! .....

I'm linking up to Run-a-round Ranch for Good Fences... check 'em out sometime!~  lots of great fences and traveling and fun stuff.
Just click on this and go directly there......

Thursday ...gone again!!

I missed it!  How does a week fly by so quickly!?

Too much happening I guess.

Time for a time out and a Good Fence that's for sure.  Who cares if it's Friday!

Something from the archives.

When we visited Portugal a couple of years ago we walked.  A lot.  We saw lovely houses.  Old architecture and even some new contemporary stuff ...and, doors, windows and ....Fences!  Every kind imaginable.  I loved looking at all of it.  So different than we have here in Canada, of course.

I took hundreds of photos with my simple little camera.

Here are a couple with fences.......and, some fun...

Let's face it... when you live in a land of ice and snow and short, short summers.... this is kind of like heaven.  Palm trees for heaven's sake!

I soon stopped saying "oh look at that fence" ...it quickly became ... "this one's mine"!  As in ...the house....or little villa or apartment or .....whatever .... I was ready to buy a part time place to live... if I win the lottery.

Oranges were falling off the trees right in the middle of town!  Who wouldn't be thrilled with that?  The inhabitants probably thought we were nuts taking pictures of orange trees...and even the odd orange on the sidewalk..... hmmmm...yeh... it must have seemed a bit strange alright now that I look back on it... ... oh, well....

Not all fences were actually "fences" if you know what I mean.... some were more like walls... to hold up soil and greenery..and, to keep us out ...and to keep the area tidy I'm sure....

Do you see it? .... down there in the lower right corner?.... see him?..... click on the photo to biggify it and you will........

This guy.  He was watching our every move.... no barking, no scary watchdog tactics...but, I think he was the guard chicken.

I wasn't about to go much closer either .... it looks like he's tangled with something before..... and, he was giving me "the look" .... like.... keep moving sister....... so, I kept moving right along... .yes indeed!

Click on good fences below to go directly to the site and check out some other fun fences..how about adding one of your own? ...

Look at this....

I haven't posted since last Thursday's Fence day!  hahha.... well, at least "Good Fences" gives me a reason to remember what day it is.  That, and the fact that it is also garbage day today, so I did have to remember to wheel the bins out.

This may be a bit of a cheat...but, I'm going to show you some shots of fences I took while on holiday in Portugal.  This day we were in a town called Constancia .. very pretty.  We did a lot of walking up and down hills.... some of it pretty steep.   Loved the doors, windows and fences .. took lots of pics of them .. and haven't really had anybody to share them with until now.

Now, I have all of you.... and I'm thrilled to show other fence enthusiasts what I love to shoot while on holiday.

The look of them.  The view through them.  Even what is behind them.

Everybody seemed to have dogs.  And, not many were friendly.  They barked loudly and ran straight at the fences.  I was glad the fences were high and strong...

I remember this guy was more curious than mean...but, still...he did bark if we got too close... and I wasn't about to put my hand through there to pet him... darn it... cuz that fluffy head just begs for petting doesn't it?

Kind of reminds me of some of my bears.... with that cute big shnozz...


Check out all sorts of interesting fences here and hey!  why not add one of your own?

Some web stitch

..... although, to me they look more like starfish....well, that's what I like to think of them as ....and with the French knots..?  tiny bubbles .....

If I had a seashell I'd be listening for the sound of the sea washing ashore.....

Here's how this particular block is shaping up.  The bit of green thread on the edge of my lovely vintage hanky is the third row on some buttonhole lace stitching...

.. and just to the left of that is a row of tiny scallops..hey...more oceanside stuff ..hahahha.... I'm on a roll here...    not...  .... they are the frilly picot stitch Karen showed us.  Love that one... you can do it in various sizes and degrees of tightness and get a whole different look to it.  Well, I guess that is possible with almost every stitch.... amazing, this embroidery.......

I really don't know how folks zip through all the edges and seams....there are soooo many areas to embellish and embroider.  I can see this project taking me many months to complete...not that it is a race..but, it is interesting that each time you do one area, you see more to do and then, when we piece the blocks...more seams of course....it's great!  Opportunities for embellishment as 'somebody' I know says.....

Today I was supposed to be golfing...but, it is windy, rainy and mosquito-y ....so...I'm staying home; playing Suzi Homemaker.  Baking bread, making soup and stitching..... how I love a day like this!

And, when we were in Portugal.....a day like this!  Beside the ocean.....ahhhhhh..... perfect......

September.... already.....

..the summer has flown.....

And, yet, they say, (those 'they' guys yet again!!  Who the heck are 'they' anyway?) usually it takes about 2 more months til completion from when the drywall sanding is complete.... it is not yet complete...

The taper did his bit during the past week, along with some sanding..but apparently, now another dude comes to do final sanding.   Oh, man....that dust is everywhere.  And, I mean... EVERY.WHERE!  I do know how it goes, believe me; I'm not naive ..... we've done this before.  However, when Mr. BV and I did our own renos...it definitely was not this messy.  Of course, I guess I also have to admit, it was not as extensive as this either ... .well, it was in respect to the detail in each area, but, we also only did one room at a time..and kept it confined because we were trying to salvage every other area of our happy little home.  Nothing being confined or salvaged this time...even the finished bathroom is suffering big time..... I hope those cleaning ladies promised at the end can work miracles.

Doesn't it already look like there is colour?  Did you know there is a lovely soft grey colour that is exactly the colour of unfinished drywall?   It was one of the colours I had chosen for two rooms....hmmmm..... tossed that idea.  Now I've gone to Russian Olive..... quite green ...... with blueish grey undertones... let's see how that looks after the primer coat, to which they add colour.  "They" (the contractors and painters) say that "most" home owners change their minds after the primer coat.... wow.... that's a lot!!

Guess we'll see............................

Then...hardwood guys come to check damage, and fix, feather and otherwise repair things before the casings and baseboards go on..... .... then... cupboards installed ......then....... well, as I said.... another 2 months or thereabouts....

Mr. BV is already getting antsy and saying things like....I just want my life back.....hmmmmm....and I thought I had no patience.  He even was going to 'settle' for some less than professional rock cutting on the very front of the house..... not so me....I was outspoken right away...he was embarrassed by honesty and threatened to send me to Portugal.  Hey Maria.....I may be coming back to visit !!   ...sooner than planned.   Hahahahhahahhah........

Porto, here we come!

And...on that note, I'm now going to bake him some lemony blueberry muffins just to show him what he'll be missing while I'm gone for the duration of the renovation ...  hahahah....I really should pack a bag big enough for two months and head out.....

The Algarve, Portugal

The first night on our drive down to the Algarve area....we stayed in a cute little hotel called Colina Dos Mouros....in Silves.  Maria told us it means Columns of the Moors... and in the south of Portugal ...the Moorish influence is pretty evident in a lot of the architecture. TripAdvisor has this shot of it....I didn't get one as we arrived after dark and ...in the morning....I forgot.....




It was a great little hotel... very clean as was every single place we set foot in while in Portugal.  A big plus for us.  We have a big deal with cleanliness....

Every building has granites, marbles and tile incorporated into it....how I wish it was as reasonable to buy here.....sigh.... so easy to keep spotless...looks amazing....

For a few euros...we got an upgrade to a castle view room...
why not?  It was only about 37 euros per night .... we probably should have gone to view the castle too..  here is what Wiki says about it.....  "Silves Castle was built between the 8th and the 13th century AD and is considered to be the best preserved of the Moorish castles of the country."  

Last year we did a lot of wandering through castles, cathedrals and ruins...but, this visit we were more concentrated on "doing the Algarve" ... and that meant seeing the amazing beaches... gawking at some pretty fancy yachts at one of the main marinas... feasting in a fancy restaurant later in the day (not that we didn't feast everywhere we went!) ...oh, man...the food! ...and moving on a bit further to more lovely beaches and another hotel... within walking distance from the beach I showed yesterday.

Feast your eyes on these views !!!

I love seeing and hearing the crashing waves and spent many a shot trying to capture just the right moment in a wave's life.... love this one.

Sure....I could live here.  I'll just take the one on the right...a bit higher up the hill, please...... in case of a very high tide.

Nobody around but us...how perfect.

Onward to another beach .... I have no clue exactly which beach this is...but, again it is probably Praia da Rocha.... means rocks.... they are all beautiful.  Love the colour of the rocks .... the wonderful feel of the sand ... I'm thinking colours like this for the house ....mmmmmm.... golden creamy cupboards ...  sea coloured walls. ....

Oh, yeh.....