Flags

Every town or village in portugal no matter how small has its own flag this usually consists of symbols or pictures depicting something about the place against a quartered background.

The flag is flown over municipal buildings such as the Ferguesia, which I believe is a bit like our Town or Civic Hall, and there is usually a standard for carrying at ceremonial occassions.

Santa Luzia is no exception.

This is the flag which is flown on buildings. As Santa Luzia is essentialy a fishing village the flag depicts a fishing boat with a fishtrap which is self explanatory and an alcatruz. An alcatruz was origionaly a pot for holding wine or water usally made from terracotta. They are used to capture octopus now and tend to be generally made from black plastic. Interestingly the Alcatruz points back to the Moorish influence as they were first used as the pots on the irrigation water wheels the arabs famously introduced to Portugal (a spledid example of which can be seen in Tomar in central Portugal) and their very name is a derivative of the arabic 'Al-Kadush' meaning 'of irrigation'.

This is the standard which is carried on ceremonial occasions.

I have never seen either the flag or standard in use but you can be sure on future visits I will be keeping an eye open for them. I feel sure the standard will have been somwhere in the procession at the festival but if it was I am afraid it completely passed over me!!

Festival

I touched on the festival in an earlier posting. The annual festival commences on a Friday and ends on the following monday usually in the second week of August. It is a very busy time for the village with many visitors from Lisbon and the north of Portugal.

A staged area is constructed on the promenade and a show is staged every evening, this year the stage area was not fenced off and whilst you had to pay for a seat or table it was perfectly possible to go along and enjoy the entertainment from a standing position just outside the main audotorium area. The entertainment typically commences about 10-00pm and goes on till around 2-00am. lots of temporary bars are placed along the prom and to say alcohol is so freely and cheaply available it is amazing that drunkeness is almost unheard of at this event, quite a contrast to what would probably happen here in the UK. There were quite a few GNR (portuguese police) in evidence but their primary concern seemed to be ensuring that cylists did not ignore the traffic signs and laws of the road on the otherwise vehicle free streets!!

On the Sunday a solemn mass is held in the little local church after which the statues of christ and the various saints are paraded around the village accompanied by a marching band and what looked like the entire 1500 population plus a good number of excited tourists. The statue of santa Luzia the patron saint of both the village and the now severely depleted fishing fleet is carried cermoniously to the fishermans pier where the fishing boats await decked in ribbons and flowers to be blessed for the coming year. On the return to the church around 8-00pm a display of fireworks signals the end of the religious celebration and everyone gets back to the business of enjoying the festival.

The Highlights of our visit

Well i have been back in the UK now for just over a fortnight and have just been too busy with the pub and the vending machine business to post anything.

During the time we were in the village we managed to do a number of things we have been promising ourselves for some time now. The first and most unpleasant of those ws to visit the local town hall and pay our 'Council tax' (don't know what it is actually called in Portugal).

We caused a little confusion in the place by trying with our not too good Portuguse to organise a direct debit arrangement for what we thought must be the monthly payment of 139 Euros. That was ultimately resolved when the clerk managed with her not too good english to communicate that 139 euros was in fact the full years dues. Now that's the kind of tax I do not mind paying!!!

Managed a trip across the Rio Formosa on the water taxi to Terra Estrata and walked the kilometer or so down the fabulous beach to the Isle De Tavira, more about that another time.

During the second week we managed to visit Pego do Inferno, an inland attraction a twenty minute drive from Tavira. Though it was busy with bathers and swimmers the stunning natural beauty still left a lasting impression and I will surley attempt an out of season visit to see it in a more natural state.

Visitors enjoying the spectacular Pego Do Inferno