Dia 9: Last day in Portugal

July 16, 2019

This morning at about 7:45am, I had my last breakfast at Chalet d’Avila, and hopped on the red line metro in the direction of the aeroporto. I was saying good-bye to Portugal with a promise to be back soon. I have nothing but happy memories of my first visit to this lovely country.

I arrived at the airport with about two hours to get through security, buy some liquid souvenirs for my parents, and get to boarding. Although the extra security check at our gate was annoying, as I always seem to be picked for these so-called “random” checks where my bag is opened and its contents moved around in such a way that I almost have to re-pack, the flight itself was delightful. From my understanding, Air Portugal is a newer airline that has just begun direct flights from San Francisco to Portugal, and so far I have been impressed.

During the 12-hour flight, we had access to several movies and television shows, and we received a full meal of pasta, salad, bread, and panna cotta as well as a snack of cheese, ham, and kiwi. And usually the wine or beer is complimentary on European flights, I have noticed. Tempted to drink the wine but certain it would just make me drowsy, I went with water for the entire flight home. I think I have had enough Portuguese wine to last me awhile.

I was able to watch three full Portuguese films on the flight home. They were all really quality films. One was a historical movie about a famous Mozambican soccer player who joins Portugal’s Benfica team during the tumultuous 1960s. The film was called Ruth and falls during the time period when Portugal begins a war with Angola and some of its other colonies who have begun to have nationalist uprisings. Later, the African colonies would all gain independence with the Carnation Revolution in the 70s. This was a great film.

A second film called Axilas (meaning armpit), was a dark comedy and was the last film directed by famous director Jose Fonseca e Costa before his death. The film is based on a book of the same name by a Brazilian writer, and was created to include more Portuguese situations and nuances. The film is somewhat a critique of some of the contradictions of the Catholic religion. In it, the main character is adopted by a wealthy Catholic woman as a male adult, and is forced into devout Catholicism where he must suppress all of his normal desires to the point that he becomes fixated on this violinist’s armpit. In the end, he commits the worst sin of all: in his suppressed madness, he kills this woman whose armpits he has become obsessed with. It’s dark, but also comedic. I half-watched it on my flight into Portugal and was disturbed, but was intrigued enough to go back and watch it again. I found more humor in and understanding in it the second time.

Finally, I watched a documentary that seemed to be a love story to Portugal and its many gifts - its beaches and surfers, its viticulture, its beautiful mountains and islands, its old villages, its food, and its rich, welcoming culture. The islands were featured, and this made me excited to return to see Madeira.