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| Sandpiper at Viana do Castelo with Eiffel's bridge in the background |
Saturday 28th July. We had a fast and
‘exciting’(Cliff’s description) downwind
sail down from Bayona with strong winds and 2 metre swell. As we turned
into the river entrance the wind suddenly increased to 25 knots and the water
was filled with kite surfers accelerating across the full width of the river in
front of us. Cliff calmly held his course as the surfers did dramatic, airborne
turns only yards from the boat. Impressive but very, very scary!
Our mooring is just outside the marina on the river Lethe,
close to the two tier bridge designed by Alexandre Gustaf Eiffel, who also designed the
Eiffel tower in Paris.
We were planning to stay for a couple of days in Viana do
Castelo as it has an interesting history and some remarkable buildings. But
when we booked in at the marina we were told that they have a club rally arriving
the tomorrow, so we can only stay for one night.
Fiesta time, note the cowbells on the costume on the left!
As we headed into town to have a quick look around we were met
by an amazing sight – a procession of bands and groups dressed in folk
costumes, all wearing different types of animal masks, with giant jangling
bells hung from their hips or beating on drums that looked as though they were
made from animal stomachs. We followed the procession to the main square, where
it stopped for a moment, then the bands started up again and everyone danced –
children, parents, grandparents, all whirling round to the beat of the drums
and ringing of the bells. What a wonderful introduction to Viana do Castelo! We
hope to see more of this stately town on our return journey.
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