Monte Serrat Hill

Monte Serrat Hill is one of the highest points in Santos. You have the most breath-taking view of Santos up there! 

You can take a ride on the funicular or climb up on foot (there are 415 steps!). There are two funiculars, one that goes to the top of the hill and the other one to the bottom. The funicular has a single set of tracks going up the whole hill except for a small section in the middle where it splits into a double track. This is where the two funiculars pass each other. The view is really amazing and I took many pictures and a picture of a canyon.

On the top of Monte Serrat Hill there are the Monte Serrat Chapel, a big cafe, a shop which sells souvenirs, candles, saint statues, a room with concave and convex mirrors, etc. It is very funny to see yourself on the mirrors!  In the nineteenth century there was a casino on the hill, which was disabled and nowadays it is a cafe, which is used for events. 

Our Lady of Monte Serrat, who is the patron saint of the city, to whom is attributed many miracles, is in the chapel. She was the saint who saved Santos Village from a Netherland pirate attack in 1615 and saved Araguary boat from a shipwreck, in 1926. Our Lady of Monte Serrat Sanctuary has the Miracle room, full of pieces in gratitude to the blessings. Every year there is a celebration of Her day, on September 8th.

The day we went there was not good, so the real beauty of the place cannot be seen properly. This is a wonderful trip! I hope you like it! Enjoy!

Romeo and Juliet - Salty and Sweet

I'm reading Romeo and Juliet and this reminds me a Brazilian dessert called Romeo and Juliet, which is an arrangement with "quince fruit or marmalade and white cheese". But you can prepare Romeo and Juliet with other cheeses too or even jam instead of marmalade. You have to combine sweet and salty. I'm very curious about the origin of the name to tell every one. According to Wikipedia, this Brazilian dessert is from the state of Minas Gerais during the Colonial Brazil Period when the Portuguese started producing the white cheese on their colonies. Meanwhile, the creation of this dessert is attributed to the Bulgarians. But, why do they call it Romeo and Juliet? Because the marmalade (sweet)  and the white cheese (salty) are very different like the Montagues and the Capulets.

Enjoy!

Wilt thou be gone? It is not yet near day.

It was the nightingale, and not the lark,

That pierced the fearful hollow of thine ear.

Nightly she sings on yon pomegranate tree.

Believe me, love, it was the nightingale.

Only your name is my enemy. 
You’d be yourself even if you weren’t a Montague. What is a Montague? It isn’t a hand, foot, arm, face, or any other body part. Oh, change your name! What does a name mean? A rose would smell as sweet even if we called it by some other name.

Dolphins playing bubbles

I love this video of the Dolphins blowing bubble rings in water, really amazing!. Both captive and wild dolphins can blow bubble rings, but in captivity they do that to entertain themselves.They are captured blowing puffs of the air and tilting their heads so that they create perfect circle rings. Playing with bubbles is an important part of dolphin's life. Sometimes the size of the bubble is big enough for the dolphins swim through it. Some dolphins don't know how to blow bubbles, so they learn how to do it watching the others. They also like to ride waves like those generated by boats and jump on the waves.This is a lesson to learn: practice makes perfect!

Living Statues

I enjoy taking pictures all the time! So, when I went to the Shopping Centre here, I saw these beautiful living statues or street performers and I took pictures of them.  According to en.wikipedia.org, the term living statue refers to a mime artist who poses like a statue, usually with a realistic statue-like makeup, sometimes for hours at a time.They were perfect and looked like real statues!

Enjoy!

Tea Time

My first post and the first thing that came up to my mind was the tea time. It is a good time to relax, to get together with our family or friends.  What do we serve with tea? It depends on where you are, on what is the purpose of it, and what do you have at home. 

So, many  things such as cookies, cakes, milk, gooseberry syrup, strawberry jam, sandwiches, scones,  bread, cheese, salami,  butter, and so on.

How to sweeten the tea? With sugar, lumps of sugar, brown sugar, honey, anything, etc. It is up to you.

So, enjoy your tea time!