Odeceixe, wha...?!
You know: Odeceixe. Portugal. No, I’d never heard of it, either, until my friend Linda made me walk there for the final leg of our four days on the Fishermen’s Trail (see my May blog posted at Generally Write for more about that).
Coming into Odeceixe after a long day’s walk.
The cool thing about Odeceixe is the way its unusual name reminds me how much there is I do not know about this world. I always chuckle in a squirmy/uncomfortable way when I hear someone say, “I’ve done Paris,” or “I’ve done the States.” (Grammatically, how does one “do” a place, or even a meal, when ordering? but I digress). Of course it is impossible to truly know a place after a brief, surface-level visit. Sure, I spent three days in Lisbon, so I’ve been there which is certainly more than just imagining it—but clearly to know a place else requires a lot more attention and duration, maybe even a lifetime.
Even on our day off, we walked around to see the sights of Odeceixe.
Yet credit must go to those who travel to unheralded places. When foreigners venture off the beaten track to my patch in western Michigan, they have usually already been to the United States’ First Tier places: Disney World, New York, Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon. They have probably also been to the Second Tier places: Chicago, New Orleans, the Rocky Mountains, Seattle, Los Angeles. Usually, a chance to travel takes people to the highlights. In the case of Portugal, travelers will focus most likely on its First Tier places: Lisbon, Porto, and the south coast of the Algarve.
Odeceixe windwill, built around 1898, still mills corn and wheat.
I live, quite happily, in what I call a Third Tier city, a place most people have not even heard of. Few will probably ever visit it or places like it. This is completely understandable and predictable, which makes me feel even luckier when life carries me further into the unknown. Any amount of travel away from your comfort zone, I say, is good.
View of Odeceixe village.
Certainly it is not possible to see every place or go everywhere. “Seeing the sights” implies a firsthand visit to the highlights a place has to offer. Of course! Visitors should come to know the splendor of the Grand Canyon or the bright city lights first. But what a gift to scratch below the surface and go to places like Odeceixe. Or Mahajango, or Tidjikdja, or even Grand Rapids. The cool thing is, you know there are people there—humans, like you and me—living their lives, getting food, fuel, shelter. Finding love and losing it. Some are good-hearted, but not all, of course. Some are better off than others, some hard-working, others not. Human nature is consistent that way.
Looking down the Seixe River valley toward the outlet to the sea beyond.
I am enriched, knowing there are places I will never go and tongues that I will never understand. Take Portuguese, for example. I naively thought that the Portuguese language would probably be a lot like Spanish. After all, Spain is right next door to Portugal. I learned I had another think coming! My come-uppance began when I delved into Portuguese on my Duolingo app, where I was well into 700+ days of studying Spanish. Just the sound of Portuguese immediately took me by surprise, not to mention the spelling of many words. Only a shadow of similarity exists to Spanish.
A yummy plate of local clams, with lots of lemon & garlic!
In Portugal, I thoroughly enjoyed the music of a language that wavered between Romance languages and the memory of hearing Czech during two months in the Czech Republic. It made me ponder the incomprehensibility of many foreign languages and the way others understand meaning in sounds that mean nothing to me. What beauty, that ours is not the only way. What mystery, that ways so different from my own create such diverse worlds.
In the end, I was endeared to the sounds of the Portuguese language, even though I remain completely inept at speaking it. It represents to me the broad nature of place names, languages, and customs that make up this small planet we all share. Oh, and by the way, it’s pronounced “Od-i-shaysh.” In case you were wondering.
