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Tag: Indoor Karting Caldas da Rainha

Oeste with kids

There are studies that have calculated that children smile on average 400 times a day while adults only smile between 30 and 40 times a day. There are also several studies that have analyzed that children are much more creative than adults because they see life as a game and are able to imagine playful situations in any scenario.

Fortunately, there are times in adults’ lives when they have the opportunity to recover some of that joy, sharing games with their children, nephews or grandchildren. For that, it is enough to let go, get some imagination and let yourself be carried away by the little ones.

For several reasons, the Oeste region of Portugal is an ideal setting for children. In the first place, because it has a climate that favors all outdoor activities; the temperatures are mild all year round, never too cold or too hot. Second, because it has more than 100 km of coastline, with dozens of beaches, which are, as is known, the preferred scenario for children to play. And, thirdly, because it is still not a saturated destination, and does not have the long queues that always characterize the most typical children’s destinations.

So today our recommendation is that we all fit imaginary cowboy boots and hat, that we take our horses and that we throw ourselves to the great adventure of the conquest of the West.

The route can begin in Óbidos, which with its castle and its walls can be the best inspiration for any adventure. If we need a certain atmosphere to warm up, the ideal moment would be in summer, while the medieval fair takes place, with its famous combats between knights. During those days, costumes are rented and anyone can feel for a few hours the lord of the castle.

Another very appropriate time to go to Óbidos with children would be in December, during Vila Natal, when the whole town becomes a large theme park of games and activities related to Christmas. You can check in the city council website for dates and schedules of these two events: www.cm-obidos.pt

The beaches of the region are known worldwide thanks to surfing. The Praia Norte in Nazaré, with its giant waves, and Supertubos in Peniche, with the World League events, are the most famous but almost all have a surf school and instructors to show you how to start with this spectacular sport. We tend to think that surfing is not suitable for small children but in reality, as soon as they know how to swim well, they can start jumping on the board and at those ages it is when their approach is simpler and more natural and they immediately dominate the movements. For the little ones, the ideal is to start on beaches with little waves, like Gamboa in Peniche, where the veteran Escola Surf Peniche offers its courses.

For those who do not dare to try it, another fun and different beach plan is the Parque Acuático of São Martinho do Porto, a set of slides and jumps that is installed during the summer in the sea, a few meters from the shore.

And for children and not so children, an option that never fails to make you have a good time with friends is a kart race. In the region there are several kart tracks, all quite good, such as the Kiro Kartódromo do Oeste in Bombarral, the Dino Kart in Lourinhã and the Euroindy near Batalha. There is even an option for rainy days, the Indoor Karting Caldas da Rainha, which is somewhat smaller but also great fun. It is advisable to check beforehand the minimum ages, although most of them have different options to welcome the smallest too.

We can continue our adventure in the Jurassic period, looking for fossils and discovering all the secrets of the dinosaurs in the Dino Parque de Lourinhã.

And finally, for those who want to make the most of the boots and hat that they put on at the beginning of this entry and prefer not to bring their own horse, there are also several first class equestrian centers where you can give free rein to the cowboy you carry inside. We highlight the Alfeizerão International Equestrian Center, with very complete facilities and all kinds of services, and the Quintas de Óbidos, which also has magnificent facilities and is gradually starting up after some very troubled beginnings due to the crisis.

With all these elements and a bit of our imagination we have more than assured the smiles of children and adults.

The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain; tips for rainy days in Portugal

My Fair Lady was a musical film released in the 60s, directed by George Cukor, with Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison in the leading roles. It received good reviews and numerous awards, including the Oscar for best film.

Although in Spain the exhibition of films in its original version is gradually increasing, it was previously only possible to see the films in a dubbed version. In the case of musical films, such as My Fair Lady, the lyrics of the songs were also translated, which was sometimes a real challenge to get them to fit the original music. In order to maintain the metric or the rhythm, the translators needed to make small changes to the original lyrics. In the case of one of the songs of My Fair Lady, which in English was called “The rain in Spain”, the change was radical and became “La lluvia en Sevilla es una pura maravilla” (the rain in Seville is a pure marvel). The reason in this case was to fit the circumstances of the scene where the song was featured.

This scene was where the character of Eliza Doolittle had difficulties with the correct pronunciation of the letters “ai”, which in English sometimes adopts the sound [ei] and so the teacher uses the phrase “the rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain” as a speech exercise to help Eliza improve her pronunciation. The problem is that in Spanish in the phrase “the rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain” did not rhyme well and there was not much challenge as a speech exercise since those words are pronounced as they are written. Hence, and it did not have much logical argument to keep to the original lyrics. The writers therefore chose to refocus the sentence on the pronunciation of the double “l”, which not everyone pronounces in the same way.

It must be said that the problem with the phrase and the song was not only in the Spanish version. In the German version, the song changed to “Es grünt so grün wenn Spaniens Blüten blühen“, which means “The greenness is so green when the flowers bloom in Spain”. In Italian it was “La rana in Spagna gracida in campagna“, that would be “The frog in Spain croaks in the field”. However, none of these versions has been as successful as the Spanish one, where the phrase penetrated deep into popular culture and even today, more than 60 years after the premiere of the film, it is still common to hear it when a rainy day arrives in Seville.

Well, paraphrasing this anecdote it could be said that “The rain in Portugal, can also be practical.” To begin with, because it is that rain that keeps the green landscapes so lush which is a characteristic attraction of the Portuguese geography. This is also what allows Portugal to be one of the leading countries in renewable energy, thanks to abundant hydroelectric power. On a more personal level, because it allows you to stay at home, light the fireplace and enjoy a quiet afternoon filled with the fragrance of a rainy day. Or even embark on a journey of discovering some places and activities less known by tourists which can guarantee a great afternoon of family fun.

We can start with one of the newest, the Quantum Park, in Lisbon, which offers one of Europe’s largest indoor surfaces of trampolines, climbing areas, skate ramps, and basketball courts.

Another classic for rainy days is the Oceanário de Lisboa, which in 2018 was chosen as the best aquarium in the world by Tripadvisor, and always offers plenty of quality and interesting activities for the whole family.

For those who are in the Oeste region and do not want to make it all the way to Lisbon, there are also closer plans which are equally enjoyable. The Bowling Caldas, next to the municipal sports area, offers bowling, games, karaoke and, sometimes, even live music. And in that same line, another interesting plan is the Indoor Karting Caldas da Rainha, which has a small but fun kart track, and an area with snooker and karaoke.

A different kind of excursion is to visit the grutas Mira de Aire, which are located a few kilometers from Fatima and constitute the largest group of caves in Portugal. At the time when its commercial exploitation began in the 70s, there was less sensitivity for the preservation of nature, and some people may think that the caves have too much human intervention. But the experience is still very interesting and the children love the adventurous element.

Then there is always surfing, which you can continue enjoying quite as much, as you end up more or less equally wet with rain or without it. And even golf; under the rain is a little less pleasant, but you can still play, and if you choose the links of Praia del Rey or West Cliffs, you can get into an experience very similar to what the inventors of this sport in the British Isles would have had in their time (and which the Ryder Cup contestants have had to face from time to time on the British courses).

And, to close as we started, one of our favorite plans is to go to the La Vie shopping center in Caldas, and see a good movie. Most of the films are in the original version, with subtitles in Portuguese. The restaurants in this shopping center share a food court, which allows everyone to choose what they want, for the whole family to find something to their liking and for the rainy afternoon to finish with very good grades.

We open the forum and welcome more ideas for rainy days.