Portuguese Sea

Salt-laden sea, how much of all your salt
Is tears of Portugal!
For us to cross you, how many sons have kept,
Vigil in vain, and mothers wept!
Lived as old maids how many brides-to-be
Till death, that you might be ours, sea!
Was it worth while?
It is worthwhile, all, If the soul is not small.
Whoever means to sail beyond the Cape
Must double sorrow - no escape.
Peril and abyss has God to the sea given,
And yet made it the mirror of heaven.

Fernando Pessoa
 
The sea, mirror of the sky, was the motto of a journey  that led me along the Portuguese coast line. The relationship between Portugal and the sea catches me, intrigues me,  and it´s under my skin…
Portugal found in the sea its core reason for its identity. It owes the oceans a compelling wish to expand its limits and to strengthen its culture for almost nine centuries. This country breathes a very particular identity, a mix of Fado and Saudade, which has its origin in this long lasting relationship with the sea.
And with the sea and all the history in my mind, I started a journey along the Portuguese coast line. During this journey and in search of my own relationship with this sea and this coast, I´ve gathered very personal, subjective and introspective  pictures, some shot by instinct, some enigmatic, but always evocative of daily discoveries by the coast.
This was the coast that I´ve found; this was the sea I´ve met. This was the journey where, as the poet Luis de Camões once said, the land ends and the sea begin.

You may also like

Back to Top