Finally some rest!

[Gregor 4,846]

Maybe you have mentioned this in a previous post, and I missed it, but what was it that brought you to the states?

[formariz 11,987]

16 minutes ago, Gregor said:

Maybe you have mentioned this in a previous post, and I missed it, but what was it that brought you to the states?

I was struck by luck. My father came first since it was impossible to make a living there and due to certain circumstances there was also a certain degree of persecution. I followed along with my mother about four years later. Country was a strict dictatorship . Unknown to us then since keeping people essentially enslaved was the norm, we were essentially living at least 50 years behind the US and some other European countries.  Still today when I talk about certain experiences to people here, they ask me exactly how old I am. That is how behind we were. 
 You have no idea what went through my head when I took my first step onto this blessed place. In those first minutes I might as well have been on Mars , that is how foreign and strange everything was.   As much as I sometimes criticize things here, it is the same as when I criticize my children. It is because I love them and want them to be better. I love the place I was born in and my culture, but make no mistake as to whom my heart belongs and where my allegiance lies. I cannot even imagine what my life would have been like had I not been here.

[formariz 11,987]

This stone in my in-laws has been used for centuries as a sharpening stone. Still used today by him. It was generally used at the end of day to sharpen scythes , hoes, etc. I tried it and it actually cuts very fast. Mother in law sharpens kitchen knives on it.
 

 

 

[Handy Don 12,235]

1 hour ago, formariz said:

This stone in my in-laws has been used for centuries as a sharpening stone. Still used today by him. It was generally used at the end of day to sharpen scythes , hoes, etc. I tried it and it actually cuts very fast. Mother in law sharpens kitchen knives on it.
 

 

Looks like you may only get another few hundred years out of that stone! 

[formariz 11,987]

45 minutes ago, Handy Don said:

Looks like you may only get another few hundred years out of that stone! 

Enough left for that but only mother in law uses it nowadays for the knives. The hard part now is saving it for future generations to appreciate it. People here are quick to wreck and discard important stuff as it was in the case of the previously mentioned wine press.  I however already laid claim to it. So it shall be, I was told.

[formariz 11,987]

Went to the local market to buy lunch. Fish is the main staple here always fresh since country is half coastline. 

 

 

[formariz 11,987]

Land of the Port wine. Some very expensive vintage ones in this place. The oldest ones are in excess of 350. Euros for a bottle. I think the only other liquid more expensive than fuel. 
 

 

 

[formariz 11,987]

Gourd vines growing amongst grape vines. Grape harvest already done but father in law saved some on the vine for us.

 

 

 

[formariz 11,987]

This one is from the 14th century. All wood carvings gilded with gold leaf with the exception of tabernacle door which is solid golf.

 

 

 

[rjg854 11,378]

That sure is magnificent 

[formariz 11,987]

Can never leave here without spending time in my favorite place in this planet. Sadly none were functioning today. As time goes on they rest more and more since the operators are all now in their 70s and 80s. They are all protected by law even the ones in ruin. However without operating and without the expert maintenance they constantly need I fear that eventually they will be nothing but ghosts on top of the hills as many already are. This is an extremely peaceful place where one hears nothing but the wind and the sounds created by the clay pots on the sails. It is a constant gentle howl that is heard for miles. The elders state that they could tell which one would be working just by the sound it makes. The combination of different size pots different on each one makes them sound different from each other. It is an incredible experience being next to or inside one listening to all the sounds. Outside the howling of the pots and the incredible power of the sails and mast turning with the wind, and inside the unbelievable symphony of wooden gears turning , millstones turning and grinding and the low frequency vibrations that just go right through ones body. Something that one will never forget.

 

 

 

 

Sail holding post worn from years of use

Exhaust from Diesel engine used in times of no wind. Only a few have this adaption done in the 50s

Sadly literally a sign of the times 

 

 

Even abandoned ones are now considered national land marks and protected by law.

 

Walls on bottom can be up to four feet thick.

[formariz 11,987]

Hard land to cultivate but extremely fertile. Nearly every square foot cultivated pumpkin harvesting time now. There are tractor trailers from all over Europe picking them up.

 

 

 

[Gregor 4,846]

15 minutes ago, formariz said:

Sadly none were functioning today. As time goes on they rest more and more since the operators are all now in their 70s and 80s.

I'm kind-a stupid I guess. You are going to have to educate me. If I have this right, the windmills have no fabric, or wooden sails. The wind catching in the clay  pots is what turns them?  BTW  My wife would like about 40 or 50 of those pumpkins

[formariz 11,987]

1 hour ago, Gregor said:

I'm kind-a stupid I guess. You are going to have to educate me. If I have this right, the windmills have no fabric, or wooden sails. The wind catching in the clay  pots is what turns them?  BTW  My wife would like about 40 or 50 of those pumpkins

LOL Don’t be so hard on yourself. Since they are stopped they wind sails around posts. Take a look at the links below. Those are videos from three years ago. Turn the sound up. The pots are only to create the sound. 

 

Those pumpkins are something else. They are so nearly perfectly identical that they stack them on pallets like they were manufactured ,

 

 

 

[formariz 11,987]

There are wind turbines literally all over this country. One cannot be anywhere without one in sight.

 

[Stormin 9,981]

 Thanks for the windmill video's. Excellent.