Momento from Portugal (2001)

“Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more.” - Oprah Winfrey

(The Rooster of Barcelos on a kitchen towel)

Rooster of Barcelos

Most of the kitchen towels I bought as souvenirs from Portugal have the Rooster of Barcelos printed as part of the pattern. There is a funny story about this rooster that everyone should know when visiting Portugal. 

Portugal's famous Folk Tale of the Rooster of Barcelos tells the story of a dead rooster's miraculous stood up to prove the innocence of a man who had been falsely accused and sentenced to death. The story is associated with the 17th-century calvary that is part of the collection of the Archaeological Museum located in Paço dos Condes, a gothic-style palace in Barcelos, a city in the Braga District of northwest Portugal. 

According to the tale, a landowner in Barcelos had silver stolen and caught the person who was suspected to commit the crime. The man claimed innocence. Nevertheless, the authorities arrested the man and condemned him to hang. However, while the pilgrim was being hanged, the roasted rooster stood up on the table and crowed as predicted. Admitting his error, the judge ran to the gallows, to discover that the man had been saved from being hanged thanks to a poorly made knot in the rope. The man was immediately freed and sent off in peace.

Note: Nando's is a South African fast food chain that specialises in Portuguese-African food, including its signature flame-grilled peri-peri style chicken. Their logo depicts the Rooster of Barcelos, one of the most common symbols of Portugal.

(Rooster of Barcelos)

In January 2000/December 2001 we were on a family holiday to Spain and Portugal with a group of Malaysians. On the way back to KL we stop-over in London and had time to ride the hop-on hop-off bus to tour London at night.

My Overseas Travel Blog: munmus.blogspot.com