Local Hero

Walked into town this afternoon, and amused myself admiring the gardens in the main square while Mike paid a bill at the bank; they're looking particularly lush at the moment. The gardener never seems to know the name of anything, but he keeps the gardens beautiful year round, and love his colour schemes, mainly blues, purples and pinks currently.

The bougainvillea is framing a bust of Dr Ravasco dos Anjos (b. 1900, d. 1983), a medical doctor who dedicated his whole professional life to the people of Mourão. He would attend anyone anywhere anytime, often traveling a long way to do so, and would help out with food and even money if needed, and only charged the rich for his services. He ran the hospital, which is just beyond the bougainvillea, on the other side of the street; no longer a hospital, sadly; the nearest is in Évora, an hour's drive away.

Before he died, he and his wife (bet she was a hero as well!) bequeathed the large building which is now the Care Home, to help the poorest. Delfina, my friend, used to play with his only daughter (another one died from an illness as a child) in their home, which is now the Morango Bar. He was also the uncle of Sr Zé at Chaminé, for those who know him.

(In Portuguese, here.)

Gratefuls:
- Constantino, the gardener, who creates so much beauty
- truly good people, who have compassion for the poor
- a drink at the Adega with folk, on our way home

In other news, we have Covid in Mourão again... Marcos and his wife went to a family baptism up north in Braga, and have now both tested positive... will this never end??

On a lighter note, dyed our cream bedding red today, but not really enough dye (I got it in England), so it's more of a mottled pink, oh well...