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Mature Flâneur
The Canals of Aveiro, the ‘Venice of Portugal’
The prettiest little city in Portugal
We sat in our boat, transfixed: the old Portuguese boatman stood at the bow as we motored towards the low bridge. We were sure his head was going to crack on the edge of the concrete. He did not duck.
We passengers collectively held our breath as his hat fairly grazed the underside of the bridge, with just inches to spare. Everyone exhaled.
The old man looked forward to make sure no other boats were coming at us under the canal, then hollered the all clear to his colleague at the tiller.
“Do you think he did that deliberately to scare us?” I asked Teresa, my beloved and most perspicacious Portuguese spouse.
“Oh definitely. It’s all part of the show,” she assured me.
Our boatman performed the same ritual, bridge after bridge, sometimes even turning his back to a bridge as we approached; it was unnerving, and riveting, to watch.
Looking around at the other boats, I noticed most of their crewmen also seemed past retirement age. Perfect…
