Travelites

On December 5, 1872, the Mary Celeste, a Canadian-built, American-owned merchant ship, was speeding across the Atlantic from the Azores Islands towards Gibraltar with sails at full mast. However, when it was sighted 1,000 km off the coast of Portugal by the crew of the Dei Gratia, a Canadian brigantine, they discovered that the Mary Celeste was abandoned, completely unmanned. Although the weather was fine and there was no damage to the ship, nor any distress flags, when Oliver Deveau, Chief Mate of the Dei Gratia, boarded the Mary Celeste. On board, he discovered something even more bizarre. All of the ship's papers were missing, except for the captain's logbook. The ship's clock was not functioning, and the compass was destroyed; the sextant and marine chronometer were missing. A six-month supply of uncontaminated food and fresh water remained aboard, and the crew's personal possessions and artifacts were left untouched, making a pirate raid seem extremely unli...

Most well-heeled travelers headed to Lisbon will have heard about our brand of local folk music called Fado, meaning "Fate". Formally recognized in the 19th century and UNESCO-protected as “Intangible Heritage” today, the music is filled with melancholy and deep emotional longing, and evokes the multicultural influences that have shaped contemporary Portuguese culture over the centuries. Its roots are in the islands of West Africa, carrying melodies influenced by Arabo-Hispanic troubadours with a residue of Ladino influences from Sephardic communities. In recent decades, scores of music lovers have been seduced by Fadistas like Amália Rodrigues, known as the "Rainha do Fado" (Queen of Fado), who cemented her position in the international World Music circuits until her passing in 1999. Today, performers like Mariza are packing theaters around the world, seduced by her reinvented Fado, while Cristina Branco and Ana Moura represent a new generation of talented Fado i...