Oh No!! It's an Earthquake!
Oh No!! It's an Earthquake!
We literally felt the earth move under our feet.
Living in Europe has changed our skin. It’s changed our eating habits. It’s changed how we get around. It’s changed how many times we see the doctor (though you could also attribute that to age). It’s changed our working hours And, now, it’s even changed the way we sleep. At least that’s what happened on Monday night.
After tucking into bed and shutting our eyes a few hours, we abruptly woke up to our bed and apartment literally shaking. We could feel the building’s wooden pombaline frame, a diagonal network of old beams, starting to strain for dear life, yet somehow performing admirably despite the stress.
Prior to last year, we had never experienced an earthquake. Now, in less than a year’s span, we’ve experienced two.
The first quake occurred more subtly while both of us were awake but in bed. Lisbon was just on the edge of the earthquake zone from the great Moroccan quake and we felt a light tremble. Daryl blamed Mindi, as is typical, for shaking the bed. It was only the next morning that we realized that the shaking was a hint of Morocco’s major quake.
This recent quake, at 5.4 on the Richter scale, was far less significant than Morocco’s which clocked in at 6.9. However, the epicenter of the Portuguese quake, just 84 kilometres from Lisbon, made our building shake and bend like a well constructed erector set.
Lisbon is no stranger to earthquakes.
The city’s history is shaped by a massive earthquake that occurred in 1755. That quake, which some estimate as high as 9.0 on the Richter scale, and its subsequent tsunami destroyed the entire lower town of Lisbon. That neighborhood, Baixa, is where we call home today. In fact, we live in a rebuilt building that features some of the first examples of modern, earthquake proof construction - a special x-shaped, shake resistant frame built under the auspices of the Marquis of Pombal, hence the name pombaline frame.
Pombal, a darker-edged figure of the enlightenment who implemented his ideas with dictatorial control, fought Portuguese royals to rebuild Lisbon with utilitarian buildings and a modern rectangular street plan. It’s said that the small street grid and design of Lisbon’s Baixa neighborhood influenced planners all over the world including Hausmann’s great street plan in Paris.
We’re grateful that our building stayed upright. To our mothers - don’t worry. We were well protected. To all our east coast friends who’ve never experienced an earthqake of this magnitude - you need to understand that there’s a certain noisy hum to an earthquake - a shaking din that slowly lets off when it’s all over. The question is when it will end. Luckily for us and our neighbors, this one ended quickly with nobody getting hurt.
Drink of the Week - White Negroni
Although days are getting shorter (boo!), it’s not too late to sip a refreshing drink while watching the sun set. And, yet, cocktails like the Bahama Mama and Piña Colada seem a bit too beachy with Labor Day just around the corner.
Enter the White Negroni.
Yes, we get that the White Negroni is yellow instead of white. We blame the French for that faux pas. But, on the upside, it’s a sophisticated cocktail that’s as refreshing as it is bitter. You know, just like the original Negroni but even more so.
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Links We’re Liking
Is it wrong that we want to try Tim Walz’s Tater Tot Hotdish recipe? We suspect that you may want to make it too. Everybody else can go cry about it. | Washington Post (gifted)
Now that Keith Lee has made the execs at Chipotle cry, he’s moved on to DC. We’re guessing that the styrofoam packaged food that certain restaurants offer in DC is not up to Lee’s TikTok generated standards. | Washington Post (gifted)
One more reason to cry - some Lisbon restaurants are attempting a two-tiered price structure. (Since it’s illegal to gouge tourists in Lisbon, we’re curious to see where this goes.) | The Guardian
Until next week,
Daryl & Mindi