“True hope is swift, and flies with swallow’s wings.” – William Shakespeare
If it’s true that one swallow does not make a spring, as Aristotle already knew, does it then mean that many swallows do make summer?
That should mean that wherever I go in Portugal, there’s eternal summer, for the swallows are everywhere. Blue and red, yellow or black. In one iconic shape but all sizes. On electrical wires, walls and fridges.
For a long time I just accepted their existence, saw them, liked them, felt that their presence made me happy. Until, only recently I found out that there’s more to their existence, here in the land of fado and saudades, of big waves, green wines and explorers of the worlds gone by.
According to local legend, swallows – or andorinhas, as they are called here – are symbols for family and home; the place for which they always have saudades, to which they always return. Also, very romantically, they find a single partner for life and thus have become symbols for love, loyalty and faithfulness.
In the 1890s, the Portuguese artist Rafael Bordallo Pinheiro, one of the most influential people of his time, started to design and produce little colorful swallows in his ceramics factory in Caldas da Rainhas in Central Portugal. Quickly, his handcrafted beautiful birds gained popularity, and the exchange of swallows, not only between lovers, has become a token for harmony, happiness and prosperity in the home.
And, of course, seeing them in real life, they are simply, magically beautiful, and, after all, they do bring the summer.
Thank you, swallows! – Obrigada andorinhas!
Peppertreechronicles 