Greetings fellow musical Hivers π€
Hey hey hey my dear readers πππ. I'm super excited about this post and that's because I have awesome new stuff to share with you all! And just in time for the 1 year celebration of #ThreeTuneTuesday πππ! First of all let's congratulate @ablaze for starting and expanding this little community that allowed us to connect not only with music but also with each other β£οΈ On top of the amazing tunes shared every week, connecting with other fellow #TTT posters are just priceless β€οΈ Thank you all!
If you have been following my #TTT posts, then you know last week I said I would be attending an Islamic Festival during the weekend and..... - what an adventure! (note to self - and still recovering... π
). Therefore, in this post I'm going to talk a little bit about the highlights of my weekend and then I'm gonna share 3 different artists/bands I met during this Festival (note to self - what a rush!!! I missed it so much).
Dear reader, in this post there will be more photos than usual, so follow me! Let's head south to a little Portugal village called MΓ©rtola. π
What do you think about the view from the castle tower? π
Three Tune Tuesday πΈ
For those of you who don't know, Three Tune Tuesday was created by @ablaze and as he explains π
The jist is as follows
Every Tuesday I'm going to share 3 songs which I like to listen to and I invite your feedback in the comments below. Better still, why not have a blast of your own Three Tune Tuesday and mention me in the post and I'll come and find the post and upvote it. It'll be a sweet way for us all to discover new music. You'll also be in with a chance of winning a prize.
With that being said, MΓ©rtola is a small village located in the south interior area of Portugal with just 6205 local population and is known for its hot weather, a castle and a local mine where they used to extract gold Source . The Islamic Festival happens every two years and is the most important event to the village both for the local economy as well as tourism promotion. It is sort of a valley, with the Guadiana river at the bottom and a castle on the top. In between we have a few houses as you can see in the photo π
First let me tell you something about me, dear reader... I do not like too much heat! My body can't sustain it very well, my blood pressure drops really low and I get really fussy and low energy. My boyfriend is just the opposite. He loves warm weather - the hotter the better for him. I'm the cold one in the relationship ππ
So, going on with this adventure, me and my boyfriend arrived at MΓ©rtola on friday at about 14:30. The thermometer marked 38ΒΊC but I didn't need to check. As soon as we got out of the car I immediately thought I would pass out πππ. My boyfriend was happy, arms stretched embracing the warm π
. You get the picture, dear reader! Luckly, we had an amazing lunch followed with some icy cold white wine (note to self - oh did that felt good!) πππ.
This is a local dish called barriga de atum - tuna belly. It's from a part of the tuna that it's really yummy πππ! My favourite actually, not as dry as tuna steak. This reminds me - @blanchy you can find this dish in Vilamoura when you go on vacation, I highly recommend π!!
After lunch, my body adjusted better to the extreme heat so it was time to get to the Festival area. The centre of the Festival had a little market - called Souk, full of colours and smells from different spices π. Which I bought - a few π, and I told the merchant who sold them to me that when I grew up I wanted to have a shelf of spices just like this β£οΈ It's just so damn beautiful!
There were 4 different outdoor rooms full of activities throughout the day, from concerts to workshops teaching how to play some instruments and even how to work with clay. The Souk was covered by colourful blankets, providing a small shade and a bit of refreshment (note to self - thankfully! I was dying here guys!)
The streets were full of people walking by, kids dressed up really cute with traditional islamic clothes and props, entertainers doing belly dance, playing different instruments all over the place in these narrow streets. I thought about joining in the fun and getting a fully immersive islamic experience so I bought myself some props and a beautiful traditional robe. It was actually much better to deal with the heat even covering my whole body. I felt free and light (note to self - OK YES! I felt like a Disney princess π)!
By this time we were heading up to the castle to see a concert from a portuguese group called Raia. They were my favourite tunes of the weekend but sadly I wasn't able to find any songs on Youtube or elsewhere! I will have to do some more digging in the meanwhile... But rest assured dear reader! I think the tunes today won't disappoint you anyway. So, going up we went to a place that was sort of a mix between church and mosque. The ceiling was just mesmerising π
Later that day there were 2 more concerts at night and I was so tired that I went to the car to crash at about 2 am while my friends and boyfriend enjoyed the night a little while longer. Don't judge, they are way tougher than me πππ. I forgot how exhausting Festivals can be! Walking up and down all day and dancing all night has its effects (note to self - let's not mention the drinking part) π
. However, the sunset from the castle really makes it all worth it β€οΈ.
Saturday was more or less the same, walking around visiting places and doing workshops, watching concerts and partying hard all night! Only this time I was with much more energy (note to self - the weather was cooler as well π). All I can say is that it was magical! There was time for everything, even for a bit of romance β£οΈ
Now... Are you ready for the tunes dear reader? Let's go!
My 3 song recommendation π
1 - Trio Alcatifa - Γgua da Fonte
These guys were pure comedy! So so funny dudes, they lit up the place and everyone was dancing! They are Portuguese and basically their lyrics are funny and silly about daily routines. They played on friday night, it was the last concert and they were the reason why I stayed until 2am because I was dead by midnight... From getting up at 7 am for work plus the roadtrip to MΓ©rtola and walking around all day with extreme heat I was pretty exhausted by dinner time π. But their energy was so good and easy going that I danced a little bit more before crashing in the car π. They dressed exactly like this and they knew how to put everyone in a happy mood!
2 - Al-Qasar - Awal
This band was just top class! I chose this live version of them in France because it represents really well the environment I experienced this weekend π. Rich and cool rhythms everywhere, people joining in and participating in the melodies, dancing, happiness and good mood. Just pure joy and chilling β€οΈ. Although I don't understand what they are singing, music wise I think they were the most complete and different of them all.
3 - Hey! Douglas - Eskiya
Hey Douglas is a DJ from Turkey and he just smashed the place! So so good! I think he was the best DJ I have ever seen live performing or at least the one I enjoyed the most so far π. He was the last concert I saw and man!! Did I give it all... By the end of this night I had to drag my feet home. Seriously, I couldn't walk, my ankle muscles were pushed until muscle failure like I ran a marathon πππ. I can't remember the last time I danced so much and had so much fun π.
If you digg this kind of tune like I did, here is a 43 minute video of his songs π.
What do you think about the tunes dear reader? Do you love them all?
Final considerations π
That's it from me this week dear reader! I hope you enjoyed reading about my little adventure and got to know a little bit more about my country as well as different artists and music genres π. Because that is what Three Tune Tuesday is all about, finding and sharing new tunes and songs so we can all enjoy it and talk about it!
I feel so happy and excited that I finally went to a Festival! The energy was amazing, I had so much fun! I really really missed it and now I'm back to my routine with a lighter mind and body, but more importantly with a happy and nourished soul β£οΈ
There are no night pictures, they are all shaken and blurry (note to self - hmm, why is that??), therefore I'm going to say goodbye by leaving you with the smile I was with all weekend ππππππππππππππππππ
See ya next week! Take care π.
Disclaimer - I do not own the copyright to any of these songs and the main purpose of this post is educational. The goal is to share talents and tunes with Hive community and Music community, thus expanding our musical horizons.
Please consider supporting the artists you like in any way you can.
All photos are my own and were taken with my smartphone Samsung Galaxy A32
