The next morning, right after breakfast, we drove to the small city of Tomar for a short excursion. On the way back to Fatima, we made a stop-over at the small village of Aljustrel, where the visionary children were born and lived. We parked on one of the side streets and took a walking tour, passing by the houses of Lucia, Jacinta, and Francisco.
Lucia's house has been restored and contains furniture and artefacts from the time their family was still living there. In the backyard, one can still see the fig trees under the shade of which the children played and where they hid when sought by the interrogators and the curious.
Beside this house is the former home of Maria Rosa, Lucia's baptismal godmother. It is now the House Museum of Aljustrel, which features several scenes that are set up to depict life in the area in the late 19th century and well into the 20th century. This includes a manger with live goats and sheep, a weaving room, and a workshop where grapes and olives where processed in the olden days. Tools used to maintain the farms in that period were also displayed outside. Two meters away is the house of Jacinta and Francisco. These gave us an idea how life was like in this little village when Our Lady appeared to the shepherd children.
On the backyard of Lucia's house, we saw the The Well of Arneiro that became known because of the second apparition of the Angel in the summer of 1916. It was there that Jacinta had a vision of the Holy Father crying and praying on his knees in a big house.
We walked along the path taken by the three shepherd children when they came from Aljustrel to Cova da Iria to graze their herds. This is now known as the Way of the Cross in the Shepherds' Way.
Beginning at the roundabout of St. Theresa of Ourém (south roundabout) , we took a pleasant downhill hike along a cobbled pathway lined with fig and olive trees whose trunks were covered with moss due to the moist air.
Meandering through the loopy trail, we soon reached the spot where the first and third apparitions took place. It is called Loca do Anjo and is marked by statues of the three shepherd children and the Angel of Peace giving them Holy Communion. We paused for a few moments of prayer and spent some quiet time there.
The Way of the Cross ends at the 15th station, dedicated to the Resurrection of Jesus, close to the Saint Stephen Chapel that is topped by the Hungarian Calvary. The chapel is dedicated to Saint Stephen, King of Hungary, and was donated by Hungarian Catholics who took refuge in Portugal after the Soviet invasion of their country. Again, we stayed for some prayers before heading back to our bus at our own pace.
Our Tour Director had a little surprise for us. He did not announce this because I guess he was not sure if he could make it happen. Apparently, Sister Lucia’s niece lived in one of the houses around the area, actually, right across where our bus was parked. While we were on the trail, he walked ahead, knocked on her door and asked her if she had some time to meet with us. She happily obliged.
We found her sitting with our Tour Director by the front door of her house as we clambered up the hill. Maria dos Anjos, daughter of one of Sister Lucia's oldest sisters, was already in her 90s but looked a lot younger with her smile and pleasant disposition. She embraced each of us but I was not able to get a photo of her as I wasn't sure if it was alright (apparently, it is...I should have just asked!). This was really special. Our Tour Director said that she is used to meeting pilgrims but that sometimes, she would take her naps and is unable to see visitors, that is why, he did not tell us about her beforehand, lest we be disappointed if we didn’t get to meet her.
We arrived back at the hotel a little after two o’clock in the afternoon. We had a late but hearty lunch at a Chinese restaurant across our hotel. It was one of the eateries still open (most were closed for the afternoon). One of my American amigas had a sudden craving for Chinese food (I guess, after she saw the Chinese eatery) and had requested that we eat there. The food was good and authentic, for it was a family-run place and the owners were Chinese immigrants. We were happy with the set meal we got and service was really prompt. Who would have thought I'd have amazing hot and sour soup, pork spring rolls, shrimp fried rice, and a chicken dish with bamboo shoots in Fatima!
Photo Credits:
centreofportugal.com, Janus Korom Dr (Wikipedia), Castinçal (Wikipedia), Vitor Oliveira (Wikipedia), comboiodefatima.pt, visitfatima.pt
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