Thursday 21 October 2021

ROMAN FISH TANKS

Last week, my daughter Eva and I went to the beach.  It was a lovely day, and we intended to walk along the shore on the board walks, to get some much needed exercise, and then have lunch at a seafood restaurant in a little fishing village in Angeiras. After our walk, we set off again to walk off our delicious lunch of grilled Squid with  baked potatoes with garlic and salad. We finished off with a Lime cheesecake and then coffee. I took my camera of course, but there was little in the way of bird life, just a few seagulls here and there, but I did find something of great interest to photograph on our after lunch walk.




This is the restaurant where we had lunch.


A couple of views of the sea.






We passed this charming Fisherman's cottage on our way.



Then we came upon this sign.



It's faint lettering, but you can read it in English.



Further down the board walk we came to the tanks.



They were quite deep, and it must have taken some considerable time to carve out the depth of these Salt Tanks.



In the sign, it mentions Garum, which is type of condiment that was used to season food during the time of the ancient Romans. It was made from fermented fish, and probably the most important food in the whole of the Roman Empire. Tomatoes and spices were added to make sauces..


These are the remains of the salterns, where salt was extracted for brine production



A last look at the Roman Salt Tanks.






29 comments:

Marit said...

Hi Sonjia,
The view over the sea is so beautiful! It was very intresting to see the old roman fish tanks. They seems to last forever.

Many hugs, Marit

MadSnapper said...

i enjoyed every one of the photos and have never seen or heard of anything like these salt tanks. they amaze me and how they made the tomatoe, spices and fish. a beuatiufl place to walk and have lunch. no squid for me though. that last photo proves you are gifted at bird photogaphy

David M. Gascoigne, said...

You do live in a beautiful part of the world, Sonjia. The restaurant and its location are very appealing and what you ate would be to die for! I am meeting a friend for lunch today but I suspect we will not do as well. The fish tanks are absolutely fascinating. I had never heard of such devices and certainly knew nothing of this whole process in preparing fish. Perhaps once in a while it's good that there are few birds around (cut out my tongue for saying that!) so that your attention gets drawn to something else. Hugs from Ontario. David

Phil Slade said...

Sonjia. Here I am with a bowl of tomato soup for lunch. And then I read of your delicious lunch on the sunny beach. Sometimes, life is just not fair.

Jeevan said...

That's interesting how excavation on tanks to extract salt or salting fish those days, and you got some nice shots in detail on the tanks in the cluster. I hope it was a beautiful day for you to take a walk with your daughter along a quiet beach leading to a historical site and a pretty fishing village. Have a nice day

DeniseinVA said...

An interesting post and fascinating about those fish tanks. Beautiful area and I loved the fisherman's cottage too. I enjoyed all your photos, thank you so much!

Debbie said...

such a sweet seashore restaurant, perfect for dinning outdoors!! i have never had squid but i am sure it was delicious!! the ocean views are glorious, much like what i see here!!

i absolutely LOVE the fishermans cottage, oh it is the perfect little home. i would really enjoy getting a peak inside!!

the fish tanks are really interesting, i have never seen nor heard anything like this! so glad you brought your camera, there is always something fascinating to photograph and you found it!!

sami niilola said...

The story of the fish tanks is awesome. Big thanks.

Richard Pegler said...

I would be delighted to have experienced either that lunch,OR the location, Sonjia, but to have both together is the stuff of dreams!

I was fascinated by the fish tanks, and was totally unaware of such things. As you note, tt must have been a very laborious process to carve them out. I suspect that slave labour was involved.

Thank you for an informative and entertaining blog post - I now feel hungry but, sadly, no squid to hand!

Take good care - - - Richard

La Biosfera de Lola said...

Hola Sonjia. Es un lugar precioso, los tanques son algo muy curioso y me llaman la atención, es interesante. Las fotos son espectaculares. Besos y abrazos.

Lowcarb team member said...

I did enjoy your post, it felt as I had spent the day with you ...
Weren't the fish tanks a good find, very interesting.

Happy Thursday wishes and enjoy the weekend ahead.

All the best Jan

PS Thank you for your comments on the low carb diabetic blog.

Mike Attwood said...

As I sit at my computer looking at your post there is a storm raging outside my window. It is nice to see someone enjoying good weather.
Take care Sonjia.
Mike.

Nancy Chan said...

Lovely views of the sea. Interesting Roman salt tanks. Enjoy your vacation.

Elderberry-Rob said...

This is interesting - the Romans were very practically minded and resourceful - in the UK we have the Bath spa in case you don't know it is now a tourist attraction but was in Roman times and even quite recently, used for bathing, mineral water and considered very healthy.

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

Godd food and company, wonderful scenery, interesting salt tanks and the odd bird thrown in, what more would one ask!!. Have a lovely weekend.

Shiju Sugunan said...

Beautiful views! A day well spent. Nice to see the Roman innovation.

eileeninmd said...

Hello Sonjia,
What a lovely outing with your daughter. The restaurant looks very nice, I love most seafood. Beautiful views of the sea. The fish tanks are interesting, I have never seen anything like them. The cottage is really cute. Nice captures of the Gulls, they are just relaxing on the beach. Thank you for linking up and sharing your critters and post. Take care, have a happy weekend! PS, I appreciate your comment and visit.

Tom said...

...it looks like fish farming is nothing new! I miss walking along the ocean, the darn pandemic!

Bob Bushell said...

Hi Sonjia
Beautiful holiday at the seaside, to look at, and the Romans built holding fish. Funny those roman were, they were here 300 years, and there they disappeared.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

How amazing to see those ancient tanks! WOW! And it's nice you walked with your daughter. My granddaughter is named Eva too. It's such a pretty name.

Irma said...

What beautiful photos of the outing with your daughter.
The restaurant looks very nice, I think you can eat delicious there.
Beautiful view of the sea.
Greetings Irma

HWIT BLOGG said...

Lovely pictures and a interesting post! I would love to sit there at the seashore restaurant...
Take care!
Love Titti

Anni said...

How so very interesting!! I learned so very much thanks to you. Impressive history & photos
I DO love the full portrait!!

I'm running late today getting my visiting done, out early birding and just getting home! Thanks for linking in and sharing at IRBB!

NatureFootstep said...

interesting. I never before seen salt tanks like this. Amazing.
I love this kind of rugged beaches. But one has to be careful :)

magiceye said...

Beautiful captures and interesting information. Loved that picture of the Fisherman's cottage the best.

Lasse said...

Hi Sonjia, great story about the salt tanks, and the fisherman's cottage is a true beauty !

Nick Morgan said...

What a lovely day. Beautiful sunny weather and really interesting things to see. I am very envious!!

Teresa said...

El paseo me parece interesante, me encantaría verlo. Besos.

This N That said...

Interesting post!! Grilled Squid !!! Not tempted..Sounds like eating bait!! Beautiful sea views..The Roman tanks are very interesting..they're huge..could hold a lot of fish..

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