Miragaia Colorida,Porto-Colorful Miragaia,Oporto (2018) Pintura por Inês Dourado

Aguarela sobre papel Fabriano 300g (Watercolor on Fabriano paper)

Alguma história/Some history about Miragaia
Reza a lenda que «no ano de 932, o rei Ramiro desceu da Galiza e veio raptar Zahara, a bela irmã do xeque Alboazar, e este, ofendido e por vingança, rapta a não menos bela esposa de Ramiro, a rainha Gaia, vindo a apaixonarem-se perdidamente um pelo outro. Ramiro, ignorando esta situação, vem com o filho e as suas gentes de armas até ao castelo do rei mouro que, na margem esquerda do Douro, se erguia no caminho do rio para a foz. Ramiro esconde as suas gentes na encosta, sob a folhagem, e vestido de romeiro sobe a rampa e fica junto a uma fonte, a espera de novidades. Uma criada vem buscar água fresca à fonte para a sua nova ama – a cristã. E logo Ramiro aproveita para esconder o seu próprio anel na água da bilha e fica a aguardar.
A rainha Gaia, ao encontrar o anel na água, pressente a verdade e manda chamar o romeiro a sua presença. Apaixonada pelo mouro, resolve desfazer-se do marido e, embriagando-o, prende-o num quarto, que se abre quando chega Alboazar. Ramiro tenta reagir mas é logo preso pelas gentes do mouro que, sorrindo, lhe pergunta o que lhe faria ele, rei cristão, se tivesse as mãos o seu inimigo. Ramiro, lembrando-se do que acordara com os seus homens, responde que lhe faria comer um capão, beber um canjirão de vinho, e depois coloca-lo-ia no alto da torre a tocar trompa até rebentar. Alboazar acha graça e diz-lhe que será então essa a sua morte e, para mais gáudio, manda abrir os portões do castelo a convidar todos os moradores extramuros a virem assistir.
Ramiro come, bebe, toca a trompa e de repente as suas gentes, ouvindo o sinal combinado, irrompem pelos portões abertos do castelo, chacinando as tropas sarracenas desprevenidas. O próprio Ramiro mata Alboazar e, pegando na mulher, ruma para o barco, seguido pelos seus homens. Já a bordo, encara, atónito, o pranto da esposa, que fita desolada as ruínas do castelo, e pergunta-lhe qual a razão:

Perguntas-me o que miro?
Traidor rei, que hei-de eu mirar?
As torres daquele Alcácer
Que ainda estão a fumegar!
Se eu fui ali tão ditosa,
Se ah soube o que era amar,
Se ah me fica a alma e a vida...
Traidor rei, que hei-de eu mirar?
Pois mira, Gaia! E, dizendo,
Da espada foi arrancar:
Mira Gaia, que esses olhos
Não terão mais que mirar!
Ainda hoje está dizendo
Na tradição popular,
Que o nome tem – Miragaia
Daquele fatal mirar.

Poderá ser só lenda, poderá... mas a encosta que o rei subiu chama-se a Rua do Rei Ramiro e a fonte Fonte do Rei Ramiro, as armas da cidade de Gaia estão encimadas por um cavaleiro tocando trompa, e a zona do Porto, frente ao local onde a rainha foi degolada, chama-se Miragaia...»

In english ---> Legend has it that "in the year 932, King Ramiro came down from of Galicia to kidnap Zahara, Sheikh Alboazar's beautiful sister, and he, offended and for revenge, kidnaps Ramiro's queenly wife, Queen Gaia, to fall madly in love with each other. Ramiro, ignoring this situation, comes with his son and his people in arms to the castle of the Moorish king who, on the left bank of the Douro, stood on the path of the river to the mouth. Ramiro hides his people on the hillside, under the foliage, and dressed in a romero climbs the ramp and is next to a fountain, waiting for news. A maid comes to fetch fresh water at the spring for her new mistress - the Christian. And soon Ramiro uses to hide his own ring in the water of the pool and waits.
Queen Gaia, upon finding the ring in the water, senses the truth and orders the pilgrim to call her presence. In love with the Moor, she decides to get rid of her husband and, making him intoxicated, takes him to a room, which opens when Alboazar arrives. Ramiro tries to react but is soon arrested by the people of the Moor who, smiling, asks him what would make him, Christian king, if he had his enemy's hands. Ramiro, remembering what he had woken up with his men, replied that he would make him eat a capon, drink a scrap of wine, and then place him on the top of the tower and play the horn until it burst. Alboazar finds grace and tells him that this will be his death, and, to be more grateful, he orders the gates of the castle to open to invite all the inhabitants outside the walls to come and watch.
Ramiro eats, drinks, blows his horn, and suddenly his people, listening to the combined signal, burst through the castle's open gates, slaughtering the unsuspecting Saracen troops. Ramiro himself kills Alboazar and, taking the woman, goes to the boat, followed by his men. Already aboard, he stares in amazement at the sobbing of his wife, who gazes desolately at the ruins of the castle, and asks him the reason:

You ask me what I'm looking at?
Traitor king, what shall I look?
The towers of that Alcácer
They are still smoking!
If I went there so happy,
If ah knew what it was to love,
If ah stay my soul and my life ...
Traitor king, what shall I look?
Well look, Gaia! And, saying,
From the sword was to pluck up:
Mira Gaia, that these eyes
You will not have to look any more!
You are still saying today
In popular tradition,
What the name has - Miragaia
That fatal look. *

It may be only a legend, it may ... but the slope that the king has risen is called King Ramiro Street, the fountain and King Ramiro's Fountain, the guns of Gaia are surmounted by a knight with a trumpet. zone of Porto, in front of the place where the queen was beheaded, is called Miragaia ... »

* The poem has been translated directly from Portuguese to English. (It's difficult to explain in english but i'll try : "Mira" in english means "look at" and Gaia is the name of the queen, so "look Gaia = Mira Gaia. Now the city names Miragaia :) )

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