Caldas das Taipas was, over time, a land that writers had as a reference in their works and even in their lives.
Going back to the 18th century, we have Frei Cristóvão dos Reis with his publication on the spas. In the 19th century, the biggest reference is Camilo Castelo Branco with his stay in the town and his mentions in several books. Ramalho Ortigão and José Augusto Vieira with another much referenced work, “Minho Pittoresco”, are other writers who marked this period.
At the beginning of the 20th century, another great name in the arts, Amadeo de Souza-Cardoso, in a short and little explored period, also had a presence in the town. At the beginning of the second half of that century, we have the author of “A Selva”, Ferreira de Castro, who, through the periods in which he lived in Caldas das Taipas and his writings, continues to mark the Taipei imagination and the phrase “A land where the moon speaks” is something that identifies this land.
Other writers, such as Jorge Amado or Mário Cláudio (who even wrote a column in this newspaper), also made their allusions to the thermal village and its relationship with Ferreira de Castro.
In 2018, in this same space, he argued that the old market, now transformed into a bar area, should be used to create a “more closed on rainy days and with a large terrace for sunny days, which would make it possible to make a difference in equipment of this type. And, yes, also with a support bar/restaurant.”
Years before, in a conversation with José Ribeiro, I questioned to what extent he would be available to think about a possible move of his library to a public space in Taipas.
I always saw the old market as an ambitious project, as the ideal location for a public reference library at municipal and even regional level (there is also an excellent space for this, right across the street, but with other values involved).
Naturally, this revival of memory is related to the highlight of this edition, precisely the library built by the founder of Cutipol. José Ribeiro, chronicler of Reflexo since 1997, with his “Pieces of Life” and with his interview with our newspaper, months before starting this collaboration, revealed his main references in life and his love for books .
At the time of his death, on February 13, 2012, the Chamber’s vote of condolence highlighted the “man of culture who supported the arts and who was associated with so many cultural achievements, at the same time creating one of the most important private libraries in the region”.
Cristina Ribeiro, 27 years after the interview with her father, gives an account of her life, now dedicated to books, and some doubts about the future of the library and leaves up in the air a “possible partnership with an institution that stores those collections”.
