The crowds were gathered in full force at one end of the Rua de Santa Caterina in Porto, for it was 6pm, and hence, time for the legendary Clock on the square to do its thing. It was supposed to be a sight to behold, there was nothing like it anywhere in the world, so everyone was holding their breath in anticipation.
One minute to go…
Only 30 seconds left now.. .
10, 9, 8…3, 2, 1….
AND….
Nothing.
No bird came out, no sound of the clock.
There was a hushed silence for a few moments, which was broken by a cacophony of voices, as everyone started speaking together, expressing their shock, disappointment disapproval and horror. This had never happened before, not once. This was a disaster.
Then, suddenly, the door of the clock opened up.
There was a collective sigh of relief. Maybe it was late, but the bird was finally coming out.
But horror of horrors, what came out was a group of four bickering men. They were the keepers of the clock, and each was blaming the other for letting the bird escape.
Meanwhile, less than five minutes away, a tourist was having his picture clicked with a seagull.
Little did he know that this was the same legendary singing seagull who came out of the only seagull clock in the world, every hour, on the hour.
jagahdilmein 