Once again, long overdue...but as you will eventually understand, there were simply TOO MANY photos to choose from amongst our 5 week holiday trip pix and it took quite a bit of downsizing to even get me started. So here goes...
Adam and I finished our teaching contracts in Bournemouth at the end of September and as it perfectly coincided with Adam's mother, Julianna, his brother, Thor and his lovely lady friend, Fleureen's trip to Portugal, we made every attempt to be sure to be able to join them here in Europe! We bought super cheap coach (we say, "bus") tickets to London, discounted train tickets to Gatiwck Airport and very affordable charter flights down to Faro, Portugal. Granted...Bournemouth to Faro seems really close, but when you have three legs to the journey, it somehow can add up to over 12 hours of travelling time. Crazy.
We arrived at night on a stormy Sunday and joined the family in the resort beach town of Albufeira, down in the Algarve southern region. We had heard that a huge flood and rain storm had been pounding the south of Portugal and we managed to see the tail end of it as we arrived.
We stayed in a resort, thanks to Julianna, who had booked the timeshare over a year ago. We had a fully equipped flat, with kitchen, bedrooms, living room, 2 bathrooms, balconies and a few minutes walk to various pools and restaurants on the site itself. We also had the added bonus of a rental car, so we could boot around easily and get groceries from town, tour around the neighbouring towns and see quite a few sites!
We spent our first real day getting a look at the local town of Albufeira. Many shops for souvenirs, many restaurants and of course, the coast with lovely boardwalks made up this quaint little beach town.
Since we weren't guaranteed sunny, warm days, we hit a recommended remote beach town along the coast, with really interesting rock formations surrounding it all, called Portimao and got a real good dose of sun. After a nice meal at the local restaurant right on the beach, we drove to the most south western point of Europe ,to the town of Sagres - famous for its beer and its lighthouse and beautiful cliffs. We managed to watch the sunset there and cruised home leisurely.
To change things up, we spent the following day in Quarteira, walking along the beach and trying to find the "gypsy market". After a good wander, we managed to get lost amongst the many many stalls of clothes, food, souvenirs and knick knacks for a few hours. To rejuvenate ourselves, Mom (aka Julianna) treated us to a seafood feast before we went home for a competitive night of card games!
If you ever make it to the Algarve region of Portugal, then you will know firsthand that the main reason to be down there, is truly for the innumerable beaches along the entire south coast. We woke up to yet another sunny day and we all agreed to work on our tans and let the boys play some more beach volleyball. This time, we headed east along the water and found a lovely small beach area called Gale beach, in the town of Guia - with funky grass "umbrellas", an open busier area to one side and a nice private area on the other with great geological formations.
Gale beach had great facilities, with clean washrooms and change rooms, warm waters, a nice little restaurant on the beach that served delicious SANGRIA (wine with many fruits and sometimes a bit of gin or other liquor), that truly makes you feel as though you were on holidays. Mom had her first sample of sangria and hopefully will remember to order it again next time she makes it somewhere warm.
Time certainly does fly when you're having fun and we found ourselves suddenly having to leave the south and heading up to Lisbon (locally known as "Lisboa", so I might interchange them). We had a tight squeeze in the rental compact car, but had a safe and smooth ride up to the capital city. Thanks for driving all the time, Thor! We had a bit of trouble finding a place to stay since it was a national day AND a weekend...but we managed to get two cozy rooms at the Jorge V Hotel, a bit north of the city centre, which included a full feast of a breakfast each morning!
Lisboa, as you would expect of an old capital city, has great architecture everywhere you look and you really get the feeling there is history in these lands. There are many "Squares" of all sizes, cobblestone roads and walkways for miles on end (imagine the work it would have taken to place the stones for each road!) and a bustling mood at any hour of the day.
We joined in the tourist flow and tried out the outdoor seating area of an Italian, chain restaurant, right in the middle of the sidewalk! Though slightly overpriced and undersized, the food was really scrumptious and the boys relished the oversized beer steins and we got to enjoy the parade and music of the national day, up close and personal.
Two days in Portugal left to go, Mom took a tour to Fatima to fulfill her grandfather's wishes, and the rest of us put on our walking shoes to explore Lisboa, its castle, churches, the many hilly, narrow winding streets and its many beautiful buildings.
One day left to go, and we ventured to the west of Lisbon, to the famous town of Sintra - known for its palaces, castles, cathedrals and ancient monuments. It was supposedly a fairytale town...but we were unlucky in weather and it poured down on us most of that day. We could hardly see the top of the tree lines, let alone the Moorish castles hidden by clouds, but what we did manage to see of the town proved to be magical indeed, and we felt certain that Sintra would be worth a return visit another time.
Reality sets in eventually, and the time to part has come once again.
The family must return to Canada and their lives and we are to continue on our European adventure without them. It was sooo wonderful to have a great visit with Mom, Thor and Fleureen - especially in a new and exotic place! Thank you all for making it out this way, and spending time with us. Thank you, especially, to Mom for inviting us, taking care of us and treating us to so much while on holiday! We really appreciate it and are so happy to have seen you again. We were also so happy that Thor and Fleureen could take some time off from work so that we could see them both as well.
We miss you all and can't wait to see you when we get home in the new year!
If you have made it this far in this posting, thank you for reading and be sure to check out the few extra photos down the gallery I have added. Also, I will be updating again shortly and will have our pix and stories of Spain and Morocco up soon. So please come back soon!
Hugs for everyone!!
xoox
woohoo, beers and beach, totally awesome.
ReplyDeletehappy holidays to you both, kaylee misses you all.
:)