Category: Portugal
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Laundry, Tiles and Other Discoveries
Laundry day! The laundry mat is a few blocks away overlooking the river. With the 45 minute wash cycle we head over the river in search of a particular street with some interesting tile facades. According to the “Urban Geology and Palentology Guide (2016)” left in our apartment, there are exposed fossils in the door…
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Exploring Tavira
We explored the city today. We started across the river on the south side walking over the Roman Bridge. Still part of the old city with its cobbled streets and white washed buildings and colourful tiles. Narrow alleyways with shops selling postcards and brightly coloured ceramic roosters. We walked past cafes offering Indian, Thai and…
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‘Not so Pink’ Flamingos and other Beach Finds
We explored a small section of the saltpans in the Rio Formosa Natural Park. The Park, which covers a very large area (18,000 ha apparently) and extends back to Faro, is a wetland with a series of canals and saltpans and lots of birds. It’s unique habitat in both low and high tide conditions make…
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Street Party
The atmosphere of Porto when we arrived on the holiday weekend was definitely that of a street party. The weather was ideal for it: sunny and warm. Tour guides carrying bright green umbrellas bustled their groups everywhere you looked, children played patty cake while parents lounged on the lawn in one of the squares, art…
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Castle of the Knights Templar
Perched on a hilltop in Tomar, is a castle built over 800 years ago by the Knights Templar. The church is an impressive circular (eight-sided) oratory modelled after one in Jerusalem. From the outside, it is an impressive sight, but from within, even more so. The castle includes the Convent of Christ complex built around…
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The Big Wave Pilgramage
When planning our trip I looked at a variety of accommodations, including those on AirBnB. Little did I realize at the time of booking that our accommodations in Nazare that overlook the beach would introduce us to a famous Big Wave professional. Garrett McNamara is famous for introducing Nazare to the Big Wave surfer world.…
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Next stop – The Alentejo region
Heading north we entered Portugal’s largest region, the Alentejo. Despite the rain, we enjoyed the landscape of rolling hills, olive tree plantations, fields of grape vines, interrupted by whitewashed villages and medieval cities that dotted our route. One such city is Beja. Although not as touristy and well known as Evora, it was a delightful…
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Algarve beaches
They seem to go on for ever. We stopped at Armacao de Petra for a late lunch in a restaurant right on the beach. It was a very modern building with very cool hanging beaded lights that seem to capture the airiness and colour of the water. Beyond our table a father and son flew…
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Cliff top trails and white horses?????
As previously mentioned, we decided to follow the cliff top trail from the parking area to see the Benagil caves from above. The trail was a section of the inland Rota Vicentina trail. It was arid and rocky and definitely well travelled by those wishing to see the scenic coastal views and emerald-coloured water from…
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Hike Portugal
Rota Vicentina is a walking trail in Portugal that runs 350 km down the coast called the Fisherman’s Way, and a second route inland. Both are made up of sections and connect through villages. During our meandering into Salema, a small coastal town in the Algarve we came across a trailhead sign board. We had…
Patio Girlz 