Showing posts with label Portugal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Portugal. Show all posts

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Algarve, Portugal

We thought we should give Portugal one last run before moving deeper into Africa this summer. Sadly, we didn't make it past the Algarve this time-the sun and warmth were highly sought after our visit to Belgium.


Our friends Hugo and Miguel at the Good Feeling Hostel had us stay with their neighbor and her lively guard dog who did a lot of spinning tricks and barked at invisible objects.
Not much surf in the southern shores, but a beach is a beach.
Typical village in the region.
The chef's special. Pizza can be had anywhere, but Pizza Pazza in Pedralva, (the middle of nowhere in the vicinity of Vila do Bispo) is worth seeking out when in the neighborhood. 
Ponta da Piedade and the surrounding cliffs in Lagos have stunning views.  
It might be worth investing in a boat trip to have a contrasting view.
Tourist shot.
What are you waiting for, book your ticket.

Another tourist shot.
A little bit of rock
 The pride of Silves is the still intact Moorish Castle. Not quite sure the Moors had it landscaped back in the day, my guess would be they had other pressing issues. 
When we paid our entrance fee we were asked if we wanted to buy a ticket to the museum. Ana politely declined, The ticket lady's response was "ah, you don't like history!"
Ana the history hater.
Another pizza, another location.
If you go to the Algarve, rent a car and take unmarked dirt roads-you won't regret it.
We did hiking to places you can't get to with a car.
Pigs.
Condos coming soon.


Not that you can see, but this area was heavily infested with people who looked liked they split the program, as in they dropped out of society and live in converted moving trucks. Ana called them hippies, but they are slightly more serious than that. Moving from beach to beach isn't a bad existence.
While driving though a village a teen mother with a handmade sign jumped out on front of our car to sell us her homemade baked goods. Ana was adventurous while I remained curious about the bottle of her father's moonshine. Cake and booze are always nice roadside treats.  




Trees and bees. We parked and hiked, it is just a little eerie hiking and hearing hives of bees echoing. I've encountered swarms of bees twice, once while driving-a couple come through the vent.
A pastime with some of the locals is collecting snails. 
From livecooler.com:
"In Algarve tradition tells that snails should be placed in a vessel eight days before being cooked. There, they are fed with wheat flour or bran. Only then should they be cooked, and seasoned with oregano stick."

Monday, April 23, 2012

A touch of Lisbon, Ericeira, and Sintra Portugal.

We arrived in Lisbon on a couple hours of sleep. Once on the ground I realized that we might have rented a car from a private party. No booth, only a phone number on the e-mail printout. I called the number via Skype and the lady on the other end of the line told me to go wait at the "meeting point." Sure enough, 15 minutes later a woman with a set of keys showed up. For all our peeps complaining about prices at the pump back in the states, stay put...we paid 1.90 Euro/liter (about $10 USD/gallon). 
First on the list was the Museu do Fado (Fados Museum) in Alfama. Rumor had it that our friend Allison from SD was going to be in town the same day. It seemed like a good meeting spot. 
Who doesn't love the LP? 
The fighting couple and the mother-in-law can been seen at the Fados Museum.
Detail of José Malhoa's O Fado painted in 1910. 
Allison working on her wine cork portrait...pointillism taken to another level.  
Jackson Pollock and Piet Mondrian's bastard child takes it out on popular fado sensation Mariza.
Another one falls to the Heineken empire; if you want a real beer from Portugal, order a Super Bock. 
Who killed Bambi?
Yum, car.
Apparently the author of this huge wall painting didn't anticipate a list longer than seven names. Be sure to bring a ladder and marker. 
Designer weapons.

















I received a very nice haircut from this man.
Someone couldn't wait until they got inside their flat.
A different kind of bus stop.
Jardim do Príncipe Real hosts a nice craft/antique/farmers market on Saturday afternoons.
Vasco da Gama bridge.
Our last destination was Ericeira, a little touristic village on the coast 30 minutes north of Lisbon. 
There were beaches, waves, gusty winds, and sea urchin. Sadly the big swell was a little blown out and not too many waves to be surfed in the surrounding spots. The area is known for some of the best surfing in Europe, and like the Algarve it is surfer's destination. 
The road winding along the coast of the town's center were lined with these mini-boats.  I like the Jewish-Islamist boat. 
Ana claimed this one...the airline charged us the extra baggage fee to bring this back to EG, though it doesn't quite fit in the tub. 
We stayed at Hotel VilAzul and met the owner Luis. Luis has been in the business for quite awhile and is ready to retire. The building has charm, a restaurant, bar, 23 rooms, etc. We were given the grand tour along with the buyout price. Luis is looking to sell asap and hoped we were his saving grace. Ok, which loyal Camels and Tacos reader is ready to uproot and move to Portugal and start something new? Serious inquiries only.
You could go here.
Top view from Hotel VilAzul
The ultimate meat plate, free defibrillator with purchase.
We were fortunate enough to meet up with Sandra (our couch surfer friend we met last year in Lisbon). She took us to A Bica de Sao Pedro for lunch and then for tea at Zen Family in Sintra.
Ana and Sandra with the frog at Parque da Liberdade in Sintra. 
Toilets at Parque da Liberdade.
Best caption wins a fireplace. 
Where Mexicans hope to live in Portugal.