Road trip around Portugal (part 1)

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This travel blog is a little delayed, but thought best to write it before I start my much longer travels... so here goes.

Saturday 2nd May 2009

Spent most of the night throwing up after leaving work early. Having had very little sleep, I managed to oversleep my alarm and basically throw on some clothes as the taxi was tooting out the front.

Got to the airport before 5am and there was nothing open (Heathrow T3 I think). Finally the Wetherspoons opened and I grabbed some breakfast while praying that it would stay down, which it did. Also managed to choose an aisle seat which was a relief. I was flying with TAP Portugal which is their airline and thankfully I managed to sleep most of the way.

After landing we got shuttled to the terminal at Lisbon in a bus, where I then joined one of the longest cattle queues I have ever seen. I stood in line for a good 90 minutes, so despite landing at 8am or something, I didn't get to the hostel (after a short airport shuttle bus trip) until 11am. So much for having a whole day in Lisbon.

After checking into the hostel and leaving my bags in reception I went for a quick scout around the area. Lisbon was just stunning. It was a lot like Croatia in that is was very relaxed and very chilled out, sun was shining, cobbled paths and lots of cafes scattered about where I grabbed a quick bite to eat. After that it was back to the hostel to shower and have a quick nap.

After waking up nice and refreshed I decided to work out the tram system - which in Lisbon is one of the must sees. So I bought a day ticket from the Metro and got tram 28 up to the Barro Alto area. The trams are old and a little rickety, known for pick pockets and go around these tight little corners quite fast; some of them I'm not even sure how they fitted!! And with cars lining either side of the narrow roads, I'm surprised that there aren't more cars with parts missing.

Saw Praca do Comercio, Ministerio Placa, Cemiterio dox Prazeres and Estrala Basilica - which was absolutely stunning with a white dome and black and pink marble throughout.

From there it was onto Jardim de Estrala, a vast green park full of locals, kids playing ducks, the usual. Then Palacio do Assembleia da Republica which was an enormous building. Then Praca da figueira, igregia de Sao Domingos. Then it was back to the hostel for a few hours and onto dinner which was pizza and beer at one of the local sidewalk cafes.

SUNDAY 3 MAY 2009

After grabbing some breakfast I hopped onto tram 28 heading the other way, up towards Castle and Se. Got terrible lost in Alfama but apparently that's what you should do while in Lisbon!! Got stunning views over the city and spent a while just sitting and admiring and watching locals come and go about their business. Headed to Bairo Alto for yet more views from another one of the seven hills which Lisbon is built on. In the afternoon I headed out to Belem via train to see the monastry. Typically - I managed to find myself in the middle of some type of procession with horses marching in time and people yelling things in Portuguese, and bands and singing and all the rest. Oh - and tons of police who wouldn't let me cross the road!!

After a chilled afternoon in Belem I headed back to the hostel to collect my bag and went to the train station to get a train down to Faro. It was a three hour train ride so I managed to get a little sleep. The hostel was nice and close to the train station and even though I was later than planned, I arrived before Emma. When she arrived about 45 minutes later (having survived driving on the right hand side of the road AND having had difficulties finding the hostel!!) we went for a few drinks at the plaza and then a relatively early evening.

MONDAY 4 MAY 2009

After showering and packing our bags we headed on foot down into Faro and got breakfast at a little local cafe and picked up some food at a local supermarket. Visited the main square which was full of orange trees before going up the Cathedral and into the cathedral museum. We also saw the alter made up of bones which was quite strange - seeing skulls and other bones making up the alter. Kind of creepy.

When we had had enough of Faro we decided to jump in the car and head to the next destination. Emma decided that I could be the one to drive and she would navigate, but boy did we get lost trying to get out of the place!! The streets were really narrow and given I hadn't been behind the wheels of any car for more than 12 months it was quite challenging - with the right hand drive making it more challenging than it would have been. Add to the fact that we didn't have a great map (what sort of hire company hires cars without a map???) and that I was somewhat nervous for the first 15 minutes driving - it wasn't much fun. Think we just kept going round and round in circle on poorly marked and signposted roads.

When we eventually got out of Faro it was a short drive to Silves where after finding a park on a very steep hill, we grabbed some lunch (pizza and beer) at a cafe at the Castle, before wandering round the castle which had some nice views over the town and surrounding countryside and having a look at the local cathedral which was closed.

From there it was another short drive onto Sarvoeiro where we spent a few hours relaxing on the beach. The water was absolutely freezing and we barely went in it was that cold. Because it was later in the afternoon it was no longer that hot either!! Had a brief wander through the local shops on the way back to the car, which was parked up another hill.

From there we drove onto Lagos where we had decided to stay for the night. Again, we managed to get incredibly lost trying to find somewhere to stay in Lagos, and trying to find a car spot, but eventually we got lucky and found a really convenient place to park right in the centre of town. We found a hostel/ bar called 3 Monkeys which is run by Aussies I think, and they directed us to another place where they had rooms. Needless to say, we didn't end up finding it, but instead stumbled across a hostel that was recommended by Lonely Planet and which looked ok. We checked into a private room and Emma checked out the Portuguese guy behind the counter. As by this stage it was relatively late already we showered and went off the find dinner and an ATM. Ended up having some delicious Indian food and a few beers before heading back to the hostel and bed.

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