Sintra, Portugal-After leaving Aveiro, I stopped at Nazaré on the way to Sintra. I had checked one website and supposedly there were “giant waves” forecast. I got there though and the waves were just average (about 30 feet). Talking to another person while walking down to the fort, they told me about the site, Surfline, that they use and said was always accurate. I did get to see inside the small Chapel of the Miracle, or Ermida da Memória da Nazaré,...
Aveiro, Portugal-I visited Porto last November and it became one of my favorite places in Portugal. Now I have another favorite, Aveiro! I stayed at the great Triade Apartments. I had a studio apartment, kitchen, it was a great location and there is parking on the square. There is a small grocery store around the corner so I picked up some items for breakfast. I arrived too early to check in; I left my car, and went out exploring. I headed...
Bussaco Forest, Portugal-Another place in my “1000 Places to See Before You Die”, I decided to spend a night and day in the Bussaco Forest or, in Portuguese, Buçaco Forest. History The Carmelite monastery, the Convento de Santa Cruz do Buçaco, was built in 1628 in the protected Mata Nacional do Buçaco. A wall was built by the monks to protect and conserve the forest. It is about 5 kilometers in circumference. Originally there were just two doors, the Coimbra and Sula;...
Estremoz and Marvão, Portugal-Estremoz I wanted to go back to Estremoz. I had been here about a year ago, visiting Evora and Estremoz. But it rained most of the two days I was there and I wanted to see more of the town. So I started my second long Portugal road trip here. I stayed in the great Pousada Castelo Estremoz or Pousada da Rainha Santa Isabel, again. Because of the weather last year, I missed the beautiful patio and courtyard of the...
Porto, Portugal-I stayed in Go 2 Oporto, a very large apartment. More space than I needed or used but wanted the off-street parking! I liked having the kitchen, too. Very comfortable place that I would rent again. I booked an afternoon tour my first afternoon, Free Walking Tour OPorto. I left the apartment after picking up some groceries/breakfast for the next couple of days. I went to old town early. Recommendations I enjoyed the facade of Church of Saint Ildefonso. Beautiful...
Coimbra, Portugal-I stayed in the Vila Juliette Guesthouse. Very nice room, pleasant hosts, they offered a good breakfast for 10€. Parking was difficult, however. Rather annoyed with Booking.com; when I use “free parking”/parking as a filter, I expect parking, not just, you may have street parking, if you’re lucky. There are a series of steep roads and stairs leading to the lower town. I walked down both days. Recommendations I started with a visit to the Municipal Market D. Pedro V....
Central Portugal: Obidos, Nazaré, and Tomar-I took a road trip for eight nights to central Portugal. Two nights Obidos, one night in Nazaré, one night in Tomar, and two each in Coimbra and Porto. It’s recommended to stay two weeks in Nazaré to see the big waves but there isn’t much else to do there, in my opinion. I would love to spend more time in Porto and definitely plan to return. Obidos I stayed in the Hotel Real d’Obidos. Good location right outside the...
Andalusia: Seville, Cadiz, Malaga, Granada, Cordoba-I finally got my D7, Portugal Residency Card, so I could start planning trips to other European countries without worrying about being deported for violating EU immigration rules. Kelly was interested in visiting Spain with me, so I planned several different itineraries for Andalusia. I had one that was 14-15 days but we cut a few sites. We were both pleased with our final schedule though, Seville, Cadiz, Gibraltar, Malaga, Granada, Cordoba, then back to Seville to drop off Kelly...
Gibraltar-I really wanted to see Gibraltar. It is one of those unique areas, despite its small size, that has been very important throughout history. It is the crossroads of Europe and Africa; Morocco is only 24 km away. It is also the crossroads between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and, like other areas on the Mediterranean, it had a large role in WWII. We read that crossing the border with a car can take hours. So we left the car...
Evora and Estremoz, Portugal-Everyone in Portugal talks about Evora. It’s one of the things I’m asked frequently when meeting other immigrants in Lagos. Have you been to Evora? Not yet. Well, it was time. My well-used travel book, 1000 Places to See Before You Die, has a page on Evora. It also recommended the “pousadas” or historic hotels of Portugal. These are old convents or castles. I used the Pousadas de Portugal site to reserve the Hotel Pousada Convento Évora, a 15th century...