Oceano Atlantico Apartamentos Turisticos Praia da Rocha

... of the trip, played some frisbee and then decide weºd go for an early evening stroll around Lagos old town; Annabelle splashes out on a new pair of fishbone earrings (made of silver!), we pop into the local Ecomarche, pick up 4 frosty ones and decide to sit opposite the marina on the esplanade and chill for a while. Then itºs back to base where we have a chat with some very friendly Belgian silver surfers, who inform us they have been camping ...

... since we left the UK). We learn that there is a campsite in the town centre. Initially we viewed this with some trepidation and indeed it was less than rural surrounded by apartment blocks, however, cheap (euro 10 a night) clean and run by a very friendly Dutch lady; ideal for a couple of nights of cosmopolitan living (Lym gets to put his jeans on for the first time since leaving the uk).

so Saturday night on the town... for starters we had a ...

Another typical Porto Covo morning: bright, blue and upon inspection, very large swell; too large for us. Decision time - do we stay or move on? It was easy and unanimous, time to break camp and hit the road once again heading south. We looked at a couple of likely surf / camp destinations, until opting for Odeceixe, a town which straddles both the Alentejo and the Algarve ...

Over the last couple days I've watched my shaky plan fall around me. I don't really know where to go next, and surprise bills are depleting my meager funds. Thankfully I'm stranded in Southern Portugal, its cheap and beautiful, indeed there are less desirable places to be stranded.

I decide to join a group of young kiwis heading to Lagos; partly for the social aspect, partly because I would like to see more of the coast. Faro ...

... in a country just over twice the size of Vancouver Island with a population of 11 million. Remote is relative I suppose.

Tonight, dinner is Daniella's gig. I'll help her out, but ultimately this is her opportunity to show me how things are done in her kitchen. She's frantic in the kitchen considering that she's only really cooking for 10 people. A beautiful kabocha pumpkin, my personal favourite, is blended with potatoes and an instant stock to create a basic soup. Its ...

... pleased, and am reminded of a favourite quote
"I have done so much, for so long, with so little, that I am now certified to do anything with nothing."
Melissa and Matthias are both suitably impressed, and I'm even tempted to take a photo.

Melissa and Matthias serve the food while I putter around the kitchen, feeling good. Heck, a plate of food like ...

An excursion to Lagos’s Marina followed by a boat trip to Ponta de Sagres (The most western point of Europe, from where the Portuguese sailors started the discovery of new worlds) will allow to enjoy the
natural beauty of the rocks, especially the famous and most impressive caves of Ponta da Piedade, wild beaches and the sea waves on the cliffs along the coast and also some of the ‘highlights ...

In Albufeira, we went to a Portugese bullfight, not the real deal as in they don't kill the bull, rather they stab them in the back with a bunch of arrows. I thought it was mean, especially the first bull because it was pretty much still a baby and looked scared instead of angry. Jon ...

The kiting in Alvor is supposedly one of the best spots in Portugal, because of a huge shallow lagoon, however the wind was in the opposite direction so we ended up kiting on the sea side in the waves. Exhausting, but very fun to launch off the waves. We met a wicked ...

The west and south coast of Portugal is pretty much a long stretch of beaches surrounded and separated by huge red cliffs and you can get from one beach to another by crawling through caves in the cliffs (I also think that's where the bums sleep at night...) We did some surfing at a small secluded beach that I had been to 4 years ago with my family. We’re ...