Pensao Central Faro

... of "pints" in a sports bar and watched the Brazil v England match. Luckily we were the only couple in there! We wandered around the walled town of Lagos utterly impressed by the consisten beauty and well kept buildings. Lots of tiling and prettily painted doors and window frames on top of the whitewashed buildings everywhere. We decided to eat takeaway pizza, washed down with more beer and a game of pool.<br><br>15 Nov<br>after a relatively ...

... Imposing cliffs drop into the sea, and it has an "end of the world" feel to it. I forgot my camera, so you should just google some photos.<br><br>I returned to the hostel to check my emails. Good news for a change! I have a host in Seville through couch surfing, and a host in Badajoz willing to take me on for a couple weeks of olive picking. Life is good. I joined Kirsten for a celebratory beer, and a wander through the streets of Lagos.

... the kingdom of Dom Manuel I, the headland already had a beacon kept lit all night by the Capuchin friars. With a range of 95 kilometers, the present-day lighthouse is one of the most powerful in Europe. From the fortress of Sagres a panoramic view of the Atlantic Ocean is unforgettable.<br><br>Night show at Hotel Algarve Casino was spectacular. The dancers and the light show were truly unforgettable.<br><br><br>

... it was pretty tame until one of the toreadors almost got trampled by one of the bulls, the dude was lucky they dulled the tip of the bulls horns. <br><br><br>http://picasaweb.google.com /Jonny.D.Lawrence/20091016Albufeira?aut hkey=Gv1sRgCImA4oCXitDO5AE&amp;feat=dir ectlink<br>

... tons of mussels on the bottom, also not fun. The road to get to this lagoon was really sketchy, there's a video in the link below so you can see for yourself.<br><br>http://picasaweb.googl e.com/Jonny.D.Lawrence/20091012Alvor?au thkey=Gv1sRgCN_Jy47QxsiTwAE&amp;feat=di rectlink

... not "surfers" but we we&#8217;re much less scared of getting tossed by the big waves this time. We also came to the conclusion that it maybe wasn&#8217;t us that, but that it&#8217;s the size of the board that was hindering our performance....<br> <br>http://picasaweb.google.com/Jonny.D .Lawrence/20091011Sagres?authkey=Gv1sRg CMmMtI7egbGKvAE&amp;feat=directlink

... we landed in the cute coastal town of Faro, Portugal. We decided to spend the night rather than catch a night bus and arrive at the coast at midnight. We found a cute little residential, a cute little Mexican restaurant with cute little tequila shots (on the house), and had cute little evening.

... and time a trip to join up with us. Its shot. Its gone. It was only an email from Sasha suggesting he might fly into Azerbaijan shortly that alerted us to just how far we have strayed from plan. We have managed to paint ourselves into a corner in Barcelona (soccer match meaning accommodation options are zero on the weekend after we arrive) - but no problem, you can fly to Morocco for $40. Great escape options, but not if you have any attachment to ...

... jumbles of sticks on the buildings come here to collect feed, wading around and generally oblivious to the various disruptions that humans pose at regular intervals. Was great to get that close to such a large and powerful bird. Further afield we got out on the mud flats and promptly sunk in up to our knees. Makes you wonder how the nearby clam farmers ...

My fun in Portugal was short-lived. Arriving in the evening, my friend and I partied it up after dry Morocco. I thought I was hung over the next day, but actually Morocco had left me with an explosive and painful dysenteric parting gift. My brief time in Portugal was not fondly spent waiting for an IV and a prescription in a depressing hospital ward. Next time.