Quinta Torrejao Apartments Armação de Pera

... 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). <br><br>so Saturday night on the town... for starters we had a ...

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.<br><br>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 ...

A silent drive to the train station. Frank drops me off, and I don't say a word as I grab my bag and close the car door. Now what? North or South? I could likely stay with Luis again in Lisbon, but I hate backtracking. Its 6:30 in the morning, and the first train arrives at 7:00, heading North. I ponder for the 30 minutes, then when the train does arrive, I let it pass. I'll head South, to Faro. I'm not sure when this ...

... br>"How was that for you James?"<br>She's serious. Apparently she thinks I should be excited about my upcoming two weeks with them. I tell her what I'm thinking about their whole little scheme. I wouldn't say that I sugar coated it for her. She's surprised, and I demand to talk to Frank. Frank sees this whole volunteer program as a great source of free labour, its just unfortunate that we like to eat three times a day.<br>"This is the way we've always done it. If you don't like ...

... a patch of wild fennel. Back in the kitchen I find some white beans and a nice chunk of chorizo, now we're on a roll.<br><br>In my mind the meal comes together beautifully. The grilled hake is joined with a dish of white beans, sauteed fennel and sausage. A delicious pilaf provides the starch and a bit of colour comes from roasted tomatoes and red peppers. I am ...

<br>An excursion to Lagos&#8217;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<br>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 &#8216;highlights ...

... and salvage a few mangy bell peppers, and some nice lemons. I've already defrosted some boneless skinless chicken breast which I've deemed safe for human consumption. We decide on a Mexican theme; black bean and corn salad, red rice, and citrus marinated chicken. Its the sort of meal that would get a 'B' in a high school cooking class. To my surprise the guests love it, and even ask me how I made it! Obviously they didn't read the Lonely Planet.<br><br>

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 ...

... 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