Ria Park Garden Almancil

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 ...

... 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.

Night show at Hotel Algarve Casino was spectacular. The dancers and the light show were truly unforgettable.

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 ...

... not "surfers" but we we’re much less scared of getting tossed by the big waves this time. We also came to the conclusion that it maybe wasn’t us that, but that it’s the size of the board that was hindering our performance....

http://picasaweb.google.com/Jonny.D .Lawrence/20091011Sagres?authkey=Gv1sRg CMmMtI7egbGKvAE&feat=directlink

... to sit with them.

That's all behind us now (including being last through customs in Faro - but we got plenty of travel advice and tips). The hotel we are calling home in teh Algarve over the next 5 days is called Monte do Casal and it is fabulous! Notwithstanding that they upgraded us to a Suite with our own private terrace with views to the ocean. Will upload some photos of the hotel (where no kids are allowed), but before we do that, some welcomed sleep is needed.

... from staying here, was lovely and quiet in the day time and very busy in the evenings, when lobster-red foreigners wandered the streets looking for dinner in one of the many characterful restaurants. Being careful not to judge the entire Algarve without having visited it, we did notice a standoffishness and a reluctance to communicate using Portanol. Too many Spanish tourists perhaps? In almost every bar, shop and restaurant, people were more keen ...

Bussed to Faro, a small seaside town with not a hell of a lot really!!

Our room had no window, but faked the appearance by having a curtain anyway... nothing like a little bit of closet sleeping!!

Went for a swim at the beach/lagoon with our 1.60 euro bottle of red ...

... senkrechten klippen eingebettet. herrlich !
am abend wurden wir mit einem leckeren selbstgekochten nachtessen begrüsst. super fein! am anderen abend in einem herzigen restaurant direkt an einer lauschigen bucht und gutem fisch. Dazu üppige Zmorgenessen mit allem was man sich wünscht....das alles tat eben doch auch gut :-) (ah ja,und sogar nachrichten auf SF1 im tv schauen.hapimag ist ja ...

... 23 degrees soooo warm, it was nice to swim without the crazy surf. When we got back to the marina, we decided to stop for a drink and the captain decided to join us. We then walked to a wonderful Mexican restaurant to have dinner before heading back to the hotel. Day 34 We went to the big market in Albuferia this morning, very similar to a typical british one, so it wasn't that exciting. Then we had to catch our bus out to Lagos and Sagres