Peppermintpatti's Portugal trip report--LONG!
Jun 29th, 2008, 05:27 AM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Peppermintpatti's Portugal trip report--LONG!
First thank you to all who posted any info on Portugal in the last year and a half. I read EVERYTHING, and your experiences were invaluable in our trip planning.
I'm not much of a writer, but maybe some of our experiences will be helpful to someone else planning their trip.
We are a family of four, mom and dad, in our late 40's and 13 yo. daughter and her friend, who we adopted for 2 weeks.
We loved Portugal, and thought it was much less crowded than other European countries we have visited. Also, we found the Portuguese people to be very kind, helpful, and welcoming to tourists. Many spoke English, and those that did not, would either use gestures to help, or would find someone else who spoke English to answer our questions.
Our trip was delayed by a day, due to weather realated flight problems, so we missed a whole day in Lisbon, which we really regretted.
We spent:
2 nites Lisbon
1 nite Evora
4 nites Luz in the Algarve
1 nite Obidos
1 nite Bussaco Forrest
2 nites Porto
1 nite Lisbon.
On June 12, we finally arrived in Lisbon in the morning. We caught a cab to our apartment in the Pena Parish of the old city center of Lisbon. THe apartment was a beautiful 3 bedroom home, on a residential street in an old neighborhood that survived the 1755 earthquake. We were very pleased with this accommodation, and found it to be very clean, beautifully decorated, well equipped, and very well situated. The owners live only 2 doors down, and were readily available for questions and advice. It had a beautiful terrace where we had coffee and late nite drinks before bed each nite. I can't say enough about this wonderful place, and the great people who own it. The wesite is visitingportugal.com. We stayed in the Casa Patria.
I'm not much of a writer, but maybe some of our experiences will be helpful to someone else planning their trip.
We are a family of four, mom and dad, in our late 40's and 13 yo. daughter and her friend, who we adopted for 2 weeks.
We loved Portugal, and thought it was much less crowded than other European countries we have visited. Also, we found the Portuguese people to be very kind, helpful, and welcoming to tourists. Many spoke English, and those that did not, would either use gestures to help, or would find someone else who spoke English to answer our questions.
Our trip was delayed by a day, due to weather realated flight problems, so we missed a whole day in Lisbon, which we really regretted.
We spent:
2 nites Lisbon
1 nite Evora
4 nites Luz in the Algarve
1 nite Obidos
1 nite Bussaco Forrest
2 nites Porto
1 nite Lisbon.
On June 12, we finally arrived in Lisbon in the morning. We caught a cab to our apartment in the Pena Parish of the old city center of Lisbon. THe apartment was a beautiful 3 bedroom home, on a residential street in an old neighborhood that survived the 1755 earthquake. We were very pleased with this accommodation, and found it to be very clean, beautifully decorated, well equipped, and very well situated. The owners live only 2 doors down, and were readily available for questions and advice. It had a beautiful terrace where we had coffee and late nite drinks before bed each nite. I can't say enough about this wonderful place, and the great people who own it. The wesite is visitingportugal.com. We stayed in the Casa Patria.
Jun 29th, 2008, 05:37 AM
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Our hostess took us on a tour of the neighborhood, pointing out architecture, some good restaurants, the butcher, grocer, Rossio square, some transport connections, etc. We then came home, showered, and went out for some supplies at the above mentioned places. Next we went out exploring, and took the Santa Gloria elevador up to the Sao Pedro viewing area. The views were wonderful, and there were many photo ops. We then walked down past the beautiful Sao Roque church, through the square, and over to Cerveja da Trenadade for lunch. This was a monastery that was converted into a beer hall in the 1800s. We figured that since we are from Cleveland--home of the Greatlakes Brewery, we better check out the local brew. The food and the beer did not disappoint, and the inside of this restaurant was decorated with many of the tiles Portugal is famous for. We had 4 cokes, 4 beer, 2 hamburger entries, 2 steak entrees, bread and olives for 50 euro including tip.
After lunch we tried to take a cab up to the Sao George castle, but the driver told us it was closed, which was contrary to what my guide books said. He didn't speak English, and we don't speak Portuguese more than the usual few words needed in any language just to get by, but we got him to take us as close as possible to the castle, which turned out to be not close enough for our tired flight worn bodies to get up to the castle. We figured out later, that he must have been trying to tell us the streets leading to the castle were closed due to the huge festival of St. Anthony, that Lisbon is famous for. We were very disappointed not to get to the castle or its viewing area. We never got back up there due to losing a whole day.
After lunch we tried to take a cab up to the Sao George castle, but the driver told us it was closed, which was contrary to what my guide books said. He didn't speak English, and we don't speak Portuguese more than the usual few words needed in any language just to get by, but we got him to take us as close as possible to the castle, which turned out to be not close enough for our tired flight worn bodies to get up to the castle. We figured out later, that he must have been trying to tell us the streets leading to the castle were closed due to the huge festival of St. Anthony, that Lisbon is famous for. We were very disappointed not to get to the castle or its viewing area. We never got back up there due to losing a whole day.
Jun 29th, 2008, 05:54 AM
#3
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Our disappointment turned out to be short lived though, because the festival was SO MUCH FUN! There were bands with colorful costumes, and singers, that were making their way through the streets of the ALfama, and everywhere there was grills setup with sardines, chicken, etc. cooking, and stands for beer, wine and sangria. The sardines were huge, and the best we had the whole trip. My husband and daughter loved them, but me and the best friend needed a huge gulp of water after tasting them! We spent the rest of the evening walking through the neighborhood, people watching, gazing at the beautiful buildings, and listening to the many groups singing. (And of course patronizing the many food and drink stands!)
Day 2, we spent in Belem. We got a trolly there, which took about 20 min.
The St. Jeronimos Monastery was just incredible to see, with the Manueline architecture. We took quite a few pictures.
Next we hit the Pasteis de Belem, which if you like your sweets, is a must! The little custard pastries that everyone raves about, are WONDERFUL. But the menu is huge, and once again, since we don't speak Portuguese, we just said "chocolate" to the waiter, and were served the most incredible pastry! There is a counter up front for to go orders, but we got a table, and had bica, and many selections. I am a strong coffee lover, so I found the bica to die for!
Next up was the Coach museum. I was totally surprised by how much I enjoyed this place. There are descriptions in English, and the artwork and sculpture on these coaches was unbelievable. This was the first stop, in what would be a running Portuquese history lesson for us, as so many of the places we went were tied together historically.
We then walked across the pedestrian bridge, and visited the Monument to the Discoveries, going to the top in an elevator, to catch the views of the area. We walked over to the Belem tower, and then walked to the trolley stop, to get back to Lisbon. At this point I wanted to smack Rick Steves upside the head, because his map makes it look lilke the end-of-the-line stop is right across from the tower, which we did not find to be so. Now we are a little directionally challenged, so on hindsight maybe it was there, somewhere. But when we asked a very nice lady to direct us, part of her instructions were " then you go, and go, and keep going". Anyway we ended up just walking in the direction we thought the tracks would be, and found our way to a stop.
We came home, and grilled steaks on our terrace, and had a wonderful evening enjoying the ambience. I have to say, we really found the meat in Portugal to be much more flavorful than at home. There were many other foods that caused us to comment that "this tastes just like I remember it as a kid."
Afterward we headed toward the Praca Commercio, through the arch, and again enjoyed going past the cafes, and window shopping. Due to the late hour, most of the shops were closed, (which helped my bank account, because otherwise I would have had a field day with the beautiful shoes, purses, and clothing!) We stoopped at a pastry shop and got some breakfast, and called it a day.
Day 2, we spent in Belem. We got a trolly there, which took about 20 min.
The St. Jeronimos Monastery was just incredible to see, with the Manueline architecture. We took quite a few pictures.
Next we hit the Pasteis de Belem, which if you like your sweets, is a must! The little custard pastries that everyone raves about, are WONDERFUL. But the menu is huge, and once again, since we don't speak Portuguese, we just said "chocolate" to the waiter, and were served the most incredible pastry! There is a counter up front for to go orders, but we got a table, and had bica, and many selections. I am a strong coffee lover, so I found the bica to die for!
Next up was the Coach museum. I was totally surprised by how much I enjoyed this place. There are descriptions in English, and the artwork and sculpture on these coaches was unbelievable. This was the first stop, in what would be a running Portuquese history lesson for us, as so many of the places we went were tied together historically.
We then walked across the pedestrian bridge, and visited the Monument to the Discoveries, going to the top in an elevator, to catch the views of the area. We walked over to the Belem tower, and then walked to the trolley stop, to get back to Lisbon. At this point I wanted to smack Rick Steves upside the head, because his map makes it look lilke the end-of-the-line stop is right across from the tower, which we did not find to be so. Now we are a little directionally challenged, so on hindsight maybe it was there, somewhere. But when we asked a very nice lady to direct us, part of her instructions were " then you go, and go, and keep going". Anyway we ended up just walking in the direction we thought the tracks would be, and found our way to a stop.
We came home, and grilled steaks on our terrace, and had a wonderful evening enjoying the ambience. I have to say, we really found the meat in Portugal to be much more flavorful than at home. There were many other foods that caused us to comment that "this tastes just like I remember it as a kid."
Afterward we headed toward the Praca Commercio, through the arch, and again enjoyed going past the cafes, and window shopping. Due to the late hour, most of the shops were closed, (which helped my bank account, because otherwise I would have had a field day with the beautiful shoes, purses, and clothing!) We stoopped at a pastry shop and got some breakfast, and called it a day.
Jun 29th, 2008, 06:10 AM
#4
Enjoying your report. Please keep it coming. We have never been to Portugal other than the Azores so it is interesting to read your impressions of the rest of the country. Our experiences in the Azores affirm your descriptions of the friendly and helpful people who will go out of their well to help one out.
Jun 29th, 2008, 06:19 AM
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Day 3 we took the train from Rossio station to Sintra. The station is a beautiful building outside, and it was really easy to get tickets, and figure out which train to take. I think the ticket was 3 euro.
Upon arrival in Sintra, right at the station, we purchased tickets for the hop-on-hop-off bus, for 3.85 euro. Now why anyone would forgo this bus, and walk up to all the sights is beyond me. I think I remember hearing that the walk from the national palace up to the Moorish castle is 2 miles uphill. The bus was cheap, and stopped quite frequently, and saves a lot of valuable vacation time.
We really enjoyed the National palace. Once again we found the connection between this and other sites in Portugal interesting. The Moorish castle ruins are in a beautiful wooded area, really high up, so with beautiful views, really a lovely little walk.
The Pena Palace was really something to see, and had beautiful furniture, and accessories that were interesting to see. It is even higher up than the Moorish castle, and is sort of blocked by it from down in the town. My husband kept looking at the huge houses on the hillside and telling me, "honey, I think that must be it" Finally I asked him to please not say that one more time! I told him "When you finally see it, you won't have to ask whether that is it!" That sure turned out to be true. The family said this was their favorite palace of the trip. There is a separate trolly with a separate fee that takes you the final way up to the palace, but once again, we thought it was worth it.
We got lucky, and got on both transports back to the station with either noone else or very few people on them, and took the train back to Lisbon.
When we got back, we took the Santa Justa elevador up to the top, and had some drinks in the little cafe, while enjoying the singer, and the views. We walked over to the Convent ruins, which were closed by this time, but still nice to see. The convent was another thing we were going to see our first day, but missed. We walked through the square where the National guard is headquartered, and over to the Cafe Brasiliera for some of our favorite afternoon libation--Vinho Verde. Back home for a shower, and some wine and cheese on our terrace. And then back out for some Fado. We had almost decided to stay home because of the long day, but inquired of our hosts whether they knew of a good Fado restaurant close by. We had originally planned on one of our days to go to the much recommended Caldo Verde, but hadn't seen it on any of our walks, and thought it mught be tough to find in the dark especially since we were already tired, (and especially due to our poor navigational skills.) Well the restaurant we went to was in the Bairro Alto, and we loved it. The food was great, the singers also great and fun, and we were really glad we went out to see this. Every now and then the cook would join in from the open kitchen, and she even came out to sing a few times. This was one thing I would have liked to go out to see again!
Well by this night, I think I was remarking to my husband that there was something weird in the air in Portugal that was shrinking my clothes, because they were pretty loose fitting at home, but not so much here!
Upon arrival in Sintra, right at the station, we purchased tickets for the hop-on-hop-off bus, for 3.85 euro. Now why anyone would forgo this bus, and walk up to all the sights is beyond me. I think I remember hearing that the walk from the national palace up to the Moorish castle is 2 miles uphill. The bus was cheap, and stopped quite frequently, and saves a lot of valuable vacation time.
We really enjoyed the National palace. Once again we found the connection between this and other sites in Portugal interesting. The Moorish castle ruins are in a beautiful wooded area, really high up, so with beautiful views, really a lovely little walk.
The Pena Palace was really something to see, and had beautiful furniture, and accessories that were interesting to see. It is even higher up than the Moorish castle, and is sort of blocked by it from down in the town. My husband kept looking at the huge houses on the hillside and telling me, "honey, I think that must be it" Finally I asked him to please not say that one more time! I told him "When you finally see it, you won't have to ask whether that is it!" That sure turned out to be true. The family said this was their favorite palace of the trip. There is a separate trolly with a separate fee that takes you the final way up to the palace, but once again, we thought it was worth it.
We got lucky, and got on both transports back to the station with either noone else or very few people on them, and took the train back to Lisbon.
When we got back, we took the Santa Justa elevador up to the top, and had some drinks in the little cafe, while enjoying the singer, and the views. We walked over to the Convent ruins, which were closed by this time, but still nice to see. The convent was another thing we were going to see our first day, but missed. We walked through the square where the National guard is headquartered, and over to the Cafe Brasiliera for some of our favorite afternoon libation--Vinho Verde. Back home for a shower, and some wine and cheese on our terrace. And then back out for some Fado. We had almost decided to stay home because of the long day, but inquired of our hosts whether they knew of a good Fado restaurant close by. We had originally planned on one of our days to go to the much recommended Caldo Verde, but hadn't seen it on any of our walks, and thought it mught be tough to find in the dark especially since we were already tired, (and especially due to our poor navigational skills.) Well the restaurant we went to was in the Bairro Alto, and we loved it. The food was great, the singers also great and fun, and we were really glad we went out to see this. Every now and then the cook would join in from the open kitchen, and she even came out to sing a few times. This was one thing I would have liked to go out to see again!
Well by this night, I think I was remarking to my husband that there was something weird in the air in Portugal that was shrinking my clothes, because they were pretty loose fitting at home, but not so much here!
Jun 29th, 2008, 06:23 AM
#6
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thank you for your kind comments Basingstoke2. The people we met in Portugal were so very kind to us. So many people we spoke with actually apologized for their English. I always appreciate the kind people I encounter when travelling. They really have changed me, and the way I treat travellers in my own town. pp
Jun 29th, 2008, 06:38 AM
#7
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 10,390
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I laughed to read your comment about Rick Steves. While I understand his maps are often meant to be a 'first-quick-orientation' maps that deliberately omit detail, I have to agree about the Belem one. The 'road' through Belem turned out to be a lot more intimidating than I was expecting on the basis of that map.
Love the report, it is bringing back great memories.
Love the report, it is bringing back great memories.
Jun 29th, 2008, 07:41 AM
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Day 4, we headed over to the Gulbenkian Museum. We took a cab, because this was out of the way from where we were. I'm really glad we got this in, because this museum had a nice collecion of quite a few different types of things, and was put together really well. This was a Sunday, so free admission too! Incidentally, a lot of places in Portugal, had either free admission for children up to 12, or discounted group rates for families, which was nice.
After the museum, we took a cab to the airport, picked up a rental car, and drove to Evora. We found the highways in Portugal to be very well maintained with very little traffic. There were some cars passing us, but it was at a respectable distance, and was not a problem. However, trying to drive through these little towns was a little nerve-wracking! The scenery through the ALentajo was beautiful and interesting with cork trees, olives, and vineyards.
We stayed at the Residencial Os Manuais, a little hotel in the middle of town. A little difficult to spot at first, because the entrance is stairs up to the next level which is the lobby, so no big sign or doorway. If you stay here, it is really helpful to print out the hotel picture from their website.
I really liked this hotel. The rooms were very clean, with nice atmosphere, and the lobby was really pretty with blue and yellow patterned upholstery tht was so clean and pretty, it looked like it was just done up that day. My family, however said this was their least favorite place. I think it was just the size of the room, after leaving an aparment and coming to a hotel room that we all shared. Plus I spent quite a long time picking places to stay, and everyone of them was nice. So if this was the least favorite, it was the least favorite of some very good places. This is a family owned place. It's been a hotel since the 50's. THe father and sone who own it are both very nice, and the son spent quite a long time talking to us, and giving us info on the area. Their website is residencialosmanueis.com. We had the suite which was 75 euro, and included breakfast at the cafe around the corner.
After dropping our luggage, we walked around the town, checking out the temple of Diana, the square, and some of the streets. We had dinner at Fialho, which turned out to be our favorite of the whole trip. We were told it was the most expensive place in town, but most entrees were around 15 euro. Withe a bottle of wine, and cokes, and dessert for all, plus one appetizer, bread and butter, the check was 170 euro with tip, and 50 of that was for the wine, which was really good, and well worth the splurge in my opinion! I had the black pork, which was the best pork I have ever had in my life. I had some sort of Alentejo dessert, almond with a pumpkin filling which was very good. The girls had homemade ice cream, which they said was the best ice cream they have ever had, including Italian gelato--quite a complement I think!
The next day, we toured the Sao Francisco church, bone chapel, and cathedral, all beautiful, and interesting. But the girls were a little creeped-out by the bone chapel!
After the museum, we took a cab to the airport, picked up a rental car, and drove to Evora. We found the highways in Portugal to be very well maintained with very little traffic. There were some cars passing us, but it was at a respectable distance, and was not a problem. However, trying to drive through these little towns was a little nerve-wracking! The scenery through the ALentajo was beautiful and interesting with cork trees, olives, and vineyards.
We stayed at the Residencial Os Manuais, a little hotel in the middle of town. A little difficult to spot at first, because the entrance is stairs up to the next level which is the lobby, so no big sign or doorway. If you stay here, it is really helpful to print out the hotel picture from their website.
I really liked this hotel. The rooms were very clean, with nice atmosphere, and the lobby was really pretty with blue and yellow patterned upholstery tht was so clean and pretty, it looked like it was just done up that day. My family, however said this was their least favorite place. I think it was just the size of the room, after leaving an aparment and coming to a hotel room that we all shared. Plus I spent quite a long time picking places to stay, and everyone of them was nice. So if this was the least favorite, it was the least favorite of some very good places. This is a family owned place. It's been a hotel since the 50's. THe father and sone who own it are both very nice, and the son spent quite a long time talking to us, and giving us info on the area. Their website is residencialosmanueis.com. We had the suite which was 75 euro, and included breakfast at the cafe around the corner.
After dropping our luggage, we walked around the town, checking out the temple of Diana, the square, and some of the streets. We had dinner at Fialho, which turned out to be our favorite of the whole trip. We were told it was the most expensive place in town, but most entrees were around 15 euro. Withe a bottle of wine, and cokes, and dessert for all, plus one appetizer, bread and butter, the check was 170 euro with tip, and 50 of that was for the wine, which was really good, and well worth the splurge in my opinion! I had the black pork, which was the best pork I have ever had in my life. I had some sort of Alentejo dessert, almond with a pumpkin filling which was very good. The girls had homemade ice cream, which they said was the best ice cream they have ever had, including Italian gelato--quite a complement I think!
The next day, we toured the Sao Francisco church, bone chapel, and cathedral, all beautiful, and interesting. But the girls were a little creeped-out by the bone chapel!
Jun 29th, 2008, 07:58 AM
#10
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 6,818
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
peppermint:
Excellent report...having been in Portugal last month, this sure energized my memory of that veritable gem of a country! So happy you enjoyed it as much as we did. Keep it coming! (Pictures??)
stu t.
Excellent report...having been in Portugal last month, this sure energized my memory of that veritable gem of a country! So happy you enjoyed it as much as we did. Keep it coming! (Pictures??)
stu t.
Jun 29th, 2008, 09:34 AM
#11
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Stu, I am not very technologically savvy, but will try to find a way to post pictures! Also, thanks for your tips about the restaurants in Obidos, we ate at both, and loved them both! pp
Jun 29th, 2008, 09:50 AM
#12
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
We left Evora, and headed down to Luz in the Algarve. The drive took a little over 3 hours, which was about 1/2 an hour or so longer than the people in Evora, and in the Algarve thought it would take. I think these folks must be driving 100mph , or taking some other way!
We loved the condo we stayed at, and the town of Luz. It is just 5 min. from Lagos, but a little quieter. We had a 5 min. walk down to the beach, and a heated pool on the property. There was a grocer 3 min walk away, and the condo had a wrap-around terrace, with ocean views which we really enjoyed. The owner is from the UK, which presented us with some difficulty getting the payment to her. But she uses a local management company, so at least they were a phone call away, if needed. The website for the property is holiday-rentals.co.uk.. The property is #68183.
It seems that a lot of people who travel to the other parts of Portugal don't really like the Algarve, because it is very touristy and doesn't have much of the history or flavor of the other parts. We however truly had a great time there. Since we had two teenagers with us, and this was a relatively long vacation for us, it really helped to have a break fron all the power touring and just relax.
There were a lot of daytrip possibillities that I researched, and brought directions for, but we pretty much just slowed down and enjoyed the area for these 4 days.
We took 2 boat tours from the Lagos marina. Both we booked by just walking along the waterfront to the stands set up there. The grotto tour was just breathtaking, and the dophin tour we took was a highlight of our trip. The dolphins swam right along with the boat, under it, and dove in and out of the water over and over all around us. We went to Lagos for an evening and had fun shopping at the little shops there--the girls particularly enjoyed a little jewelry shop there, (I must confess to some purchases there myself). We had dinner at a little outdoor cafe called El Charco(?) With cokes, bread and butter, a bottle of wine, and 4 dinners--48 euro. The food was good.
We swam at the Dona Anna beach, and the Black rock beach, both of which we enjoyed. We had a really lovely dinner one nite at Fort ALeza da Luz right across from the church. We ate outside in a beautiful garden setting on a large terrace overlooking the ocean. The food was very good, four dinners, 2 pitchers of Sangria, four cokes, desssert, bread and olives--(we were on a diet)--126 euro.
We loved the condo we stayed at, and the town of Luz. It is just 5 min. from Lagos, but a little quieter. We had a 5 min. walk down to the beach, and a heated pool on the property. There was a grocer 3 min walk away, and the condo had a wrap-around terrace, with ocean views which we really enjoyed. The owner is from the UK, which presented us with some difficulty getting the payment to her. But she uses a local management company, so at least they were a phone call away, if needed. The website for the property is holiday-rentals.co.uk.. The property is #68183.
It seems that a lot of people who travel to the other parts of Portugal don't really like the Algarve, because it is very touristy and doesn't have much of the history or flavor of the other parts. We however truly had a great time there. Since we had two teenagers with us, and this was a relatively long vacation for us, it really helped to have a break fron all the power touring and just relax.
There were a lot of daytrip possibillities that I researched, and brought directions for, but we pretty much just slowed down and enjoyed the area for these 4 days.
We took 2 boat tours from the Lagos marina. Both we booked by just walking along the waterfront to the stands set up there. The grotto tour was just breathtaking, and the dophin tour we took was a highlight of our trip. The dolphins swam right along with the boat, under it, and dove in and out of the water over and over all around us. We went to Lagos for an evening and had fun shopping at the little shops there--the girls particularly enjoyed a little jewelry shop there, (I must confess to some purchases there myself). We had dinner at a little outdoor cafe called El Charco(?) With cokes, bread and butter, a bottle of wine, and 4 dinners--48 euro. The food was good.
We swam at the Dona Anna beach, and the Black rock beach, both of which we enjoyed. We had a really lovely dinner one nite at Fort ALeza da Luz right across from the church. We ate outside in a beautiful garden setting on a large terrace overlooking the ocean. The food was very good, four dinners, 2 pitchers of Sangria, four cokes, desssert, bread and olives--(we were on a diet)--126 euro.
Jun 29th, 2008, 10:04 AM
#13
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Our next stop was Obidos. Here we stayed at the Extalagem do Convento. It was a convent that was turned into an inn. It gets some pretty rough reviews on tripadvisor, but we really enjoyed it. It has a great location, and is not your run-of-the-mill hotel which we really prefer. It also had a great breakfast buffet included in the room cost, which is served in the beautiful restaurant. We paid 152 euro for the suite, with extra bed. Now although the staff wasn't exactly doing cartwheels at our arrival, they were very polite, and that is all we really ask. The inn is actually right outside the walls, and it is possible to park right next to the walls, which is almost right next to the inn.
My husband at this point stopped to thank me profusely for renting a station wagon, and asking him to park it uphill in a postage-stamp-sized spot on a street no larger than an alley
We had lunch at Albergada Josefa, which is just steps from the inn, and it was very good. My steak was delivered on a stone, and I cooked it myself, which was fun. I didn't write down the check total, but I don't recall it being very expensive. Had wonderful atmosphere.
After lunch, we walked around town, stopping here and there to support the local economy. We tried ginghja in chocolate cups,which was just 1 euro, contrary to what Rick Steves says. We visited St. Mary's church which has beautiful tilework and paintings inside. We walked up and around the castle which had beautiful views, but we didn't walk too much on the walls, because I would like to live to see my grandchildren. So we just went up a few stairways here and there. We had dinner at Petrestum Domus which we all really liked. Good atmosphere, and good food. 2 cokes, bottle of wine, 4 dinners--78 euro.
My husband at this point stopped to thank me profusely for renting a station wagon, and asking him to park it uphill in a postage-stamp-sized spot on a street no larger than an alley
We had lunch at Albergada Josefa, which is just steps from the inn, and it was very good. My steak was delivered on a stone, and I cooked it myself, which was fun. I didn't write down the check total, but I don't recall it being very expensive. Had wonderful atmosphere.
After lunch, we walked around town, stopping here and there to support the local economy. We tried ginghja in chocolate cups,which was just 1 euro, contrary to what Rick Steves says. We visited St. Mary's church which has beautiful tilework and paintings inside. We walked up and around the castle which had beautiful views, but we didn't walk too much on the walls, because I would like to live to see my grandchildren. So we just went up a few stairways here and there. We had dinner at Petrestum Domus which we all really liked. Good atmosphere, and good food. 2 cokes, bottle of wine, 4 dinners--78 euro.
Jun 29th, 2008, 11:18 AM
#15
Join Date: Sep 2005
Posts: 6,818
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
peppermint:
I'm so pleased that you liked our restaurant suggestions, and the Estalagem Convento in Obidos...we, too, paid little attention to Trip Advisor and were very comfortable with the Estalagem...clean, exceptionally well-located for Obidos, and you're right, the staff was unobtrusive, but politely helpful when asked about anything.
Did you get to Nazare'/Sitio?
stu t.
I'm so pleased that you liked our restaurant suggestions, and the Estalagem Convento in Obidos...we, too, paid little attention to Trip Advisor and were very comfortable with the Estalagem...clean, exceptionally well-located for Obidos, and you're right, the staff was unobtrusive, but politely helpful when asked about anything.
Did you get to Nazare'/Sitio?
stu t.
Jun 29th, 2008, 02:18 PM
#16
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks Bailey!
Stu, we didn't make it to Nazarre, that is one of the places I would have added if we had more time. I also would have liked to see Marvao, and spend some more time in the Northern part of Portugal too. Oh well, maybe another time.
Stu, we didn't make it to Nazarre, that is one of the places I would have added if we had more time. I also would have liked to see Marvao, and spend some more time in the Northern part of Portugal too. Oh well, maybe another time.
Jun 29th, 2008, 02:47 PM
#17
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 322
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
One of the things I loved about Obidos was all the flowers. We all were amazed at a Fuscia TREE(!) we saw. At home we have fuscia in pots, so this was really something!
The next day was quite a busy one. First we had a great time trying to get out of Obidos--good thing it was early in the morning, and not very many people out and about yet. Instead of turning around and going down past our inn, we went up in the direction the car was pointing. Apparently we were thinking we were still at home on our little city block where it takes the same amount of effort to turn around as it does to just go around the corner. Well.... this was a HUGE mistake. We somehow drove up to the castle, and then through the narrow city streets, and after leaving a patch of rubber on one of the cobbled streets (thanks again wife for renting the stick-shift station wagon) we, with the help of another kind Portuguese man, found our way out of the city. Well at least I have a story to tell for the ulcers we now have!
We made our way first to Alcobaca, then Batalha, then Fatima. The cathedrals at ALcobaca and Batalha were huge, with some very interesting history, once again tying together this and other sights on our trip.
We all agreed though, that the highlight of the day was the pottery stop on the way from ALcobacha to Batalha. We purchased some very beautiful pieces--good thing we had some extra luggage with us! But what we really all loved was the impromptu pottery demonstration by the owner. It was really something to see. He spent a lot of time showing us the process. At the end, he told us that it was his "joy to show us his job". Now if it is possible to love things, I have to say that in my home the things I love, are the ones that I know were made with passion, and these pieces will be added to the list of things I love.
Fatima was a place my husband has always wanted to see. We spent more time there than what most people would. I found the museum really interesting. It had displays of some of the things that people leave when they come to Fatima. We saw, among other things the bullet that hit the pope in St.Peter's square, and the hankerchief he had in his hand when he died. The quide told us that there is 18kg of gold jewelry left there every year. If you visit, and already know the story, the video is not really necessary to watch. There is at the end of the video, a recording of Lucy's voice, if that is of interest.
All three places are withing 20-30 min of each other, so very convienient to do together.
The next day was quite a busy one. First we had a great time trying to get out of Obidos--good thing it was early in the morning, and not very many people out and about yet. Instead of turning around and going down past our inn, we went up in the direction the car was pointing. Apparently we were thinking we were still at home on our little city block where it takes the same amount of effort to turn around as it does to just go around the corner. Well.... this was a HUGE mistake. We somehow drove up to the castle, and then through the narrow city streets, and after leaving a patch of rubber on one of the cobbled streets (thanks again wife for renting the stick-shift station wagon) we, with the help of another kind Portuguese man, found our way out of the city. Well at least I have a story to tell for the ulcers we now have!
We made our way first to Alcobaca, then Batalha, then Fatima. The cathedrals at ALcobaca and Batalha were huge, with some very interesting history, once again tying together this and other sights on our trip.
We all agreed though, that the highlight of the day was the pottery stop on the way from ALcobacha to Batalha. We purchased some very beautiful pieces--good thing we had some extra luggage with us! But what we really all loved was the impromptu pottery demonstration by the owner. It was really something to see. He spent a lot of time showing us the process. At the end, he told us that it was his "joy to show us his job". Now if it is possible to love things, I have to say that in my home the things I love, are the ones that I know were made with passion, and these pieces will be added to the list of things I love.
Fatima was a place my husband has always wanted to see. We spent more time there than what most people would. I found the museum really interesting. It had displays of some of the things that people leave when they come to Fatima. We saw, among other things the bullet that hit the pope in St.Peter's square, and the hankerchief he had in his hand when he died. The quide told us that there is 18kg of gold jewelry left there every year. If you visit, and already know the story, the video is not really necessary to watch. There is at the end of the video, a recording of Lucy's voice, if that is of interest.
All three places are withing 20-30 min of each other, so very convienient to do together.
Jun 30th, 2008, 08:45 AM
#19
Join Date: Feb 2006
Posts: 356
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Brit - I have a link to the pottery shop's website in my trip report as well as photos of the pottery I bought. The report is titled "Portugal Trip Report" and can be found by clicking on my screen name.
