Goodbye Oceanside Splendor, Hello Out on a Limb

We bid an early morning farewell to our cushy Marriott digs, after the usual chow down at the breakfast buffet. Such lovely smoked salmon! It's so hard to say goodbye...the salmon and I were getting into a serious relationship, but we had places to go, religious icons to pay homage to, and  lots more lovely wine to drink. Onward to Fatima and the Douro Valley!

We piled into the car and got comfy for the 3-hour drive that lay ahead. Google instructions displayed on Pete's laptop and on we went with some last lingering looks.

Did I mention that it was really hot.? I mean hot. Which became apparent after we rolled into Fatima to see the spot where the 3 young children had several visions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1917. Blazing.Hot. Not that we ever felt we were in the other place down below...but let's put aside thoughts of a religious crisis.The legend is inspirational for religious pilgrims across the world, and on the 13th of every month they gather in the massive plaza that has a traditional cathedral at one end, and a very modern sanctuary at the end. Around the perimeter there are monuments to the three kids, the Holy Family, important people, stations of the cross, and a lovely religious gift shop. One of about 100 that we saw in the town. Along with lots of pastry shops.

We strolled through the plaza and visited the church. Being there made me think of my mother and sister, who had made a pilgrimage to Lourdes back in the 60s. They wanted to go to Fatima as well but never made it. I got my sister a murano glass icon, and one for myself to remember my Mom and it was time to move on to Vila Real and our farmhouse apartment in the Douro Valley. We had an iced tea in the pastry shop and the guy gave us two tasty apple pastries...just because. Portugal is awesome.

After an uneventful drive climbing ever higher in the mountains, the directions to Casa Levada pointed suspiciously to the city of Vila Real. Where were the vines? The  hillsides? The bucolic natural splendor? Not to mention a swimming pool...

We went through roundabout 1, then roundabout 2, took a left by the housing project, circled back for 2 km and finally saw a sign for Casa Do Levada. We took the sharp left turn and approached the stone farmhouse with trepidation. It WAS a farmhouse, and it WAS on quite a bit of acreage, but I gotta tell you my friends, websites can lie. If you care to - here's a link to the website.
http://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/casa-agricola-da-levada.en.html

Now, dear friends, check out the reality below.

2 Bedroom guest cottage had NO WINDOWS! And no screens on the doors. See above for the heat index. NO AIR CONDITIONING AND NO FAN.  Also. the toilet bowl was cracked and there wasn't even a sofa to sit upon. Just an old day bed and some very rickety wicker chairs.

These spoiled Americans that had just left the Preia Del Ray would have none of it.  We had a conference by the charcoal grill and decided to throw caution to the winds and  bid Vila Real goodbye. Too bad that Pete and Linds lost the deposit, but what was that compared to our comfort, and actually having some air circulation? We are now talking about 6-6:30 in the evening. Keep in mind.

We set off for the town of Pinhao, which is supposed to be the nexus of the Douro Valley experience. Unfortunately, we missed a turn on one of the roundabouts and wound up circling through many small towns and twisting and turning around the mountain. It's now getting later and no place to stay. Just a little tension rising...

The Force, and the Hertz map, were with us and we got back to Vila Real, passed by Cas Da Levada again and got ourselves on the right track. Mission accomplished! Now to find a place to stay.

Driving. Driving. Driving. Passed the town of Sabrosa heading towards Pinhao. Sun is getting lower. '
Danny pointed out a modern wine cave as we passed by, and then slammed on his brakes. "I know this place," he yelled. Backed up, saw a sign for a restaurant and hotel. As we pulled up to the restaurant a beautiful Portugese young lady came down the steps and asked if she could help us. Could she ever!

Dinner? Yes. Rooms? Yes. Ana- how we love you! We wound up having the most wonderful dinner you can imagine, complete with a Porto tonic cocktail to begin with, appetizer, main course and dessert, and their own wine served with every course. We thought we dropped dowon into heaven as we were sitting on the terrace viewing the vineyards and watching the sun go down. Honestly, this actually would be a good model for your heavenly reward. It doesn't get much better.

Feeling relieved and relaxed we wound our way down the road to the spectacular small inn. Two gorgeous rooms, a lovely breakfast, and a cool swimming pool with a massive fig tree made us say "Yes! We'll stay here for the next four nights!" I do think our lady of Fatima, and my Mom were looking out for us. Thanks, my ladies for bringing us to this most magnificent spot of Quinta Do Portal. We couldn't be happier.

Preia Del Rey- Oceanside Splendor (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)

The Marriott resort is only about 1.5 hour drive from Lisbon but we have entered another world. Oceanside loungers, umbrella drinks by the pool, serious money dinners and maid service twice a day. Danny is in his bliss with golf on his schedule every day.

Surrounding the hotel are beautiful townhouses and vacation homes. It's pretty remote here but that has quite an appeal and the golf course is supposed to be one of Europe's  best.

The most unusual aspect of this area is the oceanfront. On our first day we took a walk and marveled at the cliffs and colorful rocks. Ochre, brilliant yellow, striations of fossilized wood and small stones provided endless fascination as we headed down the beach.  The waves were rough and the water was cold so we decided to spend our day poolside.

Saturday and Sunday were days of complete relaxation by the pool and ocean. The only one to have some true excitement was Danny, who regaled us with stories of his newfound golf buddies on both days. And he shot an 85 on Sunday. Pavel from Poland on a two-week holiday with his family, Horst and Sylvia from Switzerland are now part of our  story.  His golf passion has been unleashed and he is back at the golf course for the last nine holes before we check out (Mon) and head off to the Douro with a sidetrip to Fatima.

The breakfast buffet gave us a good head start on our pork, fat and salt intake.

We had a memorable dinner in the oceanside town of Peniche on Sunday evening. We took off in the car and soon found ourselves in a traffic jam reminiscent of the northbound GSP on a Sunday night in July. The one road was packed with beachgoers and surfers heading back home. It took us a bit longer than anticipated but the fresh seafood at Peniche's shorefront eateries did not disappoint. What a dinner we had! Bouillabaisse with lobster, shrimp fish, potatoes, tiny little succulent clams and a grilled seafood kebab done to a turn made us forget the traffic jam instantly.  A stroll around the block and a cup of gelato completed a wonderful evening.

I know- who takes pics of French fries? 

Last Day in Lisbon- Belem and the Aquarium

It's the fourth of July and our last day in this marvelous city. Pete wants to go to Belem, a small town to the west to see the famous monastery and cathedral, and a nautical monument. It's going to be a scorcher today, the weather prediction is for 96 so we try to make an early start. Unfortunately, it doesn't make much of a difference. Its  HOT.

We jump the #15 tram and make our way to the monastery. It's a stunning sight- all white stone and carved with towers and turrets galore. It extends what seems to be a full city block and we gratefully make our way into the coolness of the interior after navigating the scores of women selling scarves and shawls. It's annoying but I really do feel sorry for them. Being in sales is hot work.

The cathedral is gorgeous and we all view the crypt of the famed explorer
Vasco da Gama. There is another crypt of a poet who must have been the Portuguese Shakespeare. Few poets make the grade for a full blown marble sculpture of themselves in eternal repose.

We tour the entire cathedral and marvel at the opulence.

 The confessional. The monks had a mission to hear confession from sailors,

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The holy family

Our next stop was to find a nice place for lunch, Pete's Lonely Planet guide recommended a good place for local cuisine and we quickly found it,

There were five choices - sausage, ribs, fried fish, chicken or beef. Who are we to turn our noses up at the unbelievable way this country has with our  porcine friends?

On to the aquarium in Lisbon for some cool, watery wonders. This was highly recommended by my adventerous sista Rosemary and it did not disappoint, Sharks, turtles, mahi, penquins and so much more. I will let the photos do the honors here.

The coolest thing was the two levels where we could see from underneath, It was almost like being in the tank with these beautiful fishes. We marveled at how their caretakers managed to keep them all co-existing in such a small space.

A sky ride in a tram completed our adventure and we had a cocktail at an Irish bar and caught the metro back to the chiado for a rest and recuperation from the blazing heat.

We eventually pulled it together to go out for dinner around 9pm. We wanted to go hear some fado music but it was too late to figure it out so when all else fails- go have a good meal!

We found a very crowded place which is the sure sign of good food according to the wisdom of Daniel-licious,  He is proven right once again, though I think it's hard to miss here in Lisbon.

Sinal beckoned to us with white wine, cerveza, monkfish stew and more. Lindsey had a tuna steak with sauteed onions that was sublime. Dan- clams and pork- the go-to dish these days. I was so busy eating and drinking I forgot to take pictures. Use your imagination here, friends.

We strolled back to the chiado and reveled in the music and street life, We wound up at an outdoor cafe listening to a street band with a great violinist performing American songs from the 70s like Louis Armstrongs "What a Wonderful World" ," Hello Dolly" and more in that vein. You get the picture here.

Lisbon has been superb and we are sorry to go,

Tomorrow we check out, get the car and on to the next adventure at the beachside resort of Plaia Del Rey near Obidos.

Sintra... or the Lost and Found

As much as we love Lisbon, we decided to take a day trip to Sintra, All the guidebooks and guides, including cousin Valeri Vellanti-Moore said it was a "must-do." So our navigator Pete found our train number and off we went to see the Palacia Pena. It was about 1/2 hour ride and we got a chance to see the outskirts of Lisbon. As with other big cities it became apparent that there was plenty of poverty. And lots of graffiti. Interesting and colorful graffiti. Everyone is an artist here!

Sintra! It's a stunning picturesque and well-manicured town. The stone facades are overflowing with orange, purple and fuscia flowers and we are wowed by the  artistry of nature. The walk into the center of town is uphill and lined with stunning sculptures, stone walls and more abundant flowers than you can imagine. There are horsedrawn carriages standing by. The entire town is surrounded by parks and the vegetation is prolific. The sun beats down relentlessly here and so we look for shade to walk into.

In the center of town we have a discussion. Tour the palace with the twin "tagine" conical chimneys, or head up the hill to .

the palacia pena, King Ferdinands monument. We are a bit eager to stretch our legs and so we choose the uphill route to the palace. Ignorance was bliss. Up, up. up. up. up. endless...up. We had no clue how far it really was. Its sure was a pretty walk, and we passed million dollar homes that sparked our fancy but the palace was at the top of the mountain. Why we didn't understand that before I don't know. The king always get the best view!

what a tree!

We did manage to keep cheering each other on until Danny sat down on a stone wall and I saw the look on his face. Not good. We thought we were pretty close but to be on the safe side I hailed a couple in a van and asked them to take him to the top. They said OK and I thought they understood. NO.

Lindsey Pete and I finished up the walk in about 15 minutes and looked around for our fellow pilgrim. Entrance? no. Cafeteria? no. gift shop? no. Ask the guard- can you radio? no. Where is he? I must admit to fantasies of a medical emergency at this point. Pete galvanizes us to take stations, me on the ramparts and he and Lindsey below. After some anxious minutes tick by Danny comes strolling up from below. It tu'oeins out that the van couple DID NOT SPEAK ENGLISH and WERE TOTALLY LOST. They wound up back at another entrance to the park and Dan jumped on the trolley back up. Now we actually knew there was a trolley! Turns out the guy was a farrier and was onsite to shoe the horses and it was his first time  there. Lost

We never saw them again.

We have a nice lunch in the cool cafeteria and calm down.

On to the palace. It was a former monastery and was rehabbed by the current king into a summer palace. Nice! The place is undergoing massive renovation but its quite stunning with trompe l"loeil frescoes and rooms for all the secretaries and ladies in waiting. There is a massive courtyard that was the reception area and the carvings surrounding the facade are dramatic. We dub  the one at the entrance "King Gorgon-zola" because it's a very scary rendition of King Neptune, complete with a merman tail and tridents in hand.

After a few more photo ops, and our fill of the tilework, glass (the king collected it) we catch the trolley back to the entrance  and quickly make a decision to take a cab back to town. We were sapped.

The adventure continued with our very friendly cab driver who was so proud of the wonders of
sintra that he took us to yet another castle  on the other side of town, assuring us it was so beautiful we couldn't miss it. We paid him, got to the entrance, looked at the castle and each other and said, "no mas."
Couldn't take another castle today. We started the long walk back to town and Danny heard the unmistakable chug of a diesel engine. Yes indeed it was our cab driver looking very confused. We hailed him, jumped in and LOAO. (laughed our **** off). The poor guy probably thought we were crazy.

Next up, a little stroll though the tiny shopping area for a possible souvenir. We looked at beautiful tiles, lots of dishtowels, tablecloths etc. Danny wound up in a wine store. Surprised? The local specialty is Ginja, a dee-lish cherry liquer that you drink out of the chocolate cup and then eat the chocolate cup. Its everywhere,
Somehow we were invited to the back room to taste the "angel's pee" Kind of disgusting name but boy oh boy- its quite a yummy almond liquer.then we had to taste the cheese and port jam. and the salami. WE emerged from the shop carrying shopping bags. The tourist seduction was complete. Back to the train and Lisbon. Tired. Hot.

We needed dinner and Lindsey and Pete had spotted a little joint close to train station. Maybe 6 tables in total, and our waiter looked like he wore the same vest for the past twenty years. Out came the bread, cheese and ham that comes without asking. Then came the true magic of a fabulous Portuguese red, clams that were sweet, tender and garlicky, stewed pork chunks, grilled lamb chops and the creamiest potatoes you can imagine.

Back to our main street in the Chiado district to stroll through the lively night life, enjoy the street music and eat gelato.  A day of delight and laughs.  We may have been lost, but we found a lot of fun and had a truly memorable day,