2015 06 13 S.M. do Porto to Porto Covo

13th - 14th June 2015

Sao Martinho do Porto to Porto Covo

Well as lovely as S.M. do Porto was it was time to move on and   we actually had a plan and stuck to it today.  The most important part of the day was a side trip into Lisbon (well the outskirts really) to the Belem Pastry shop for the best custard tarts in the world!

 A fare bit of Toll-ways today which was just as well as the weather was really crappy today.  The rain wasn't bucketing down but it was enough to be really annoying.

After our stop in at the pastry shop and with very full tummies we continued on to Porto Covo.

Porto Covo is a beautiful little town where apparently you can have any coloured building you want as long as it is white with blue trim :)   

A quick good bye to our host for the past three days, Richard.

Belem pastry shop make and sell the best custard tarts in the world, don’t just take my word for it look at the queue.  It’s like this everyday. 

“On the go” 

Sheep Shunter Mk II parking spot, nice and close to our room, just the way we like it.

The view from our room.

The view later that night, glad we were tucked away in our room.

Views around Porto Covo.

A local fisherman’s haul of Barnacles, Yummy (well a type of Barnacle anyway, the Portuguese name doesn’t translate to English)

Tonight’s dinner, whole small Octopus, with olive oil and garlic, cooked in the oven with vegetables, very Yummy.

Thinking of you Mr & Mrs Pitt hope things are looking up xx

2015 06 10 Fig de Foz to Sao Martinho do Porto

Today's short GPS ride map.

10^th – 12th June 2015

Figueira da Foz to Sao Martinho do Porto

We left this morning with no real plan except to follow the coast some more. We stopped for coffee after travelling about 100kms and once again that’s as far as we got!  At this rate we won’t make it all the way round!

The weather has been quite mild & very pleasant for walking around exploring the little townships.  It still isn't warm enough for us to be tempted into the water although it is getting close.

S. M. do Porto is a lovely protected little bay.  It is in the middle of a 10 day festival that ends on Sunday with Saint Antonio’s day.  They have a mobile stage set-up with bands every night and a big food marquee as well as water front market stalls.  Lots of cafe’s, bars, and restaurants are dotted along the water front and we have found a favourite which make great coffee just the way we like it. We have also found the location for our summer house when we win lotto :)

The "on the go" photographer was having an off day so no on the go’s this post (I can hear the collective sigh of relief ). 

Good sand boarding beach Jesse!

 Picking the location for our Lotto house :)

I think she is in the naughty corner.

  

Why would you go to a bar for drinks & nibbles with  views like this from your balcony?

One of our favourite coffee spots. They also have the best toilet sign I have seen.

This is another coffee spot which also happens to be connected to our apartment for the last 3 nights, top right corner.

Groceries and alcohol are super cheap, a bottle of Mateus for 2.90 euro ($4.50). 

Haircuts are cheap too, so we both had one.

Snails are also cheap so we had to try them, well Maurice tried them more than me, I didn't like the way they looked at me and they reminded me of friends who have just started their holiday and have the flu at the moment. 

Sometimes you have to turn around to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

 

2015 06 08 Vigo, Spain to Figueira da Foz, Portugal
Today's GPS map

8^th – 9th June 2015

Vigo, Spain to Figueira da Foz, Portugal

Vigo isn't far from the Portuguese border so it didn't take long before we were in country number 11.

To be honest with you I can’t even remember what the weather was like but I know it wasn't raining.

Even if we didn't see the sign telling us we were in Portugal we would have guessed as soon as we started seeing the tiled churches and houses and if that didn't give it away the white cobblestone roads would have.

Our first port of call, Figuiera da Foz, was a relatively large town and our hotel was right on the beach where people in Portugal seem to think it is warm enough to sun-bake and some even think swimming is an option, yet we are still wearing jeans and long sleeve shirts. 

Leaving Vigo we saw one of the best roundabouts sculptures yet.

Just a couple “on the go’s” today. 

The location of Maurice’s first lesson on how to order a flat white in Portuguese.

The view from the balcony of our hotel was so good we decided to have a budget booster supper looking at it.  Total cost of   supper was 7.46 euro (about $10).

Figueira da Foz