Oh Babushka - trips within a trip - Thailand, UAE, Oman, Spain, Portugal, UAE again, Sri Lanka and Singapore

[Seat0B]

With his TR I couldn't help thinking of @Seat0B when I saw this.
View attachment 443145

This is exactly what it’s like to be an expat’s mum @drron. I am so proud of both my kids, and they are living their best lives. But I get to see my daughter regularly and frequently. Seat Son regularly - but usually only once or occasionally twice a year. It’s hard.

 

[Seat0B]

Don’t you those serendipitous finds. I just had a look to see where it was on the map and it’s nowhere near all the places that I’m trying to visit next year but I’ve saved it anyway just in case.

Yes - in many ways it was the highlight of Portugal for me because of the unexpectedly beautiful and historic town. It certainly was a piece of serendipity and I’m so glad we went there.

Whenever we were talking to a Portuguese person, and said we’d visited Elvas, they always expressed surprise - “most tourists don’t know of this town” and commented on the history and beauty of the town.

 

[RooFlyer]

Don’t you those serendipitous finds. I just had a look to see where it was on the map and it’s nowhere near all the places that I’m trying to visit next year but I’ve saved it anyway just in case.

Me too. I have a cruise that ends in Nice in July next year and a grand sweep through Spain and across to ... Elvas sounds a plan!

 

[Seat0B]

Me too. I have a cruise that ends in Nice in July next year and a grand sweep through Spain and across to ... Elvas sounds a plan!

I don’t think you’d regret it. Although it might be quite warm at that time of the year. I’d recommend the hotel too.

 

[Seat0B]

Saturday 7 Dec 2024 - Morning in Elvas Part 2

Our next stop was the Forte de Nossa Senhora da Graça. This was a spectacular classic pentagonal star shape fortress built between 1763-1792. It's perched on a hilltop with commanding views of the surrounds. It is one of the most amazing castles I have been to, in my opinion up there with Azlun in Jordan and Matsumoto and Himeji in Japan. It cost a modest EUR5 ea to tour the extensive grounds and look into the various parts of castle buildings. Unfortunately we were a bit pressed for time because we have to be in Lisbon for a walking tour by 1600 today, and as I mentioned in earlier posts, I had no idea how marvellous Elvas would be and we just simply did not allow enough time for this slightly hidden gem.



The fortress looked spectacular against the clear blue sky.


Sentry box overhanging the (now dry) moat


Check out the view from the fortress wall, approaching the sentry box

Anyway, we hit the road to Lisbon - always leave wanting more - and took the A8. The drive was about 2 hrs to the city outskirts including a stop for a very nice coffee at a roadside stop (which in hindsight we did not really have time for), and then another hour for the last little bit. The motorway was not as crowded as yesterday, but the tolls were steep, with one of EUR 5.20, another of EUR2.50 and then the mother of all tolls and a harbinger of costs of tolls in Portugal at EUR 18.20!


One of many toll points in Portugal

We had registered for e-tolls online, but were not really sure that it had worked as many people using international credit cards had reported getting fines despite having registered. In the end, we chickened out and just paid cash as we went.

We made it to our hotel, Sofitel Lisbon Liberdade, without navigation issues thanks to the combo of Google maps and our own TomTom GPS that Mr Seat 0A had brought from home. We have given up on the vehicle SatNav. We checked in and opted not to use the valet parking, rather to self-park - BAD IDEA. Quite a newbie mistake. Firstly, it took 10 minutes battling serious traffic to make it to the parking garage which was literally just behind the hotel. The we could not get the ticket machine to give us a ticket to raise the entry gate and I had to walk back to the front desk and ask for the gate to be raised - apparently the valets have a key card, and no-one but no-one chooses to self park, except crazy Australians! Then we slowly inched our way down an extremely steep and narrow ramp, until we found an extremely small car park. Despite both being confident drivers, we were a bit traumatised by the whole experience, and vowed to accept all offers of parking assistance in the future.

All in all, we had lost quite a chunk of time and were now under a fair bit of time pressure to make our walking tour with Ricardo. So e grabbed our supplies from the Elvas market, and hot footed it to the meeting point in Plaça de Camões. We made it in about 15 minutes, including walking up a very steep hill (known locally as Gloria) that most people ascend by funicular. I puffed a bit but was pretty happy with my fitness as it was quite a long, steep hike. Sat on the steps of the main sqaure in the late afternoon sun and ate our picnic lunch at 1545, listening to a bunch of uni students performing traditional Portuguese songs with tambourines to make the Salvos proud, and traditional flag swirling.

Caught our breath ready for what was promised as a 3 hour, 10,000 step, sunset walking tour of the highlights of Lisbon.

 

[Seat0B]

Saturday 7 December 2024 - Evening in Lisbon

met up with Ricardo and we have a small walking group of only 4 people, so that will be great! Ricardo shared so many interesting insights and facts and figures, that it is hard to know what to record here. So here are a few things that stuck with me:

• Lisbon had a Moorish history for more than 400 years 711-1147, when it was re-claimed as Christian in the second Crusade.
• This is the reason for all the tiled homes and shops, and the patterns on the tiles, which were originally Islamic and in brown colours. These have morphed into the multi-coloured tiles used today, and particularly into the beloved and famous blue and white tiles. Here is a selection of what we saw:

• In the 1400-1600s. Portugal was a great maritime trading nation, and people were very wealthy. This wealth was displayed by all the tiles used on the houses, and the huge amounts of gold used inside the churches. Much of the gold was sourced from Brazil, which was at that time a colony of Portugal.
• On 1 November 1755, Lisbon suffered a significant earthquake, accompanied by a tsunami and followed by an enormous fire that consumed the wooden buildings of the city. The fire is said to have started from all the candles that were lit of All Saints Day (1 Nov), and the fire burned for a week. Most of the city was destroyed, and its reconstruction was funded by resources plundered from Brazil.
• Portugal was neutral in WWII but was a hot bed of spy activity.
• Portugal was ruled by the dictator Salazar from the 1920s until 25 April 1974, when he was toppled by a military coup, and Portugal became a democracy. This was known as the Carnation Revolution because a woman gave soldiers carnations to put on their weapons as a symbol of the desire to settle the coup peacefully.

So we walked up hills, and up stairs and back down again for almost 4 hours as dusk fell and the night lights began to twinkle, visiting many beautiful mirodouro (viewpoints) to see the lie of the land and the spread of the city. It was a fabulous walk that took in huge swathes of the city and gave us an excellent grounding of history and an orientation for exploration tomorrow. it was a "free" walking tour, but we were very happy to part with EUR50 for the tour.


Scenes of Lisbon as the night progressively fell


Street art by O Gringo, referencing the classic blue and white tiles


Street art with found items by Bordalo II


One of the many street funiculars in Lisbon


Footsore, we retreated (yes on foot) to our hotel, where we found a small but very rich chocolate cake and a bottle of bubbles on ice to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary (that was actually in November, butI told them we were celebrating, which we were ).

So that's what we had for dinner as we honestly could not face going out again. We will sleep well tonight.



Today's steps: 22,588
Flights of stairs climbed: 35
Temperature - forgot to record it - mild but windy so I was glad to wear my puffer jacket.

Accommodation for 2 nights with breakfast EUR 571 (a bit of a splurge), parking EUR 64

 

[VPS]

Saturday 7 December 2024 - Evening in Lisbon

met up with Ricardo and we have a small walking group of only 4 people, so that will be great! Ricardo shared so many interesting insights and facts and figures, that it is hard to know what to record here. So here are a few things that stuck with me:

• Lisbon had a Moorish history for more than 400 years 711-1147, when it was re-claimed as Christian in the second Crusade.
• This is the reason for all the tiled homes and shops, and the patterns on the tiles, which were originally Islamic and in brown colours. These have morphed into the multi-coloured tiles used today, and particularly into the beloved and famous blue and white tiles. Here is a selection of what we saw:

View attachment 443335View attachment 443337View attachment 443338View attachment 443340View attachment 443341View attachment 443342
View attachment 443339

• In the 1400-1600s. Portugal was a great maritime trading nation, and people were very wealthy. This wealth was displayed by all the tiles used on the houses, and the huge amounts of gold used inside the churches. Much of the gold was sourced from Brazil, which was at that time a colony of Portugal.
• On 1 November 1755, Lisbon suffered a significant earthquake, accompanied by a tsunami and followed by an enormous fire that consumed the wooden buildings of the city. The fire is said to have started from all the candles that were lit of All Saints Day (1 Nov), and the fire burned for a week. Most of the city was destroyed, and its reconstruction was funded by resources plundered from Brazil.
• Portugal was neutral in WWII but was a hot bed of spy activity.
• Portugal was ruled by the dictator Salazar from the 1920s until 25 April 1974, when he was toppled by a military coup, and Portugal became a democracy. This was known as the Carnation Revolution because a woman gave soldiers carnations to put on their weapons as a symbol of the desire to settle the coup peacefully.

So we walked up hills, and up stairs and back down again for almost 4 hours as dusk fell and the night lights began to twinkle, visiting many beautiful mirodouro (viewpoints) to see the lie of the land and the spread of the city. It was a fabulous walk that took in huge swathes of the city and gave us an excellent grounding of history and an orientation for exploration tomorrow. it was a "free" walking tour, but we were very happy to part with EUR50 for the tour.

View attachment 443344View attachment 443345View attachment 443347View attachment 443351View attachment 443348View attachment 443346
Scenes of Lisbon as the night progressively fell

View attachment 443349
Street art by O Gringo, referencing the classic blue and white tiles

View attachment 443352
Street art with found items by Bordalo II

View attachment 443350
One of the many street funiculars in Lisbon


Footsore, we retreated (yes on foot) to our hotel, where we found a small but very rich chocolate cake and a bottle of bubbles on ice to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary (that was actually in November, butI told them we were celebrating, which we were ).

So that's what we had for dinner as we honestly could not face going out again. We will sleep well tonight.

View attachment 443354

Today's steps: 22,588
Flights of stairs climbed: 35
Temperature - forgot to record it - mild but windy so I was glad to wear my puffer jacket.

Accommodation for 2 nights with breakfast EUR 571 (a bit of a splurge), parking EUR 64

I love the blue and white tiles - I want to go back to Lisbon and buy a heap and get them shipped home but the mind overruled the heart sadly

 

[Seat0B]

Sorry for out of order posting, but I found the photos of the Elvas market



And the pervasive smell of bacalão - a signature scent of every Portuguese market and supermarket that we visited!

Plus here is a photo of the model of the Forte de Nossa Senhora da Graça, showing its distinctive pentagonal star shape.



Edited to add the photo above - accidentally left it out.

 

[Seat0B]

Back to Lisbon, where the street art scene is really vibrant. Here are a couple more pics from our walk.

 

[Seat0B]

And also just to note how hilly it is in Lisbon - if you go there, be prepared to walk up and down stairs all day and night. Here are a few we traversed:



Plus I also found some photos of the flag dancing students that I mentioned up thread. The black suit like clothing they wear is the uniform of a university student.



Ok, I think I have caught up with the missing photos.

 

[Seat0B]

Sunday 8 December 2024 - Lisbon - We Walk Some More!

Enjoyed a lavish hotel breakfast today in a very crowded dining room. One of the waiters was especially kind and helpful with my coughpy attempts at Portuguese, and was surprised to hear that we came from Australia "oh so far away!"

We re-traced our steps from yesterday to visit the church of São Roque that we were unable to enter last night because of a mass taking place. Our guide had said it was plain on the outside (which it was) but exceptionally lavish on the inside (which it was)! The church was originally largely a pauper's church, and its main role was to provide a proper burial and church rites for the indigent during times of plague. It was subsequently taken over by the Jesuits, and over time, the various kings added chapels of great splendour and intricacy, using gold sent from Brazil, marble and incredibly intricate and detailed mosaics. It also houses a number of relics of saints. We learnt all this from another free tour - this time of the church, offered by the Jesuit society volunteer - a young woman from Egypt who came to Portugal for work and volunteers for the church. She wasn't even catholic herself - but followed Orthodox religion. I learnt a lot from her earnest and enthusiastic tour. Look at all that gold!



After that, we caught the fabled no 15E tram to Belem. What a bucket of bolts!! It was the roughest tram I have ever been on, including the Societ era rollingstock we rode on in Bratislava in 2022! We rolled past the famous pastry shop selling Pasties de Belem - supposedly the original Pastel de Nata shop - which had an incredibly long line of people waiting to buy. Also passed the famous Geronimo monastery and the freedom statue. it was all absolutely rammed with tourists and we decided to give the up close and personal experience a miss and just view it from the tram. So instead of getting off, we rode to teh terminus about 10 minutes further, got off, and a few minutes later caught a much newer, better tram back the way we came.

Next up was a wander through the Alfama area, where I succumbed to tourist pressure and bought a couple of blue tiled cork backed mats for Seat Son and Almost DIL's kitchen. She has Portuguese heritage (grandparents), so I thought she might like them.

We also re-visited the famous Ginjinha shop we saw last night on our walk. It had a really long line, out the door and round the corner, so we skipped it.



But when we went back today, it was very quiet, so we treated ourselves to a couple of shots of warm Ginjinha drunk standing in the square like locals, and a couple of Pastel da Nata from the neighbouring shop, which also claimed to be the best pastel in Lisbon! Think there are a few competitors for that crown!



A few more tourist shots with the funicular (which we never managed to ride)




And then an early dinner, which was actually served as late lunch at 1645!! Can't remember the name, just some little place that had a cheap and delicious local menu.



Finished off with a trip to Aldi to buy seasonally available chocolate cups for drinking warm Ginjinha, at the special request of Almost DIL. We got a good haul of these for EUR 4 for a packet of 12 cups, and will contribute this to Christmas lunch (along with a bottle of the Ginjinha) in Dubai.

Another big day, and another early night. My stamina is improving but is honestly just not the same as it was pre-chemo. I hope it eventually comes back to how it used to be.

Steps: 18,603
Flights of stairs climbed: 27
Temp: 19 degrees.

 

[Seat0B]

Monday 9 December 2024 - Lisbon-Nazare-Obidos

A bit of light packing and then down to breakfast, where the dining room was much quieter than yesterday. Our waiter from yesterday beamed when she saw us and applauded my attempt to give the room number in Portuguese oito zero seito (remembering that all the "o" sounds on the end are pronounced "oo"). Gave us a great table by the window and kept checking in on us.

Finished packing and this time knew to accept the offer of having the valet to retrieve the car for us! Loaded up and off we went to Nazare. The city traffic was a bit to contend with, but Mr Seat 0A was equal to the task and soon we were once again on the A8, heading north. The tolls were much more reasonable today - only 2, for a total of EUR 7.50. The scenery was very pretty and the country side very green

It was quite the challenge to find a parking spot once we arrived in Nazare, but we did eventually find one. We both remarked how crazy it must be here in the summer. I don;t really know where all the people from the cars went, because the town itself was a bit sad - very quiet, a number of shops shuttered for the season, and those that were open spruiking for business and trying to hustle the few passers-by inside the shops. I succumbed to pressure and bought some tea towels and aprons in classic Portuguese designs at extremely reasonably prices - much cheaper than in Lisbon, where I had looked at similar items. These will make great gifts.

Took a leisurely walk down towards the main beach and the view was totally spectacular.


Continued on towards the famous big wave site Praia do Norte, the Forte de São Miguel at the base of the cliff and the Instafamous Lighthouse. It's hard to get a sense of how big the waves are, but if you look really hard in the distance of the photo you can see a few tiny specs - surfers walking on the sand. Still, it was not big wave season when we visited, and honestly, these waves were not spectacular. Spent a while watching kit surfers enjoying the very windy conditions.





The old fort houses a little historical museum and a small but interesting museum dedicated to the big wave riders and to explaining the big wave phenomenon. it was quite interesting.

Took the obligatory selfie at the little lighthouse on the point.



It was exceptionally windy on the way down and I was really glad to have my puffer jacket on.



Some of the weathering on the pathway was beautiful



At the top of the hill we treated ourselves to a Big Wave Burger EUR 9.50 ea, which were very tasty but messy to eat.



Then we headed to our next overnight stop of Obidos, about 1 hr south of Nazare. This time, we took the back roads, which were pretty rural, and took us through several very small villages. The roads were like goat tracks, all twists and turns and although it was longer than taking the A8 back, it was much more interesting.

Our hotel for the next 2 nights is Hotel Vila D'Obidos, just on the outskirts of Obidos which is a fully walled town with no cars allowed. Tomorrow we will go to Sintra, and then on Wednesday we will visit the town walls and aqueduct of Obidos.

Our room is quite old fashioned with a lot of very dark furniture, and just one pillow per person. It feels very "off season". I forgot to take a photo.

 

[RooFlyer]

At the top of the hill we treated ourselves to a Big Wave Burger EUR 9.50 ea, which were very tasty but messy to eat.

... and a case of Corona

( )

Sardines grilled over the coals at Peniche?

 

[Seat0B]

... and a case of Corona

( )

Sardines grilled over the coals at Peniche?

Oh I forgot the beers - I don’t drink it but Mr Seat 0A did!

 

[VPS]

Sorry for out of order posting, but I found the photos of the Elvas market

View attachment 443548View attachment 443549View attachment 443551
View attachment 443550
And the pervasive smell of bacalão - a signature scent of every Portuguese market and supermarket that we visited!

Plus here is a photo of the model of the Forte de Nossa Senhora da Graça, showing its distinctive pentagonal star shape.

Market looks fantastic - I used to love bacalão but now I am allergic to it which is very annoying.

 

[Seat0B]

Market looks fantastic - I used to love bacalão but now I am allergic to it which is very annoying.

I don’t mind it in the croquetta. And I don’t even really mind the smell - just very pervasive and distinctive.

 

[Flyfrequently]

I love the blue and white tiles - I want to go back to Lisbon and buy a heap and get them shipped home but the mind overruled the heart sadly

I just bought some tea towels and a fridge magnet to remind me of the beautiful tiles @VPS

 

[Seat0B]

Tuesday 10 Dec 2024 - Day Trip to Sintra

About an hour by car from Obidos to Sintra, a little longer in real life to accommodate the inevitable "missed it by that much" misunderstandings with the freeway entry/exits. It is a particular feature of these freeways that you cannot easily retrace your route so miss your exit at your peril. Paid EUR 7.45 in tolls.

We parked at the Portal de Sintra train station, where we only paid EUR 1.50 for a full day parking. Walked for a few minutes (less than 10 mins) up to Sintra Train station to catch the hop on/hop off Route 434 bus for EUR12 ea, where we joined a very long line to board and were the last 2 allowed on before the doors closed. The next bus was a 20 min wait, so we were happy we made it, even though we had to stand as the bus traversed some steep and winding roads. The other big advantage was we were right at the front of the bus and enjoyed the unimpeded views through the big front windscreen as the bus wound its way up the hilly streets of Sintra. We passed the Peña Palace, but pressed on to the Moorish Castle (Castelo dos Mouros), which we had decided to prioritise for this visit. Wow, wow and more wow.

This site consists of largely well restored castle walls and sentry towers, and it was fabulous. The views were spectacular, and considering the number of tourists on the buses, it was relatively uncrowded as we tramped up and down the undulating narrow walls, many flights of steep stairs very narrow passageways.




They must have been short back then as I am only 165 cm and had to duck under the doorway

I know I already said it was spectacular, but there are just insufficient words to describe the extent of the views or the beauty of the buildings.





The castle was constructed during the Islamic occupation of Sintra from the 700s to 1147, when Sintra was handed over to King Alfonso I of Portugal. Sintra then bacame an important site for the Christian Knights Templar. After several centuries of peace, by the 1500s, the city had expanded beyond the castle walls. Over time, the castle gradually fell into disrepair. King Ferdinand II began to restore it in the 1800s.

We ended up spending most of the day here, it was so .....spectacular! We climbed to the highest point - it was quite a climb, but worth it for the view as we ate a pincnic lunch.


After wearing ourselves out, we were pleased to hop back on the 434 and decided to just complete the loop back to Sintra and retrieve our car and head back to Obidos.

On the way we visited a Pingo Doce supermarket for a very local shopping experience. The place absolutely reeked, and I do mean reeked, of Bacalão,which was prominently placed at the first aisle near the entryway. We sotcked up on a few things for snack dinner as we decided not to undertake the trek into the (vehicle-free) old town for dinner. Snack dinner in Portugal is exceptionally delicious and we put together the knid of charcuterie platter that would normall cost $48 here for a fraction of that price. We also stocked up on the Mariquinhas de Obidos Ginja that was for sale at our hotel at EUR 20 per bottle for EUR 10 per bottle. A few of these be added to the chocolate cups we already bought in Lisbon for our contribution to Christmas in Dubai. I love all things cherry - cherry jam, cherry pie, and not surprisingly, I also love Ginja!



Internet image


Today's step 18,902
Stairs climbed: 29 flights
Temp: did not record, but it was warm. I was hot most of the day in just jeans and a long sleeved T Shirt.

Accommodation costs for 2 nights EUR 327 including parking and breakfast

 

[Seat0B]

Wednesday 12 December 2024 - Obidos-Seville We Take a Road Trip

Today we will drive to Seville, about 4.5 hrs to the east.

We stopped in to visit the old town of Obidos, which would have been great with an old aqueduct (had we not been totally spoilt by Elvas) and a nice castle and city walls (had we not been spoilt by Sintra) .


That's not an aqueduct!!!

Still, a cute town for a stroll, especially as it was decorated for Christmas.


Yes, I did succumb to a couple more fancy bottles of Ginja!

Gold filigree jewellery in the local style was also a popular item for sale, and it is beautiful - light and delicate.



I am happy to say a pair of beautiful earrings embedded themselves in my ears and refused to leave until they were purchased by Mr Seat 0A as a wedding anniversary gift. I haven't worn them much, as it turned out that the little clasps on the back of the post are extremely close-fitting and are all but impossible for me to remove without serious pain to my ears. I keep meaning to take them to a jeweller here for adjustment, but haven't quite made it yet. I honestly don't know what I am doing with my time these days!



Next we strolled around and enjoyed the bookshop in the main cathedral - it could easily have been in one of those bibliophile posts on Facebook (that tells you a bit about my Facebook Feed - it's all fantastic book shops/libraries and advertisements for learning Japanese!)



Wandered around the old town and noted the old, old, lemon (or maybe orange?) trees in all the house gardens, appreciated the pretty outdoor dining areas that must be lovely in the warmer months, and finally admired the tiled chapel in the city wall.



Then on the road to Seville for a complex route planned to minimise tolls and maximise coffee stops:

A8N - A15E-AC25_EN366-A1S-A10E-A13S-A6E-A5-N630S-A66 for which we paid EUR 23.90 in tolls.

Boy were we glad to arrive in Seville.

Stayed at the Ibis Styles, which was great. A big room with a very comfy bed, which made me realise in retrospect how uncomfortable our bed in Obidos was. A nice rooftop pool and bar area where we enjoyed our Accor welcome drinks.




1 night including breakfast and parking EUR52.80 and some Accor reward points.

Today's Steps: 5,996

Goodbye Portugal. I really enjoyed the time in Portugal. It has never really been on my radar as a destination until Almost DIL came into the family. I now think I will be back a few more times as there are still plenty of amazing places to visit, and I would happily go back to Elvas, Lisbon and Sintra again.

 

[MARTINE]

Wednesday 12 December 2024 - Obidos-Seville We Take a Road Trip

Today we will drive to Seville, about 4.5 hrs to the east.

We stopped in to visit the old town of Obidos, which would have been great with an old aqueduct (had we not been totally spoilt by Elvas) and a nice castle and city walls (had we not been spoilt by Sintra) .

View attachment 443732
That's not an aqueduct!!!

Still, a cute town for a stroll, especially as it was decorated for Christmas.

View attachment 443729View attachment 443731
Yes, I did succumb to a couple more fancy bottles of Ginja!

Gold filigree jewellery in the local style was also a popular item for sale, and it is beautiful - light and delicate.

View attachment 443730

I am happy to say a pair of beautiful earrings embedded themselves in my ears and refused to leave until they were purchased by Mr Seat 0A as a wedding anniversary gift. I haven't worn them much, as it turned out that the little clasps on the back of the post are extremely close-fitting and are all but impossible for me to remove without serious pain to my ears. I keep meaning to take them to a jeweller here for adjustment, but haven't quite made it yet. I honestly don't know what I am doing with my time these days!

View attachment 443743

Next we strolled around and enjoyed the bookshop in the main cathedral - it could easily have been in one of those bibliophile posts on Facebook (that tells you a bit about my Facebook Feed - it's all fantastic book shops/libraries and advertisements for learning Japanese!)

View attachment 443728View attachment 443735

Wandered around the old town and noted the old, old, lemon (or maybe orange?) trees in all the house gardens, appreciated the pretty outdoor dining areas that must be lovely in the warmer months, and finally admired the tiled chapel in the city wall.

View attachment 443733View attachment 443734View attachment 443736

Then on the road to Seville for a complex route planned to minimise tolls and maximise coffee stops:

A8N - A15E-AC25_EN366-A1S-A10E-A13S-A6E-A5-N630S-A66 for which we paid EUR 23.90 in tolls.

Boy were we glad to arrive in Seville.

Stayed at the Ibis Styles, which was great. A big room with a very comfy bed, which made me realise in retrospect how uncomfortable our bed in Obidos was. A nice rooftop pool and bar area where we enjoyed our Accor welcome drinks.


View attachment 443745View attachment 443747View attachment 443746

1 night including breakfast and parking EUR52.80 and some Accor reward points.

Today's Steps: 5,996

Goodbye Portugal. I really enjoyed the time in Portugal. It has never really been on my radar as a destination until Almost DIL came into the family. I now think I will be back a few more times as there are still plenty of amazing places to visit, and I would happily go back to Elvas, Lisbon and Sintra again.

In the car on way to Obidos for morning tea and meander before heading to Porto. You are so right that its a great country. This is our 2nd trip in 9 months and lovely people, food, sights and ease of travel. We have also felt very safe.
Its not overtouristed… yet (but as I am a tourist I have no right to make judgements!)