Vineyards, Viaducts & Visions! My Latest Adventure!

Never one for the grass to grow beneath my feet, I’m off on another mini adventure this weekend!  Not a cruise unfortunately – nothing planned at the moment, no this is a 3 night jaunt over to Portugal to celebrate the Hubs birthday.     I’ve never visited this country before, and as I now only live across the border on the Costa Del Sol, we thought it was about time we found out more about our ‘neighbours’.

We’re driving along the coast road, then taking a left up through the mountains to Ronda – a fantastically beautiful old town perched high in the mountains with an ancient viaduct.  I’ve been there many times before and fall in love with the place every time.

Then onward to Seville, before heading across the border.  (The last time we did the journey to Seville, it was the height of summer and the Sunflowers were out in bloom, with their heads held high to catch every bit of the sunshine in the morning on our way to Seville, and then on the return, their heads bowed resting in the coolness of the evening.  Magical!)

Lisbon, its Capital,  is well known for being a popular cruise port of call, and you are able to explore Lisbon on a Hop On Hop Off Bus for convenience,  explore its world renowned Wine Country Tours, or if you are interested in the legend surrounding Fatima and her 3 secrets given to her by the Apparition of The Virgin Mary (allegedly) there are excursions available.

We’re only doing a flying visit of 3 nights, and sticking to the coast.  Basing ourselves in Faro. It has a charming walled town, very pretty marina, and is close to some beautiful beaches and the Formosa National Park.  Something for everyone!  We plan on  driving along the coast,  sampling the local Portuguese Wine in the local vineyards as we go.  🙂   Friends of ours are regular visitors to the Portuguese coastal resorts and rave about how beautiful they are.

We’ll be practising a few words of Portuguese, which although similar to the Spanish language,  differ slightly.  All part of the adventure!

• Hello: Olá (oh-la)  easy enough!
• Hi or Hey: Oi (oy) — informal oh dear! sounds a bit rude!
• Goodbye: Adeus (ah-deuzh)   similar to Spanish Adios, so thats ok.
• Bye: Tchau (cha-oh) — informal more Italian but I can go with that
• Good morning: Bom dia  used mostly before noon or before the noon meal.  *note to self – check watch before opening mouth!*
• Good afternoon: Boa tarde  used after noon or after the midday meal until twilight.
• Good evening or good night: Boa noite used from twilight until the morning.

So there you have it!  I’ll practically be a native by the time I return!

Adeus!  Gina x