Unexpected Portugal Part I

Portugal isn’t a place that has necessarily been high on our priority list of places to travel. I’m still not sure what turned us on to planning this trip but if you or someone you know are thinking about a trip to that part of world, I can't encourage it enough! Every city exceeded any and all the expectations that we didn’t have and served loads of old world charm.

We flew into Lisbon (probably the most beautiful city to fly into), grabbed a baguette and Pastel de nata (because YUM) to kick off our visit, and then got on the train to head to Porto. The train ride was so comfortable and easy, it made us wish we were going to continue our trip by train....next time. 

PORTO

Our arrival into Bento Station gave us an unexpected welcome. The station walls are lined with azulejos (Portuguese/Spanish tile art that are used to create large depictions of historical events). It was as if the city was saying “Welcome to Portugal!”

Azulejos showing historical events in Portuguese history

Our itinerary for Porto consisted of...well, we didn’t really have one. For us, it felt like one of those places where you can let the streets take you around the city and stopping whenever we saw something that looked delicious or culturally interesting. Strolling the tiny pedestrian lanes, there was no shortage of souvenir shops filled with locally made products, restaurants, Port tasting rooms, churches, parks, or bakeries. 

Apartments along the riverside

 

Our second of 2 days in Porto, we walked to the south side of the river to explore the Vila Nova de Gaia neighborhood. Public transport was an option, but we thought that it would be more scenic and give more photo opportunities is we went by food.

View of Porto after walking across the bridge

This view <3

A rare photo of the both of us that isn't a selfie. If a couple asks for us to take their photo, I'll ask for one too

This neighborhood is where most of the wineries are that make local Port. So naturally, we had to check it out, do as the locals do (probably mostly tourists) and try some! We visited the following 2 for a quick taste into the world of port:

Calem Winery

Just a wee tasting

Vasques De Carvalho
Aside from a couple from Seattle (in the background behind our wine glasses), we had it pretty much to ourselves. Amazing hospitality!

NAZARÉ

Traditional fishing boats on display

Nazaré is a small fishing town on the coast of Portugal that still holds many traditions and seems to be supported mostly by the tourism/restaurant industry. The women still walk around in their traditional petticoat skirts and hang out their fish to dry on wood racks that line the beach promenade. The town itself doesn’t offer many sights nor museums, but you don’t come here for that. You come here for fresh seafood, waves (whether spectating the surfers from the beach or getting in on the action), or to, as Rick Steves would say, "see how low you can get your heart rate." 

Pretty sure that man on the left with the leather skin wants to be in all the tourists' pictures

 

SITÍO (hill top town over looking Nazaré; in the background of the picture above) 

View of Sitío from the beach in Nazaré

We spent our second day up on the hill that dominates the town to the north. A handy, steep, and quick funicular takes you to the top of the hill that places you into a town that offers commanding views of Nazaré below and a no shortage of souvenir shopping opportunities. 

This is the beach where the surfers come to surf the waves

At the tip of the hill sits a lighthouse that overlooks the beaches below. This beach to the north is where surfers from all over the world come to surf some of the biggest waves in the world. The combination of the sea floor topography and the wind patterns here are the perfect recipe for monstrous waves that only the bravest souls dare to conquer. YouTube “Nazare waves” for a look at what I’m referring to. It wasn’t the season for these waves so unfortunately no photos from me. 

Squids! Yummm-o

View of Nazaré from the lighthouse in Sitío 

  

SAGRES - The Algarve Coast

The best equivalent destination that I can compare this area of Portugal to, is probably Hawaii. We drove around intentionally aimless from view point to beach to view point. It seems as though all the people we encountered in had spent the entire day at the beach; sun kissed faces and sea salt filled hair. 

The Algarve coast has 3 main towns: Sagres, Lagos and Salema. Our accommodations were in Sagres and what what was initially a little underwhelming ended up being the oasis we were looking for. We did venture into Lagos and it was...a little overwhelmIng. There were, what felt like, 500% more people, restaurants and in-your-face souvenir shops. There was still lots of charm and beautiful architecture to enjoy once you walked a street or two off the main pathways. With the 3 towns so close together, we stopped in Salema for an evening picnic dinner to enjoy the sunset by the beach. Should we return to Portugal, we'll be staying in Salema.

Church in a fort just down the road from Sagres 

Garden oasis at the laundry mat

Beautiful pottery stores along the coast

After a few days in a slice of paradise, we made our way back up north for our last stop, Lisbon. I had too much to share about that beautiful city, so I made our Portugal post 2 parts.

A Polish Gem: Poznań

Our time here in Europe is undetermined, so we feel that the time we do have here has to be taken advantage of. One of the great things about being in a country that's centrally located is that the land travel (by bus or train) options are plentiful.

In early September, we took a semi-impromptu trip to a little Polish gem-of-a-town, Poznań. I initially heard about this town from a class mate in one of my german language classes that is from there. We wanted to take the train somewhere that was within a few hours of Berlin, and the prices and journey time were right for Poznań. 

{ T H I N G S    W E    A T E }

On Friday afternoon, we boarded the train and arrived in town just in time for dinner. (I'm sorry to say that I didn't take any pictures of our food. I need to get better about that if I'm going to talk about things that we ate). 

Wiejskie Jadło
The inside of this restaurant is so inviting with wood beams everywhere and wooden tables decorated with, what looks like, homemade placemats. However, the evening was so pleasant that we sat outside on the cobble stone patio. 

We have been to Poland a few times and I think we forget how budget friendly it is. Our meal  here consisted of:

• a basket of bread
• a large portion of herring
• a beer and vodka (we thought it was going to be a glass of beer with a side of vodka...the vodka was inside the beer. Surprisingly delicious)
• a large variety plate of an assortment of polish dumplings
• a local digestif

...all for a grand total of €22 = ~$24
We tried to go back the next night, but were turned away because we didn't make reservations :-(

The morning/early afternoon of our one full day in town, it rained. We tried to stick it out and explore sans an umbrella, but that didn't last long. As the food is cheap and there aren't too many (if any at all) museums to seek shelter in, we ventured into a cafe for an early lunch.

Weranda Caffe
We found this cafe on a whim (with some help of Google Maps reviews). From the moment we walked in, we felt like we were in a secret garden. There were hundred of paper leaf strands hanging from the ceiling that created a real special ambience.

The view from our seat

Cozy little booths

 The salads that we ordered were huge, delicious (so was the tea), and also a great deal!

Food will never be bad when brie and pears are involved

St. Martin's Croissant
As we were looking for things to do/eat/see in Poznań, one of the things that came up was the St. Martin's Croissant. Apparently this pastry's recipe is protected by the EU law. In order to see them, a very specific recipe must be followed, the croissant must weigh a specific amount (between 150-200g), and you must have a special license to sell them. I'm ashamed to say it...but we only ate one. We didn't even take one for the road. It was delicious and if I remember correctly, it was less than $2.

81, yes, 81 layers of pastry perfection

{ T H I N G S    W E    S A W }

Poznan Fara
In all of our travels, we've walked through many churches and cathedrals. We especially
appreciated the inside of this one and all of the ornate embellishments and paintings on the ceiling and walls. I thought the outside of it was quite inviting and charming as well. 

The Old Town Square/Market

This town square had a similar feeling to that of the one in Kraków. Poznań is a college town, so there were plenty of people out in the evening enjoying the restaurant and bar culture, but we found it a little more enjoyable sans the stag/hen parties that flock to Kraków for the cheap alcohol. There were next to zero tourist shops to be seen which made it feel slightly more "local". Maybe they were all closed, or they just don't exist...either way, it was a very pleasant town to explore for a day.