I’ve mentioned here before that Portugal is a relatively small country. You can drive from the southern part of the country to the Spanish border in the north in about 7 hours and the border with Spain directly west of Lisbon is only about 3 hours away via car. From Lisbon you can drive to most parts of the country in under 5 hours, except perhaps the far northeastern region. When we moved here, one of our goals was to explore every region of the country in short order. Well, that didn’t happen! Travel to back to the USA, visits to France and Spain, sailing, planning Camino’s, doing some work on the side, eating, sleeping, spending time with friends here and with those who visit kinda put a kink in those plans. However, a short trip to the coastal area south of Lisbon put us a little closer to reaching our goal. This time we were able to take Abi, our dog, with us as we found quite a few hotels/B&B’s that welcomed pets!
We left Lisbon on Monday morning for Sao Teotonio, about a 2 1/2 hour leisurely drive. The little town is located about 4 miles from the Atlantic ocean, about half-way between Sines and Aljezur. The rural hotel that was our home for two days and nights was a few miles away from Sao Teotonio and sat in the middle of a large winery operation named Vincentino. The area is also known as the Vincentine coast due to a legend that dates back to the times of Afonso Henriques, the first King of Portugal, when a flock of crows led an expedition to recover the relics of Saint Vincent that were known to be buried somewhere on the Sagres coast, bringing them along the coast until Lisbon. I haven’t tasted the wines from Vincentino yet, but they’re on my list. I hope there are nor relics in the wine!
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From our rural hotel base, we explored the coastline which features beautiful beaches surrounded by dramatic landscapes. You can see from the pictures how visually impressive the beaches are in this region. On day two we drove down to Aljezur, which looks like a village you’d see in Morocco. The Moorish influence in this region, as well as the Algarve and several other parts of Portugal, is impossible to ignore. The short drive up to the castle, built in the 11th century, is well worth it for the views. Most of what you see in the castle ruins are remnants of the wall, a cistern, and a restored tower. One of the signs explained that underneath the keep of the castle large rooms had been carved out of the rock for food storage.
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On our second night we had dinner at Naperon, tucked away on a steep hill in the village of Odeceixe. Last year it received a Michelin star. Although the food was great, the location and ambience was the real star. The dining room sits right above a pool and, as you can see in the picture, is just beautiful.
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On day three we drove back up toward Sines, visiting several beaches along the way. Our destination was Montexisto Rural Hotel, which is in the middle of nowhere. Google maps took us down what I swear had to be a donkey cart. After a mile or so, we turned around and were able to find another route. The hotel, which I highly recommend, sits on a beautiful piece of property and has an amazing pool. The manager recommended a seafood restaurant, Luis, which is situated right across the street from the ocean. We enjoyed shrimp cooked in olive oil and garlic and some tasty fish while we watched the sunset.
The wine we ordered with dinner is produced just down the road from Montexisto. I’d tasted some of their wines at the winetasting hosted by the garrafeiro near our apartment. I wanted to visit but you have to schedule visits and tastings in advance, which gives us another reason to back!
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David and I agreed that we’ll be going back to this part of Portugal again. The beaches and coastal scenery is breathtaking. Inland are hundreds of farms and vineyards. We passed dozens of huge blueberry farms, and saw fields of lettuce, squash, and beans. I feel a winetasting and food tour coming on!
Hey always enjoy my history lesson! Ha beautiful scenery and I am sure you will be trying to fix some of these dishes you posted! So happy Abi could go with you! Loved all the pictures and you always make it so you can almost feel your there! Hioe you had a wonderful Bday! Take care
Mavis