The latest update from the road: the Algarve. I just came back to Lisbon from a long weekend in the south of Portugal. After three days in this coastal province at the country’s southern tip, I came away wishing my visit happened thirty years ago, before the development and the tourist crowds. These days, such beautiful landscapes yet so little to discover!
Yes, there were moments when I was wowed by the beauty of it: St Vincent Cape with its lighthouse and endless cliffs dropping away into the Atlantic at this southwesternmost edge of Europe; the gorgeous Praia da Galé and its fishermen (see picture above); the lovely village of Santa Luzia on the east coast… And there was the delicious cataplana, long-simmered Portuguese stew with pork and clams; the orange vendors on the side of the road; a great octopus lunch overlooking the old fishing boats with paint peeling off steadily and adding to their beauty…
Yet the high-rises, the tasteless apartment blocks, the flashy restaurants and shopping malls made me long for seeing this landscape before the package vacationers came a-calling, when it was still a virgin land of orange groves, almond trees, whitewashing villages swept by strong Atlantic winds… Innocence lost…
HMMM! Innocence lost… Interesting. A bit nostalgic too. Such is life, though.
It’s normal you think that way, with 3 days it’s not easy to discover the true Algarve, but it still exists, not the same as 30 years ago but we still have wonderful picturesque places, you just need more than 3 days… 😉
cheers from sunny Algarve, Faro.
Luis Rosa
You’re right, Luis, three days is not enough time to get underneath the surface in any place. That’s why I always love traveling with locals and having them show me the secret spots. Maybe you’d be kind enough to share some tips next time I head down to the Algarve. 🙂