Best Holidays with Trafalgar Tours

Travelling Around Portugal with Trafalgar

As we crossed over from Spain into Portugal the landscape began to change, because travelling along the coast brought different colours and aromas. The smell of the sea was as I imagined from reading about my forefathers who originated from this land. Yes, indeed, the very first small town we passed on entry into Portugal bore our surname - Conceicao.

The first stop on home soil required that I kiss the ground, so as I knelt and moved towards the ground, I inhaled the salty air and tasted the Flor de Sal of Necton.

 

Flower of Salt has always been consumed in Portugal by the salt workers in their homes. They would give it the name of “curd” for it would float to the surface of the water just like the cream in milk. The Flower of Salt is made up of light crystals in the form of pallets of extreme whiteness that form on the surface of the small parts of the salt evaporation pond forming a thin layer of salt that covers them.  This layer is collected every day manually with a squeegee by the salt workers. The great advantage of the Flower of Salt is the better and different taste it gives to the food. 

http://www.necton.pt/flor-de-sal_en

 Late in the afternoon we arrived at our hotel in Albufeira, and given our very spacious rooms that overlooked the city. It is hardly surprising that this charming fishing town of white washed houses, overlooking a sheltered beach, has become the tourist capital of the Algarve.

 

It seemed to me the centre of youth, energy and vibrancy. All types of restaurants, bars, clubs, shops were available. Needless to say we spent quite a tidy sum picking up table runners, bottle stoppers, napkins, and my favourite a Portugal Track Suit top from Forca Portugal.

Cape St Vincent - This cape is the southwestern most point in Portugal. It forms the southwestern end of the E9 European Coastal Path, which runs for 5,000 km (3,100 mi) to Narva-Jõesuu in Estonia.

 

The view from atop these cliffs were breadth taking as the windswept land whistled its song inviting everyone to reflect on the greatness of Mother Nature. I could not help but wonder that perhaps it was from these very cliffs that many a man may have envisioned the possibilities of adventure to faraway lands.

 Approximately six kilometers from the village of Sagres, the cape is a landmark for a ship traveling to or from the Mediterranean. The cliffs rise nearly vertically from the Atlantic to a height of 75 meters. The cape is a site of exuberant marine life and a high concentration of birds nesting on the cliffs, such as the rare Bonelli's eagles, peregrine falcons, kites, rock thrushes, rock pigeons, storks and herons.

Lanette braved the winds to set her windbreaker aside for this view that was to die for. At this point, we had experienced both the southwestern end of Portugal and the Southern tip of Spain with Trafalgar.

 

According to legend, the name of this cape is linked to the story of a martyred fourth-century Iberian deacon St. Vincent whose body was brought ashore here. A shrine was erected over his grave; according to the Arab geographer Al-Idrisi, it was always guarded by ravens and is therefore named by him كنيسة الغراب (Kanīsah al-Ghurāb, meaning "Church of the Raven"). King Afonso Henriques (1139–1185) had the body of the saint exhumed in 1173 and brought it by ship to Lisbon, still accompanied by the ravens. This transfer of the relics is depicted on the coat of arms of Lisbon.

The present lighthouse is 24 metres (79 ft) meters high and was built over the ruins of a 16th century Franciscan convent in 1846. The statues of St. Vincent and St. Francis Xavier had been moved to church of Nossa Senhora da Graça on Point Sagres 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) away.

This lighthouse, guarding one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, is among the most powerful in Europe (the most powerful being Phare du Creach on the French island of Ushant, off the coast of Brittany); its two 1,000 W lamps can be seen as far as 60 kilometres (37 mi) away.

 

 

 Posing with our wonderful local guide who knew the history of this land like the back of his hands. No prizes for guessing his name - Ronaldo. Notice the Blue ceramic tiles on the wall, which is a feature seen throughout Portugal.

 Atop one of the many cliffs, we view a beautiful emerald cove. Those who venture the 10 minute walk down slope are rewarded with a beautiful cool dip amongst fronds of kelp. Remember you also have to make the climb back up.

 Our beautiful young ladies pose, giving colour and beauty to the otherwise barren hill tops.

 
Carousel in the city centre of Lagos.

Lagos is an ancient maritime town with more than 2000 years of history. The name Lagos comes from a Celtic origin, derived from the Celtic Lacobriga, the name of the settlement was established during the pre-Punic civilizations. It became an early settlement of the Carthaginians, who recruited Celtic tribesmen in their war against the Romans (the Punic Wars). Owing to its already important harbour, it was colonized by the Romans and integrated into the Roman province of Lusitania, becoming known as Lacobriga. Quintus Sertorius, a rebellious Roman general, helped by the Lusitanians of Lacobriga (who had been oppressed under Roman Generals and members of Lucius Cornelius Sulla party), successfully defeated the Roman army of Caecilius Metellus Pius probably at nearby Monte Molião.

 
 Replica of the caravel Boa Esperança.

 There were so many things to see, do and experience, but the most important was to taste. Here I am enjoying the delicious (do not let the strange look on my face deceive you) plate of freshly caught and grilled sardines. I am not one for fish, but after biting into these beauties, I felt like I was in heaven.

On the main thoroughfare of Albufeira. Both sides of the street are packed with restaurants, bars, clubs, pubs, shops and yes they have 2 strip clubs too.

 Lanette pondering on taking a dip in the 5 deg cold Atlantic Ocean.

 In the end we just took a quick dip and shared 2 pitchers of Sangria while we caught up with FaceBook on shore. It was a wonderful match to warm us up.

 The beautiful large sitting lounge in our hotel room at the Montechoro Hotel at Albufeira.

LISBON: We crossed the Targus River into Lisbon on 25th.  Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 547,631 within its administrative limits on a land area of 84.8 km^2. Lisbon is recognized as a global city because of its importance in finance, commerce, media, entertainment, arts, international trade, education, and tourism. It is one of the major economic centres on the continent, with a growing financial sector and the largest/second largest container port on Europe's Atlantic coast.


^{Lanette and our beautiful friends from Africa take a "leap of faith" on Lisbon's main square.}

Elevador de Santa Justa is aka The Elevador do Carmo. This Neo-Gothic lift was built at the turn of the 20th century by the French architect Raoul Mesnier du Ponsard, an apprentice of Alexandre Gustave Eiffel. Made of iron and embellished with filigree, it is one of the more eccentric features of the Baixa.

 

Lisbon is one of the oldest cities in the world and the oldest city in Western Europe predating other modern European capitals such as London, Paris and Rome by hundreds of years. Julisu Ceaser made it a municipum called Felicitas Julia, adding to the name Olissipo. Ruled by a series of Germanic tribes from the fifth century, it was captured by the Moors in the eighth century. In 1147, the Crusaders under Afonso Henriques reconquored the city.

 Since then it has been a major political, economic, and cultural centre of Portugal. Unlike most capital cities, Lisbon's status as the capital of Portugal has never been granted or confirmed officially – by statute or in written form. Its position as the capital has formed through constitutional convention, making its position as de facto capital a part of the Constitution of Portugal.

view across the city to Castelo da Sao Jorge from Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara.

We were lucky to witness the beautiful African Festival, where immigrants and invited guests from the African Continent gathered at Lisbon Square to display their rich heritage, multi-coloured costumes and vibrant dances.

Yes, you can tell that a city is modern when they have the all important American landmark - The Hard Rock Café.

Mosteiro dos Jeronimos - a monument to the wealthy of the Age of Discovery. The monastery is the culmination of Manueline architecture. Commissioned by Manuel I in around 1501, after Vasco da Gama's return from his historic voyage, it was financed largely by "pepper money", a tax levied on spices, precious stones and gold.

 

Belém Tower or Torre de Belém, or the Tower of St Vincent is a fortified tower located in the civil parish of Santa Maria de Belém in the municipality of Lisbon. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (along with the nearby Jerónimos Monastery) because of the significant role it played in the Portuguese maritime discoveries of the era of the Age of Discoveries. The tower was commissioned by King John II to be part of a defense system at the mouth of the Tagus river and a ceremonial gateway to Lisbon.

 

Monument to the Discoveries is a monument on the northern bank of the Tagus River estuary, in the civil parish of Santa Maria de Belém, Lisbon. Located along the river where ships departed to explore and trade with India and Orient, the monument celebrates the Portuguese Age of Discovery (or Age of Exploration) during the 15th and 16th centuries. In addition to the main statue of Henry the Navigator, holding a model of a carrack, on either side of the ramps of the monument are a total of 33 figures from the history of the Discoveries, specifically Vasco da Gama (discoverer of the sea route to India), Afonso Gonçalves Baldaia (navigator), Pedro Álvares Cabral (discoverer of Brazil), Ferdinand Magellan (first to circumnavigate the globe) and St Francis Xavier.

 

It was conceived in 1939 by Portuguese architect José Ângelo Cottinelli Telmo, and sculptor Leopoldo de Almeida, as a temporary beacon during the Portuguese World Fair opening in June 1940. The Monument to the Discoveries represented a romanticized idealization of the Portuguese exploration that was typical of the Estado Novo regime of António de Oliveira Salazar. It was originally constructed as a temporary construction, located in the Praça do Império as part of an urban renewal project favoured by minister Duarte Pacheco. Lying on the ground just in front of the monument is the Map of The World. As you can see Malaysia is named Malaca. There is no mention of Singapore. 

The 25th of April suspension bridge in Lisbon, Portugal is one of the world's longest suspension bridges at 1.5 miles (2.2 kilometers) long. Built in 1966, its reddish-orange color makes it look like San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. However, other than the color, it more closely resembles the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, and was constructed by the builders responsible for this "other" Bay area bridge.
The 25th of April bridge was originally named for Portugal's right-wing dictator, Antonio de Oliveira Salazar, who ruled from 1932 to 1968. After Portugal's 1974 revolution, residents who supported the revolution started calling the bridge the 25th of April bridge to celebrate the change in power on April 25, 1974. Citizens loyal to Salazar's party continued to call it the Salazar bridge, and those who didn't want their politics known just called it "the bridge over the river".

 This evening we crossed the river by ferry to catch a beautiful view of the city from off shore.

 Trafalgar once again delivered a super surprise by hosting dinner at Marisqueira Restaurant. The servings of port, beers, wines, fresh seafood of clams, squid, fish, shrimp were just too good to resist. Everyone must have put on at least 3 -4 kg, especially after desserts were served.

 These happy faces tell a story - "Absolutamente delicioso e eu quero mais no meu regress!

 the drinks, food and friendships shared amongst people from many lands.

 As the evening sun dipped behind the 25th April Suspension Bridge, our friendships are only beginning to grow.

Clowning around on the streets after a sumptuous dinner.

During World War II, Casino Estoril was reputed to be a gathering spot for espionage agents, dispossessed royals, and wartime adventurers. It was the inspiration for Ian Fleming's 007 novel Casino Royale.

The cultural landscape of the Serra and the town of Sintra represents a pioneering approach to Romantic landscaping that had an outstanding influence on developments elsewhere in Europe. It is a unique example of the cultural occupation of a specific location that has maintained its essential integrity as the representation of diverse successive cultures.

Its structures harmonize indigenous flora with a refined and cultivated landscape created by man as a result of literary and artistic influences. Its integrity is fragile and vulnerable to neglect and unsympathetic management and use.

Sintra: brims with 19th-century Romantic architecture and landscapes, it has become a major tourist centre, visited by man y day-trippers who travel from the urbanized suburbs and capital of Lisbon. In addition to the Sintra Mountains and Sintra- Cascais Nature Park, the parishes of the town of Sintra are dotted by royal retreats, estates, castles and buildings from the 8th-9th century, in addition to many buildings completed between the 15th and 19th century, including the Castelo dos Mouros and the Pena National Palace.

Sintra National Palace is the best preserved medieval Royal Palace in Portugal, having been inhabited more or less continuously at least from the early 15th up to the late 19th century. It is an important tourist attraction and is part of the Cultural landscape of Sintra, designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.

the ceiling above the Kings bed.

Since there was no Casino's in Sintra, I decided to visit the Loo in the National Palace and had a Royal flush! lol

We found a quaint little restaurant that was world famous for their almond cakes, which upon tasting I realised was our version of the Sugee Cake. (Ours is better as we have a stronger taste of butter and almonds). Here Lanette sips on hot chocolate whilst enjoying a delicious éclair.

Much more than just a touristy thing, the consumption of Ginjinha is a must in Sintra. You will find several shops in the centre of Sintra that sell shots of Ginjinha in a chocolate cup for 1 Euro. You can either drink the Ginjinha before eating the small chocolate cup (little more than thimble sized) or eat it as a liqueur filled chocolate. Either way, it is super delicious!

The beautiful Metro Station located just 1 minute from our hotel brought us directly to town and the central shopping centre.

The huge Centro Colombo in Benfica is the biggest chopping centre in the Iberian Peninsula, almost matching the adjacent Estadio da Luz football stadium in size. It has 420 shops, 60 restaurants and 10 cinemas.

Lanette pondering on what to buy next! lol
ps..like her T-shirt?

Knowing how important shopping is to my friends, I have attached a video clip done by Jan Golsmith: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVqLktRFkb4

just one of the rows of shops with all the famous and lesser known European brands, though not much local made.

 

FATIMA:

The name of the town and parish evolved from the Arabic name Fatima, the name of a Moorish princess and, originally, the name of the daughter of Muhammad, prophet of Islam. The parish was founded in 1568, when it was annexed by the Collegiate of Ourém (Portuguese: Colegiada de Ourém).

 

The history of Fátima is associated with three children: Lúcia and her cousins, Francisco and Jacinta Marto, who on 13 May 1917, while guarding their sheep in Cova da Iria, witnessed an apparition of a lady dressed in white.

 

 

 

Cova da Iria is now the Chapel of Apparitions or Portuguese: Capela das Aparições. The lady, later referred to as Our Lady of the Rosary, indicated that she was sent by God with a message of prayer, repentance and consecrations. She visited the children each month on the 13th day from May 13 - October 13.

 The last apparition occurred on October 13, and was witnessed by 70,000 pilgrims, who saw the Miracle of the Sun. In addition, Our Lady of Fátima sent a message that consisted of three secrets: first, a vision of Hell where the souls of the sinful would travel without prayer; the second, prophesied the beginning of the Second World War; and ultimately, the mysterious third secret, which was written down by Lúcia dos Santos in 1944, and held by the Vatican, since 1957.

 After a wonderful and spiritual trip to Fatima, what better to do than share stories with fellow travellers on Trafalgar, which included Singaporeans, Malaysians, Filipinos and Africans.

 Here Fernando, our wonderful Trafalgar coach driver and Maria our Tour Director pose with fellow travellers from India.

Porto also known as Oporto in English, is the second-largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon, and one of the major urban areas in Southern Europe and the capital of the second major great urban area in Portugal. The Porto Metropolitan Area includes an estimated 2 million people. It is recognized as a Gamma- level global city by the Globalization and World Cities (GaWC) Study Group, being one of five cities on the Iberian Peninsula with global city status, (the others being Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon and Valencia).

One of Portugal's internationally famous exports, port wine, is named for Porto, since the metropolitan area, and in particular the adegas of Vila Nova de Gaia, were responsible for the production and export of the fortified wine

 Lanette and our dear Trafalgar friends taste our fist round of Ramos Pinto port. The glasses are filled generously so as you can guess, we all left very happy.

Not missing on this Opportunity, I bought 3 bottles of their special blend to be shared with family and friends this Christmas.

Ramos Pinto Port Wines are prepared in the vinification centre of Quinta do Bom Retiro. In the case of LBV and Vintage, the grapes are trodden in the traditional lagar as this age-old technique allows for the juice of the fruit to be extracted more efficiently and less violently. After having concluded the first steps of vinification, the wines are transported to the historical wine cellars at Vila Nova de Gaia, where they undergo a long ageing process. At Casa Ramos Pinto the know-how is kept a secret but we will make an exception for you. Visit the Ramos Pinto Wine Cellars.

http://www.ramospinto.pt/default.aspx

Located along the Douro river estuary in northern Portugal, Porto is one of the oldest European centres, and registered as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996. Its settlement dates back many centuries, when it was an outpost of the Roman Empire. Its Latin name, Portus Cale, has been referred to as the origin for the name "Portugal", based on transliteration and oral evolution from Latin.

Lanette and I pose on the banks of the Douro river with the Ponte de Dom Luis I in the background, before we join our fellow travelers for dinner in one of the many restaurants that line the river.

 The happy faces show the warmth shared in the room, as we were hosted to endless bottles of wine and absolutely delicious meals of game fowl, rabbit and salmon.

 Salamanca
 

Salamanca is located in northwestern Spain, the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the community of Castile and León. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. With a metropolitan population of 228,881 in 2012 according to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), Salamanca is the second most populated urban area in Castile and León, after Valladolid (414,000), and ahead of Leon (187,000) and Burgos (176,000).

The Rana de Suerte (Lucky Frog) sits high up on the Universidad Civil, dishing out good luck to all that look at him. But first you have to find him! From Plaza Anaya, walk around to the other side of the building and look for the fortunate amphibian amid the carvings of the Catholic Kings Isabel and Fernando. That's where my help ends. Have fun finding it.

 The beautiful ornate gold decorations are but a portion of the antiques and art found in the many chapels and cathedrals in Salamanca.

 

La Plaza Mayor: of Baroque style, designed by architects Alberto and Nicolás Churriguera is the most important of public spaces and the heart of the city.

 We join travellers from Canada, USA and Australia for dinner at Recoletos Coco Hotel courtesy of Trafalgar.

 

Ávila is well-known for the amazingly intact wall surrounding the city, for being the birthplace and home of Santa Teresa of Jesus (a devout Catholic nun famous for writing poems dedicated to Jesus to in which she expressed her devotion to Him) and for sweetmeats made by local nuns and sold in small shops throughout the city. Especially "yemas" made with egg yolks and sugar.

The City Wall (11th century), this is Ávila's most emblematic and spectacular monument. It surrounds the old town, illustrating the wealth, power and influence this fortified city enjoyed centuries ago. Beautifully illuminated at night. Look for the impressive Alcázar and San Vicente gates.

 A stopover for Churos and hot chocolate perks my spirits to get cosy with Maria our Tour Director.







And one of the few occasions we were able to get everyone in the group photo. I was behind the camera.

 Here we are back in Madrid. Lanette and I decided to do a last tour of the city on our own, exploring the beautiful surroundings of our hotel. The park were well designed with exercise areas, fountains, streams where one could watch colourful wild ducks co-exist with large fish.

Lanette's attempt at "Planking".

 The roses in full bloom in one of the many gardens of Madrid.

 Our last visit to Plaza Mayor in Madrid, before joining our friends as Trafalgar hosted yet another wonderful surprise dinner.

 Part of our tour group enjoying dinner at the Opera Restaurant.

 A couple in real life and studying music in one of the Universities, delivering a beautiful Aria during dinner. It truly was a wonderful experience and gave us a genuine flavour of the country.

Maria invited her beautiful daughter for dessert. Like her mother, she was a wealth of knowledge and is an inspiration to the young. We were very glad to have met mother and child and of course our fantastic coach driver Fernando.

 We closed the wonderful tour with a visit to The Temple of Debod which was built originally 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) south of Aswan in southern Egypt very close to the first cataract of the Nile and to the great religious center dedicated to the goddess Isis, in Philae. In the early 2nd century BC, Adikhalamani (Tabriqo), the Kushite king of Meroë, started its construction by building a small single room chapel dedicated to the god Amun. It was built and decorated on a similar design to the later Meroitic chapel on which the Temple of Dakka is based. Later, during the Ptolemaic dynasty, it was extended on all four sides to form a small temple, 12 by 15 metres (39 ft × 49 ft), which was dedicated to Isis of Philae. The Roman emperors Augustus and Tiberius completed its decorations.

In 1960, due to the construction of the Great Dam of Aswan and the consequent threat posed to several monuments and archeological sites, UNESCO made an international call to save this rich historical legacy. As a sign of gratitude for the help provided by Spain in saving the temples of Abu Simbel, the Egyptian state donated the temple of Debod to Spain in 1968.

The temple was rebuilt in one of Madrid's parks, the Parque del Oeste, near the Royal Palace of Madrid, and opened to the public in 1972. The reassembled gateways appear to have been placed in a different order than when originally erected. Compared to a photo of the original site, the gateway topped by a serpent flanked sun appears not to have been the closest gateway to the temple proper. It constitutes one of the few works of ancient Egyptian architecture which can be seen outside Egypt and the only one of its kind in Spain. Truly a wonder which was best shared with friends of Trafalgar.

I am sure my fellow travellers on Trafalgar would like to join Lanette and myself to thank Maria, Fernando and the planners of the tour for a wonderful holiday, which we will always remember. We look forward to our next, perhaps in Greece or Eastern Europe?

 

 

Humphrey & Lanette