Driving
up the west coast is easier and quicker than we had originally
imagined. In the Algarve, the roads are well labeled, and very easy to
get around. So we figured today we'd head across the border from the
Algarve into the Alentejo, which is now only about 3 hours south of
Lisbon. We catch the sun's early morning ascent over the cliffs of a
beautiful little beach called Zambujeira do Mar. The headland of the
town has a tiny church and massive ground sun dial jutting out into the
sea. By 11:00 a.m., cafes are finally opening up here for coffee and
food. We've had a really difficult time finding any cafes open early
enough to get a morning coffee, which is quite disappointing.
We
take in the beautiful sights and head north along the winding cliffs to
a fishing village, and what we thought was the next town of Vila Nova
de Milfontes, en route to Pria do Malhao, which we've heard is an
amazingly secluded beach. The sign-age here in the Alentejo is
miserable. We go in circles for hours, and end up in the middle of
vast, empty farmland with nothing but cows, corn and irrigation
systems. We finally back track to a main road and end up around 3:00
p.m., up the coast to Vila Nova de Milfontes which is even more of a
tourist scene than Lagos. While the beach and coast line here
dramatic, and a breathtaking sight, we can't stand being in a hub full
of vacationing tourists - for me, it's like being at the mall shopping
at Christmas time. So we decide to abort the mission to go any further
north, as we have only one more day left with our car, and we head back
to the quaint Zambujeria do Mar to search for a room for the night.
After an hour or so of looking, we finally find a granny with a vacant
room, and lay our heads to rest after watching a stunning sunset, with
octopus ceviche and cold cervejas.
