Knowmark Travel

Portugal 2007 (Oct): Nazaré

Monday, 1 October 2007

We arrived at Quinta das Rosas late in the afternoon – much later than planned. Unfortunately, our flight from Toronto to Lisboa was delayed by nearly six hours. Nonetheless, had a good flight with a nice crew. In April, our last place was here at Quinta das Rosas, and we liked it so much we decided to start this visit here.

Dinner: Re-visited Sete Saias in Nazaré where we started with some cold boiled shrimp (so fresh they tasted sweet!) followed by arroz de marisco accompanied by a bottle of vinho verde de casa.

Weather: An unexpectedly nice 2.5 on the Knowmark Weather Scale (it was supposed to be rather unpleasant today).

Tuesday, 2 October 2007

Lunch: We lunched at A Casa in Alcobaça, which is also a garrafeira (which we had visited in April). After a couple of salgados we shared a portion of polvo à galega and a portion of polvo à lagareiro. This was accompanied by most of a bottle of vinho verde and then a couple of excellent cafés to finish.

Dinner: At home, watching Sporting dispatch Dynamo Kyiv while listening to Arsenal ease by Steaua Bucureşti in the Champions League.

Weather: Very mixed. A lovely 2.5 until late in the day, when a large storm blew through. But, by 7pm we were getting a lovely sunset.

Wednesday, 3 October 2007

After the market and our morning café e pastel, we went a few kilometres south to São Martinho where there is a Percurso Pedestre (walking track). We eventually hiked part of the trail around Serra dos Mangues. The day was quite hazy at that time, so most of the photographs we took were of rather low quality.

Lunch: We returned to a spot we ate at in April – Casa Pires “A Sardinha” – for the house specialty: sardinhas grelhadas. They are freshly grilled on charcoal just around the corner from the main door and they are amazing. We think they might have been better this time than last, but that might just be our imaginations as Anna told us this morning that in April, they would have been frozen and this time they would be fresh. They are served with a simple salad, potatoes and really great bread. We of course accompanied it with a bottle of vinho verde.

Weather: A very passable 2.0. Not much sunshine (foggy in the morning), but no rain.

Inside Casa Pires 'A Sardinha'. — Inside Casa Pires ‘A Sardinha’.

Our lunch (and, Steve's arm). — Our lunch (and, Steve’s arm).

The grillmaster (and grill) at Casa Pires "A Sardinha". — The grillmaster (and grill) at **Casa Pires “A Sardinha”**.

The Mestre Carlos returns with its catch.

The Mestre Carlos after unloading its catch.

Thursday, 4 October 2007

A travel day as we move from three great nights at Quinta das Rosas in Nazaré to our new digs in Coimbra.

Lunch: Picnic on the road at a well-used public fonte in Santo Antonio.

Dinner: Great meal tonight at O Cantinho dos Reis.

Weather: A very pleasant 2.0+ today (only because of the late afternoon shower in Coimbra).

Anna, The gracious hostess at Quinta das Rosas in Nazaré. — Anna, The gracious hostess at **Quinta das Rosas** in Nazaré.

Office and breakfast room at Quinta das Rosas in Nazaré. — Office and breakfast room at **Quinta das Rosas** in Nazaré.

We have arrived in Coimbra. This is the view from the balcony of our room at the Hotel Oslo. — We have arrived in Coimbra. This is the view from the balcony of our room at the **Hotel Oslo**.

Portugal 2007 (Apr): Nazaré

Sunday, 15 April 2007

Another gorgeous day (a perfect 3.0) as we packed up after a short, delightful stay at Quinta de Coalhos. We were in no hurry to leave and spent a little time with our hosts (senhor José and senhora Isabel) getting some advice and direction about where to eat and what to see near our final destination, which is just outside the village of Pederneira, high on a cliff above Nazaré, on o oceano Atlântico.

We had arranged to have lunch at Remédio D’Alma, since our dinner there on Friday night (13 April) was such a delight. This is quite a testimonial, since our original plans called for us to have lunch at A Lúria, where we had such a great meal last year. Lunch did not disappoint – Steve had a absolutely wonderful arroz de pato, while Susan had lombo assado recheado com ameixa. A second memorable meal at Remédio D’Alma, accompanied by a nice 2004 Paço de Aviz (Trincadeira).

We then sped down the A1 (unusual for us, but we had some time constraints) in what turned out to be a fruitless search for the Castro de Vila Nova de São Pedro, the site of a chalcolithic ruin. The area was beautiful (once we got off the A1), but the Castro was not evident, at least to us!

The remainder of the day found us slowly wending our way north and west until we finally arrived at Quinta das Rosas, where we had a light dinner on our balcony overlooking the ocean. Not too hard to take!

Constância. On our way from Quinta de Coalhos to Quinta das Rosas. — Constância. On our way from **Quinta de Coalhos** to **Quinta das Rosas**.

Monday, 16 April 2007

We have some rather nice views from our balcony overlooking Nazaré and o oceano Atlântico. — We have some rather nice views from our balcony overlooking **Nazaré** and **o oceano Atlântico**.

The mercado in Alcobaça. Note Susan in the background (red top).

Fishing boat just off the beach at Nazaré. Not the greatest photograph, but a memory worth preserving. Taken from our balcony at Quinta das Rosas, just south of Pederneira. — Fishing boat just off the beach at Nazaré. Not the greatest photograph, but a memory worth preserving. Taken from our balcony at **Quinta das Rosas**, just south of Pederneira.

Tuesday, 17 April 2007

We actually visited two beaches, and both before lunch! We are staying just outside Pederneira, which is on a cliff high above Nazaré – a well-known beach town. The beach is stunning there, and we rolled up our trousers and got our feet wet as we strolled up and down (nearly alone) as the surf pounded. We then drove a little south to Salgado, where we repeated our earlier activities (rolled up our trousers, strolled a bit). At Salgado, there were a few fishermen with long poles stuck in the sand which they would occasionally cast into the surf. This beach is basically an extension of the one in Nazaré (several kilometres south), but physically it is different. And, much less visited.

We were also told that the beach at Nazaré had no undertow (therefore quite safe for swimming, etc.), while the one at Salgado is more dangerous in that regard. The surf seemed much the same at both beaches, so this was a surprise. Both were well worth visiting, even if you are not ‘beach bunnies’ (which we are not).

We then returned to Nazaré for lunch at Sete Saias, which had been recommended to us by senhor José at Quinta de Coalhos (our previous stay). It did not disappoint, and we enjoyed caldeirada and arroz de tamboril. Both were delicious. And, we found that the owner of Sete Saias was related (by marriage) to our hostess at Quinta Das Rosas, where we are staying!

We did some other stuff, but time is running out for the author – we’ll finish this later …

Weather-wise, it was another great day (a perfect 3.0) in this part of Portugal.

The sunrise is not as stunning as the sunset(s), but they're pretty nice! — The sunrise is not as stunning as the sunset(s), but they’re pretty nice!

Part of the grounds at Quinta das Rosas.

Wednesday, 18 April 2007

Allegro Santorini, the 'watch donkey' (who brays every time someone arrives or departs) at Quinta das Rosas. — Allegro Santorini, the ‘watch donkey’ (who brays every time someone arrives or departs) at **Quinta das Rosas**.

We spent a couple of hours hiking (and climbing!) today. The final 300 metres (nearly straight up) was well worth it, as the views of the area are tremendous.

Thursday, 19 April 2007

Friday, 20 April 2007

We leave Quinta das Rosas (a wonderful place – more later) for the Lisboa airport this morning, where we catch a two-stage flight to Toronto. Our second trip to Portugal (our first was last May) has helped us determine that we will return to this ‘gentle country’ (as Anna, our delightful host here, characterized Portugal) soon.

Bom dia!

Portugal 2007 (Apr): Abrantes

Friday, 13 April 2007

Friday the 13th is a travel day as we leave the Alentejo region for Ribatejo. After saying our farewells to Stella at Casa de Terena, we went to Orvalhos to buy some more queijo and pão and have our morning café. The couple that runs the Mini Mercado (for our bread) and the attached café were especially nice.

We then drove leisurely northwards through Portalegre and stopped for a picnic lunch at a lovely miradouro high in the Serra de São Mamede. While it was a bit hazy, the views were still gorgeous. Then, into Castelo de Vide, which is a very nice town. We wandered around for a while and had our afternoon bicas. It turned out to be a very nice day for driving, with only some occasional clouds – 2.5 on our scale.

Dropping out of the Serra, we slowly drove west, arriving at Quinta de Coalhos in the late afternoon, where we were familiarly greeted by senhor José and senhora Isabel, our gracious hosts. We had stayed here last year for three nights and very much enjoyed their hospitality and the local cuisine. And, this stay (only two nights) started out very well on the eating front with an excellent meal in Constância at the Remédio D’Alma. Senhor Carlos was our host and treated us very well. We liked it so much that we have arranged to have Sunday lunch there as we leave Coalhos for our final destination (Nazaré).

Today's picnic spot. A lovely spot with incredible views high in the Serra de São Mamede. And, we had it all to ourselves. — Today’s picnic spot. A lovely spot with incredible views high in the Serra de São Mamede. And, we had it all to ourselves.

Castelo de Vide. A lovely town in the Serra da São Mamede. Looking north. — Castelo de Vide. A lovely town in the **Serra da São Mamede**. Looking north.

Saturday, 14 April 2007

Late night port in one of the common areas at Quinta de Coalhos. — Late night port in one of the common areas at **Quinta de Coalhos**.