We had the pleasure of being invited to experience something different last week – a chance to explore a part of the Algarve which is missing on most tourist maps.

Our house actually has a view of the Monchique mountain range, and the highest point on the Algarve; Foia – and I have previously blogged about the charming unspoilt Monchique (Spotlight on Monchique) But we had never had the chance to explore the mountain walks around the area – so when Fiona from My Destination Algarve  invited us to join her on a walk and lunch we jumped at the chance!

We were also introduced to an absolute gem of a restaurant tucked between Monchique and Foia – as the owner of Jardim das Oliveiras (Garden of the Olive Trees)  António Baiona was our host for the day, and he had lots of surprises for us on our day out exploring and eating our way around the mountain!

We started by meeting at his restaurant for breakfast – and we were absolutely spoilt with a traditional ‘farmer’s breakfast’ – complete with large flat churros served with cinnamon and sugar; a toasted eggy bread – ‘Fatias Douradas’ (Golden Bread); and a local black pudding which was delicious. All washed down with a large coffee and we were ready for a walk!

The restaurant is situated in a beautiful spot, with views over the valley below, and António is rightly proud of all that he has achieved at his restaurant in the 15 years that he has owned it. He also has great links with the local people, and we were introduced to our guide for the morning, Philippe, a local man with an amazing knowledge of the local area.

The restaurant advertises its hiking walks on its website Jardim das Oliveiras – Hiking and we were not disappointed! We were dropped off at the top of Foia, with its spectacular views across the countryside – on a clear day you can literally see for miles around. We were quite pleased with the arrangements – “we’ll drop you off at the top and then you can walk back down the mountainside and meet back at the restaurant for lunch!”

It soon became apparent that Philippe knows this land like his own back garden – and we were soon diverting off the tourist road onto smaller tracks and trails – all the time heading downwards! It is fair to say that this would not be a route for the faint hearted or a terribly unfit person – but it was worth all the effort and rock hopping to enjoy the most amazing views and scenery.

We stopped several times just to enjoy the view and take more photos, and Philippe told us stories about almost every ruin we passed. The area was obviously once a thriving farming community, with stories of families helping each other with threshing, hay stored in barns, and cattle and sheep roaming the landscape. We passed eerily deserted and ramshackle old buildings, where you could still see where the animals would have been housed, and the fresh springs of water and dried stream beds criss-crossed the hillside.

The landscape is full of tiered and walled sections making the best use of the land, and we saw a fantastic selection of majestic trees; eucalyptus woods; and the tiniest prettiest little orange and white flowers littered the grass. Philippe pointed out one flower – the Adelfa plant; which he told us was highly poisonous if eaten, and which he believes is only found in three places in the world. It was fascinating to go home and look this one up - The Adelfa Plant

The sights – and smells – were wonderful, with the cleanest fresh air, and the heady scent of eucalyptus and blossom to accompany us.

At one point we stopped at a little house nestled into the hillside, and Philippe assured us he knew the owner, so we explored and re-filled our water bottles from the fresh water spring beside the house. It was – of course – ‘vende-se’ – as so many little houses are across the region. It was a tempting thought!

We loved the owner’s home-made bird scarer too – it made a very pleasant sound as the wind caught the bottles – and made a great shot too:

Having a local person to guide us was a real treat – we felt that we saw the ‘real’ Monchique, and met some fascinating people, including a quick trip to a local Medronho distillers – a little place we would never had realised was there if it wasn’t for Philippe!

They also made their own local honey too – so now we know where to go to buy some really fresh, local and clear honey – from local bees.

Next stop on the way down was a real hidden gem – I have no idea how we would get to it again though (must get a better map!) but António and his driver met us with his mini-bus at this point and dropped us off at a local tourist spot – a beautifully restored old water mill – O Moinho de Água do Poucochinho. Sadly the ‘key’ had gone to lunch (!) so we couldn’t explore inside – but there’s always next time!

There was also a lovely romantic picnic area next to a pretty flowing stream – perfect for lunch!

And then it was a quick drive back to the restaurant – and time for our lunch!

Well I can assure you – I’m not biased at all – and haven’t been paid a penny for this review – so I can be honest with you all – and I have to say – it was one of the nicest lunches we have ever eaten anywhere on the Algarve!

António prides himself on providing traditional ‘local’ Portuguese food – he describes how the families of previous generations would have all cooked in an oak smoked wood oven – and that many people do not have these anymore – and so he delights in reminding people of the flavours and food of their childhood and history. The result is superb – rich flavours, beautiful presentation, and food which is simply a delight to enjoy.

We started with a selection of starters – the chirozo; mushrooms and prawn cocktail with mango were real treats, with the freshest bread and the simple tasty fare the Portuguese are renowned for.

The main course was a first for us – Wild Boar in a delicious stew – it was so well cooked it just fell apart and melted in the mouth! It would have been perfect with a local red wine – but as it was lunch time we were well behaved!

The restaurant itself has a lovely unpretentious but professional feel to it, there are separate smaller rooms for private functions too, and a lovely outdoor eating area, complete with a play area for children.

There are even hammocks in the garden if you eat too much and need a rest afterwards!

I cannot fault the restaurant at all – excellent food, at a reasonable price, served with pride. The only problem is knowing this place is even on the map – it’s a bit tucked away but easy to find if you know where it is – just take the Foia road out of Monchique, go past the Estalagem and it is signed on your right. But once you are there – you can relax, unwind, enjoy the view and savour the food!

I really could have stayed all afternoon – and they are open every day for lunch and dinner – and we will definitely be returning again soon!

The real treat though was the guided walk – and this is something that the restaurant would be happy to arrange for small groups – you can find out all the information via their website so why not treat yourself to something different? Having a local person take us ‘off the trail’ and lead us with stories and a smile across the beautiful landscape was such a brilliant way of finding a different Algarve – and to top it off with such a wonderful lunch really made this the perfect day out.

And now when I look up at the Monchique from our balcony, I can smile to myself, and remember a lovely day out walking and exploring, eating and meeting new people.

The unspoilt ‘hidden’ Algarve – away from the beaches – is somewhere I can heartily recommend.

Links

Jardim das Oliveiras website

Jardim das Oliveiras Facebook page

My Destination Algarve  Information page

You can also read about more places to visit across the Algarve via my Places to Go page

Bake me a cake as fast as you can”

A quick post here to recommend something different!

Portugal em Açúcar is an exhibition being held at the Continente shopping centre at Portimão (the one with the cinema) until the end of May. A friend suggested that we should see it – and they were right!

The exhibition is a small series of landmarks of Portugal – made out of sugar and bread! The detail is quite incredible and they are all beautifully presented in large glass cases with information cards.

They are all made by students in Lisbon and many have taken at least 150 hours each to make; and each represents a famous landmark or piece of Portuguese history.

I won’t spoil it all by posting all the pictures – just a selection to get your mouth watering (!)

But if you get the chance and you are nearby, do go along and have a look – it’s free – and well worth a quick detour!

If you are visiting Portimão - you may also enjoy this post Afternoon at the Museum 

Praia de Luz – 3^rd May 2007. An event that rocked a small tourist resort in the Algarve; and sent the world’s media into a frenzy.

And five years later – there are still no answers – and a little girl is still missing.

I have held back from blogging about this – but in one sense it had a wide ranging impact upon the Algarve where we live; and it is a defining event in history. And everyone we meet who talks about this – rightly or wrongly – has a view about it.

The facts – plainly put – are that a girl of 4 years old went missing in 2007 – and is still missing today. The why – and how – and most importantly – who did it – is still a mystery.

What makes her special is an interesting thought – children go missing every day. And many are never found. But the international media latched onto this story – and the haunting images of her mother, clutching the teddy bear belonging to Madeleine – combined with the sweet and innocent face of her missing daughter – were projected across the world.

Her parents have done everything humanly possible to find her – and keep her image at the forefront of the media.

And the despair they must feel at knowing that their daughter may still be alive – somewhere in this vast expanse of our planet – must only be equalled by the horror of the possibility of finding out that she is no longer alive. The nightmares must be a regular occurrence for her parents.

Picture from Daily Mirror – click for link

Talking to Portuguese people it is clear that they cannot conceive of a parent that would leave a child ‘home alone’ – the Portuguese sense of family and responsibility runs deep. Families dine together – often much later in the evening than would be normal in the UK – and children run round our local square playing together often until late in the evening as their families sit around talking and socialising together.

Add to that the whole Arguido status both the McCanns were placed under by the Portuguese police – as formal suspects – and the subsequent ‘no charges filed’ – and the ensuing ridicule of the international press targeted at the Portuguese policing system – and it is no wonder that the Portuguese media wish to see this story remain as ‘case closed’ with no further media or judicial involvement.

The British Police are currently conducting a full case review – at the instigation of the Prime Minister – and a recent TV programme would tend to hint at new evidence coming to light; and a terrifyingly large number of new leads and old evidence to sift through. As yet, the Portuguese authorities have refused to re-open the case.

There is a new web-site and Operation Grange is in full swing; with a large number of detectives and specialist officers assigned to the case.

There has never been a reconstruction of the events that night in May 2007 – a standard practice for UK policing as this can help – even now – to trigger people’s memories – and also – most importantly in a case like this full of media hype, hysteria and inconsistencies – a chance to show exactly what is known about the events that night.

They have recently released an age-progressed picture of what Madeleine may look like today – an important step as so many people will still ‘picture’ her as a 4 year old. The distinctive fleck in her right eye remains – however she may be vastly different to this if still alive – particularly her hair colour and accent (she may even now speak a foreign language more fluently than she ever spoke English) which may conceal a little girl who almost certainly is no longer called Madeleine.

So why post about this on Algarve Blog?

Well, I’ve read the book, watched the news with everyone else, and listened to lots of people’s theories and views about this.

And the bottom line for me is simple – there is a little girl that is still missing – an innocent little girl taken from her family and siblings. One of many, many children that go missing each week. But highlighting her plight also helps raise the spotlight on the wider missing children agenda – one that brings heartache and despair to so many families. Child sexual exploitation and child pornography are a reality – and we should do everything we can to eliminate these horrific crimes from our world.

So I post this as a small drop in the ocean – but a drop nonetheless – that might even make a small difference. Because someone – somewhere – has to know something about her disappearance – and may their conscience never be clear until they tell someone what they know.

So if you do know something – however small or insignificant you may think it is – please call your local police – or Operation Grange on

0207 321 9251 (in the UK)
+44 207 321 9251 (non-UK)

Or email

Operation.Grange@met.pnn.police.uk

Images taken from the Find Madeleine website

There is one big difference between the public holidays here (or bank holidays as we call them in the UK) – in Portugal they take the holiday on whatever day the date falls – unlike in the UK where many holidays are moved to a Monday.

This takes some getting used to – yesterday was a public holiday – on a Wednesday!

The Portuguese have 13 public holidays a year (but see my comments later about shrinking them – denoted by a *) and they are a mixture of religious and secular days commemorating historic events or key events in the church’s calendar. There are also some differences with the UK – for example Easter Monday and Boxing Day are not holidays in Portugal.

Some of these public holidays are obvious and need little expansion – however others are more significant to the Portuguese nation – so I have enjoyed exploring these for you on this post … so that next time I hear a marching band in the next town, or see fireworks light up the sky – I’ll know why! (And the Portuguese love their fireworks!)

Public Holidays in Portugal 2012

Sunday 1st January - New Year’s Day

An obvious one – and a time for visiting family and friends – and walking on the beach in the sunshine!

Tuesday 21st February – Carnaval (or Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras)

The day before Lent begins – a time for partying, eating, drinking and enjoying a street parade. You can find out more about Carnaval on my friend Restless Jo’s wonderful blog C is for Carnaval 

Friday 6th April – Good Friday

A time for quiet reflection; and for many the visit to a significant church service.

Sunday 8th April – Easter Sunday

A day to catch a church procession in full swing; remembering that Easter Monday is not a public holiday here in Portugal.

Wednesday 25th April – Freedom Day or Liberation day – Dia da Liberdade

This day is in remembrance of the 1974 revolution, a secular public holiday commemorating the Carnation Revolution, which brought an end to fascist rule in Portugal on April 25^th, 1974. Wiki describes the day:

The name “Carnation Revolution” comes from the fact no shots were fired and when the population started descending the streets to celebrate the end of the dictatorship and war in the colonies, carnation flowers were put on the guns’ ends and on the uniforms. The military-led coup returned democracy to Portugal, ending the unpopular Colonial War where thousands of Portuguese soldiers had been conscripted into military service, and replaced the Estado Novo (New State) regime and its secret police.

There are streets named after the 25 de Abril all over Portugal, but the most famous monument has to be the re-naming of the Salazar bridge in Lisbon – which is now known as the 25 de Abril Bridge, in honour of the day the revolution occurred.

Picture from Wiki - click for link

Tuesday 1st May – Labour Day – Dia do Trabalho

Labour Day is usually celebrated with public gatherings and demonstrations, by civic groups, political parties, students and trade unions. In many countries this is known as International Workers’ Day and celebrates the labour and left-wing movements; and it is a national holiday for workers in many countries around the world. In the UK however it is simply known as May Day and stems from the ancient customs associated with the celebration of spring.

Last year in Portugal the day was the scene for many marches and protests for labour rights, the economy, and social justice. The CGTP labour union leader Manuel Carvalho da Silva was quoted as saying: “Never has social protest been more important.”

There is another local tradition in the Algarve on the 1^st May which involves displaying wonderful and colourful – and often life-size – dressed up mannequins and models on the roadside. We will make sure we add some pictures to this post as soon as we can!

Thursday 7th June – Corpus Christi *

Corpus Christi is a Catholic feast celebrated on a Thursday, and celebrates the Eucharist, or the tradition of Holy Communion, in the Catholic Church.

Sunday 10th June – Portugal Day – Dia de Portugal

The Portuguese National Day commemorates the day the poet and soldier Luís de Camões died on the 10 June 1580.

Camões penned the epic poem ‘Os Lusíadas,’ which celebrates the achievements of the Portuguese in world explorations in the 16th century.

The day is a chance to celebrate and promote the culture, customs and traditions of this wonderful nation; and Portuguese people throughout the world will celebrate this day.

Wednesday 15th August – Assumption Day*

This marks the Feast of the Assumption, a religious festival celebrating the Virgin Mary’s reception into heaven.

Friday 5th October – Republic Day – Dia da Republica *

This day celebrates the founding of the New Republic in 1910 and the ousting of the Portuguese monarchy, after more than two centuries of monarchical rule. The day is also known as the Implantação da República.

Thursday 1st November – All Saints Day

All Saints’ Day is a time to honour all of the saints of the Catholic Church. It is also a day where local family tradition encourages people to visit cemeteries and lay down flowers in memory of those who have already passed on.

Saturday 1st December – Restoration of Independence Day *

Independence Day celebrates the restoration of Portuguese sovereignty in 1640 from the temporary rule of Spain.

Wiki describes this as follows: The Portuguese Restoration War was the name given by historians to the war between Portugal and Spain that began with the Portuguese revolution of 1640 and ended with the Treaty of Lisbon in 1668. The revolution of 1640 ended the sixty-year period of dual monarchy in Portugal and Spain by the Spanish Habsburgs.

Saturday 8th December – Immaculate Conception

This commemorates the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, and also marks the beginning of the Christmas church season. The devotion to Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception was brought to Portugal by D. Gilberto, the first Bishop of Lisbon, in 1166. In 1646, King D. João IV proclaimed that Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception was to be the official patron saint of Portugal; meaning that the 8^th December is also the patronal Feast Day of Portugal.

Tuesday 25th December – Christmas Day

You can find out more about Christmas through my post The 12 days of Christmas – Portuguese Style

2012 Public Holidays shortened

* Portuguese workers this year have lost two civil and two religious holidays as part of the austerity measures aimed at making the economy more competitive.

The two public holidays to be dropped are Republic Day celebrated on October 5th and Independence Day on December 1st.

Two religious holidays are also to be removed, Corpus Christi Day celebrated in June and Assumption Day on August 15, after these dates were agreed with the Catholic Church.

The government tried, in the name of austerity, to force the end of the Carnaval public holiday this year, but the country effectively shut down all the same as the Portuguese refused to go without their pre-Lent festival.

School Holidays

School Holidays are also different to the UK, for the 2011/12 academic year, the school holidays are as follows:
Christmas – 19 December 2011 to 2 January 2012
Carnival – 20 to 22 February 2012
Easter – 26 March to 9 April 2012
Summer – end of June to mid-September

The date that children return to school in September appears to be a negotiated date only communicated to parents a few days before the start of term! Perhaps they wait to check the weather forecast before they decide!

Saints’ Days

There are no national holidays for Portugal’s popular Saints (St. Anthony, St. John and St. Peter) but they are combined into one giant week long party, called the Popular Saints’ Festival (the Festas dos Santos Populare) The main day for 2012 celebrations and carnival processions will be on Tuesday the 12th June.

Every village and town also has its own Saint, who is venerated in a special procession on one day of the year – so there is a good chance you will be able to catch a procession sooner or later – here is one we stumbled on one Sunday morning in a small village:

Mother’s and Father’s Day

Other unofficial holidays include Father’s day which this year was on Monday 19^th March and Mother’s day the “Dia da Mãe” which is held each year on the first Sunday of May.

Celebration

One thing is certain – even if some public holidays have been cancelled this year – the Portuguese love of carnival, festivals, music, dancing and fireworks; should ensure that there is an event somewhere near you to enjoy!

If you have enjoyed this post, which is part of the My Personal A to Z Challenge, then click on the banner below to find more posts that also begin with the letter H!

and you can click here on this button if you have missed any of My Personal A to Z of Portugal posts so far:

Why not join us too – with your own Personal A to Z?! Find out more about this blog challenge here – My Personal A to Z Challenge

… or perhaps he just stayed in the same tiny hotel room that we did?

Welcome to Part 2 of our journey across half of Europe (well, ok – a slight exaggeration!) – This time we are covering our UK – France – Spain – to Portugal return journey. If you missed Part 1 it’s here – Four languages in Four days

Our time in the UK was lovely – and quite incident free really (phew!). We stayed with dear friends in Dorset – and got very confused by the time difference (that makes it sound like we travelled across the States doesn’t it – rather than just up from France?!) Dave was a sweetie and got out of bed to make me a cup of tea at 8.20 am one morning (lovely!) Except his watch was still on ‘Spanish/French time – and it was only 7.20 am (Not so lovely!)

So here are some more of our hints/tips and journey stories to share with you all – why not make a cup of tea and join us as we travel back ‘home’ to Portugal:

• There is a rider to all of this as well  – I can’t recommend that the first sight of England you experience should be a service station on the M20 – just don’t do it! We almost hot-footed it back to Europe within 30 minutes of ‘landing’ in the UK!

•  We had a better experience at the Holiday Inn in Folkestone on the first night of our return journey – except why do they insist on charging extra for wi-fi? Even Mr Bed didn’t charge us for wi-fi (you will note that Mr Bed has become the marker against which all other hotels are judged – see Part 1 of this post series for more about the joys of Mr Bed!)

• Breakfast was a jolly affair – I am always slightly amused and scared in equal measures by the outdated toast making contraptions that hotels seem to favour – you know the ones, they look like a small medieval torture rack for toast, spinning round and plopping out burnt toast at the bottom. We had one at Police training college – a badge of honour was handed out for all those of us that managed to set fire to the machine in the morning!

• I am also looking forward to becoming old and slightly eccentric – it would appear you can get away with anything when you are old. Picture the said toast torture chamber – a young man puts his bread in and then walks away to wait for it to plop at the other end – old lady walks up – helps herself to his toast – and then when he returns for his toast innocently says to him ‘Oh sorry dear, they asked me and I said I didn’t think it belonged to anyone so they [the waitress] took it away’ – ooooh! No they didn’t – you nicked it! Outrageous!

• We managed to find ourselves in the ‘this way please’ lane leading up to the tunnel for their ‘drugs and firearms’ checks… At this point I should own up to something (!) – one of the things that are very expensive to buy in Portugal are tea-bags (I know I know – how terribly British of me!) and it was one of the only things we stocked up on – as the boot was already a bit full (!) we emptied out the boxes and tucked into the corners of the boot all the little silver packs of tea bags (!) – Add to that the fact that the entire back seat was taken up by two enormous rolls of bubble wrap (being an artist requires a lot of strange items!!) and you can imagine my concern at being stopped and asked to ‘empty the boot’ (groan!)

• In reality, the check involved rolling down the driver’s window so the nice customs man could check the steering wheel with what can only be described as a little duster on a pole… I was itching to ask him if he could wipe the whole dashboard as it was so dusty (!) – but a look from Dave silenced me! A quick check of the car (no emptying the boot – phew!) and we were off again.

• The tunnel itself was uneventful and very pleasant – the 35 minutes really whizz by. Back onto the French motorway system again – it’s a nice easy drive, and the brown tourist signs all along the roads had me faintly amused – they describe fascinating and intriguing chateaus and monuments at regular intervals – but I have to say that try as I might – I couldn’t actually see any of them – and they didn’t appear to relate to any upcoming junctions or exits on the motorway… so if anyone can tell me if they are just a decorative piece of tourist road enhancement – or if they do actually relate to nearby buildings and attractions – please do let me know!

• And so onto our second night’s stay – after Mr Bed I was quietly hoping for an easy victory – the picture on the website looked fine – Hotel Campanile near Poitiers. How could it possibly be worse than Mr Bed?! Oh did I eat my words when we arrived at a faded and jaded 1970’s style hi-de-hi holiday park I had even paid ‘extra’ for a larger room with a double bed and ‘extra’ bed – so you cannot begin to imagine my disappointment to find ourselves given a key to a room that Harry Potter would have recognised as a replica of his cupboard under the stairs! The ‘extra’ bed turned out to be a small camp bed under the double bed – and the room was so small I have no idea where or how you would have actually put the camp bed up if you had needed to use it!! Not quite how it looked online I can assure you

•  Complaining proved fruitless – “sorry madam, maybe the picture you saw was from one of our other resorts” – I nearly choked with laughter at the thought of the place we were stuck with for the night being called a ‘resort’ (!) Oh well, perhaps dinner would be better – they were proudly advertising their high quality restaurant with what looked like a half decent steak and chips as the special on the menu for the night… Well – how can I put this? Have you ever had a fresh ‘steak’ before that came served formed perfectly into a beef burger shape – complete with COLD pepper sauce?! Nope – me neither! As we both ordered the same ‘luxury’ ‘steak’ – and they both came out looking like beef burgers – I can only assume that’s what they think a steak looks like (?!)

• After a hasty glance around the ‘restaurant’ and spotting what looked like very average looking breakfast cereals and pastries – we cancelled the ‘breakfast buffet’ we had booked – which incidentally won the award for the most outrageous price too – 9 Euros EACH (!) and opted for the service station stop in the morning instead! Add that to a room that had ONE tea bag between two people, and a square footage the size of a small cupboard – and you can imagine how chuffed we were with this one for the night – it did have one redeeming feature though – free wi-fi (are you taking note Holiday Inn?!)

• And so onto Spain – and a trip through the amazing tunnels again – and more tolls! We calculated that the return trip for some reason cost less than the way up – a total of 57.80€ – it was over 60€ on the way up to Calais. No idea why it was different – we went the same route!? It’s still a lot of money to add to a journey.

• Our next night was staying back at the Holiday Inn at Vitoria Gasteiz – an uneventful and comfortable stay on our way up and an easy choice on the way back … or so we thought! Our room was really hot when we arrived – and a quick fiddle with the air conditioning proved to have little effect – so we opened the windows, had a quick shower and went out for a walk. On our return the room was still oven-like (it had the gorgeous afternoon sun streaming in!) and we realised that the air conditioning was actually not working – and added to that the shower head that had a broken collar and drooped downwards at an interesting angle – I decided to do the ‘ask the receptionist for another room’ phone call.

• She came up to ‘inspect’ (!) and proceeded to have the most bizarre conversation with us which went along the lines of ‘The air conditioning is broken’ – ‘oh no, it is not broken, you can only have hot in the winter, and cold in the summer’  ‘right, so it is the end of March and it’s 23 degrees outside – so is it summer or winter today?’ ‘oh it’s winter – you cannot have it blowing cold air in here’  Erm – no – sorry – it’s BROKEN!

• She did let us change rooms to a room on the other side of the building – and guess what – the air conditioning didn’t work in there either! Apart from that – we had a very pleasant night there – the rooms are a good size, nice comfy beds and excellent value.

• There is a small cotton paired postscript to this story too – Dave had rinsed out a pair of socks in the first room (guess who didn’t pack enough clothes for the return journey?!!) – and left them hanging out the window – so our apologies to the cleaner who would have arrived in our first room and found it all empty and immaculate… except for the strange pair of socks dangling from the window … !! Ooops!

• The Holiday Inn did get extra brownie points for a lovely breakfast – which was included in the room price (we love laterooms.com for their offers!). As typically British travellers we turned up in jeans and T-shirts for the buffet breakfast – and felt woefully inadequate next to the perfectly made up and beautifully dressed women (and smartly dressed men too!) with their well-behaved and immaculately dressed children!

• I do have a question about Spain though – why do the Spanish appear to have an obsession with fried eggs?! We went to a very nice little bistro restaurant and ordered fish of the day – the plate came out with a nice piece of grilled fish – with some fried squid rings – chips – salad …. and a fried egg! (?!!!) Weird!

• Even stranger than that though is the Spanish ‘tortilla’  – although it translates as an omelette – with various fillings on offer – usually ham or chorizo… so far, so good – what we weren’t expecting was for said omelette to come out folded up and wrapped in a baguette ….??!!

• Food prize of the trip though has to go to the very nice little restaurant we found in Salamanca – with a small warning that most restaurants don’t seem to even start serving food until 8pm – the menu was solely in Spanish (it is so different to Portuguese – we are quite fluent around a Portuguese menu now) – so it was a shock not to recognise hardly anything on offer! We decided to bravely plump for things without having a clue what they were (I cheated a bit for my main course as I knew what pollo was – you can’t do too much wrong with chicken can you?!) The starters turned out fine – but Dave’s main course was hilarious – two large meat covered balls and a stringy piece of something – he cleared his plate and looked it up later… and found he’d eaten bull’s testicles! (With a fried egg of course!)

•  Salamanca was beautiful – such an amazingly historic and delightful place – and well worth the extra night’s stop-over to be able to take time wandering the streets and soaking up the sights – and taking some lovely shots:

• Salamanca is also the venue for my famous hotel victory over Dave – we were a bit ‘neck and neck’ to this point scoring each other’s hotel bookings – and it all hinged on the Hotel Regio I had booked – I was quietly confident – it was a 179€ room (with breakfast included) down to 49€ for the night (thanks laterooms.com) I knew I’d won the minute we walked into the faded art deco grandeur of an amazing reception and hallway – and I danced a jig when we saw the room – beautiful! Yee ha! I won hands down! Big room, huge TV, free wifi, lovely big bathroom (big towels!) and even a balcony! And did I mention the sumptuous (free!) breakfast … and the fact there was a bus service that stopped right outside the hotel that took us into the centre of Salamanca… reception even gave us a map and circled the main sights for us. Result!

• And the hotel also had some rather awesome ‘hang on the door signs too – but I’ve tried hanging the one on the right on my bedroom door back here at home – and so far – no luck!

• There’s on last piece of advice we cannot recommend highly enough – even if you are an intrepid ‘turn up and find out as you go along’ traveller – or more of a ‘plan the route’ person – do research some basic things before you start! Things like major festivals – and bank holiday closing!

• The Plaza Mayor in Salamanca is an exceptionally beautiful place – reminding me instantly of St Mark’s Square in Venice. Stunning architecture, a wide open square absolutely bustling with people, with students sat all over the floor, hen parties (!) and cafés with liveried waiters – and a stunning architectural feast for the eyes and the camera lens. It is at its absolute best at night, lit up and twinkling… well it was until about 5 minutes after we started setting up the cameras – when all the lights went out! Forgot to research that one – trust us to try to take shots on Earth Day – the day every major monument across the world went dark for an hour!

• It’s also worth finding out the bank holidays in different countries – we fancied a quick stop-over at Ikea in Seville (meatballs – naughty but nice!) and a quick wander round the store (we can always find something to buy in Ikea!) Except it was all shut – We were a bit amazed at that one – Ikea is ALWAYS open! But not on April 1^st – it’s a Spanish holiday!

• So we carried on to the final border with the lovely ‘Welcome to Portugal’ sign – and ‘home’ I’m not sure we’ll be in a hurry to do the same route again – although it has given us a taste of travelling again – and there is so much of central and northern Portugal that we are longing to see – so watch this space for more travel posts!

• Our basic route – for anyone planning a similar journey – was Portugal – Seville –Caceres – Salamanca – Valladolid – Burgos – Vitoria Gasteiz – San Sebastian – Bordeaux – Poitiers – Tours – Le Mans – Rouen – Calais and we used the AA route planner web-site which was excellent (to go the same route as us you need to type in Via Seville to stop it sending you up through Portugal)

view from the car!

If you have any similar experiences – or some hints or tips for others planning this journey – please do share them in the Comments section below – and don’t forget if you missed  Part 1 it’s here – Four languages in Four days

Sometimes it’s only hindsight that gives you the view you need to decide that ‘we’d do that differently next time!’

Which is what I am sat here thinking at the moment!

It was a simple thought – we wanted to go back to the UK – and decided that it would be fun (!) to drive up through Spain and France and go through Le Tunnel.

We’d talked to friends who had done it – and it didn’t seem too far looking at the map… and it would be an adventure!

So now we have done it – and thought it would be good to share some things we have learnt along the way with you all – and there were quite a few moments when we sighed heavily and then said ‘oh well, that’ll make a good blog post’ – it was one of those  journeys (they always seem to happen to us!)

And having now completed the return journey too (!) – I have had to divide this post into two sections – yep – we have that many things to write about!

So here they are – our top hints and tips – and don’t do’s! – Part 1

(watch out for Part 2 soon – it will be affectionately called ‘Postcards from my car’)

• Don’t plan your route using the AA route planner and think you are calculating in miles – and then gasp in horror when you work out how much petrol you need to travel ‘2,400 miles’ – not to mention how many hours it will take to drive that far …. we had friends who said that it only takes 3 days to get Northern France … blimey we thought – that’s a lot of driving overnight…. then we realised we had been calculating in kms not miles…. mmm 1,400 miles is a lot less mileage!

• Don’t expect to drink a decent cup of coffee again once you leave Portugal. Oh sob sob, how I missed my lovely ‘uma bica’ espresso for 70 cents a cup – as you travel north the coffee gets weaker and weaker and costs more and more – in Spain it just tastes bitter and boring – in France we had 2 espressos delivered in paper specimen cups at a posh service station café (and they cost 3.40 euros for the privilege!) – and don’t get me started on the soup bowl slosh that is called ‘coffee’ in the UK!

• Service stations are the same the world over – they charge extortionate amounts of money for over-cooked burger and chip menus … Salad? Healthy food? Forget it! The best worst was a service station in France called Mr Paul – he wanted 4.20 euros for ONE macaroon biscuit!! And please don’t let me give you the gory details of the various lovely service station toilets we used along the way! Urgh!

• Oh – but while I am on the subject of toilets … (sorry!) … where are all the toilet seats in France?! Somewhere in the rural interior of France there must be a farmer with a barn stacked full of toilet seats… ’cos there aren’t any in the loos!

The strangest toilet sign!

• Our first hotel in Northern Spain was lovely – except the sink only had a hot tap … who cleans their teeth with hot water?! Bizarre!

• We totally over-estimated the amount of driving to do on the first day – let me assure you that 2 hours to the Portuguese border followed by a drive all the way up to the north of Spain – in one day – is quite a bit further than it seems on a map. Suffice to say our hotel check-in deadline was midnight – and we arrived there at 11.55pm! We were met by a sweet girl on reception who told us she had been worried about us all evening!

• Day 2 began our introduction to the wonderful tolls system. Spain isn’t too bad – at least you can see where your money goes as we travelled through amazing tunnels carved out of the mountains.

• And then there are the French tolls (we’ll blog about how much it costs to travel via the A road motorways and pay the tolls in the next post – I’m still adding it up!) – Suffice to say at this point that I have decided that France is just one giant toll booth, and you might just as well drive along with your window wound down, throwing 5 Euro notes out of the window every 20km. That should just about cover it.

• The best worst bit about the tolls is actually the fact that you have NO idea how much they are going to charge you – you roll up, stick out a hand and try to grab a ticket (the booths are craftily designed to be just out of reach most of the time … and if you pull into a ‘lorry’ one – the machine is sixteen foot up in the air…. ‘awkward’ !) – and then you gleefully drive along a nice clean empty motorway thinking ‘mmm – wonder how much THIS one is going to cost?’ There are no signs telling you how much – or how far – you can go!

• Half of the French motorways were being dug up and widened – so you could see where your money was being put – and this also ensured that you actually paid handsomely for the privilege of driving along a restricted speed limit single lane route – great! No chance of being caught speeding at least – which we had been warned about!

• And so to the second night of our stay – we plumped for Le Mans on the map – it was sort of half way – and as you will discover, Dave was in charge of booking the hotels on the way up (my turn on the way back – oh yes – we are that competitive!!! You’ll discover that as you keep reading the blog – we scored each other marks out of ten all the way!) Well – what can I tell you about our second night’s accommodation … other than to tell you the name … that should do it – never book a hotel called Mr Bed (I kid you not!) and expect too much! The text message reads ROFL and the teasing for Dave continued for most of our trip – well until we arrived at the Campanile hotel on the way back – but that’s for part 2 (!)

• For those of you that have travelled on the Plymouth to Santander ferry – you should be able to picture this one easily – they have recently refurbished the Pont Aven ferry – and we now know where the old toilet/shower plastic podules went – they are nestled into the rooms of the Mr Bed hotel – masquerading as ‘en-suite’ bathrooms – more ROFL!

• 2 small single beds, a sort of desk, the toilet podule – and that was it really. I think even a student backpacker would have been disappointed. Oh and they had ‘child-proof’ sockets for plugs – that were also ‘plug-proof’

• But the best was yet to come – breakfast – which they charged us 7.50 Euros EACH for… I naively wandered around looking for a plate to put my croissant on (not too difficult to find you might think?) – and the very kind and helpful young lad on duty said ‘Oh madam; we don’t have any plates – you use a tray and put a napkin on top – that’s your plate!’ (Good grief!) And just to prove it – here’s my breakfast ‘plate’:

• And so to Calais – and more hotel fun! This one was actually not too bad – except for the name – I do think the Trades Description Act should be enforced here… The Hotel Residence du Golf… sounds good! I had lovely images of rolling countryside, green fairways, open space (I don’t confess to know a thing about golf – but I do know that golf hotels in the UK are usually quite plush affairs!) – so we arrive – look around – not bad – if it wasn’t misty we could have seen the sea – but where was the golf? Oh, hang on a minute – found it – complete with windmill, humps and tunnels – yep – it was a crazy golf course next door (ha ha!) more ROFL!

• Calais was only redeemed by one superb, inexpensive and wonderful restaurant – A Goût du Jour – simply one of the finest meals we have had in a long while – and Tiramisu to die for!

• And so to the tunnel – well not quite – my last piece of advice for today – leave plenty of time to reach the tunnel – even if your hotel is only five minutes away – that will give you time to empty the boot of the car (completely – and it was a bit full too!) and then change your tyre when you walk out in the morning and find your tyre is flat  Groan!

So that’s it for part one – I leave you as we travel nicely through Le Tunnel to arrive in the UK for a couple of weeks – where we had a fab time visiting friends and seeing family – including meeting our boy’s lovely new girlfriend – and we also have to say a HUGE thank you to the friends that loaned us their beautiful house in Lyme Regis for our stay – it was absolutely lovely – thank you – you know who you are

http://juliedawnfox.com/

Many of you will already know Julie from her wonderful My Personal A to Z Challenge  and her own blog Julie Dawn Fox is full of colour, life and energy – Julie is a lovely person who describes herself as:

“a freelance writer with a strong leaning towards travel writing, although I can turn my hand to other topics. I’m also an English language teacher, a career I chose so that I could indulge my passion for travel.

Originally from the UK, I’ve lived in several countries over the years including Spain, Tanzania and Venezuela and travelled to many others. I have finally put down roots in central Portugal where I live in a tiny village with my husband and dog but that hasn’t dampened my enthusiasm for travel”

So many of us have been captivated by the A to Z Challenge – so I am really thrilled to be able to share with you a little bit more about the person behind the challenge:

1 Why did you start to write your blog?

It started out as a space for me to practice writing. At first, I had no particular focus and I’d write about unrelated topics in fits and starts but these days, I try to stick to things which are related to Portugal and to post at least once a week.

2 Why did you choose Portugal to live?

I’d been living in countries that were at least a full day’s travel away from my friends and family back in the UK and felt the need to be a bit closer to them, and to be back in Europe as I wanted to put down some roots. I wasn’t prepared to go back to live in the UK and was looking for work in Spain when I noticed a couple of jobs advertised in Portugal. I did a bit of research and liked what I found so I was delighted to be offered a job in Coimbra.

Flying the flags: European Union, Portugal and Santa Comba Dão

3 What do you love most about where you live?

The view from our house – green hills all around and a river below. I even wrote a post about why I like living in central Portugal.

View of Moura Morta

4 Is there anything you miss about the UK?

Cheese.  Cheddar, especially, although I’ve found a supplier here and am keeping my fingers crossed that they stock up again because I bought the last packet they had. Portuguese cheese can be delicious, too but very expensive.

And friends and family, of course.

5 Quick choice:

• Mac or PC? PC

• Starter or dessert? Starter

• Early morning or late night? Late night, without a doubt

• Air con or log fire? Log fire

• XFactor or Strictly Come Dancing? Neither

6 What book(s) are you reading now?

Portugal a Pé by Nuno Ferreira

Indian Summer by Will Randall

7 Do you have a role model or someone who has inspired you?

I don’t have a role model as such although there are many people I admire for their energy, supportiveness and commitment. I remain in awe of the authors who have held me spellbound with their stories – one day, I’d like to be able to do the same.

8 What blogs and web-sites do you read regularly?

I’ve been enjoying getting to know new blogs through My Personal A to Z Challenge. I’m learning a lot about other countries and cultures and meeting some fantastic people.

9 For people new to your blog, where should they start?

Anywhere, really. Just click on something that takes your fancy in the category cloud or maybe have a look at my Personal A to Z of Portugal posts.

10 What is your favourite meal to order in a restaurant?

Polvo à Lagareiro – octopus served in olive oil with batatas a murro – baby baked potatoes that have been gently crushed so that the oil soaks into the flesh.

11 What were your best subjects at school, and do they relate to your work now?

English – I teach it as a foreign language now and am working on fulfilling my childhood dream of becoming a writer.

12 Do you have any advice for anyone thinking about starting their own blog?

Stick with it. It takes time to build an audience and find your rhythm and style so be patient with yourself.  And it really does help to have a focus for your blog rather than keep it totally random. The more choices I have, the harder I find it to make a decision so now that I’ve limited my blog to matters related to Portugal, I have to work around that and I find it actually helps me come up with ideas.

Esplanade, River Mondega, Coimbra

13 Where else can we find you on the web or in print – any books, articles, Facebook or Twitter account?

I’m on Twitter @juliedawnfox

my Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/juliedawnfox

I have a blog on AngloINFO http://blogs.angloinfo.com/exploring-portugal/

and I set up http://www.myatozchallenge.com/ for Personal A to Z bloggers

You can find some of my articles on http://www.heyportugal.com/

14 Can you share one thing about yourself that we would never know about you from reading your blog?

I’ve just taught myself how to crochet and am working on a granny blanket. My husband thinks it’s hilarious.

15 For people considering a move to live abroad, what would you recommend they do first?

Research and prepare as much as possible. If you can, spend some time in the new place before committing yourself. If not, try to get in touch with expats who have been there a while through expat forums and find out about the things which are important to you.

16 Can you name three favourite places you would recommend people visit if they are on holiday here in Portugal?

It really depends on what people are into but Sintra is magical, there’s something for everyone in Lisbon and the hilltop castles in the Alentejo, such as Marvão and Castelo da Vide are worth going to for completely different scenery and boulders in the wilderness.

View from Marvão castle

17 Do you have any tips or tricks for anyone who has just arrived to live here in Portugal? And is there anything you wish you had found out or discovered sooner about living out here?

Find the expats. They’ve been through the starting out bit already and can help with advice and contacts. There are plenty of forums and websites geared towards expats in Portugal so look around. But don’t limit your contacts to fellow foreigners. Try to establish relationships with local people, too.

Don’t let your lack of language skills put you off trying to get things done. There are services out there, such as Helping Hands Portugal, who can do the talking (or writing) for you if you need it.

18 How’s your Portuguese and what would you recommend for people wanting to learn the language?

I’d say my spoken Portuguese is about intermediate level. I can get what I need in most situations and hold conversations if people are patient with me but I know I make lots of mistakes and I simply don’t have enough vocabulary to express myself well.  I need to start lessons again because I want to be fluent.

I think it’s crucial for anyone living long-term in another country to learn the language so start as soon as you can – before you move there if possible. Finding a local language class will help you make friends as well as structure your learning and give you real people to practice with so find out what’s available in your area.

19 What is your favourite:

• Film? Monsoon Wedding

• Book? A Suitable Boy, Vikram Seth

• Album/Music? Dreadzone,  Second Light

• Gadget? corkscrew

20 And finally, where do you think you will be in five years’ time, and what will you be doing?

Still living here in the same house in Portugal writing yet another bestselling book! There’s no harm in dreaming, right?

Thanks Julie – don’t forget to check out Julie’s blog Julie Dawn Fox – and for even more interviews and introductions to new blogs – head over to my other blog The Thought Palette – today you can meet Jennifer from My Sardinian Life  

As Jennifer is not linked to Portugal and my series of interviews of Portugal blog writers I have featured Jennifer’s interview on The Thought Palette – as she is a writer and poet who will inspire you – and her answers tie in really well with Julie’s interview. You can read her interview here – Sharing a Sardinian Life with you

Thanks again Julie for such a lovely interview – and also for allowing me to use some of the beautiful images from your blog too (all images on this post are copyright Julie Dawn Fox – click on an image for more information)

And here’s an extra treat for you all – we’re in this week’s Algarve Resident newspaper:

You might just be able to read it – or it’s in the local Algarve shops this week! Fame at last!

“Graffiti is an impulse to get recognized” Mint & Serf

This is going to be a different post! Despite my best efforts to think of something else for G (without resorting to golf!) the idea of covering graffiti kept coming back to me – so G is for Graffiti in My Personal A to Z of Portugal

It has to be said that wherever you go – you can find graffiti. And it does seem particularly bad in some parts of the Algarve.

So I thought I’d try and find out a bit more and share it with you. According to Wiki the word Graffiti is a ‘mass noun’ used in the plural and the singular is actually ‘graffito’  and is described as the ‘writing or drawings scribbled, scratched, or sprayed illicitly on a wall or other surface in a public place’ The word originates from the Greek γράφειν — graphein— meaning “to write.”

Wiki then stretches it a bit for me saying that it has existed since ancient times, with examples dating back to Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire. Mmm not sure they would have called it graffiti then!

(I am also reminded instantly of the wonderful sketch in the Life of Brian where Brian is caught daubing abuse in Latin and told off for not conjugating his verbs properly and told to write it out a hundred times – priceless!)

But nowadays it is rightly seen as vandalism; and can be dealt with as such. I am not going to grace the pages of this blog with any clear examples of ‘tags’ or ‘tagging’ – the annoying and pointless expression of a name or nickname which can unfortunately be seen repeated on so many buildings – and not even derelict ones. Only last week we had some ‘pink’ tags added to nearby houses – it is difficult to remove – and difficult to police, and can provide upset and annoyance to home-owners.

But as an artist, I am intrigued by the social and political messages that can be portrayed through graffiti – Banksy is of course the most famous exponent of this form of expression.

There are also some examples of fine art work and design which can be seen amidst the tags – like the image above from Lagos – and also some strongly political messages and emblems which are often repeated – and added to – in an area.

I have no idea what the significance of these pills and bottles mean to the person who sprayed it – but it is intriguing none the less:

The graffiti artist will always be found with a can of spray paint – having tried to create art with a spray can I am amazed at the intricacy of some of the work you can see displayed. You can also see images which are made by using stencils which are simply sprayed over – a popular method to create a detailed design very quickly – and which can be repeated over and over again.

There is an interesting dilemma for councils to contend with – on the one hand condemning the tags and graffiti which are sprayed around the streets, buildings and even public transport – and yet also often wanting to support and encourage legitimate ‘street art’. You can find out more about ‘legal’ sites via this website Legal Walls  - Our nearest site is the Skate Park in Portimão – the Parque de Jogos – which allows legitimate graffiti – I think I might go and check it out and see if there is any decent work!

In 2011 the Guardian newspaper (link to article) reported on the rise of graffiti as ‘urban art’ to be seen in Portugal. In Lisbon this has even been taken a step further with the Crono Project  which actually commissioned artists to use graffiti to transform neglected buildings:

Photograph: Alexander Silva click for link

The crocodile on the left is by Ericailcane, an Italian artist.

There is even a Galeria de Arte Urbana  which was set up by the council to give street artists a legal place to operate:

Photograph: Rachel Dixon/Guardian click for link

But this is not confined to Lisbon – I am impressed by this graffiti closer to home, situated near Vilamoura, with an amazing amount of detailed work and design on an old wall:

There are also examples in Faro which are interesting – there is a brightly decorated derelict house full of eye-catching design:

And as an aside I am also fascinated by the intricately painted hangings which are used to cover up a building which is being renovated near the Cathedral:

In Portimão you can find this perplexing image – is it graffiti – or a painting done by the Council to brighten up a wall?

And also in Portimão there is an example of the use of art to disguise – in this case the addition of extra windows on an empty building on the first floor – very clever stuff!

And this is my favourite art creating a realistic ‘window’ on a building – it’s obviously old now – but the detail is still there for you to enjoy:

But try as I might, I can find very little in the press which is actually challenging or targeting the tagging and vandalism style graffiti which is around us. In 2010 the Algarve Resident (link) reported that the then Social Democratic (PSD) Algarve MP Mendes Bota had criticised the Ministry of Internal Affairs for its lack of action to stop graffiti vandalism from spreading in the country.

Mendes Bota said: “I travel the country from north to south and I do not like what I see: a country dirtied by graffiti,” he stressed.

The politician has asked the Ministry why the laws available to fight this sort of crime are not being enforced and why more isn’t done by the authorities to prevent graffiti vandalism.

I am uncertain whether this is just not seen as a priority, or that the resources and/or willingness is not in place to tackle this problem – but I have to be honest and say that in some areas it is particularly noticeable – and where public monuments and statues are defaced (for example in the gardens in Silves) and nothing is done to remove it – or tackle it – then it cannot reflect well on our tourism and ‘public’ face of the Algarve region.

Perhaps we need to do more to encourage projects like the Graffiti Olhão project (link) which encouraged legal urban art to be produced – with the aim of encouraging public and particularly youth participation in ‘official’ areas and walls whilst also discouraging illegal vandalism.

Graffiti Olhão (click for link)

So – is it art? Is it ‘urban art’? Can we ‘legitimise’ some forms of graffiti as ‘art’ whilst also targeting and policing the ‘vandalism’ that we can also see around us? And who decides which work is art and which is not?

Certainly Dave has found some of the designs on a derelict wall in Lagos particularly inspiring as subjects to photograph.

What do you think? Do you see the design and art hidden amongst some of the graffiti you see around you – or is it all mindless criminal activity that should be addressed?

I leave you with an interesting quote from Banksy – who is surely the leading ‘face’ of graffiti:

“Painting something that defies the law of the land is good. Painting something that defies the law of the land and the law of gravity at the same time is ideal.” Banksy, ‘Wall and Piece’

If you have enjoyed this post, which is part of the My Personal A to Z Challenge, then click on the banner below to find more posts that also begin with the letter G!

and you can click here on this button if you have missed any of My Personal A to Z of Portugal posts so far:

Why not join us too – with your own Personal A to Z?! Find out more about this blog challenge here – My Personal A to Z Challenge

did you know that WordPress is now showing your stats on a map?!

And a really cool inter-active map too!

Well I had to go and have a look – and here it is – photo-shopped a bit to show the colours better

WOW! thank you so much to everyone – from all these amazing countries – for visiting this blog.

And a quick random selection of countries shown on the map includes Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Romania, UAE, Yemen, Malaysia, Viet Nam, Bangladesh, Lithuania, the Maldives, Mauritius, Indonesia, Fiji, Serbia, China, Qatar and Macao…

I am a bit humbled – and amazed by this!

Thank you Jennifer – and thank you WordPress – and thank you – all of you – for coming over and visiting Algarve Blog.

Jo describes herself so well on her blog – “Hi!  I’m Jo!  Johanna when I’m feeling posh, Jan to my Dad, and Joasiu to my Polish family.  A bit of a mix-up, I guess.  The one definite, however, is my restless nature.  I can’t be still for too long, unless of course it’s sunny and I’ve got a good book.  I love to travel and to explore our world.  It doesn’t have to be the big wide world- I can be ridiculously happy not too far from home, so long as I’m out there, just embracing life”.

Jo is also currently part of the ‘My Personal A to Z Challenge’ completing her A to Z of both Portugal and Poland. She writes with passion, humour and skill; and always gives us well researched and beautifully illustrated posts – I am particularly enjoying finding out more about her Polish family.

So that’s Jo introduced to you – and now here are her great answers to my 20 questions – complete with some lovely photographs from Jo’s local area for you to enjoy.

1 Why did you start to write your blog?

I’m just a frustrated travel writer.  I was writing on a regular basis for a venture called Simonseeks, who paid amateurs a minimal fee for their travel guides.  I loved doing it and we developed a nice little community, sharing information and encouragement.  Unfortunately it wasn’t financially viable and after 18months it ended rather unsatisfactorily.  I wrote for a few different sites after that, but finally decided I needed my own voice, and took the plunge with WordPress.

2 Why did you choose where you are currently living?

Accident of birth if you’re talking about Hartlepool.  Mam was born here and Dad was happy to fit in.

If you mean Tavira, we had a little money to invest in a property abroad.  We were going on a family holiday to Vilamoura in Portugal, October 2003, never having been to the country before. I did a bit of research on the net and liked the look of Tavira.  Fell in love with it at first sight, rain and all.  Our son was intensely disappointed as he thought we would buy in somewhere trendy, but we loved its character.  We’ve owned a home there since February 2004 and hope to make it our permanent home someday.

3 What do you love most about where you live?

In both instances it’s proximity to the sea.  Hartlepool is on the north east coast of England with a marina and good beaches (a tad chilly at times- nearly got frostbite Nordic walking there the other day).  I can’t imagine not living close to water.  One of the delights of Tavira for me is the ferry ride to the beach.  There are plenty of others to choose from but that stretch of water is magical with the sun glinting on it.

4 If you could live anywhere in the world – where would it be?

Oh, don’t start me off!  I would love to live everywhere-  no idea why I don’t have a gypsy caravan!  I read other blogs with such envy.  I’d never fancied the Dominican Republic but I only have to read Lindsays posts and I want to go.  Same with Sami and Barb in Australia.  Unspoilt beaches and mountains are what call to me most, but I’d give most places a chance (even Doncaster…no offense Doncastrians!)

5 Quick choice:

• Mac or PC?  PC- only use a Mac when it rains.
• Starter or dessert? Starter
• Early morning or late night? Love sunrises and sunsets just about equally.  If I get engrossed I just keep going.
• Air con or log fire? Fire- proper warmth and toast on a toasting fork
• Summer or winter? Don’t be silly- Summer of course

6 What book(s) are you reading now?

Just finished “The Love of Stones” by Tobias Hill, which I found fascinating.  I didn’t know much about gems and it travels around the world trying to trace the history of a particular beauty.  Just started Patricia Wastvedt’s “The German Boy.”  Her prose is beautiful.  It’s an aftermath of the war love story basically- very promising.  I love books with foreign settings and I usually have a travel guide or wanderlust tale on the go too.

7 Do you have a role model or someone who has inspired you?

Would love to have been Joanna Lumley or Michael Palin in another life.

8 What blogs and web-sites do you read regularly?

Iain Mallory on Mallory Travels; Andrew Petcher Have bag,will travel; Devouring Scotland (fabulous photos), Suzanne Courtney’s The Travelbunny; and Lucy Dodsworth’s On the Luce (met Suze and Lucy on Simonseeks). All the A-Zers of course and I keep adding new travel blogs constantly.

9 For people new to your blog, where should they start?

Good question- I tend to pick a title or place name that grabs me and go from there.  I suppose Talking about Tavira and Discovering Durham sum me up, and there’s Exploring the Polish Connection if that appeals.  Just get lost in there- I love it when I’m visiting a blog and can’t find my way out again.

10 What is your favourite meal to order in a restaurant?

We have a lovely local we call Fred’s but it’s really “O Xico” in Tavira, where they do gorgeous salmon on a hot griddle.  I like trying Bacalhaus too- some are more successful than others.  Otherwise, Italian pastas.

11 What were your best subjects at school, and do they relate to your work now?

English lit, history and French.  Only distantly.

12 Do you have any advice for anyone thinking about starting their own blog?

It helps if you have a passion for something or a definite theme.  As you well know Alyson I’m not good with technology so a site like WordPress was great to get me started but in retrospect I think I should have looked around more before jumping in.  It makes a difference if you want to try to make money from your blog or not.

13 Where else can we find you on the web or in print – any books, articles, Facebook or Twitter account?

No books (yet) but I have written for Matador Travel, and Thelma and Louise, as well as Simonseeks.  There are some links on my blog.  I’m currently writing for a site called Travelwkly.com which is just getting set up.

14 Can you share one thing about yourself that we would never know about you from reading your blog?

I love to sing.  I once tried out for a local band but was so nervous I forgot all the words to the Beatles, “Michelle”.  Didn’t get the job!

15 For people considering a move to live abroad, what would you recommend they do first?

Research and then probably short term rental to make sure it’s for you and the novelty won’t wear off.

16 Can you name three favourite places you would recommend people visit if they are on holiday in your home country?

Grassington in the Yorkshire Dales is a beauty. There’s a link to a guide on my sidebar.

Runswick Bay and Whitby on the Yorkshire coast- spectacular scenery and cliff top walks.

The Lake District- mountains AND water- yes!!!

Do I get to do the Algarve too?  No that’s probably not necessary- you just need to read the blog.

17 What would be your favourite way to spend a weekend that you had all to yourself?

Visit somewhere new of course- I’m a compulsive traveller.  It would have to be a rail or coach trip as I don’t drive.

18 Can you speak any other languages and what would you recommend for people wanting to learn a new language?

Immerse yourself in the language- preferably find somebody to speak it with, but if not there are lots of internet sites to help.  Don’t be lazy like me.  I was doing ok with Polish when I attended local classes but the funding ran out and you need self discipline to do it on your own.

I’m a dabbler.  I’ve never really used my French, learnt a bit of Italian then Spanish, and had just got started on Portuguese when Polish became a necessity.

19 What is your favourite:

• Film? Like soppy films, anything with Paul Newman, and Fred and Ginger….”heaven, I’m in heaven…”
• Book? Too hard- Joyce Carol Oates, Paulina Simons, Anita Shreve…
• Album/Music? Michael Buble, Billy Joel, Paul Simon, oh lots!
• Gadget? Laptop- it’s becoming a source of friction.  I need my own but share with my beloved.

20 And finally, where do you think you will be in five years’ time, and what will you be doing?

Hopefully in or near Tavira but it depends a bit on Dad.  I don’t like to abandon him and he wouldn’t come with.  Writing, strolling on beaches, exploring…

Thank you for asking!

Thank you Jo for some wonderful answers – and I really recommend you head over to her blog RestlessJo to read more from this lovely lady.

And Jo has also turned the tables on me – so you can find my answers to some very similar questions on her latest post An Interview with Alyson Sheldrake (gulp! that’s me!!)

And there will be more interviews from my favourite bloggers coming soon!