Hi Peeps,

We recently spent a few weeks in Portugal. First time I had ever been to Portugal. In fact, the trip was one of several firsts.  First ‘proper’ holiday with Small Daughter, the first time I have flown with Ryan Air and the first time we have tried Airbnb.  It was quite pleasant, but I think of the firsts, we may only try a couple again.

Vacation Time

Since Small was born, we spent most of our time as expats in places such as Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Hence, whilst we led a very fortunate and privileged lifestyle, this meant that annual vacations usually comprised travelling to the UK to catch up with family and friends.  It also allowed me the opportunity to potter about the old homestead, doing stuff.  It’s amazing how much stuff there was to do. I enjoyed this, the girls less so, I suspect.

So, now that they are based full time back in Bonny Scotland, they need their few weeks in the sun.  Personally, as I still work away most of the time, I would be quite happy to go home and potter all the time. I don’t really do holidays. I keep thinking its wasted time when I could be doing something useful. But that would be mean and selfish. Plus I have lots of opportunities for pottering these days. And so Wifey organized a few weeks in Portugal for us.  Our first ‘proper’ holiday and in an Air B&B. That would be exciting and hopefully the first of many such breaks.

Where to Go?

Don’t know why we opted for Portugal. Neither of us had been before, so I suppose that’s a good reason.  To be honest, whilst I have spent the last 20 odd years living and travelling around the world, I really haven’t seen much of Europe.  I spent a year living in Paris. Worked a few months in Mannheim, and Oberhausen in German. I have visited Italy and Cyprus and did a European tour; featuring Germany and Poland, with a youth orchestra a long, long time ago. And that’s about it.  Wifey has far more European experience, so I followed her lead.

The Journey 

Ryan Air was a revelation.  I had grave misgivings about them but was pleasantly surprised. Wifey had booked extra legroom seats

Ryan Air to Faro was quite comfortable

and priority boarding, plus a few other cost ++ extras. Such as extra hold luggage so we weren’t limited to just one change of clothing each for the duration.  Check in was easy and quite efficient. The priority boarding was a waste as I misread the boarding time. We were happily sitting in a restaurant awaiting food when the last call for the flight was announced.  I thought it can’t be?  But it was, so ensued a frantic dash to the gate, still clutching my steak sandwich having, had to forgo my beer.  Afraid to say, we were that annoying family who arrive late and this despite getting to the airport hours earlier than required.

The flight itself was uneventful and relatively comfortable.  We indulged in some of the Ryan air snack food for an extortionate price to make up for the food abandoned at the airport. We even bought the special offer scratch-cards, although we didn’t get a sniff of a prize. No, all in all Ryan Air proved to be effective of separating you from your Euros, but otherwise ok and I would far rather fly with them again than say, Fly Dubai. Or BA.

Faro

Surprisingly nippy BMW520 that transported us around Monchique

We picked up a hire car at Faro airport, a very nice BMW 520 and set off. It’s about an hour’s drive from Faro to Monchique. There, we were to be met by the owner and directed to the villa which lies off the main road down a tight, twisty, turny and rather steep track. These tracks seem to be a local speciality of the area. It’s riddled with them. Wifey suggested a shortcut one day down a similar track. All steep slopes and hairpin bend’s with extra added sheer drops. All went well until it suddenly stopped, blocked by a badly parked lorry. My only option was to reverse back up the steep, hairpin-bendy track, trying to ignore the sheer drops threatening any mistake. Made for an exciting 10 minutes.

The Villa.

I had never even considered using Airbnb. It seemed a strange concept to me, but when pressed by Herself, I could see the benefits

Casa 5 Palmeiras. Our holiday home from home

, I supposed.  After some dedicated on-line searching, Wifey found what appeared to be a very nice little place near Monchique. Casa 5 Palmeiras. The on-line pictures looked very nice indeed.  Spacious kitchen, nice lounge and dining area. 3 bedrooms and a couple of ensuite’s. Outside, loungers arranged around a small, but very inviting little pool, all surrounded by some attractive scenery.

So how was the accommodation?  Honestly? Vaguely disappointing.  The villa could be a stunning place and the location was as described. Possibly a little too far out of Monchique. It’s about 10kms down a winding and a quite busy hill road. Not really walkable. Certainly, wouldn’t want to do it coming back uphill. So, no pleasant wanderings to small, inviting tavernas. Everywhere and anywhere was a drive.

Looking on the Bright Side

The problem with the villa was it was all a bit tired. Some damp issues meant that paint was blistering and falling off the walls around 6 inches above the floor. The place smelled a bit musty, especially one of the bedrooms. Big black ants had taken up residence in a kitchen cupboard and the sofa’s in the living area were ripped and possibly some of the most uncomfortable seating I have ever tried. The owners, however, were lovely and couldn’t do enough for us.  Plus it was only somewhere to sleep, so we made a decision to get on with it, ignore the flaws and concentrate on the positives. The location, the wonderful scenery and the amazing weather.

Next morning it rained and low cloud meant we couldn’t see more than a few meters. It was also cold. Was this a portent?  Fortunately, the weather got better. Ironically, and I do like the symmetry, it was cold, wet and miserable on our last day too.  

Without boring you with the details, my potted summary of Monchique and Portugal follows.

Monchique and Portugal

Monchique was small, quiet, pretty and quaint in a rather pointless way. We were initially confused by what seemed like giant cinnamon sticks lying around the place. Then realized, this was cork from the recent harvest. Very interesting. Some very pleasant restaurants in and around the village meant we were well fed. We found some strange but quirky attractions nearby. Top of my list is the odd ‘Parque de Mina’. We spent an enjoyable afternoon wandering around its ‘attractions’ with a slightly bemused expression. The staff were very friendly and helpful but, despite our visit, I still have no idea what it’s supposed to be. None the less, I am glad we went.

By the Waterfalls at Parque de Mina

Wifey losing her head at Parque de Mina

Feeding the piglets at Parqu de Mina

As for Portugal itself. Well, the drivers love tailgating. The beaches are great, the Algarve coastline with its rugged geology and caves is fascinating. The sea, however, was baltic. First time I have stood in the sea up to my waist, sweating and being sunburned on top whilst simultaneously getting hypothermia from the waist down. (The same applied to our small pool. I half expected to find ice on it some days, perhaps the odd polar bear wandering around or occasional penguin, so cold was it).

Rugged Coastline Caves

Pretty Harbours

Amazing Scenery

People make Places

The Portuguese people seemed very nice and friendly. The food was great. I never realized the Portuguese ate so much pork.

Black Pork Monchique Style

Suited me as I love pork. We had it in some form or other at least once if not twice every day. I also discovered a taste for Super Bock beer. I wasn’t sure at first but perseverance paid off. Wifey, however, failed with the Vine Verdi, describing it more than once as fermented grass juice. The local frissante wine made up for it, fortunately.  Portugal is quite touristy but then it is a pretty place.  That said, I don’t think we will go back.  I think we all prefer a place with beaches where you can enjoy being in the sea rather than it being an endurance test.  We can get plenty of that in Scotland.

Incidentally, regarding Airbnb, I suspect we won’t do that again either. We checked out some of the local hotels. Both at the coast and near Monchique. We could have had a superior suite with half board in a 4 or 5 * hotel for a similar amount to the villa rental.  Just saying.

As a break it was fine. Not as relaxing as I had hoped. Try relaxing on a beach with a glass of wine, a good book an 8 yr old. Never going to happen.  Next break is in Q4. We are off to the Mexican Riviera for an all-inclusive. Warm pools, warm seas and a Kids Club. Now your talking.

And on that happy note. 

Graham