Yesterday was our first full day here in Albufeira, and we spent most of it catching up on sleep and getting over jet lag.
The apartment is very nice and newly decorated. At this time of the year, it is still cool at night. The apartment had been shut up for several weeks with the electric shutters closed so our first night was cool. There is a heater in the living room and bedroom which work quite well, but no heat at all in the bathroom. Once I am under the hot shower, it takes quite a lot of fortitude to turn off the water and step onto the tiled floor.
We rallied in the late afternoon and walked down to sea level via a steep path. The path leads to the old part of town with its narrow streets and cobbled sidewalks. There were more people milling around this area and I suspect that many people come here for a cheap boozy weekend at this time of the year. We found a little supermarket and picked up a couple of essential items and went down to the beach. There were a few brave souls on the sand but nobody was in the water.
We made our way back to the same restaurant that we had eaten at the previous night. Brian tried one of the traditional Portuguese stews and opted for fish and shellfish. I tried the Golden Bream. Loads of nasty bones which were tiresome. We decided to walk home via the steep path which has no lighting at all so it was as well that Brian had his trusty flashlight with him.
February 29, 2020. Saturday
We were feeling livelier today so we set off for the marina. Actually there are two marinas, a fishing marina and a yacht marina. Both were quite crowded today, possibly because the weather forecast wasn’t very good. The path to the marinas runs along the cliffs so then it is a steep descent to sea level. On the way to the marinas, there are many buildings which have been started but abandoned before the condos were finished. We suspect that these were casualties of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis and will never be completed. There were a few other people walking around but it became increasingly misty and a very fine drizzle started up.
By the time that we had walked along the edge of the marina, it was raining much harder so we walked back to our local supermarket and then home. The cobbled sidewalks are very decorative in the sunshine when it is dry but absolutely lethal in the rain. We were glad that we were walking uphill. On the way we passed the street sign below. Cliff Richard, my teenage heart throb, seems to be a big deal here and has a vineyard outside of town.
Although it is still officially winter here and many of the shops, restaurants, and hotels are still closed for the season, there are many citrus trees already in fruit, and the strawberries we bought yesterday were grown somewhere in Portugal.
The complex here has two pools but as neither of them is heated, they are deserted. Tomorrow we will venture further and hope that the weather is better. According to the locals, it hasn’t rained here for weeks.
hubertsineuropespring2020 