Weekend in Portugal
With all the rain we get in Ireland, as well as the cruel 6 hours of daylight, it is almost necessary to take a little beach vacation. So, I booked a ticket to Portugal with a handful of other Boston College kids in order to experience the lovely southern coast, called Praia da Rocha.
We stayed in a lovely hostel/house called Villa Joaninha, owned by a lady named Sofia. We basically had the house to ourselves for the weekend, and Sofia became our adoptive mom.
Our hostel was located just steps from the beach, and we had a gorgeous ocean view out of our bedroom window.
On our first night in Portugal, it poured with vengeance. It turns out they hadn't had rain in six months, go figure. However, after a much-needed good night's sleep, the rain let up and gave us the opportunity to go into town.
The museum of Portimão taught us that fish canneries had once been the driving force of this town's economy. None of these canneries remain; most have moved to northern Portugal or international locations.
Next we stopped in at Casa da Isabel, which is famous for their cakes. Our table was not quite large enough to accommodate our sizable order.
Before:
After:
We then stopped in at a store that was recommended to us by a worker at the museum. It contained a huge selection of Portugal's finest sardines, mackerels, and Pate's. For 2.75 euro, we enjoyed a glass of wine and homemade bruschetta, topped with sardines, of course.
The next day, the sun was out and the weather was perfect. We ventured down to the beach, where we walked along the boardwalk and passed under a stone archway. When we emerged, we were in "Narnia." Simply put, it was perfect.
After a grueling day in the warm sun, we sat in a cafe atop the cliffs overlooking the ocean, and sipped on a liter (or 2) of sangria. When we thought it couldn't get any better, we got to see the sunset on the horizon.
That evening, we returned to our hostel for a cooking lesson from Sofia. We made a simple but fresh tuna paté as an appetizer, a duck, rice, and chorizo dish for dinner, and mango mousse for dessert. Sofia even brought along her husband, and two of her kids, to join. It was truly an authentic, Portuguese family dinner.
The next day, it was not easy but we had to say goodbye to Portugal. We squeezed our last few hours in the sun, hugged Sofia goodbye, and were driven back to the airport by a very suave-looking Portuguese man. The sunburn on my back was proof of the weekend's success.