Lagos

We've arrived at the southern coast of Portugal. Leaving Lisbon on Wednesday was a bit strange, as we'd become attached to the town and had finally figured out our neighborhood and the transport system and the surrounding area--just when you get comfortable, it's time to move on. But we had a great time there, and we're glad to be moving again. And moving we are. We've covered many miles since we left the city, and after a short stay in a town called Mertola, in a 'Natural Park' area near the Spanish border, we've headed south and then west, and here we are in Lagos.

(Cathy is insisting that I include something: On our last full day in Lisbon, setting out early in the morning to check out a street market in the Alfama section of town, walking through the square behind our pensao, we happened upon a couple trolleys, the streetcars run on electricity provided by a grid of electric wires suspended above the streets, that were a bit different from the norm. These were piloted by Santa Claus--two of them, both filled with the smiliest of children, all wearing santa hats and holding bags filled with toys, and holding balloon animals made by the clown also on board. The marquis that normally holds the trolley's (called 'electricos' here), said 'Electrico de Natal,' or the Christmas Trolley. It was absolutely hilarious. Both Santas were totally jolly (not the norm for electrico drivers), and even paused to ho ho ho in the doorway after Cathy briefly boarded to snap a couple photos. It was a very nice thing to see.)

For the past few days internet access has been hard to come by--and that's a good thing. It was nice, after making the move, to be out in the middle of nowhere, nothing but trees and empty road and animals grazing and sun sun sun. There are also more stray dogs out here, which Cathy has made it her mission to feed and pet. All of them. Every one. I swear. She's good like that. The Pied Piper of Poops. The driving was fantastic, and again all I could think of was how fun it'd be on a road bike. Smooth pavement, tight windy country roads, steep hills and amazing scenery.

So, now we're in Lagos. It's a bit more developed than I expected, though I'm glad to be here in the off-season, as it's fairly calm and quiet, at least compared to how it usually is. This is party central during high backpacker season, where all the kids come to soak up sun and beer and tear it up for a few weeks or months. The beaches now are empty, looooong stretches of sand that lead to large rocky outcroppings that stretch off as far as we can see. The city itself is gorgeous, very narrow streets, steep pitches, not much room to maneuver. I say this from experience. In trying to find a place where we hoped to get a room, just on the edge of the old city, we went a bit too far and found ourselves, behind the wheel of our 4-door VW Polo, stuck smack in the midst of the maze of these streets. A full circuit later, hoping to get out of there without scraping all the paint from the sides of the car, we missed the turn to get out and had no choice but to do the whole thing again. This time it was not so fun. I was tailgated the whole way through, and our map proved woefully inadequate to let us know where we really were. We almost missed the way out a third time, but some quick navigation and turning got us to a parking area where we left the car and found the address on foot. It was comedic, keystone-copslike, but we made it out with the vehicle and our marriage intact. Thank goodness.

So, we've had a pitcher of sangria at a sidewalk cafe, and after this, we'll clean up and head out for dinner. From here we'll do daytrips to Sagres and Porches and other sleepy seaside destinations. Can't wait.

Hope all are well.