Today we were transferring from Sintra to Douro. We knew it would be a long day in the car so we had planned to stop at a couple of places on the way.
The first stop on our road trip was the mediaeval town of Óbidos. It is very similar to Saint Malo in France (which is a day trip for us from Jersey). It has well preserved surrounding walls and a maze of streets in the interior. I loved the little cobbled streets, white houses, blooming flowers and tiny shops selling everything from handmade goods to tourist tat. We walked through the streets to the far end and admired the castle then we went up onto the ramparts. The ramparts are quite narrow in places and don’t have a rail (which was a little disconcerting as I was having a bit of a dizzy day) so we took a few panoramic pictures and made our way back down. We only stayed for an hour but I’m really glad we stopped. There was just enough time for a single shot of ginginha from a chocolate cup. The scenery is beautiful and the aqueduct is striking against the otherwise rural landscape.
Next we stopped (well… we tried to stop) at Nazaré. All I wanted to do was visit the light house (Farol da Nazaré) next to one of the biggest wave spots in the World. Sadly, that was not to be. Nazaré itself is quite rundown and the satnav was being annoying with its suggestions. Then the carparks were either full or closed and there were these old guys trying to convince people to park in their fields and charge you for the privilege. I got the impression that if we had parked and not paid them, they would have scratched up the hire car. Anyway, after three tries at parking we gave up and just moved on. I was a bit disappointed.
Our final stop was the Douro Valley. Wow, what amazing scenery! Twisty roads, sweeping terraced valleys and vineyards boasting huge signs announcing their property. I think we are going to be very happy here.