Portugal 2022

Stephane and I finally got on a plane- TOGETHER- and headed off to Portugal on our 1st International trip since the Pandemic.

Can you guess which luggage is mine?

After a VERY long flight with delays and a connection we finally made it to madeira. We rented a very small car and headed to our hotel. The Pestana Churchill Bay.

Church Hill Bay is in a a cute fishing village about 7 kilometer along the Câmara de Lobos from the main city of Funchal.

We had a very small room. Honestly this is my least favorite hotel of the trip. The view was fantastic. But it was so small and the fridge didnt work, However, I did get the flu on day 1 so I may be a bit jaded. :)

Ok, Madeira. When we arrived we had a glass of Madeira wine at reception and wandered out to find dinner. We would up in a cute fish place nearby..

Day 2: We woke up early and started the 7km walk to Funchal. I started out ok, and the walk was super pretty, but about 4k in I started to feel sick. Really sick. So we jumped in a cab and headed back. Stephane was able to wander our cute town for a bit. But It definitely put a damper on his day.

Day 3: After a neg covid test, I sucked it up and we jumped in the car to explore. We did the whole island. There is a place where a waterfall hits the freeway, many saltwater natural pools, great view points, yummy bakeries etc. We stopped for a hike at Fanal Forest. Fanal Forest is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is filled with 600 yr old trees and usually has a cool fog… but not on the day we went. After exploring the whole island we headed back to the hotel for dinner…. I still wasn’t eating anything besides bread.

Day 4: We got up with the intention to watch sunrise from the highest point of the island and do a 4 hour hike. Pico do Arieiro. Well since I was just recovering we got there watched sunrise and walked to a great view point. Then sadly we turned around and headed into Funchal to see the art walls, market and old town. Then well Stephane got sick…. yup. And we headed back to our hotel.

Day 5: We flew to Porto. We checked into our amazing suite at the PortoBay Theatro hotel. We had an amazing suite!! We didnt have free breakfast here but there was so much nearby. After Stephane took a nap and started to feel better, we wandered the beautiful streets of Porto. We wound up eating in a TINY restaurant with traditional food. Its crazy how cheap it is 9$ for appetizer, dinner, desert, bread and 1.50 for a glass of Port. :)

Day 6: Exploring Porto, Port tasting sunset etc. DON’T MISS: Sunset from the bridge to Giai (not sure how to spell it) Taste Port in Giai

Day 7: Today I decided to base our day on food. :) We started with breakfast at Swallow Decadent Brunch is located at Campo dos Mártires da Pátria, Rua dos Caldeireiros 144, 4050-368 Porto, Portugal.

This was our FAVORITE breakfast on the trip. Then we walked thru a gallery district to a tiny YUMMY bakery

Masseira (Bakery), Rua de Diogo Brandão 69 4050-229 Porto, Portugal

We were supposed to then have lunch at Casa Guedes and have their famous roasted port sandwich…. But I was so full….. Will have to go back and try it.

Porto is known for tins of misc seafood. They are beautiful. Not for me. But

For dinner we headed to a small village just off the trolly on the way to Fa (also a 7$ uber ride) and ate at a traditional but DELICIOUS place called: Broas

nearby was another great looking restaurant that I couldn’t get a reservation for but totally plan to go back to. It is a Michelin Stared place called Restaurante Onze.

Day 8: The next morning we grabbed some pastries and coffee and headed out to the Duoro Valley. There is a wonderful stop on the way into the Duoro in a beautiful town, Amarente, with a castle nearby. We stopped for “green” wine and a charcuterie plate. Adega Kilowatt

The town is famous for great pastries, and random penis shaped sweets. LOL Def worth a stop.

We checked into the beautiful Quinta de Corte. For breakfast they had a wonderful spread and made fresh eggs straight from the chicken coop to order. We did the tour there and it was so fun. They still stomp the grapes. But mainly the design of this place is fantastic.

Day 9: We spent a day wandering around the small towns and driving the landscape of the valley. It is really stunning.

Day 10: We headed to Lisbon. We stayed in a nice place. Again it was a suite :) with a small kitchen. Located in the Bario Alto at the The Lumiares Hotel & Spa. It was in a great location I would look near here or in the Chiado area. If you dont stay in the Spa hotel have a drink on their rooftop and an appetizer. The view is awesome. I originally tried to book a quirky hotel called Casa Balthazar.http://www.casabalthazarlisbon.com. But is was full. It was POURING but we managed to wander a bit.

Day 11: We ate at our 1st Michelin star restaurant MMM it was vegetarian too. Arkhe

Day 12: We walked and walked and ATE LOTS… yummy.

Day 13: We did an air bib experience- (images below) what a great way to see the city thru a locals POV.. We drank a bottle of wine on the walk ate pasteries and had the cherry liquor Portugal loves (too sweet for me). It is about 35$ a person. We tipped 20$ https://www.airbnb.com/experiences/750193?guests=1&adults=1&s=67&unique_share_id=eff316a5-c053-4065-b185-056fa375a838

AND then we left

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