Yesterday we checked out Praia da Barriga ("Beach of the Belly") about 30 minutes from our apartment. We've been having a blast exploring this region and each beach we visit seems to have something unique about it. Praia da Barriga was no exception with its rugged black cliffs and bright algae covered rocks.
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Yesterday we spent our day in Lagos, an ancient maritime city, about 10 minutes from our Airbnb. Our first stop of the morning was to the bakery, Padaria Central, for pastries. We each got a donut filled with cream and a pastel de nata (Portuguese egg tart). They were delicious and I wish every morning could start with dessert!! Haha!
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Wednesday we headed to the small beach town of Salema where we hiked through a forest to get to the isolated beach of Praia da Figueria. The hike is only about half a mile and once we got down to the bottom of the hill, we were rewarded with a small beach we had all to ourselves for the first two hours we arrived. Even after that, we shared it with only one other family.
Read MoreYesterday morning we woke early so we could be the first to arrive at Benagil Sea Cave, a 45-minute drive from our Airbnb in Luz. This sea cave has a naturally occurring oculus overhead of its own secluded beach. We read the beach gets busy later in the day when lots of boats and people try to visit; however, if you arrive early you can have the place practically to yourself. It does require about a 10 minute swim to get into the cave and unfortunately the morning we went had some really high and rough swells. Since we do not have a death wish, we were unable to do the swim. I'm hoping we can try again another time!! Luckily, we will be in this region for about 3 weeks so fingers crossed we can find a day without crazy waves!
Read MoreWe arrived in Lisbon on Sunday after an early morning flight from London. Going through customs in Portugal was a completly different experience this time around. In London, we were grilled as to why we were going to be in the United Kingdom for so long and were asked to show proof we were leaving the country in two months. So this time I made sure to be prepared! I had printouts of our outgoing flight back to the States in addition to all our Airbnb reservations and car rentals while here. However, all of that was not necessary as the Portugal customs agent was excited we were going to be in his country and gave us recommendations for places to visit and food to eat! Ha!!
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