We have spent the last few days in Peneda-Gerês National Park. It is Portugal's only national park and is known for its oak forests. It is also home to over a 100 granite villages that haven't changed much since the 12th century! I spent a lot of time doing research in this area and had loads of difficulty finding specific hiking trails (something I was hoping Alex and I could do a lot of while here).
Read MoreWe have officially left the Douro Valley and made our way to Portugal's only national park, Parque Nacional da Peneda-Geres, where we will be until Monday. On our way to the park, we made a stop in Braga, one of the country's oldest cities. Braga was built more than 2,000 years ago and is also an important religious center in Portugal. As one website put it: "Braga has churches by the bucket-load". This statement is not far off as there are actually 35 churches in the city!
Read MoreOn Monday we drove to Lamego, a city which boarders the River Balsemão, a small tributary of the River Douro. The town is set between two hills - one topped by a small castle and the other by the Nossa Senhora dos Remédios. We were scheduled to be at a winery by early afternoon, so we didn't get to spend much time in the town; however, we did wander around the main avenue.
Read MoreWe have spent the last few days in the Douro Valley - Portugal's wine country. The vineyards line the hillsides boarding the Douro River making for some very dramatic landscape and the area was listed as World Heritage Site in 2001. One of its main products, Port Wine, has been made famous around the world.
Read MoreWe arrived to the Douro Valley on Friday evening and having been enjoying this region. It is mostly known for the vineyards that line the hillsides and make for very beautiful views. On Sunday, we decided to drive an hour to Guimarães. The city is often referred to as the "birth place of Portugal" when King Afonso Henriques chose this former Roman city to be the administrative capital of the Portuguese kingdom.
Read MoreThursday was our last full day in the Azores and we lucked out with another mostly sunny morning. We first drove to the Shrine of Senhora da Paz. The shrine sits on a hill above the Vila Franca do Campo village and dates back to the 18th century. It makes for a stricking view as there is a set of steep stairs built into the hill. It is quite a sight to see as there is nothing else nearby this high up!
Read MoreDay number three in the Azores started with driving to Lagoa do Fogo (Lake of Fire). There is a 6.5 mile hike to the lake which is part of a natural reserve. The hike started out mostly uphill for the first mile or so, but after that, it was a pretty easy walk. We also walked next to an aqueduct for a portion of the hike which was interesting. The hike loops around a portion of the lake from the top of the crater. The weather changes here by the minute, but this morning, we lucked out with mostly sunny skies making the lake look almost turquoise in some parts.
Read MoreOur second day in the Azores was spent in the eastern part of the island. We started by driving to Nordeste, the wildest and most remote area in São Miguel. It reminded me of Jurassic Park! It was so lush and green - I kept waiting for a velociraptor to come out of the foliage! We stopped at two viewpoints, Miradouro da Ponta do Sossego and Miradouro da Ponta da Madrugada. The views were so beautiful and the people here keep everything so manicured. There was always a gardener trimming bushes, raking leaves, or sweeping up debris along the roads and at the viewpoints.
Read MoreWe flew to São Miguel, the largest of the Portuguese Azores archipelago, on Sunday. From the airplane we noticed the island's terrain is so much different then what we have seen already in Portugal. It is very mountainous and green! Just driving around the island holds so many beautiful sights! Hydrangeas line the roadside and although they are not in season, every now and then, we are rewarded with a pop of blue from the flowers.
Read MoreIn my Portugal guidebook I came across this place near Nazaré called Bacalhôa Buddha Eden, which intrigued me by its backstory. The garden came as a protest against the destruction of the Bamyan Giant Buddas in Afghanistan in 2001 by terrorists. The garden is the largest oriental garden in Europe and consists of large statutes including: Buddhas, pagodas, and terracotta statues. When driving up to the garden, we both thought it looked very out place in Portugal!
Read MoreOn Wednesday we drove to Coimbra, a riverside city and home to the oldest university in Portugal. Our initial plan was to spend a week in Coimbra; however, we decided to modify our itinerary a couple weeks ago. We have been wanting to go to the Azores Islands and decided to scrap our week in Coimbra in favor of going there instead. We still wanted to make a day-trip to Coimbra and luckily it is only an hour from where we are staying in Nazaré. It is one of the larger cities we have visited so far and has lots of historical sights.
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When initially planning our trip to Portugal, there were two towns near the Spanish boarder we wanted to visit, but were a bit far from where we were staying to do just as a day trip. To solve this, we decided to spend one night in both Elvas and Marvão.
Read MoreOn Saturday we left Évora for our next two stops. We have one night in Elvas and one night in Marvão. Before spending the evening in Elvas, we stopped at the Centro de Ciência do Café(Coffee Science Center) and the nearby winery Adega Mayor.
Read MoreThursday we drove to Vila Viçosa, another town in the Alentejo region of Portugal. The village is considered an "open-air museum" as it contains pretty plazas, a marble palace and a castle.
Read MoreWe have been staying in Évora for the last few days and will continue to be here until Saturday. Although we have been going for evening walks, we had not explored the town until Wednesday. Évora is one of Portugal's most beautifully preserved medieval towns with multiple churches, Roman ruins, and good restaurants.
Read MoreOn Tuesday we visited Herdade do Esporão, a winery located about 45 minutes from Évora. Most wineries in the region require advanced notice for their tours and tastings - you cannot just show up at anytime. We reserved the English-speaking tour of the facility with a tasting at the end. There were nine of us in the tour group including two couples traveling together from Colorado and another group of three from Holland. The tour-guide was very knowledgable and we learned a lot about the winery and how they produce their wines.
Read MoreOn Monday we headed to the small village of Estremoz, also situated on top of a hill and ringed by a protective stone wall. This region in Portugal is called the Alentejo and is known for its vineyards and olive groves - all of which line the roads and make for such pretty scenic drives.
Read MoreWe arrived in Évora on Sunday and on Monday we drove 45 minutes to the hilltop village of Monsaraz. Monsaraz is surrounding by olive groves and has amazing views of the Alqueva Dam. It is also one of the oldest places in southern Europe and certainly has a medieval feel including a castle, narrow-cobbled lanes and beautiful white-washed homes. This was one of Alex and my favorite stops so far while we have been in Portugal. It is just so picturesque.
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