Since I'd never been to Portugal and Daniel was going to be there for work at the end of February, I decided to join him there. Plus, there was another advantage of going at that time... the US Women's National Soccer Team was playing in an annual tournament in the southern region of Portugal called the Algarve. I couldn't pass up such a great chance to see world class women's soccer... and all the games are free! Have I mentioned that women's soccer doesn't hold as high of a status as men's soccer over here in Europe... anyways, before I digress too much....
On the evening of Wednesday, February 24th, I flew into Lisbon to meet up with Daniel. My husband was busy working all day Thursday, so I took the opportunity to explore the city. Since I would only have the one day, I made my way down to the hop-on, hop-off bus to get a good overview of Portugal's capital... on the way, I walked through Rossio Square, the Rua Augusta shopping district and past the arch at the Praca do Comercio. Soon I was on the bus, enjoying the city from its second deck. During the bus tour, we passed sights including the Restauradores Square, a statue honoring Prime Minister Marques de Pombal (who rebuilt the city after the devastating earthquake of 1755), the Campo Pequeno bullring, the outlook from Parque Eduardo VII, and the Basilica da Estrela.
As the tour continued, the bus headed south to an area of Lisbon called the Belem District. Here I decided to get off and walk around a bit as there were several sights in the area I wanted to check out. First up was the Tower of Belem. Found at the edge of the harbor, this was the last sight explorers saw as they went off to discover the "new world." The Portuguese definitely take pride in their rich nautical history as just a short way down the shore is the Monument to the Discoveries, which was built in 1960 in honor of the 500th anniversary of the death of Prince Henry the Navigator... on the monument, that's him up front leading the charge. Beyond the monument, spanning the water is the 25th of April Bridge, one of the world's longest suspension bridges built by the same company that did the Golden Gate. Looking across the water, you can also see up on the hillside Lisbon's own "Christ in Majesty" statue... in 1936, the city's cardinal was inspired to build this replica after visiting Rio de Janeiro.
Heading inland, I next found myself at the Monastery of Jeronimos. I was struck by its unique ceiling and thought it was interesting that the explorer, Vasco da Gama, was laid to rest here. A block away is the Maritime Museum... since I was once in the Navy, it did pique my interest so I went in to take a look. Inside were old maps, model ships, figureheads, and navigational instruments... the last room in the museum is full of neat sailboats and royal barges. It all made me miss being out at sea... but only for a minute :)
Next I was on to another museum, the Coach Museum, but first I made a stop at the Casa Pasteis de Belem, who have been making yummy custard tarts since 1837. I've been told there is always a line out front, but it didn't deter me from getting a few pastries for Daniel and me to share later that evening. Tarts tucked away in my bag, I checked out the Coach Museum, a collection of royal coaches preserved by the last Queen of Portugal. I've been reading a lot of 19th century European historical fiction since moving over here, so I wanted to see in person the main mode of transportation from that time period. It was fascinating to see the intricate and impressive carriages used to by the royal and the wealthy in times gone by.
After visiting the Coach Museum, I took the bus back to Lisbon to walk around a bit more before evening set in. Thankfully, I had enough time to hike up through the Alfama quarter to a picturesque overlook of the city and then a little further up to Sao Jorge Castle. The ramparts of the castle also provide a great view of Lisbon sprawling out below. Originally built by the Moors in the 11th century, the castle itself was later used as a royal residence for four centuries.
As the sun went down, I made my way back to the hotel to meet up with Daniel. By Friday morning, he was done with his work in Lisbon, and we were off in our little rental car down to the Algarve. As we headed south, we got a much better look at the "Christ in Majesty" statue as we crossed the 25th of April bridge. Following a quick 3 hour drive through the Portuguese countryside, we made it to Faro, the largest town in the Algarve. Since the US soccer game was that afternoon, we had just enough time to grab lunch and explore Faro's old town center. The highlight of this quarter is the cathedral, a neat little church with a view from the top of its bell tower of the lagoon located just south of the town.
A short drive away from Faro is Olhao, where the US National team would be playing Norway. We got there just as the game kicked off. We knew there wouldn't be many US fans in attendance... I think there were about eight of us total. Norway, on the other hand, had quite a few more. Despite the very muddy field conditions, it proved be a good game... US went up 1-0, and then after a very suspect referee call, Norway was able to tie it up. It turned out to be a nail biter, with the US scoring the winning goal in stoppage time!
Following the game, we found our hotel in the little village of Olhos de Agua. The next soccer game was not until Monday, so we had the whole weekend to wander around the Algarve. Every Saturday morning, the town of Loule hosts a market, so we went to check it out... lots of produce, seafood, and smelly cheese. Loule also has some small castle ruins we visited before heading on to the next town, Tavira.
It seems that every town in the Algarve has castle remnants... Tavira's ruins have a well-tended garden as well as a pretty good view of the church next door and the Gilao river. We also walked along the river a bit and had some lunch, enjoying the laid back atmosphere of the town.
Next, we made our way to our third and final town of the day, Albufeira. It was quite windy and cold when we arrived so we couldn't really enjoy its wide sandy beach... instead we went souvenir shopping. As we were leaving, the sun decided to come out, so we took in the view for a few minutes.
Before a delicious dinner that night, we went down to the beach near where we were staying in Olhos de Agua. With the moon rising and night setting in, we snapped some really neat photos of the striking cliffs as we hiked along the shoreline. It made for an enjoyable end of a relaxing day.
Since we checked out the eastern Algarve on Satuday, on Sunday we headed west. Our first stop was Lagos. On that quiet morning, we walked by the water and then around town, passing people on their way to mass, the town walls, and the Fortaleza da Ponta da Bandeira. Just outside of Lagos is one of the Algarve's most photographed beaches, Praia de Dona Ana. Although during the winter there doesn't seem to be much sand, the sandstone cliffs are still spectacular.
Heading further west a few minutes, you find the Ponta da Piedade. These dramatic headlands are quite breathtaking, and there are even stairs that allow you to climb down to the water's edge. We had a lot of fun taking photographs and soaking in the sun as we hiked up, down, and around the point.
By the time we made it out to Sagres, the most western town on Portugal's southern coast, the weather had turned stormy. We braved the pouring rain as we investigated what's left of Prince Henry the Navigator's school of navigation at Cape Sagres. In addition to the old fort, chapel, and giant wind compass found there, the site provides a good spot from which to watch the pounding waves below. Looking west across a small expanse of water, you can see Cabo Sao Vicente, where we were headed to next.
Cabo Sao Vicente is the most southwestern point in Europe. Before the Age of Discovery, it was largely considered the "end of the Earth." Today it is home to a lighthouse and some sweeping views. As we were leaving, Daniel chirped in with a comment... "Now I can say I went to the end of the Earth and back for you." My husband is hilarious, isn't he? :)
Monday was our last full day in the Algarve, so before the soccer game, we visited the town of Silves. I bet you can guess the town's main attraction... yep, castle ruins. These were actually the largest castle ruins we saw in the Algarve, its ramparts providing panoramic views of the surrounding area. After some lunch, we made our way to Ferreiras, where the US would be playing Sweden shortly.
This time, we arrived early enough at the game to watch the team warm up. There were also many more US fans in attendance at this game, including a few Olympic Development Teams from the States... I even saw my old club soccer trainer from Texas there! After the anthems were played and team photos were taken, it was time for the game to get started.
While Sweden is a very good team, the US definitely dominated from the start. Despite this, the score was tied 0-0 at half time. This would change in the second half though... the US ended up winning 2-0! After the game, we had a chance to meet most of the team... they were all very nice and sincerely appreciated us coming to support them at the Algarve Cup. We took photos with a few of the players... I got pictures with both Heathers on the team, #9 Heather O'Reilly and #2 Heather Mitts, while Daniel got one with Goalkeeper Hope Solo. In addition, we had brought a pennant along with us, and we were able to get the team to sign it... what a great souvenir!
Following the US v Sweden game, we rushed over to Faro in order to catch the second half of the Germany vs. China game at the Estadio Algarve. While Germany ended up beating China 5-0 that night, they lost to the US 3-2 in the finals on Wednesday. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay for that game as we flew back to Frankfurt on Tuesday, but we're happy to say that we met the 2010 Algarve Cup Champions during our trip to Portugal!
We really enjoyed our time in Portugal... it is a country of quaint towns, good food, really friendly people, and every March, some really great women's soccer. I hope you enjoyed reading all about this trip... like I've been saying for a while now, I have many more trips to catch up on so stay tuned for more posts soon!
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