Lugo, Storms and Heading Home

Lugo, Spain at twilight

We’ve been back in Orlando for a few weeks now. I gave myself a vacation from writing about our travels but every story deserves an ending and so did the end of this trip.

We were coming to the end of our time in the Iberian peninsula and, having spent an extra week in Lisbon made us reevaluate our admittedly loose plan. Planning the end of a trip is always more difficult than the beginning because you don’t want to leave too early, nor do you want to leave too late and risk missing your plane home. Since we’d had a good experience taking a ferry from Plymouth, England to Santander, Spain, we had planned to tour northern Spain, maybe even spend some time on the beaches, then hop on a ferry for an overnight trip back to England. But while in Porto, we had noticed on the news that there were bad storms off the western coast of France which were expected to continue for several days. We decided we’d better step up our pace moving towards Santander leaving enough time for a land-based, multiple-day drive through France in case the storms meant we couldn’t take the overnight ferry.  

Our Photos Here (Click "i" for descriptions)

We had the rare opportunity to meet a family member during our travels. My cousin’s daughter, Sasha, had been teaching English in the city of Lugo, Spain and we arranged to meet for dinner. She showed us through the heart of the city. We had a round of drinks, pinchos, and tapas at one bar (total bill 5 euros!) and then moved on for dinner at a nearby restaurant. Her insights into life as a young, single woman in northern Spain were wonderful to hear. I hadn’t seen her since she was a very young child so it was great to see what a lovely, intelligent and adventurous woman she had become.  We had to leave Lugo long before the typical nightlife started as the gate to our campsite would be locked at 12:00 - a downside of life in a campervan!

As we had feared, there was no ferry space available on our preferred route for several weeks. A further search of the ports along the coast of France dictated a quick run up to Dieppe, France for a ferry to Newhaven, England. We booked this ferry quickly and plotted our course which required single overnight stays in each of the stops on the trip. 

In Spain we traveled on the “Camino de Santiago” highway and enjoyed the rolling hills and farms with a patchwork of various crops along the way. I was sorry we didn’t get a chance to do at least one day of hiking on the trail but we did get to see some hikers decked out in trail wear and walking sticks.  

Wiki on Camino_de_Santiago

Our last stop in Spain was a campsite in the middle of nowhere filled with families.  It had a pool that was crowded with children. It was far too chilly and windy for us to consider swimming but we enjoyed the lively atmosphere and a decent meal in the camp restaurant. 

Traveling through France we enjoyed watching the gorgeous scenery speed by and made a stop in Saintes where we had time to walk into town and do a bit of after-normal-hours sightseeing. We were thrilled to be back in the land of croissants delivered fresh to the campsite and celebrated by having almond croissants. Delicious!!  That night we had a very good dinner in the campsite restaurant. Gotta love the French! Our last overnight in France was outside Rouen.  

Once again we loaded the camper onto a ferry and headed to Newhaven. The waters were calm and Dermot handled this trip without dramamine - a first!  That night we camped near Gatwick airport which was both better and worse than we imagined.  

The next day we headed to Bristol and camped in Cheddar, England. Glancing at the brochure I realized this was the area of the famous “Cheddar Man.” I've always been fascinated by DNA research so a trip to the cave and nearby museum were a must! If you don’t know the story, here’s a link:

NY Times article on Cheddar Man

This story doesn't really focus on what I found most fascinating, but this one does:

Cheddar Man DNA matches current resident of Cheddar

After packing and delivering the camper into storage, we took a train to London and spent a few days visiting family and taking in the Tate Modern Museum. Our flight home was direct and we've settled back into our "home life."  

Our plane tickets for our next trip to Europe are booked for August but our route is still up in the air. :) 

One more thought before I wrap this up. Many people read the post about the loss of my sister Michelle. So many people offered support and comfort. I can't tell you how very much I appreciate that. When one friend said she would get the pneumonia vaccination, I literally burst into tears. I used to think of this blog as a way to share our experiences with friends and family. You've transformed it into something bigger than that with your kindness. Thank you from the very bottom of my heart.  

Porto

We camped in Candelaria which is near the beach across from Porto. Having become somewhat spoiled by our experience in Coimbra, we used Uber rather than busses to get into town. Our first day we followed one of our guide book's orientation walks and strolled all over Porto learning about history and taking in the interesting sights.  

Our photo album is here. Click on the "i" in a circle for descriptions.

The riverfront area was very fun to explore with its many levels from the water to the docks and many cellars where port in barrels and other goods could be loaded and unloaded. The tall houses built side by side each had a distinctive character - some well kept and some in ruins.

After much sight-seeing we settled into Ryan's pub a bit further inland for a cool drink and a rest before setting off in search of dinner. At our restaurant near the river, many of the menu items looked good except:

"Roast kid"

We stuck with seafood. The octopus was delicious!

The next day we toured the Palacio da Bolsa (Stock Exchange Palace) and Sao Francisco Church. Then we hit the shopping district but we weren't there to shop - just enjoy the area. The famous Bolhao Market is not open so we strolled through the temporary Bolhao Market. We had worked up an appetite a bit before most restaurants were open for dinner but found an open place through Trip Advisor that looked like it was frequented by locals.

Stock Exchange Palace 

They had Brazilian feijoada on the menu that I had to try because our Brazilian exchange student had made it for us.  It was good, but hers was better, of course. This place was a real find as we had an appetizer, wine, and two main courses for less than 20 euros!

Then we walked towards the riverfront but, to get a different view we headed to a bridge further inland. When we reached the bridge it was very high up and offered views of the bridge designed by the Eiffel tower designer.

We then started the very steep descent along the river and eventually reached the same square "Praca da Ribeira" we had been the day before. Yesterday the square had been crowded with English soccer fans but today it was completely trashed. For blocks there was garbage, beer bottles and broken glass everywhere. The British fans were shouting soccer chants that I couldn't understand but Dermot knew. I could make out certain phrases such as "f*** the pope" and "f*** the IRA." Dermot explained that this was taunting he was very familiar with from his time in London when soccer hooligans frequently became violent. We moved on and passed Ryan's pub where we had been the day before but today the rowdies had taken over the pub and spilled out onto the streets. Porto police were lined up around the crowd and Dermot herded me out of the area. We later saw on the news that the situation had deteriorated into bottle throwing and police action. All this was on a night that England wasn't even playing! Many people in the camp had clearly come to watch the games and the English flag was prevalent. We decided to spend the next night in camp far away from where the game between England and the Netherland teams were playing. We watched the game sitting among peaceful Netherlands fans and thoroughly enjoyed the game. Winner: Netherlands, in more ways than one.    

Next: Lugo, Spain and Storms

Coimbra

Students clown around in Coimbra

The day we arrived was hot so we skipped our usual first activity of doing a walk through town. Our campsite "Parque Campismo Municipal de Coimbra" was far from town and google maps had no information on the local public transportation so we decided to get an Uber to the museum which we guessed would have air-conditioning. Uber turned out to be cheap here!

Fado music by alumni of the university

The museum was very interesting with so many layers of history - literally.  The foundation is what used to be the understructure of an ancient roman forum! I added a few pictures to the album but it is described well here:

Machado_de_Castro_National_Museum

By the time we emerged from the museum, it was cooler and we enjoyed listening to fado music along with drinks and a snack. We then wandered the town before having a nice dinner at an Italian restaurant and got another Uber back to camp.  

The next day we took a walk, or maybe more like a climb.  

Our photos here. Click on the "i" for descriptions.

This city is fine for students with strong legs but I don't know how the seniors manage it! 

We toured the University and found it very interesting. This place had a prison, a stunning library and resident bats who eat the insects that would otherwise cause damage to the ancient books.  

We weren't allowed to take pictures inside the library so here's a link to pictures and more information:

Biblioteca Joanina


Rick Steve does a good job of describing Coimbra here.

Next: Porto

Nazare, Alcobaca and Batalha

Dermot in Sitio overlooking Nazare

Nazare 

We settled into Orbitur Valado campsite outside of Nazare. The tall pines cast wispy shadows and a cool breeze blew through the hilly campsite. It felt very peaceful and mild compared to Lisbon and that was just what was needed.

Black Virgin in Sitio

We soon headed for Sitio which is on a high bluff above the beach. Said to be crowded in summer, there were relatively few people today so we enjoyed the stunning views from our rocky perch. We visited its church with its famous "Black Virgin" and read the story of its miraculous discovery.  

A stroll through the town provided great views of the beach below and the funicular that runs between the two.  There were women dressed in their distinctive skirts with colorful petticoats, embroidered aprons and shawls who were selling nuts from stands in the square. 

Our photos here - click on the "i" in a circle for info.

Then we went in search of parking close to the beach. When a sign on the road indicated motorhomes weren't allowed, I suggested we were really more of a van and Dermot grumbled that I was a bad influence on him. It turned out that many motorhome drivers ignored the sign and were even wild camping in the lot. Vindicated!

Woman in traditional dress, not selling anything.

Strolling down the pretty beach we came upon a display of historic boats, fish drying racks (still in use), a beach soccer tournament, women in traditional skirts and shawls (sometimes on their heads) and dramatic views where the beach meets the cliff. 

Here is Rick Steves' article on this area. I couldn't say it better.

This beach town seemed to have so much to offer!  Though we weren't here at the right time of year to witness it (October-March), this area has waves up to 100 feet tall and surfers come here from all over the world for a chance to compete.

We explored some back streets and had dinner in a recommended restaurant. This is Cataplana -fish, clams, mussels, shrimp, onions, peppers and tomatoes served with rice and a vino verde to wash it down. Delicious! We even took the leftovers "home" and had it reheated the next night.  

Alcobaca and Batalha

The next day we headed to two small towns in the area, both known for their monasteries.

There's so much history here, I can't do it justice so I'm adding these links:

Alcoba Monastery

Batalha Monastery

I'm still in catch-up mode on my posts so bear with me.

Next: Coimbra

Lisbon

Lisbon Panorama

Dermot and I camped in Lisboa Camping which had its good and bad points. I was only in Lisbon a few days and left for Ohio for a week to be with my nieces and Michelle's partner as I mentioned in the last post. Dermot was left on his own to carry on and he took many pictures that he'll post on Facebook.  Despite that, we had covered quite a bit of ground and took many pictures.

Lisbon Photos Here

I've added most of the commentary on the actual photos so make sure to click on the "i" in a circle for the information about each.

This is a picture of my nieces. Though we were brought together under such sad circumstances, we were glad to have had each other to lean on. As we talked and looked through pictures, we could see the traces of my sister in each other's faces.

Arriving back in Lisbon, I was suffering from jetlag and we went to pick up our Garmin Camper 770 which hadn't been working for weeks. We had found the only GPS repair location here and dropped it off the day after we arrived.  Having been delayed for one week, we had stayed in one place long enough for a refurbished one to be returned to the shop.

It had become really hot here - mid-90's, and trying to sleep in the heat without air-conditioning was really uncomfortable. We checked the other potential next stops such as Sintra and deemed them also too hot, so our next stop was the beach town of Nazare.