Portugal Part II

Yesterday I woke up and went over to the Abrigo cafe for some smooth galao, delicious coffee with milk served in a hot glass and came back to watch some of the royal wedding. For lunch I hit up a place near the beach for a glass of crisp refreshing Vino Verde and a large salad with kiwis, shrimp, peaches, carrots, cucumbers, and all kinds of things mixed in a sweet yummy lime honey dressing. After a few hours on the beach, I was hungry again, and hit up a tapas bar up the hill for some local Tagus beer. I thought tapas were supposed to be small, but again huge plate, but of all kinds of cured hams and sausages and homemade bread. "Yes, Portuguese people eat a lot," the bartender told me, and then asked "a beer for the road?" I love Portugal. Hoping to get up early for a daytrip, I headed for bed at 10 p.m., only to be kept up all night by the numerous parties and bars, and the music of that same duo, singing drunkenly at the top of their lungs, "I want to be a Millionaire so freakin baad..."

This morning I had set my alarm for 7:15 a.m., hoping to catch the 8:30 a.m. bus to Portimao and then the 10 a.m. bus to Monchique, but instead I woke up to a light shower of rain outside our window and the seagull's crow, and headed out at 9 for some galao. I realized when walking to the cafe that the only other people outside walking with their umbrellas were over the age of 70...An old lady stopped to say something to me conversationally in Portuguese...she was too sweet, so I just smiled and said "Sim." I then realize that I had my clock was still set an hour later, and that really I was wondering around town at 8 a.m....I picked up some pastries at a Padaria I had found yesterday. At every cafe you can buy a round flaky pastry filled with custard, broiled on top like a creme brulee that is soooo sooo good with some galao.

For lunch my new Canadian roommate and I went for some munkfish kebab with garlic sauce down the street, served with rice, salad, fries, and vegetables all for 4.90 euros, and then a glass of red porto, thick and sweet, and probably much better as an after dinner drink. Then we went for another galao and a slice of an almond roll, a traditional dessert, full of almonds and nuts, and not very sweet but nice with the coffee as well.
After the clouds cleared, and the hourly forecast looked promising, I took my full belly for a nap at the beach, where the beach was completely empty and all mine. : )