We absolutely loved our time in Portugal, beginning our adventure in the picturesque city of Porto, followed by some time in Lisbon, before travelling to Porto Covo to start the Fisherman’s Trail, finishing up with a week in Lagos in the Algarve.

Porto and Lisbon: The Urban Experience

First impressions of Porto weren’t great.  We arrived in the rain and it felt cold, grey, and severely lacking the vibrancy we’d very quickly grown to love in Madeira. We did however discover a surf-themed pizza café that was so good we went back again a few days later. (Pizzaria da Luz). Rather than central Porto, we chose to base ourselves in an area called Foz, a neighbourhood about 45 mins walk from the city centre, where the Douro River meets the Atlantic Ocean.

On day two, when the sun was out and we ventured into town, the charm of Porto finally captivated us, with its beautifully tiled buildings, winding streets, and bustling river side cafes & restaurants.  We constructed our own walking tour of the city, making use of this very helpful blog. We tried freshly baked pastel del natas from the Manteigaria.  I loved their warm gooiness, but Lee Ann wasn’t as keen.  We tried acorda (pronounced assorda) for lunch which looked like baby food but tasted delicious.

After a hard day’s sightseeing (and eating), we stumbled upon a cool beach bar back in Foz called Praia Da Luz, perfect for watching the sunset over the Atlantic Ocean, listening to the laid-back house music from the resident DJ. The following night we watched the sunset from the Jardim do Morro, perched above the river, and very popular with tourists and locals alike. There were plenty of opportunistic ‘vendors’ offering cold beers for sale from their ice-box or plastic bag.  

We enjoyed a ‘down day’ after all the exploring, taking advantage of the laptop-friendly café culture, feeling like real digital nomads. It’s these moments that make this feel like more than just a holiday; we are getting a small taste of what it would be like to live in these places.

After soaking in the culture and history of Porto, we braced ourselves for our first big bus journey of the trip, destination: Lisbon. We were pleasantly surprised! Way less stressful and more comfortable than a Ryanair flight, we arrived on time after a peaceful, easy journey, courtesy of Flixbus.

Lisbon felt distinctly different to Porto despite having a lot of the same elements.  We stayed in the heart of the city but away form the usual tourist haunts (an area called Madragoa), and we quickly immersed ourselves in the numerous cafes, enjoying the hipster vibe that permeated the neighbourhoods (matcha pistachio latte for €7 anyone?!). We particularly liked Honest Greens, a huge space serving freshly made salads, bowls, vegan deserts and an H2O bar – right up our street!

The highlight though was reuniting with our friends from Scotland (Lynsey & Shaun), who came out for a couple of days to join us. We explored as much of the city as we could, taking advantage of the impressive culinary scene.  We crammed so much in (in terms of sightseeing and food), with a visit to the Praca do Commercio, the Time Out market, a ride on the Elevador do Bica, a wander along Pink Street and Green Street (both pretty disappointing compared to the Instagram images) , and a visit to Sao Jorge Castle, all within walking distance of the apartment.

We took a short Bolt ride to Belem to see the Tower and Rosa Dos Ventos, and we had to try the famous pastel de natas from Pateis De Belen (the place that claims to have invented the nata), We enjoyed some oysters by the waterfront, taking shelter from a rain shower, and Lynsey tentatively popped her e-scooter cherry.

We enjoyed beers and snacks at Crafty Corner Alfama, slurped noodles at Ramen Shifu, had the most delicious lunch at Taberna Sal Grosso, , watched the sunset over the city skyline with cold beers from 8a Graca, and had a very filling, traditional Portuguese meal at Altar. Superb. 

Lisbon's Green Escape

As much as we loved the urban experience, after a few days we found ourselves yearning for nature. Lisbon’s 'lung,' the delightful green space of Monsanto Forest Park, provided the perfect respite. We spent an afternoon strolling round the urban oasis, rejuvenating ourselves amidst the lush foliage and fresh air happy to be in open spaces with few other people.  We even had our first attempt at local public transport to get back into the city centre and ended up discovering a part of the city we hadn’t already seen.

On the Fisherman's Trail

Our adventure then took a more rugged turn as we embarked on the Fisherman's Trail, a journey that promised four days of immersive coastal hiking. Despite a daunting weather forecast predicting four solid days of rain, we decided to brave the elements after our request to shift the dates was declined. The rain was torrential as we arrived in Porto Covo for the start of the walk but thankfully our luggage transporter guy was there to greet us off the bus from Lisbon. By the time he’d briefed us on the hike and we got checked into our room the rain died down a bit to allow us out for some fresh air.

The trail was a test of endurance, mainly due to having to take our waterproofs on and off a million times, but offered breath taking coastal views and a profound sense of accomplishment. The varied terrain and ever-changing weather made it a thrilling experience that we would not have missed for the world. We became professional weather forecasters, predicting rain every ten minutes, and were rarely wrong.

It was my first multi-day through hike (Lee Ann’s done many) and I absolutely loved the structured simplicity of it: sleep, eat, hike, repeat. It was brilliant meeting other fellow hikers along the way who’d travelling from all over the world to complete the trail.

We used a local company Vincentina Travel to transport our luggage and organise our accommodation, saving a few hundred pounds than if we’d gone with a UK based company.  Everything was perfect and we gave poor Ricardo a daily work out shifting our big, heavy cases.

Check out our YouTube video to get a real feel for our adventures on the trail.

Final Days in Lagos

Our last week was spent in Lagos, a coastal town known for its stunning cliffs and pristine beaches. On arrival we felt a little out of place. Gone were the quaint fishing villages and chatter with fellow hikers, in place of a strong ex-pat vibe and too many British accents.  It was cold and grey which also didn’t help. However, the next day, we took on another incredible hike from Lagos to Luz, where the dramatic coastline, caves, and aquamarine sea left us in awe. We enjoyed beers and ice-cream by the beach in Luz, watching the surfers catch the endless waves.  We liked Lagos afterall (bit of a theme emerging here….)

Sadly, there were some rainy days during our stay but they provided the perfect opportunity for some downtime, during which we began planning the next leg of our journey: hiking the Sierra Nevada in Spain. It’s taken us a bit of time (and a lot of research!) to settle on this.  We know we want to spend the month of April doing some challenging hikes, most preferably in half-decent weather.  For many places in Europe it’s just a tad early, with snow yet to thaw on the highest peaks. April can be a great month for Munro bagging in Scotland but we’re not ready to head home just yet. And after reconsidering the Anna Purna circuit it Nepal, as per our original sabbatical plan, we decided its still too soon after my cancer treatment for that level of adventure. Probably not the best idea to mix altitude sickness with recovery.

Our last moments in Lagos were the most stressful of the entire trip. Lee Ann realised 15 mins before our bus to Seville was due to depart that we’d left the bag with the passports and the bank cards in the Airbnb….No thanks to the laid back Bolt driver, she managed the 15 minute return journey to the bus stop with seconds to spare.  Phew!

Reflecting on our time in Portugal, we have a much fuller appreciation of what this country has to offer – from its vibrant cities to its serene natural landscapes (not to mention the pastel del nata which I’m going to miss so much – yes I know you can get them in Sainsbury’s nowadays but its not the same!). Each experience, whether urban or rural, left an indelible mark on us, but it’s reconfirmed that we are happiest in nature vs in cities. We may not have climbed any literal mountains on this stint but battering through the hail and the Atlantic Coast wind certainly tested us, we’ve learnt to not judge new places so quickly, we’ve mastered the Portugues bus network, and can rest assured that we can still problem solve under pressure.

Sabbatical Thoughts & Personal Reflections

1. We are at our happiest in nature. There is such as thing as too many oat cappuccinos & vegan banana cake in bustling hipster cafes.  We need mountains, coastlines, fresh air and open spaces.  
2. We continue to find gratitude for this opportunity every day. We’ve been frustrated with the cold wet weather at times, disappointed with some of our accommodation, bored of wearing the same clothes all the time, but that’s all irrelevant and insignificant. We’re on a big adventure together, living our dream.
3. The retired travellers we’ve met have been super supportive of our mirco-retirement plan, affirming that exploring the world while we’re fit and healthy is the right choice. I especially resonated with Rick (a retired Canadian accountant): “you give your all to the corporate world, and when you’re in it it’s all encompassing– but once you’re out you realise none of it really matters”.
4. I never realised how much time we’d spend sniffing our clothes. When you’ve got a limited wardrobe you need to make things last a little longer than home….we’ve even got a tiering system – things that can be worn around others and things that we’ll only wear in each other’s company.

And now we find ourselves in Spain.  Check out our Instagram for our most recent whereabouts and stayed tuned for the next blog instalment at the end of April.