We did a day trip in the car up in the
hills of the Algarve region north of the Santo Antonio. We
left the following morning and continued west toward Faro
and then on to our hotel at the Estoi Palace. And,
yes, it was a palace.
The photos below are what we saw.
The
initial objective of the day trip was to see this reservoir
north of Santo Antonio. The story here is low level of the
reservoir. Note the high water mark at the edge of the
trees versus the current level. The whole area is in an
extended drought. We saw "save water" signs everywhere we
went.
After
walking we headed to the restaurant and bar at the marina and
saw this Lambo with the provocative license plate. No way
you could get this vanity plate in CA or likely any state in the
U.S. The car's owner was middle aged, with an attitude of
course. But his date was a doll. I guess she could
smell the money. For clarity, the owner is NOT the fellow
on the left.
We saw
tons of storks all over Andulusia and Algarve. These are
White Storks and they return to the region to hatch their chicks
after wintering in Africa. There were huge nests on every
power pole. This one was close to our path, thus allowing
a photo. The next morning we loaded up and continued west
to Faro.
The main
tourist attractions in Faro are inside these walls and accessed
through the hole in the wall. We were unimpressed. I
found Faro to be a sad, dirty town with narrow streets, lots of
graffiti and tons of traffic.
Kathleen
had selected a place for lunch that had a water view. The
tide was out but we still had a clear view of the tourist boats
transporting folks to the outer islands.
In my
opinion, tagging is the scourge of Faro. Tags were
everywhere including on historical walls.
Lavazza
is a brand of coffee. We all found this ad to be
refreshing, pun intended, because of America's turn toward DEI
and political correctness and the banal blandness that it
brings.
The
inner area inside the walls was a church and monastery.
Cobblestones were on both streets and sidewalks making walking
difficult.
One of
the restored buildings had nice hand painted tile installed as a
label on the building.
These
buildings were nice, newly painted and in good repair.
A
monument in the center of the plaza to a religious leader.
In one
of the corners of the plaza was a narrow portal.
Through
the portal was the street beyond. This is a 2-way street!
The
cathedral was modest by most standards, but in good repair and
tag-free.
The
cathedral allowed visitors to climb the stairs to the roof which
provided an overlook on the plaza.
The exit
portal was even smaller and was only used for pedestrians.
The
train tracks ran right along the waterfront. Above, Steve
holds onto his hat as the train approaches. I, on the
other hand, did not hold onto my hat and the blast of wind blew
it into the street. Happily, it was not damaged and I am
smarter now.
The
waterfront pathway ran alongside the exterior walls of the
monastery. The restaurant where we ate lunch is above the
wall.
We
decided that we had seen enough of Faro so we hopped into our
rental car and motored on to the town of Estoi and our
hotel. This is the reception area of the hotel.
The Estoi Palace was referenced in nearly every tourist
document we saw and is a really interesting place.
Adornments
over the entry door.
The
hotel consisted of both new and old areas. The new areas
were done in contemporary style while the old was refurbished
to its original glory. The pool deck is visible to left
of center.
The
rooms were large and nicely appointed.
The
bathrooms were glass and marble.
We had
1930 reservations at the house restaurant, so at the appointed
time we headed to dinner. Along the way, we passed the
main salon. Above is the ceiling of the salon.
The
baroque-style room was quite stunning.
The
tall mirrors and arched doorways made us feel like we were in
the Palace of Versailles.
Dancing
cherubs seemed to be popular.
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Photos and Text Copyright Bill Caid 2024, all rights
reserved.
For your enjoyment only, not for commercial use.