Algarve Letters

Day Trip up the West Coast of Portugal

The lovely weather continues here in the Algarve.

During the week we drove up to the northern edges of the province to the village of Odieceixe. This was once a thriving, and charming little village. It looks a bit sad these days.

It was a lovely sunny day, but the place was deserted: shops shut, restaurants shut, and nobody about.

The town is built on the side of a hill sloping down to a small inlet. The sea is a couple of miles to the west, with a rather nice beach facing the Atlantic rollers. That too was deserted except for two Portuguese couples sitting on a bench having their lunch break in the sun.



We drove further north to Odemira, which is a small town on the way to Lisbon. That was much busier, but looked as if a bomb had hit the place. Half the streets were up, and there were barriers everywhere, but of course there was no sign of anyone doing any work.

I was also surprised at the prices in the restaurant that we found overlooking a petrol station next to the bus depot. They were 10-20 per cent higher than the usual prices in the Algarve. For some reason I'd expected them to be a bit cheaper.

On the way back we stopped instead at one of the cafes that has become a local. It is situated about four kilometres south of Aljezur, and is simply called André's. Andre is a German from Hamburg, and he cooks German food, and serves German beer. I had a rather nice piece of rolled duck, crispy on the outside, almost rare on the inside, and it was served with lychees and an orange and mango sauce, and a small turret of rice. It was the nicest meal I've had since Christmas.

We go back that way on sunday for a fleamarket. I only hope André still has some of that duck left, because I shall scoff it if he has.



By the way, for anyone who is mobile, I am still happy to accommodate anyone here in return for a couple of day's work a week, either on the house or in the garden. Let me know if that appeals to you.

As you can see, spring is pretty busy.



john