Lisbon to Faro

Today, it was time to leave Lisbon. No worries, I'll be back for one night before I fly back to the States. I booked a train at 10:20 am to Faro, which is on the Southern coast of Portugal. I paid extra for a reservation for what I assumed would be the high speed train, Alfa Pendular to Faro (it goes up to 130 mph and a reservation is required even with a Eurail pass). I found out that it was not the Alfa, but the slightly slower Intercidades (IC) train. I was especially bummed after I got to the station and saw that there was in fact an Alfa train to Faro that left 15 minutes before the IC train that I was booked on. I wondered if you specifically needed to ask for an Alfa train. So, that is exactly what I did when I arrived in Faro and booked my longest train of the trip to Coimbra. It worked and I shaved off a full hour to hour and a half for only 5 Euros. Deal. Since I am only in Coimbra one night, I am happy for the extra hour to explore the city.

The train ride to Faro was very nice. It was 3 hours and 20 minutes and crossed over much of the Portuguese countryside. The small train stations were really cute too. They reminded me of the old train stations you see in the US that are no longer in use. Well, in the European countryside, they apparently don't feel the need to upgrade their train station and I, for one, am very happy about it. They definitely add a little something to the train rides. I arrived in Portugal just before 2 and made it to my hostel after a short walk. The hostel, Baixa-Portugal, is in a great location and only a 5 minute walk to the center of town. I found that I could easily walk around town for a bit then go drop off my bags before heading back out. When I checked in, the manager, Luis, proceeded to tell me about ways I could get to the beach. I told him that I planned to go to Lagos and Praia de Luz tomorrow to go sailing. He looked at me funny and asked how long I planned to go for. When I said about a half day, he said "Impossible. You can't do it". He said that you have to take the train there and then a bus to the beach and to do sailing and take a boat to see rock formations (which is apparently what people go to Lagos for) will take too much time and I can't do it all. I think he could tell I was bummed because he then said, "Well, you could, but it will be an adventure getting there". Challenge accepted, sir. I'm very determined to go sailing and I WILL make it happen. I already knew the challenges of getting there, as you can see earlier in my blog. I can always be flexible and stay longer then finish up the evening in Faro. The first train to Lagos is just after 7 am and I will be on it. I figure that can put me at Luz beach around 9 or so. Or, I may go see the rock formations first and then finish up on the beach. I just hope it doesn't rain since it is in the forecast for tomorrow. If they will allow it, I will sail rain or shine!

After I was shown around this really cool hostel, I dropped my bags off and hit the town. I was told to go to the marina, the pedestrian-only streets that have a lot of restaurants and shopping and Old Town, which is a completely walled in section of town. When I say walls, I'm not kidding. They are about 20-25 feet thick! There are several entrances into Old Town and the main attraction there is the Cathedral. I'm not sure how old it is exactly, but I gathered it is at least 800 years old, if not older. The Cathedral was very nice. Similar to other European Cathedrals, but with the addition of beautiful painted tile lining the walls. The highlight was the bell tower. I had to climb of a very narrow, spiraled stone staircase (and somehow not fall while doing so). But once I reached the top, I realized that climb was totally worth it. There was a 360 degree view of Faro and I was right next to the very old bells. I wondered if they still work, but I haven't heard any bell tolls since I've been here. Her are some views of the Cathedral and view of Faro from the Bell Tower:

I wandered around Old town and the pedestrian streets for the rest of the day before stopping at the grocery store and heading back to the hostel. The great thing about hostels, besides being cheap, is that they generally have full kitchens. I found breaded beef and potatoes to make for dinner tonight and probably tomorrow as well. When I was making dinner, I met a couple of German girls on vacation. One had just finished her Masters degree, so she was off traveling with a group of girls before she gets ties down to a job. She was great to talk to as was her friend, who had actually visited Portland a couple of years ago. She said her highlight was going to Cannon Beach. We all made our dinners together, which turned out great. It was nice to have a meal in and save some money. Getting dinners for 2 nights and breakfast for a couple mornings (I leave so early both mornings that I'll miss the breakfast provided by the hostel), cost me only 7.50 Euros (about $10). Check out my delicious home cooked meal:

It's nearly 10 pm, so I'm in for the night. Ready for my beach and sailing adventure tomorrow!