Home Again

Following a rather nice week in Portugal, we arrived back in the UK yesterday afternoon and were pleasantly surprised by the sunshine which greeted us as we stepped off the plane.  Usually, when we get back from a holiday, we arrive to driving rain, sleet, snow, plunging temperatures and high winds.  But not this time!
Malcolm and I have been staying in the resort of Praia da Rocha on the Algarve and while the resort itself was nothing to get excited about - typical high-rise blocks of apartments, hotels and general holiday sprawl - the surrounding area was beautiful.  The beach at Praia da Rocha was just what you would expect, acres of sterile sand and blue seas lapping at the shore.

This was the first time we had stayed in this area, a little further west from where we have been previously.  The cliffs however, were much the same as we have become used to on our past visits.  Vividly coloured and crumbling at an alarming rate, leaving behind strange rocky outcrops as the sea reclaims much of Portugal.

Walking along the cliffs can be quite a hair-raising experience, especially when you look back to where you had just been standing, only to find that there was a gaping void below the surface, ready to collapse into the sea at any moment.

Safer by far - and also very popular with locals - was the walk along the sea front at Praia da Rocha.  This takes the form of a wooden boardwalk along the beach and a long sea wall protecting the entrance to the river and the marinas.  A red-and-white striped lighthouse stands watch over the mouth of the river and marked the 'turn-around point' on our short morning walks.

Lots more to come....