It's beginning to feel like spring in the Algarve. April showers bring May flowers gets moved up a bit here in the Algarve, it's more like January showers bring February flowers! This is not necessarily good for allergy sufferers, but it sure is a beautiful sight. There are many colorful trees, wildflowers, and shrubs in full bloom. Despite the additional rain from early this month, they seem to flourish as soon as the warm sun shines through the clouds.
The citrus trees outside of our door continue to produce huge amounts of fruits: oranges, mandarins, lemons, etc... Just as one tree has given us all of its fruits, others are still full of vibrant orange color fruit, and still, a few more of the trees are beginning to bloom so that they may add to the spring offerings. Our friends get to enjoy the fruit too, there is so much that we continue to share bags full with them.
Teresa and Luis have been on a planting mission lately, including cucumbers, carrots, fava beans, onions, garlic, and, most recently, several rows of potatoes. Mary's Chili's seem to be in perpetual production as we find new fruit on them just about every week.
No travel stories to write about this month; we kept our experiences local, but that's not such a bad thing. There is still plenty to enjoy, experience, and learn right here in our backyard.
I have moved our restaurant experiences to this blog's "EAT & DRINK" section. If you are curious about the food we experience, click here.
On a sunny but cool Sunday afternoon, we joined a group of friends for a short train ride from Portimão to Poco Barreto for lunch and some old-school rock music from the Buzz Band at Victoria's.
This was our first "theatre night" at the Teatro Tempo in Portimão. Tonight, pianist Raul da Costa and the 60-piece Portuguese Symphonic band performed. Sorry, no photos were allowed during the performance. Raul was fantastic but played only three songs with the orchestra. Following his performance there was an awkward break where a team of two men came out, wrapped up the piano, prepared it for transportation and wheeled it off stage. No one knew if the concert was over but everyone stayed in their seats. Eventually the Orchestra came back out and continued their performance sans piano.
Another beautiful day for a walk along the Alvor estuary and beach boardwalk. You can always catch a few locals filling their buckets with cockles and razor clams at low tide.
We joined a group of friends for wine tasting at Quinta de Mata Mouros/Adega do Convento do Paraiso, a historic estate situated on the left bank of the River in Silves. The property is steeped in over a thousand years of fascinating history, with legends and well-documented stories describing it as once the hideout for the last of the remaining Moors during the Christian reconquest of Portugal.
The estate comprises several unique features, including the historic Convento de Nossa Senhora do Paraíso building, the Lake, the Monks Garden, the Palace, a Vineyard, and the Convento do Paraíso Winery. The tasting and generous spreads of Charcuterie were a big hit, as were the grounds and facilities. We were all invited back to participate in next year's harvest, to help foot-stomp the grapes in the large concrete tanks you can see in the photos below.
Dinner and music with friends following the wine tasting at Trattoria L`Allegria in Alvor
Finally! our first boat trip out on the water since October. Mary and I motored out of the Marina and toward the Atlantic, only to encounter swells that were a bit too large for a leisurely motor along the coast. Instead, we turned around and headed up the Arade River, enjoying the sights and a beautiful sunset on the water.
It is a short drive from our house to the Carlos do Carmo Municipal Theatre in Lagoa for tonight's performance by Carmen Souza. Carmen and her band performed Jazz from her homeland, the island of Cape Verde off the west coast of Africa. Her music tells the forgotten stories of the marks left on Cape Verdean culture by the past British presence.
Local municipalities frequently present performances like these and the Piano/Symphony that we attended last week. Although most are in Portuguese, these performances are usually very good and inexpensive, ranging from 10-20 euros per person for the show. The Portuguese municipalities are very good at providing frequent low-cost or free activities for their residents or attracting visitors.
Next we will attend a Portuguese Blues Reunion performed by Budda Guedes, Mario Laginha, and Frankie Chavez in March
This month's Algarve Wine Society dinner was held at Taberna by Lúcia Ribeiro, located in Almancil, about a 45-minute drive from our house in the middle of the Algarve. We enjoyed the modern Portuguese dishes created by Chef Lúcia Ribeiro (A Le Cordon Bleu graduate), accompanied by wines from Paulo Laureano. Paulo is one of Portugal's most respected winemakers, mainly known for his work in the Alentejo region. He describes himself as a minimalist winemaker, passionate about revealing Indigenous Portuguese grapes' unique aromas and flavors.
Since the AWS dinner was a bit of a drive east, we decided to stay nearby for a few nights to experience the area. We stayed at the recently opened Viceroy resort in Ombria. A fantastic project located in the interior countryside of the Algarve featuring the Viceroy hotel, residences, and a beautiful golf course. The project is designed to look like a European village.
Photos from our exploration of the area near the Hotel: A few dramatic sunsets, the landscape, ruins, Roman bridge in Tor, the Mercado in Loulé, and the Chocolate festival next door at the Convento.
While we were in Almancil, we also attended a wine seminar hosted by the Wine Mine group. Held at Wines & Co., this experience focused on a few different regions in Portugal. I took a few photos from a book one of their customers put together. Tiago often gives suggestions for wine visits/trips to take in Portugal, so the book documented a few of their experiences.
Another wine seminar, this time at About Wine in Faro. We enjoy learning about Portuguese wine, grape varietals, and growing regions from Luis, the proprietor of the Garrafeira. The charcuterie was a beautiful spread, as usual, and the presentation by Luis was valuable, as usual. Our favorite was Uniqo Grande Reserve, a 2014 vintage (65% Tinta Roriz (Portuguese Tempranillo), 25% Touriga Franca, 10% Touriga National) 19.95 euros!, and Quinta do Branco (Touriga National, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, and Sousao) 14.95 euros! All from the Douro region.
A VERY special someone had a Birthday this month. In addition to the rest of the week's activities, we enjoyed a special farmers' table lunch at Morgado do Quintão. Founded in the early 1810s by the 1st Count of Silves, it remains family-owned today.
In the intimate setting of eight guests at the farmer's table, we enjoyed a meal prepared from local ingredients and wines from the Adega. During and after the meal, we heard from the winemaker and from the staff about the history of the farm and the wine, including the 2,000-year-old olive tree.
Hard to tell from the photos but the surf today was larger than usual, up to 4 meters.
An expat friend from the UK started a group for us fellow immigrants so we might learn to appreciate "Whisky" (no "e" in the Scottish variety). I have not been a fan of Scotch; I have always preferred American Whiskey, but it was a fun experience.
Kevin and Christine invited us into their beautiful apartment in Praia da Rocha for an evening of the Whisky Appreciation Society of Portimão. Kevin put together a fantastic presentation complete with an agenda, handouts on each of the Whisky's, the history, videos, and tasting of unique bottlings; while Christine provided great food and snacks for the group. Tonight's theme was Whisky from the Highland Islands
A late February hike along the cliffs between Alvor Beach/Tres Hermanos and Praia do Vau. The spectacular scenery just never gets old!
Carnival is fast approaching, celebrated in the first week of March. It feels a lot like Halloween in the states with costumes, confetti and other celebratory supplies lining the aisles of the local grocery stores. The Portuguese will celebrate over four days (the last day is declared as a national holiday) with many activities and parades throughout the country. Nearly all municipalities and even small villages will hold parades and fairs to celebrate.
The rest of the family continues to thrive in Portugal. Barney has learned to use his plush bed as a pillow for the ultimate nap. Sonny loves new things we bring into the house. He was curious about the basket but throw in one of his toys and it becomes a fascinating experience!
As always we hope everyone is doing well, healthy, happy, and thriving. We miss you and love you all...A lot!
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