Day No. 67 - Monchique is not a toy

Waking up with a view of the sea: absolutely divine. - Everything seems to have remained intact. In between, the stormy night gave us the odd scare. - Nevertheless, we slept soundly from time to time. Supposedly you are not allowed to stand here, but someone has taken down the prohibition signs. We were also not woken up by the Guarda Nacional Republicana, or GNR for short, which supposedly does this quite often. So we can't complain.

We head to the beach before breakfast. To do this, you first have to cross the Ribeira de Seixe. - The water reaches just above your knees. The tide is currently pushing the sea into the river. Apart from us, the only people to be seen are a few people covered in thick masks. -

Torgit goes for a walk, I go swimming. - My mom would be proud of me. We've always shared a passion for water, even cold water. Afterwards, we quickly wash off the first salt water in the little river and then take a cold outdoor shower. - In the meantime, a fat camper van has arrived next to us. A lady from Munich looks at me uncomprehendingly. Surely her bus has a wellness shower oasis. Our start to the day is far from glamping, but all the more refreshing. When Torgit returns, we have breakfast. Today we have fruit with nuts and coconut flakes - after all, it's almost Christmas. - An initial assessment is made. - "It doesn't matter if a beach is big, it should be deserted"

The road takes us to Aljezur, a small town in the Faro district with an open supermarket. The area around the market is a bit quirky, so I prefer to stay in the car. Although the market isn't exactly pretty from the outside, it has a good selection. Next to our parking lot were two electric charging stations, one of which was exclusively for Tesla. - Not that I've seen a single Tesla in the last few days. Here in Germany, it's the other way around.

Above the village of Aljezur, we catch sight of an old fortress. - We decide that this is the right place for a snack and drive through the small streets of the village. Of course, we overlook the signs prohibiting campers and caravans. From the fortress you not only have a great view of the Serra de Monchique all the way to the sea, but it has also seen a lot: Lusitanians, Romans, Visigoths, Arabs... Rich, isn't it? - Although it is only a ruin, it is a perfect place for our lunch. - The road then crosses the Serra mountain range. In the distance you can see the odd wind turbine and power lines. Numerous hiking trails criss-cross this area. In one place there is a pile of pine bark. The thickness of the bark never fails to impress me.

Shortly afterwards, we drive through Monchique, our destination for tomorrow. The supposed beauty is not apparent at first glance. Let us be surprised. But first we continue on via Brejo to Alferce. - At Brejo, the road becomes extremely narrow and steep. It winds its way up the mountain in tight hairpin bends. Surely no campers would drive here. So there is another way, but ours is better. At least that's how I feel, Torgit has been very quiet for a while. I wonder why that is? - When we arrive at the small pitch in Alferce, we meet some friendly neighbors. At least that's how we feel about the skull and crossbones on the old Daimler. Time to come to rest.

Our insight of the day comes from a young lady we met by chance on the beach this morning. She is currently on the bus with her boyfriend, toddler and stray puppy. He is going to Germany in the next few months to do some work. She is staying here. She notes the limited luxury of a bus:

"The less you have, the more room there is for joy" -  Very true!