Day 4 – October 8, 2014

We originally wanted to try surfing today but were advised that the conditions were not suitable for beginners. So, we swapped our itinerary around and went kayaking instead. The morning looked gloomy and grey but in an instant, the clouds disappeared and it was beautiful.

For the next 2 hours, we kayaked through the grottos and explored some of the caves. I love kayaking and this landscape made the experience even more enjoyable.

We stopped at the Praia de Batata beach to rest and swim for a bit before heading back to shore. The water was cold so there was not much swimming happening.

After kayaking, we changed and showered at the hostel before heading out to a churrasqueira for some Portuguese grilled chicken. It was very satisfying after our active morning.

My co-worker suggested a bicycle tour of the grottos but we were too last minute and couldn’t join any tours. Instead, we just rented bikes and explore the top of the grottos on our own. We biked to each of the beaches until Ponta de Piedade, the point of the grottos. The trail at the edge of the cliffs was not meant for biking… but we managed lugging the bikes around, parking them and then hiking bits of the trail. It was a lot of fun and we got to see various beaches, Praia Do Pinhão, Praia Dona Ana and Praia do Camilo. My favourite beach was Pinhão and Camilo but I didn’t go for a swim since I don’t want to be biking around wet. It was still great to get my legs wet and cool off from the ride.

We managed to get to the point right at sunset to enjoy the view. All of the views were amazing and seeing the grottos from the top was worthwhile. I’m glad we got the chance to do this because this wasn’t in our original itinerary.

We biked back to the hostel to drop off our bikes before heading to dinner at Nah Nah Bah. They were known for having one of the world’s best burgers… (I have no idea who claimed that) but it was also recommended by a co-worker. The burger was very satisfying and good but I don’t think is one of the top 50 world’s best.

Day 5 – October 9, 2014

The weather was looking gloomy but apparently, the tide was good enough for some surfing. Dru and I went, while Michelle stayed back. The surf centre, Surf Experience drove us for about 30 minutes to Praia de Cabana Velhas. We geared up our wetsuits and headed towards the beach with our boards.

First, the instructor told us to go out in sea without our boards to feel of the waves and get used to the water. Surprisingly, it was not cold at all and the waves were a lot of fun –much like being in a wave pool. He then gave us directions on how to lie on the board and body surf. We practiced that for a while before we got directions on how to stand up.

Boo! I couldn’t stand up on my board. It was hard enough to body surf constantly and keep straight. By the end of it, I could body surf decently until the tide started to come towards shore and the conditions were no longer ideal for learning how to surf. The waves were definitely getting bigger and I could not even stand on the ground anymore.

The weather was always changing –moments of downpour and sunshine. But surfing is not a problem in the rain… you’re already wet! It actually worked out well that we surfed today instead of yesterday. Surfing is a lot of fun and a great workout. You’re fighting the waves to get out there and there is a lot of upper body movement to get on the board. I loved it and would do it again but I don’t see myself becoming a surfer… aside from my location, I’m not that comfortable in water and I think I would get bored just surfing at the same spot all day (at least snowboarding, you have different runs to explore)

We finished surfing early due to the conditions. This was good for us because we were getting tired and also needed to leave for another city, Faro. We had a quick lunch provided by the tour before going back to our hostel for a hot shower. We took the train to Faro, checked into our guesthouse, São Filipe and had dinner at O’Gimbras. For my last Portuguese dinner, I enjoyed the local codfish, bacalhau but Michelle’s octopus was the favourite dish of the night.

I stocked up on my two favourite pastries; the Portuguese tart and Queijada and we roamed around Faro’s old town for a bit. All of the stores were closed but it looked like a quaint town to explore during the day.