Sunriser

Happy New Year! 2023 starts pleasantly for Sunriser and her crew. We celebrated our 32 years of marriage at sea with a dolphin show and an overnight sail to Lagos.

Under the Cape of Sao Vicente sailing becomes a whole different experience; the skies clear up, the seas flatten and the wind calms down while we enter the Algarve, the winter holiday destination of the Northern European pensionados. In the spirit of the locals we make a partly successful attempt to slow down ourselves.

The Algarve coast around Lagos is made up of spectacular cliffs which we explore by dinghy and on foot in the company of the crew of another Fountaine Pajot, Saude Eterna (cheers for ever). They honor their ship’s name welcoming us with a taste of Brazilian hospitality at its best. 

Vilamoura, further east on the coast, is a sophisticated marina full of luxury shops and trendy restaurants, put on hold while waiting for the summer jet setters to come back. The countryside villages are much more to our taste, with some hidden gems such as a secluded waterfall, a tiny museum dedicated to almonds and the mountain Rocha de Pena.

After some days of strong winds we exchanged the marina comforts for the peace and solitude of an anchorage nearby Faro, at the island of Culatra. This is fishermen’s territory. The fishing industry hier is nothing like the floating fish factories in Northern Europe. The local fishermen mostly set out to fish in tiny boats with one or two men and sell their catch directly to the market in the town of Olhao. Perfect place to buy some fish and replenish Jos’s collection of fishing gear.

Our days in Portugal come to an end at the border town of Vila Real de Santo Antonio by the river Guadiana. From the harbour at the Portuguese side it’s only a 10 minute ferry ride to Ayamonte in Spain, so we change country for a couple of hours and it really feels so; different language, food, architecture, atmosphere and even one hour of time difference. 

We have very much enjoyed cruising in Portugal; it has been challenging at times but we had an interesting taste of ocean sailing, with big waves and strong winds (not forgetting the orca situation). There is a lot to learn from how the Portuguese people relate to the ocean, as an integral part of their country, as much as the land. They sail, surf and fish with care and respect for the sea life and their own.

Grateful for the experience, encounters and lessons learned (in addition to the cataplanas, porto, pasteis de nata, arroz de marisco…) we set sail for Spain. 

Goodbye Portugal!