Tavira, Portugal

I've "never" been to Portugal before. I'll say "never" because I've been to Madeira, but I've never been to the main land. I'm not sure what I expected, but I loved every minute of our stay. People were pleasant, the food was great, and it did not get too hot (oh, it was hot, but at the windy beach, it was perfect).

We flew to Lisbon in the evening, and stayed at a hotel so it wouldn't be too late for Jr. The very next day, we drove down to Tavira at the coast of AlGarve.

It only took a couple of hours to drive the distance, and then we were at my mom's place. Tavira turned out to be a great place for old and young. It had everything a vacation spot should have: Restaurants, shops, beaches, pools and lots of ice-cream (the last was very important, according to Jr.) but not to many tourists, mostly locals. Not being overrun by tourists, gave Tavira a very pleasant feel. It was easy to relax, and you could even find yourself a "private" spot on the beach. If you ever decide to go to Tavira, I can recommend renting a car. Tavira is no more than a short driving distance from the border of Spain to the east, from Faro to the west or from the mountains to the north.

Here are a few more impressions from our trip. There will be a post later this week (I hope), with pictures of a spectacular sunset.