Weekend with the Melvilles

Friday 1 March

Quite an easy day today as we spent most of the day driving to Lisbon. We ended up in a campsite on the outskirts of Lisbon having driven through the center of the city (Interesting experience) It was a nice site with internet access in the bar and we had our washing done for us.  Mind you for €22 camp fees I would have expected her to iron it as well!!!

Saturday 2 March

A fairly early start to drive into the City to park outside Duncan and Marta’s apartment block. They live in the east side of the City, close to the river and in an area that since 1998 undergone recent regeneration (just like Birmingham). The area thrived due to Expo ’98. It’s a high-tech area with modern futuristic buildings and is bursting with culture and artistic design. We loved the architecture, especially the railway station and the Portuguese display area for which they used for the expo, the concrete appears to float. 

We walked down the road which is to the side of the river marveling at the sites looking for the tour bus stop which we managed to find just as the bus was leaving. Unfortunately the next bus wasn't for 45 mins so to pass the time we had a look around a huge (on 4 floors) shopping centre which later Marta told us was only a small one. She also said that it remained open until midnight and it was quite normal to get home from work at 8pm, have dinner and then go out shopping. 

We got onto the open top tour bus having been given a set of earphones and went upstairs. It was quite a chilly day and just about unbearable when the bus accelerated along dual carriageways. When Kev’s thumbs turned blue we knew it was time to move to a warmer spot. As it happens, the €30 cost for us both was well worth it. We were on the bus for 1hr 45mins all told and split up the journey when we arrived in the city centre. We had a good look round. 

In the centre of a Plaza was a tented area containing artisan market stalls. For lunch we had a sandwich which comprised of a kind of Parma ham and soft goats cheese scooped out of the large cheese with a wooden spoon and put inside some artisan flat bread. Delicious. We then homed in on the cake shop, Kev had a coconut spongy one and Petra a chocolate cake. We love Portuguese cakes, so much better than any we saw in Spain. 

After coffee we explored some more and then rejoined the bus, same driver but different bus with a covered top, much warmer. We got off where we started and made our way to see Duncan, Marta and little Sara. 

So, after 32 years Kevin and Duncan finally got together. It was great to see him and his family and we both agreed that 32 years ago if we had said we would meet together in an apartment in Lisbon we would never have thought it possible. They were soon reminiscing about their time together in 25 Field Regiment Royal Artillery in Paderborn, West Germany. It brought back some fond memories of their time together and the trials and tribulations of being a soldier in the early 80s. 

In the afternoon they drove us out of the city (in their Mercedes) to Cascais on the coast. It is a beautiful, affluent town on a rocky coastline with soft sand beaches and large Atlantic surfing waves. We saw several people surfing there. We ambled around the cobbled streets stopping at a cafe for a delicious shot of coffee and the mandatory cake. Duncan showed us bars where he used to play with his band and every English bar in the town. 
By the time we got back to their apartment area it was about 8.30pm and we went to a restaurant close to their home where they were very well known and had very good dinner, we chose the kebabs which were fantastic. 

That evening we slept in Campy in the street outside the apartment - we were surprised how quiet it was and had a very good night’s sleep. 

Next morning after showers and breakfast we all went to visit the Mosteiro dos Jeronimos and Church, in Lisbon, close to the river. These were very impressive and from here we had a short walk to the torre de Belem, a monument to Portuguese explorers who apparently discovered the world. This whole area was very well kept and a wonderful place to stroll around on a Sunday morning.

We then headed to a harbourside restaurant for a late lunch. We had the traditional dish of Bacalhau a Bras - cod, onion, eggs with tiny tiny chips all cooked together. It was delicious and accompanied by white wine from Portugal - monte velho. There was a birthday celebration on the next table and we joined in with the singing. We were rewarded with chocolate birthday cake. Result!

After lunch we had a drive through some of the older and narrow streets in Lisbon to a spectacular viewpoint. We would never have been able to take Campy through those streets. The view of the city from there was fantastic and Duncan was able to point out all the landmarks to us. 

Soon it was time to leave and we sadly said goodbye to Marta, Duncan and Sara. We would like to thank them sincerely for the their warm welcome and for taking us around their wonderful city. On leaving both Kevin and Duncan agreed that they should not leave it 32 years before meeting again. 

Duncan and Kev 1980/81

Duncan and Kev 2013

The Railway Station

The Family Melville

We drove north out of the city for about an hour and a half to an Aire at A Dos Cunhaurs. A pleasant spot but as usual next to a road and church (the bells, the bells).

Monday 4 March

It was a four hour drive to the Aire at Costa Nova today with a good stop at Obidos, which had been recommended to us by Duncan. This town will be remembered for 2 things. Firstly it’s a beautiful mediaeval town, even in the rain. Secondly it was the place we were at when we decided that we would take the momentous decision to let Campy go and replace her with a larger motorhome, more suited to our needs. We have both come to the conclusion that we love the traveling lifestyle and can’t think of anything else we would rather do. So why not do it in comfort, warmth and style. Sorry, Campy, we love you. 

She'll do!

We arrived at Costa Nova mid afternoon and we were taken aback by what we found. The Aires book gave no reference to the quirky seaside resort that we discovered. It is a summer holiday destination and most of the houses were shuttered up for the winter but you can see from the photos what an unusual place it is architecturally and a delight to walk round. Most of the properties are small but traditional in design, interspersed with Art-deco, even cubist design houses are in juxtaposition with aged traditional dwellings. A fascinating eclectic mixture. Most importantly we found a friendly bar with WiFi - they even let us charge up the Mac. 

We like it so much here that we are going to stay a few days, whilst the sun is shining and we have access to a brilliant cafe (cake).

Also available in bright yellow, red, green and a rather fetching puce

Yep the box is a house...Great!

Old school..

Fantastic Beaches

COSTA NOVA we love it!