Campismo 2013, Part 2.2

Sunday 21st

Mostly driving. Mostly boring motorway stuff. After arriving at the campsite and putting up the tent we discovered the tunnels leading from the campsite under the golf course to the beach...

The view from the end of the tunnel across the beach.

Monday 22nd

Day out in Braga, which is a very lovely city a bit like Lincoln, full of old churches and narrow streets with arches at the ends. We walked around the Cathedral and through the shopping arcade. We ate lunch at a small bistro and then walked around some more. In hindsight it might have been better if we'd had a more concrete plan for which sights to see. Or perhaps not. We were happy simply meandering and saw plenty of fantastic sights anyway. In the evening I took a long walk through the tunnels again and along the beach. A way along I discovered that what I had previously thought were rocks were actually enormous white sandbags to reinforce the dunes and/or stop the golf course from collapsing onto the beach. Weather wise, it's just a shame that the clouds persist; It would be so much nicer if the sun would shine.

A Church garden in Braga.

Another big church in Braga.

The big fountain in the centre of town.

Church tower.

The beach next to the campsite, strewn with tatters of the sandbags.

Further along, where a stream joined the beach.

Tuesday 23rd

Hooray, the sun is shining. And so we decided to head for the nearest town, Póvoa de Varzim. We had obtained a little tourist guide from the campsite reception and the review of the beach was very good. Having found the seafront we drove along right until the end and then parked up. After a very relaxing morning on the somewhat gravelly beach we found a restaurant for some lunch and finished off the day exploring the shops along the prom and eating ice cream.

A small section of the immense wall of Azulejos near the harbour.

A small house curiously sitting in among the taller apartment blocks on the seafront.

Wednesday 24th

After much discussion last night we decided to go to Porto today and follow a walk from the Lonely Planet guide. It started off at a Church called Clérigos, with a tall tower to climb and get fantastic views of the riverside area. Then winding its way to the riverside though narrow streets and allies leading finally over the bridge to gain a splendid view of the riverside area from the far bank. Then our plan was to take a boat trip up the river a way and simply enjoy the scenery, which we did having been sold the tickets for a boat trip at the foot of the church tower steps. Finally since the tickets also gave a free visit to a Port Wine cellar, including a much advertised free taste, we indulged. We returned to camp late after a very busy and tiring day. Plans are to spend tomorrow, being our final day in the north, at Guimarães, arguably, or so I'm told, the birthplace of the kingdom of Portugal.

Torre dos Clérigos (Clérigos Church Tower).

Clérigos Church.

Ooooh, A tram!

The view from Clérigos Tower towards the riverside.

Example of stone working on a wall in the riverside area.

A bridge over the river Douro.

These boats were originally used to transport the wines down from the vineyards.

Another view of the bridge.

A different bridge, viewed from our boat trip.

A Port Wine cellar.

The customary tasting!

Thursday 25th

Guimarães today. A lovely town. Very medieval looking and apparently, although I'm no expert, with some French influence. Either way a town full of fantastic looking old buildings. We parked at the market and found our way to the historical centre where, after a quick visit to the tourist information office to obtain a map we wound our way through the cobbled streets and fountained praça's up to the palace and castle.

A church in Guimarães.

A symbolic statue of a (possibly) the first King of Portugal.

Azulejos depicting the Virgin Mary.

Another less symbolic statue.

The model of Guimarães Castle, that I'd previously seen at the Big Lego Event.

Inside the Palace, looking across towards the chapel.

The front of the Castle.

Fountain and view from the town square.

Back in camp I took the kids to the pool while my better half cooked us up a fantastic casserole to use up all the veg in preparation for our moving on tomorrow to Tomar.