Welcome to our weekly peek at our travels, through my camera lens. A chance for me to show case the amazing places we get to experience on our full time travels whilst developing my photography skills.
This week has been a frustrating one. In part because of the incident with Scoobie’s engine warning light that had me distracted for the weekend and secondly because my SD card continued to challenge me. On top of that I totally forgot to put a card in my camera whilst at Aveiro, so I’m pretty mad at myself for that rooky mistake. Still I am not going to beat myself up, as there are plenty of images to share with you this week, which have a very watery theme to them.
Our travels this week, have been influenced by repairs we needed in a city where I happened to find a Fiat garage, who could run a diagnostic for us. So with every challenge there comes a silver lining, of which there were many this week.
1. Leiria and its 5000 year old history
After the surprise of Portugal’s answer to Lourdes, Fátima and its holy pilgrimage Sanctuary, we gently glided downhill to the city of Leira. And whilst waiting for our afternoon appointment, I had a chance to distract myself and explore Leiria’s castle and old town. On the face of it, Leira is not a place we would necessary visit given its outer edges filled with motorways and commercial zones, although once into its core, a very beautiful and vibrant city emerged from the embers.
The lung busting walk up to its 11th century castle is the first port of call, that with a small fee, allows you access to its museum, tower and palace. Beneath its foundations are signs that a settlement has been here since the Bronze Age some 5000 years ago. So to walk on this soil feels pretty special. Then with a much easier walk down to the old town, a blend of old and new somehow seem to fit together. It was a great little place that we were incredibly grateful to have stumbled across.
2. Nazaré – king of the waves
With a weekend retreat at Paredes da Vitória on the west coast, just 30 minutes from Leiria, we took the bikes into Nazaré. We visited here for the first time in 2019, although didn’t find it very motorhome friendly. So we were inquisitive to see whether with bikes, the place felt any different to us. The buzz on a Sunday in February was great, with stall sellers, a big wheel and just a lot of people milling around. As we walked to the iconic fortress to watch the gargantuan waves, we were blown away by people sitting everywhere along the cliffs. We happened to coincide our visit with a Yellow Alert for the Big Wave Championships, held in Nazaré every winter. Today they were practising in readiness for an official competition two days later. Watching the surfers and their partnering jet ski pilots, we were amazed by their death defying feats scaling these giant waves, which can reach 30m at their tallest. Before my SD card gave up the ghost, I managed to get some great shots.
3. Alcobaça Monastery – UNESCO
Doing some research I found this fabulous monastery that dates back to the 11th century, when the building was inspired by the first King of Portugal to celebrate the defeat of the Moors. This monastery and church are quite magnificent given their age, although the old town is also quite charming and the views from the old castle remains are something else. With a free Aire to park up overnight as well, this place is worthy of a day or two stopover.
4. Abstract images
As always we finish the week with some abstract shots I took, just, quite honestly because I like them. I enjoyed their colours, their life and the stories they told. I particularly loved the blackbird, who was on high alert as a peregrine falcon flew overhead.
So the end of yet another week. The next seven days will involve the gorgeous Costa Nova in Portugal before we start heading east, slowly inching our way towards Bilbao and our ferry on 2nd March. So until the same time next week, have a great weekend. Kx
Such great shots of the surfers! Wish you a lovely Saturday evening xx