HAAS

Arrifana » Aljezur 17,1 km, ascent 223 m, descent 178 m

Because I had to catch a flight back Saturday afternoon, this was to be the last section of the Fishermen’s Trail. Considering the fact that in Aljezur there is a bus connection back to Lagos, this wasn’t too bad. Not every village has a bus connection.

This section of the trail had quite a lot of kilometres consisting of very soft sand. The landscape was basically a dune landscape. All these days I had been walking within the boundaries of the Southwest Alentejo and Vicentine Coast Natural Park. I had seen stork in their natural habitat flying off the cliffs toward the ocean. Quite a different bird from the storks I am used to in The Netherlands.

Somebody told me that during high season you cannot drive a camper this close to the ocean. Not sure if this is true.

The last day was overall very sunny but in the last hour of my five day hike it started to rain for the first time. Just before Aljezur I passed by this unremarkable stone structure. According to the sign it was water spring of islamic origin and dated back to the 10th century.

Aljezur

Population: 5,884.

Since it was the last day of my walk I treated myself to a fish restaurant. I had hoped to taste goose barnacles, no matter the price, but the patron of Cervejaria Mar (address: R. da Escola 13, 8670-055, Aljezur) told me the ocean wasn’t favourable for harvesting goose barnacles at the moment. You can’t argue with that.

Most dishes on the menu were for two persons or more, so I had to settle for the Arroz de Tamboril (monkfish rice), which was a huge one-pot meal of fresh monkfish, with a chicken like texture, sea shells and prawns. It might not look very big on the photos but I could hardly finish the pot by myself. For a dish like this you must use Carolino, a typical Portuguese rice variety, for the best results. It’s a starchy rice variety, which makes a creamy sauce.

After finishing the monkfish rice I asked for a local digestif. The patron’s eyes lit up and he came back with an earthenware cup of medronho. I don’t drink strong spirits very often but this was both potent (50%) and had a distinctly pleasant taste and smell. Apparently it is made from fruits of the arbutus tree. Until recently it was made like a moonshine by local farmers.

Lisboa Moscavide

On my way back I had half a day to spend in Lisboa between arriving by train at the Entrecampos Station and boarding time. I took a metro to Praça do Comércio, which, apparently, is the most important square of the city. It looks nice enough, but the area is flocked by tourists. I hated it.

Within fifteen minutes I jumped in the metro again in search for something more local. I ended up in the neighbourhood Moscavide, which I traveled through on the first day, because at the beginning of my trip my train to Tunes left at Gare do Oriente.

On the first day I had lunch in a small restaurant near Gare do Oriente: freshly grilled BBQ chicken, rice, fries and salad for just € 7,50 or € 9,00 including a glass of red wine.

I had lunch again in Moscavide in a local bar. I ordered a random soup and was served soup and a bread roll filled with meat. I guess the barman figured that just a soup wasn’t enough. I was so mesmerised by the people around me I forgot to make photos of the scene. There were women, small children, tattooed men with bad teeth, an African man was sitting at my table, stoic like a Buddha, amidst the chaos of crying children and chatting men. Moscavide is my kind of place.