Albufeira Old Town

Tuesday was our first full day in Albufeira, so we were eager to get out and explore. We were only one of two couples having breakfast in the hotel, so it was an intimate affair - ha ha! The staff in the bar were so lovely and though breakfast was very limited they made sure we had enough to eat and looked after us.

We'd been warned it was a fair old walk to the old town, so we hopped in a taxi and headed there after breakfast, and that it was where we spent the day. First we headed to Praia dos Pescadores, it was beautiful! We had a walk across the golden sands, and then stopped at a beach bar for iced cold beers. I could sit and gaze at the sea for hours! When we finally dragged ourselves away we went for a wander around the shops, it was a fun experience! So many shops, restaurants and bars and live music in the town square provided by two guys from the Andes. Its not a place to rush by, you would be missing so much by doing so.

For lunch we stopped at a restaurant tucked away on one of the size roads near the square. It had spilled out on to the steps with tables set out on little terraces. We overlooked the square and could watch the world go buy as we drank wine and enjoyed lunch. After we had eaten we carried on walking up the many steps and made our way to Praia do Peneco, the beach at the other end of the old town. Up on the hill overlooking the beach are pretty little restaurants and we also found the archaeological museum. It was only a euro to look around so we did that, nice to soak up a little history and culture too.It was only a small museum, but we learned a little more about the history of the Algarve.   On our way back down we came across an amazing little bar, totally decorated in shells. It looked so quaint and stunning we had to go inside. Honestly the inside was even more stunning. So we stopped at the Antiquity Bar for a drink, the owner came back while we were there and told us more about the bar and how he collects the shells from the local beach. Apparently he lives above the bar and watches the beach with binoculars. If he seems lots of shells, he heads down there to collect them. Portuguese people are very friendly and like to chat.

Finally it was time to head back to Santa Eulalia where we called in at the supermarket for a few supplies. In the evening we had a walk up to Sol Caffe for a little dinner. The whole day was just perfect.