Pulling in to the seaside town of Nazare signalled the end of my whirlwind Portuguese adventure. I completely underestimated how much I would love it here – the vibrancy, the history, the food, the culture. And most importantly, the people.
The Portuguese people I met reminded me a lot of Australians, laid back, un-fazed, but also completely aware of how underrated-ly amazing their little country is.
Nazare sits along the Atlantic Ocean, about 90 minutes north of Lisbon. It’s your European holiday town to a tee – beautifully cobblestoned streets, fresh white facades, and an abundance of restaurants sitting along the beach. Nazare is also known for it’s huge surf, given the right season.
I chose to stay in a private room at Nazare Hostel, which gave me the incredible view above, but also the near impossible task of trying to find a car park within 5kms of the front door. Nevertheless, it was the ideal place to soak in the incredible view and keep out of the hectic town centre.
Once parked and showered from my four hour drive from Porto, I took myself down to the beachfront to soak in my final night in my new favourite country with a margarita in hand. Oh and look round town of course…
To fulfil my tequila sunset desires, I pulled up a seat at one of the bars on the beach to read my book and to have a drink that I’m pretty sure was 50% ethanol. Nicely fumigated, I found the most local, most seafood place I could find for my final meal.
A BARCA was that very venue and while I got my fair share of stares as the sole blonde female in the place, the abundance of seafood presented for less than $20 was worth any awkwardness.
A stunning sunrise greeted me as I said farewell to this delightful town and made my way to their airport on what could have been one of the most disastrous travel days of my life…but things always seem to work out the way they should, hey!
