An Elevated Anniversary

Twenty-two years married and still very much together; in the tiny space within Eileen, it’s hard to be apart!

At 11am Marmelete looked like it was still asleep.  Rodney didn’t want to wake anyone, so we drove on, ever upwards to Monchique.  The road twisted left and right as we climbed higher and higher past acres of eucalyptus trees and every so often there would be a pile of trunks beside the road, all perfectly trimmed and sorted.

 

 

We continued driving until we reached the highest point at Fóia which was dominated by a number of communications towers, a couple of coaches full of tourists and the obligatory gift shop. Luckily for all of us it was a fairly clear day, so we could see right across the Algarve to the south and to the west coasts.

On the way back down to Monchique we chose the O Luar Da Fóia Restaurante for our anniversary lunch and had an absolutely wonderful meal.  For starters we had plates of black pork ham, cheese sprinkled with herbs and oil, marinated carrots and olives with bread.  My main course was a churasco style kebab of juicy lamb served with an enormous plate of chips and a casserole dish full of salad.  Rodney chose Monchique barbecued black pork which was diced and cooked in garlic with a side of chips and salad.  Both dishes were so good, but so large that neither of us could finish our meals.  Though somehow, I managed to squeeze down one of the best chocolate mousses I have ever had and we thanked the chef on the way out.  I’d go back again tomorrow if we were going to be up in the hills again.

 

 

I’m sure Jacques Cousteau was alive and sitting at the next table, it turned out he was French and from somewhere north of La Rochelle; it obviously wasn’t Jacques.  So far on this trip we’ve spotted Judi Dench at one of the campsites, met Johnny Depp in Madrid, spotted Philip Seymour Hoffman alive in Lagos, sat near Heidi Klum in a café in Praia De Luz, and Geoff Wilson adjusting his campervan, not his BMW…..  Perhaps we’ll spot a real star one day?

 

 

We have spotted some good chimneys as we’ve travelled through the Algarve; they’re really attractive and almost look like tiny lighthouses.  I like them.

On our way back down to sea level, we noticed that a lot of the trees were cork trees, with their trunks stripped and black and their branches still a pale silver colour.  We stopped to take a closer look at some and Rodney returned to the car with a gift of four oranges from a tree nearby.  His hands now smell of fresh citrus.