29.1o.2o18 • Faro

finally made it to Portugal !! my first stop: the small town `Faro´ located on the southern coast of Portugal called `Algarve´. most travellers actually skip this city when exploring the southern parts of Spain & Portugal . but even if `Faro´ is very small & not that known it was a great choice for my first place to visit in Portugal !! i spent my first afternoon at the beautiful harbour of the city just watching the people passing by, reading & enjoying the sun. by the way it was pretty cold because of the wind .. even if the sun was shining !! then i visited a local market at the main square & bought some fancy things made out of cork. this is the typical material used very often in Portugal not only for wine bottles but also for bags, shoes & clothes. in the evening i got to know a lot of new people in the `Casa d`Alagoa´ & enjoyed the familiar atmosphere there. we ate typical portugese sandwiches called `Bifana´ all together & watched movies till the late night .. could be worse !! the next morning started with a good breakfast & the usual walking tour around the city. `Faro´ is small but so beautiful !! i just couldn`t get enough of all the small streets, white houses & cute shops. in the afternoon i took the shuttle bus to the beach of `Faro´ which is just a 2o min bus ride away from the city center !! even if it is super windy & pretty cold there i would highly recommend going there. the beach is amazing !! great waves & fine sand all around & not a lot of people at that time of the year. a perfect place to watch the sunset & eat some ice cream !! after 2 days in Portugal i already like this country that much .. so excited to see more of it in the following weeks :))

o1.11.2o18 • Lagos

my next stop: `Lagos´ .. a small town in the south of Portugal known for its great beaches & high waves. after i arrived in the `Orange 3 Hostel´ in the center of `Lagos´ i took a walk through the town. i really love these small streets & cute cafés .. i could just keep strolling around for hours !! back to the hostel i checked out the rooftop terrace & enjoyed the sunset there. in the evening i got to know my room mates for the next two nights & i could not have been happier. there were just about 6 guests in the hostel because of the low season & everyone of them was super sympathetic !! we cooked together, talked a lot & watched movies till the late night. the next day i actually wanted to visit the beach & the cliffs of `Lagos´ but it was raining the whole day !! so after breakfast i went to the laundry, went food shopping & got some stuff done. in the afternoon me & a new friend from the hostel went to a thriftshop nearby & bought some fancy stuff :)) then we watched movies, ate typical portugese sweets & just enjoyed one day off. even if travelling means pure holidays it can be pretty exhausting sometimes .. so one day doing almost nothing in between was just perfect for regenerating !! the next morning started super sunny & warm again. even if i had to go to to my Surfcamp in `Arrifana´ that day i decided to make a short stop in `Sagres´ known as the most south western point of Europe !! i arrived there at about 11 am & couldn`t believe my eyes. `Sagres´ turned out to be one of the most spectacular places i`ve ever seen in my life !! beautiful beaches & steep cliffs with an amazing view all over the portugese coast line !! after a few hours of discovering this epic landscape i went to the tourist information to get my bus ticket to `Arrifana´. bad surprise: today was a public holiday in Portugal & there were no more buses going to `Arrifana´ !! so i had to go hitchhiking. i walked up to next big road & waited .. not even longer than 5 minutes !! a couple from Spain on their way to exact the place i had to go took me with them .. lucky me :)) so i finally arrived at my Surfcamp in `Arrifana´ in the late afternoon .. just in time to watch the sunset at the beach !!

o5.11.2o18 • Arrifana

as Portugal is known for its great surfing spots i absolutely had to go surfing here !! and this is what i actually did. i booked a one week surfcamp in `Arrifana´ & stayed in a great surf house from `Arrifana Surf Camp & School´ near the beach !! i shared one room with two french girls & together we had a lot of fun in our `base´. we had surf lessons together, cooked together, went out together & really enjoyed the sunny days in `Arrifana´. on our first day we started surfing at 1o am. after having a good breakfast loading our surfboards into the van & preparing for the surf session we finally made it into the cold water of the atlantic ocean !! OmG it was really cold but with a long wetsuit & some warm up at the beach you get really warm when paddling through the waves. a big thank you to our great surf instructor Alex (from Germany) who motivated us every morning & made us surfing better from day to day !! we surfed about 3 hours per day with some short breaks of course & i have been so exhausted after every single session. after a final conclusion of the day plus some tipps for the next run we brought all the stuff back into the van & washed the wetsuits at our `base´. after finally finishing the surf course for the day the first thing to do was taking a hot shower & drinking some hot ginger tea !! in the afternoon we strolled around the really small town of `Arrifana´ went for a hike along the steep cliffs or just relaxed in our cowzy surf house. on our second day we started our surf lesson at 12 am because of the tide of the sea. this was actually my most progressive & productive day. i managed to take almost every wave .. i stood up correctly & sometimes i even made it to surf along the wave for a few seconds .. a pretty good feeling !! in the evening me & the girls went to a small restaurant in town (one of the four options around here .. haha) where we ate delicious fish & squid. we had a great evening together talking about life travelling & getting older in general .. it felt so familiar to talk to them after two days of living together !! it is crazy how fast you get friends with the right people .. i never thought i would meet that many inspiring souls in one single journey. on our third day in `Arrifana´ the weather got worse .. sometimes it rained & the temperature dropped. but no excuses for real surfer !! together with a brazilian guy who arrived in the evening the day before we kept fighting against the current & made our way through the waves. it was hard but so good !! we all felt super exhausted after surfing but we were happy we made it. on the last day of my surfcamp we even had to stand up at 7 am to catch the best waves !! we were the first ones at the beach & had all the waves for us alone .. an amazing experience. all in one i had a great time here in `Arrifana´ & i would definitely come back here & join `Arrifana Surf Camp & School´ again !!

1o.11.2o18 • Lisbon

my final destination on my journey .. the capital of Portugal: `Lisbon´ !! i planned to stay 3 whole days here but in the end this was still not enough for such a beautiful city. but let me start from the beginning: i arrived in `Lisbon´ in the late afternoon of the 6th of November. from the bus terminal i had to make my way through the chaotic metro until i finally arrived in my airbnb. i really loved my accomodation !! the house was located in one of the oldest districts of `Lisbon´ called `Graca´ but not even far away from downtown. the room was super cowzy & lovely furnished & offered a nice view all over the `Tajo´ river !! on my first day in `Lisbon´ i discovered the oldest but most beautiful areas of the city. i joined the `Free Walking Tour´ through the district of `Mouraria´ and `Alfama´ & got to see so many special places !! we walked through small streets full of grafitti & street art tasted the typical portugese drink called `Ginjinha´ (not with gin but with cherry liqueur .. pretty tasty) & had some amazing views all over the city from the famous `Miradores de Lisboa´ !! after this 3 hours city tour i felt pretty hungry & so i had to try some original argentinean empanadas from the `Union Empanadas´. OmG so so good !! then i took one of the famous yellow cable cars to the promenade of `Lisbon´ where i enjoyed the last sunrays & a small `Super Bock´ (the typical portugese beer). the next day started pretty cloudy & rainy .. shopping weather !! after a delicious breakfast in a small café near my airbnb i took the famous cable car nr. 28 (by the way nr. 12 goes almost the same way but with a lot less people !!) towards downtown. in the city center you can find a lot of fancy shops, good traditional bakeries & a lot of tuktuk drivers waiting for their next clients. i strolled through the streets, drank some coffee & visited the `Mirador de Santa Justa´ .. a platform all above the rooftops in the middle of `Lisbon´ .. great view guaranteed !! in the afternoon i went to the `Time Out Market´ in the western part of `Lisbon´ to try some good local food & exactly this is what you get there. the market consists of a huge hall with a lot of food stands long tables & a lot of people .. don`t go there when you are hungry otherwise you will eat it all .. haha !! after trying the best `Pasteis de Nata´ of my entire life i took the metro to upper `Lisbon´ where I visited the fancy grafitti tram nr. 15 called `Calcada da Gloria´. i really love this artsy touch of `Lisbon´ .. these streets full of colorful paintings give this little extra special mood to this city !! anyway i was pretty exhausted after this long day & so i tried to calm down a bit in the beautiful rose garden with a great view all over the sea. this is such a special place which is not very popular with tourists (maybe because they don`t know this place) .. psst it`s called `Mirador de Santa Luzia´. the last but not least day in `Lisbon´ actually was the best one & not only because it was my birthday !! after some delicious birthday pancakes i took a long walk through the `Barrio Alto´ in the western part of `Lisbon´ & enjoyed the sunny weather. i really loved this part of the city .. it seemed so retro to me with all its second hand shops, flower stands & small but crowded cafés. a calm place in a city full of hectic & chaos !! then i got my first tattoo in the studio of `Alla Prima Lisboa´ which i can highly recommend when you think about getting a tattoo in `Lisbon´ .. they did a great job !! after this exciting experience i felt super hungry & so i went to the `LX Factory´ nearby. the `LX Factory´ is an old factory terrain which was redesigned into a trendy area of design shops & food stands .. the perfect place to spend an afternoon !! the last evening in `Lisbon´ consisted of red wine, delicious fish & some `Fado´ music in the streets of `Alfama´. just living the portugese everyday lifestyle .. because it`s all about living the moment. and i really enjoyed every single one in this city .. thank you `Lisbon´ for this amazing time !!