Today we decided to go to Faro by train – a twenty minute walk into the centre of Olhao and then the 09:40 to Faro, a trip of 10 minutes duration and at a cost of €1.04 per person each way – First Great Western, please note the fare structure!
The journey was very pleasant as it took us all along the coast, past salt marshes and salt pans, depositing us on the coast right by Faro old town. We stumbled across a children's parade, part of the Faro Carnival – there are many of these at this time of year around the Shrove Tuesday bank holiday. Regrettably, there were no pancakes on sale but the children were very cute in their fancy dress – the theme seemed to be recycling but we thought that the Red Indians were the best! We stopped at the tourist information office nearby, obtained a map and asked if there were any interesting events on during the carnival (e.g. Folk / traditional music) – there wasn't. The carnivals at this time of the year tend to be mainly for children it seems.
I have always thought of Faro as a large city, probably because of the International Airport that is the hub for so many flights to the Algarve, but the old town is very compact and it took no time to walk around it. The cathedral was interesting and the view from the clock tower was excellent, all along the coast with its sand banks and salt marshes and the mediaeval walls were still intact on the sea side. We walked between the walls and the sea and came across a very basic, small restaurant. The smells were lovely and we decided to stop for lunch. This was an excellent decision as it was obviously popular with the locals and there was soon a queue for tables as there were only a dozen or so. It was right by the sea and, not surprisingly, specialised in fish but had a very restricted menu – nothing fancy, just charcoal-grilled fish served with small red potatoes boiled in their skins. As is very common in Portugal, we were given bread and some small dishes before the meal – a simple tomato and cucumber salad with an oil and vinegar dressing and a dish of green olives together with small carrots that had been cooked (and were served with) a large amount of sliced garlic – absolutely gorgeous, although I couldn't convince Jane to eat any of the garlic, so I had to finish it (a great hardship, as you may imagine). Jane had a huge piece of salmon and I had Dorada and I can honestly say that it was the best fish that I have had on the Odyssey. The secret was that it was so fresh and after being charcoal grilled, it was sprinkled with salt, which brought out the flavour. At this point, I vowed that I would, at some point in the Odyssey, buy fresh fish from a quay and barbecue it the same day. The meal was washed down with some good Portuguese red wine drunk out of tumblers – just the way it should be!
We wandered around the town and Jane looked at jewellery and handbags but without finding what she was looking for. Don't ask me what that was, because I have never been able to figure that out. And then, after a coffee in a café, we took the train back to Olhao and enjoyed those views from the other direction.
There is an Intermarche between the station and the campsite and we popped in to get some fresh bread. We also called in at the Vetimarche, the clothing part of Intermarche, and Jane tried on some clothes but without success. Today turned out to be a very cheap shopping expedition!
Photos: A frightening pack of Red Indians at the Faro Carnival; Stork and cranes seen from Faro cathedral; We have seen many statues of saints who suffered awfully and were martyred – this one is suffering from a very bad headache!
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