We had talked about golfing in Portugal, a small country a third the size of Malaysia and is reputed to have about 80 golf courses most of it at the Algarve region in the South. That's where we were headed for on 1st of June, 2017 to spend a week of golfing and holidaying at the sun kissed coast, South of Portugal. The golfing group comprise of Daniel, Cynthia, Justin, Jess, Hans, Steven, Keat and I to make it an eight ball. Steven brought his wife and daughter while Hans wife and son join us from Wales. This time, we had decided to stay in a Villa and rent the golf sets instead of lugging it all the way and paying for the extra cargo space.
The layover at Changi airport, Singapore.
Arrival at Faro airport at 9.00 am.
With Cynthia at the golf club rental shop at the airport.
Daniel and Hans sort out the pre-booked rental cars.
We rented two cars, an MPV Volkswagen and an Alfa Romeo sedan.
It is still early and we can only check in at 3.00 pm.
We drove straight from the airport to a town called Albufeira.
Albufeira is about 50 km away from the airport.
Our destination is a Hypermarket at Continente Modelo.
We need to stock up some provisions for at least a day or two.
For three meals and 10 pax, there's a lot we need to buy.
There are also beers and wines that we need to stock up as well.
Hans is most happy shopping for groceries.
After lunch, we finally checked into Villa Das Yuccas, Boliqueime.
It is a large 6 room villa situated in a country estate.
A car is necessary if you stay here.
The villa has full facilities like swimming pool, kitchen, dining room, exterior kitchen, outdoor lounge, patio, outdoor dining area etc..
Daniel and I relaxing and enjoying the cool air after checking in.
Cheers all round at the outdoor lounge.
Home cook dinner the first evening. Our chef : Hans Kwek.
Exploring Silves and Falesia Beach
Our plan for the first day was to have a feel of Portugal and the best way to do it was to visit a small town and then the seaside. We drove northwards using the highway towards Silves, a small town about an hour away.
As we enter the town, one could not miss seeing an old castle on the hill from the main entry road.
Driving through the streets, we could see the unique buildings of Silves that were once under Moors influence.
Exploring the castle is a must if you come to Silves.
Portugal in the 8th Century was under the Moors which ruled for a few centuries.
Keat Wong exploring the castle with me.
One amazing thing we noticed are the white storks nestled high on chimneys, electric pole and on top of dead trees. These are migratory birds that is appreciated by the farmers as it feeds off insects, snakes and lizards that saves them from using pesticides.
The alleyways around the castle are uniquely Portuguese.
Exploring the Fort.
It's nice and relaxing with the cool wind blowing.
Taking a light refreshment, Expressos and Cuppicinos.
The Fort has a vantage point. From here, you could see the entire town of Silves 360°. This place reminds me of our own Fort Santiago on top of St Paul's Hill in Malacca. The layout is all the same.
We explore the town outside the castle, especially the narrow streets that is distinctly local.
Keat insist that I took one picture here, a play of lights on old building.
Wa lah! While walking around, guess what we stumbled upon ?
It's an agent office located on this street.
You know in an instance this is poor photography. But we can't help as we like this frontage.
Not much better with reduced numbers.
This is much better.
We had planned for lunch at the beach. So with our only navigating tool, we were confident of reaching our destination as per the Waze direction.
Alas, Waze is very efficient in bringing us via the shortest route even going through some farm roads and then back to the main road.
Shortest route does not mean faster travelling time !
Here we are, at the lone seaside restaurant.
We did not intend to come this beach, but this restaurant actually serves very good seafood. Sardines is a popular choice but monk fish turn out to be good among other dishes.
We enjoyed our lunch there.
After lunch, we took a 10 minutres drive to Falesia Beach.
This is our intended place.
But this place is just a beach for sun seekers.
There isn't anything else down at the beach.
The sun is really blazing but the cool wind soothes the body.
This is the only access to the beach.
Sunny side up !
Seaside are meant for people who worship the sun.
Tourist like me came to "sebok sebok" and not lying down half naked.
Yeah, and take photographs.
The only cafe is up the road and that;s where you see Asians !
The only stall that sells all beach paraphernalias.
We went back via the country road again.
Aldi is the nearest grocery store near our villa. This is where we get most of our daily provisions.
When we got home, it was dark. we have picked up Jennifer and Nicholas from the airport and decided to have dinner at home.
It was spaghetti whipped up by Hans and the ladies.
The simple meal is really good.
This is good wholesome home cook meal.
The entire "family" having dinner together. Wine is free flowing.
Just like home, watching football after dinner.
Just like home, everyone dozing off after a heavy meal.
Our day of Golfing : Vale do Lobo Royal Course.
After a day of sightseeing, we are ready for our first day of golf. The Algarve Region is a golfing paradise and reputed to have at least 50 golf courses. Before coming, Daniel and I had researched the golf courses and we decided that you cannot go wrong if the courses had hosted any European PGA tournament. Vale do Lobo is one of them and we pre-booked it before coming. The green fees is 120 euro for the Royal course. The Ocean course is a bit more expansive but we settled for this because of a few signature holes we read about.
This is it, Vale do Lobo grounds.
With Justin while waiting for our turn to tee off.
The gallery at the last Hole.
Ready to tee off.
Just to make it different instead of the usual "boria" pose.
On the fairway at Hole 15. The houses on the left have beautiful Portuguese architecture and all in white. It makes this fairway unique and scenic with man made structure.
At the green at Hole 15 with the ocean behind it that makes it very scenic.
The next Hole at 16 is a stunning Par 3 with a long carry of 190 meter from our Gold tee box. The fairway has two eroded cliff cutting into the entire fairway ready to snare your ball. Being alongside the ocean, the wind is constantly blowing.
And as expected, I had a double Par here with the first ball unable to carry the second crevice due to the strong wind and a less than good hit.
The day ended satisfactory for me chalking up a stableford point of 34 and having the pleasure of beating Daniel Reymond, my opponent.
Visiting the coast on western Algarve region.
Cape St Vincent.
This cape was named after St Vincent of Saragossa, whose tortured body was brought here to be buried by his followers in the 4th century. His sanctified body was protected by the ravens preventing the vultures from devouring the flesh until a shrine is built. Both ravens and vultures still inhabit the cape but not the relics of St Vincent. His body was exhumed and transferred to Lisbon in the 12th century.
Today, the only solid structure that stood at the cape is the lighthouse. It is the second most powerful lighthouse in Europe safeguarding the world's most busy sea lanes.
This rugged and forbidding cape lies at the tip of the Iberian peninsula and is the most south westerly point in mainland Europe.
During the time of the Roman Empire, they referred this cape to be the "Edge of the World", a supernatural votex where the setting sun would dramatically submerged by the immense unknown ocean. The thinking then was the world is flat. The myth persisted throughout the middle ages until a man decided to put an end to all this nonsense and in the process, put an end to the age of darkness.
The man is one of Portugal's greatest son, Henry the Navigator who lived in the 15th century. On top of ending the myth, Henry had other ambitions. Trade during his time was dominated by Arab middlemen who would bring valuable spices from the far East. Why not bypass them using the sea route and take over the lucrative trade, find Prester John (imaginary christian king who reside in the East ) and spread Christianity. We learned today, that's exactly what they did.
This is where it all began. It was from here that Henry assembled the best astronomers, astrologers, mathematicians,naval architects, intrepid and downright foolish sailors who dares to challenge the myth and go right to the "edge of the world" !
The few souvenirs sold at the cape still carry that statement. Cape St Vincent was once thought to be situated at "The end of the World".
Walking the rugged cliffs at Sagres.
The Western coast of the Algarve region is dotted with stretches of rugged cliffs. They are all without barriers and can be dangerous as not only they are high, looses gravel can make one slip and fall.
On the way to Lagos, we stopped by at one of those stretched to have a feel of walking on cliffs.
It certainly did not disappoint. You could actually spend a whole day here, perched on a cliff, feel the cool wind blowing and look far out to the Atlantic ocean.
Even though the sea lanes is reputed to be the busiest in the world, it doesn't feel like it from our vantage point.
From where we were, there is a cliff that looks gentle enough, yet you have to thread on a narrow slope to reach it.
I saw Daniel already there and know I had to join him to have a feel of the place.
Here we are, standing right at the "edge of the world"!
Lagos.
Lagos is one of the most visited city in Portugal for many reasons. Aside form many tourist friendly beaches and rock formation, it is an ancient maritime town. This town is the epicenter during the Portuguese Age of Discovery when sea routes to the far East were first explored. This eventually lead to the Portuguese domination of the East including the dark side of the slave trade that brings immense wealth to Portugal. Lagos is the launch pad of all Portuguese maritime discoveries.
All vehicles that are non local have to be parked outside the city wall perimeter. We parked our car at the dedicated parking facility and took a stroll into the ancient town of Lagos.
The old town is charming and is filled with tourist.
The unique feature in all Portuguese town are the alleyways. It has a lot of character and some like this is cobbled with tastefully painted walls.
The historic center of the town is an open square milling with people.
The square is adjacent to the river that flows to the nearby sea.
Here he is, Henry the Navigator, the man that changes the course of history for Portugal. When nobody dares to venture far beyond what was thought to be the edge of the world, he rubbish the myth by charting and sponsoring many voyages to the far East. The first few expeditions he sent only go as far as the north west coast of the African continent, but that was enough to change the mindset as not many would dare to sail beyond the "Pillars of Hercules", (Straits of Gibraltar) that marked the end of the world. Even after his death, he had sparked many more expeditions. Bartolomeu Dias reach the tip of Africa and circle the Cape of Good Hope in 1488. Vasco Da Gama went further and reached Calicut, India 11 years later. It was during this time the Portuguese start colonising the far East including Alfonso De Albuquerque who capture Malacca in 1511. Subsequently, the Spanish fleet under Ferdinand Magellen managed to circumvent the globe through the western route across the Atlantic, and then onto the Pacific Ocean. However, Ferdinand himself was killed in Cebu, Philippines and he himself did not complete the voyage, only one ship under his fleet return to Spain. But Ferdinand Magellen is actually a Portuguese sailing under the Spanish crown.
Keat and I explore the alleyways of the old town. There are many shops that caters to the tourist, snacks, small restaurants and bars and souvenir shops.
At one end of the pedestrian street, there is another open square.
Keat having a picture taken for momento.
At the corner, there are buskers as well as tourist enjoying the music.
The back alleys are the place we enjoy strolling around.
Finally, enjoying expresso alfresco and watching the world go by; a good way to soak in the place.
It's nice and relaxing and you could be sitting here forever.
On the way out, the mural on the wall catches our attention.
The Sea Caves at Benagil
Just about 40 minutes east of Lagos is Benagil are some of the most impressive sea caves of Europe.
The road leading to Benagil beach is steep going down and almost a V turn turn that slope upwards for about 200 meters to the open car park.
At the beach, there are tourist relaxing at the shade at the mouth of a cave.
Far out at sea we could see fishing boats passing by but not many.
The best way to explore the sea caves is by boat and that's exactly what we did.
The boat took us to the right side of the beach to have a view of some of the caves over there.
There were twelve of us and we have to split into two boats for safety reasons.
The awe inspiring sight is created by weathering process over the many centuries.
The limestone rocks have created many "holes" on top of the caves roof.
Like other karst formations, these amazing caves are created by rainwater, sea water and nature erosion of wind over the soft limestone.
Benagil caves are rated as one of the "coolest" caves system in the world by Huffington Post.
The boat took us over to the other side of the beach as the caves are on both sides of the beach.
The boatman pointed this outcrop to us, "that is king kong"!
The beautiful caves as we approached the cliff.
It is stunning as you get nearer to the natural structures.
Here we are exiting one of the caves.
Beach inside one of the many caves.
Managed to capture this shot while passing by on the boat and waiting for the sun to be just behind the outcrop.
Quinta Do Lago Golf Resort
We had pre-booked this course before coming here. Quinta is less than 5 minutes drive from Vale Do Lobo, the first course we played when coming here.
Quinta has three course, North, South and Laranjal.
These three course are among Europe's best with world class facilities.
It was voted Europe's Best Golf Destination at the World's Golf Award in 2015 and 2016.
Quinta Do Lago have hosted the Portuguese Open a total of eight times to date.
With such credentials, it is hard not to try and play your best golf. Here, Hans is teeing off.
Daniel having a go next.
Hans and Justin at the Par 3 over the lake.
Daniel turn to tee over the lake.
Hans, Daniel and I having a picture taken at the scenic Par 3.
A queer structure at Hole 17th. There's a phone booth where you can actually order drinks or snacks from here.
Hans teeing off at Hole 18th while Daniel looks on.
Daniel taking a shot from the fairway.
Hans approached shot to the green.
And Daniel too taking a crack at the green.
Justin's ball came to rest next to a tree. He's is trying his best to hit it our without breaking his club. The doggie style.
At the end of the game. my partnership with Justin won over Hans/Daniel's partnersip.
Clowning around, Hans got beaten.
He blames it on Daniel.
The victory leap.
The back flight; Keat coming off from the bunker.
Cynthia chipping her ball onto the green.
Jess having a good look at the line before taking the shot.
Cynthia doing the "plum bob" to try and figure the line of putt.
Steven putting from a distance.
Keat with his short putt.
Cynthia putting her last stroke of the day.
A good game with cheers all round.
And cheers from the other table.
We also made the draw for the next game. Steven is up against Daniel next.
I am drawn to play against Keat.
Cynthia's next opponent is Jess.
And Justin faces off with Hans.
At the Q Boutique.
Hans posing for a picture.
Daniel have been driving this van, left hand drive and manual gear!
At the entrance of Q Boutique.
Final day of golfing at Morgado Golf and Country Club.
Our last and final game is at Morgado Golf and Country Club, near the Monchique mountains. Two months earlier in May, The 2017 Portuguese Open was held here.
It was decided that on our final day, we should all wear red. Nobody says it has to be red tops!
This time I was group in the same flight as Daniel, Steven and Keat.
Steven was the first to tee off from our flight.
Next was Daniel.
Keat was next off the tee.
I was the last to tee off.
I had to take my second shot from the rough.
The course was once an estate and the old farm house is still left as it is.
The course looks parch with the sun blazing and bereft of trees. However, the wind is a factor.
The open field allows one to swing freely and follow through was easy as there is no obstacles to hold you back. Here Keat is ready to take his shot from the tee box.
Our team challenge ala Ryder Cup is still on and by the time we reach the 15th Hole, Steven and I had already won the game.
The usual celebration is done with a victory jump.
Yes, and making a statement to the consternation of our opponents.
The lateral water hazard at this hole swallow my ball when I pulled the shot to the lake.
Celebration after completing the 18th Holes.
Smiles all round as we thoroughly enjoyed the three days of golfing.
Some photo opportunities at the club lounge.
The lounge have a feel of a traditional golf club.
Justin and Jess relaxing at the nice sofa.
Cynthia always in high spirits whenever there's golf.
The typical Hans pose.
Just outside the clubhouse exit, a signage that thank you for the visit.
Although the sun is blazing, the weather is cooling.
That's our van, good for golfers.
What did I say, good for golfers, right ?
Well, good for those who don't have to drive.
Last day of sightseeing.
We are due to fly off the next day on 9.6.17 and had a last day of sightseeing. Near to Morgado is a market town of Monchique. The idea was to drive to the town and have a look then drive up to the highest point at Foia which is 902 meters above sea level. From here, on a clear day, you could see all the way to Cape St Vincent and nearby Portimao.
Passing by a church at Monchique. The town is pretty quiet when we drove through.
Even though there were some cars parked alongside the rode, you could hardly see anyone.
The drive up the mountain slope continues. At last, there is some sign of life.
The roundabout marks the center point of the town.
Soon after, we are up at the highest point at Foia. The view is not as clear as we hope.
The telecommunication installations is certainly not a thing to beautify a place of interest.
Just left of the viewing area, there is another viewing hillock with two statues.
Oh,it's not structures, one is young Hercules on a selfie and the other is Usain Bolt !
There is not much at Foia other than the view and we left the place and head towards another town called Aljezur.
The streets here are pretty quiet as well, but the cobbled street and the narrow alleyway is uniquely Portuguese.
There were a couple of Malaysian tourists though.
It is nice without the crowd as the place is well preserved.
Keat exercising while sitting down!
Yes, that's how narrow the alley is.
The old town Aljezur is a charm. It is located on the hill slope.
In the 18th Century, most people were moved across the river because of malaria. The new town of Aljezur is at the background.
You could see the other half of Aljezur village from here.
Some folks continue to stay on here at the old town despite the spread of malarial disease.
Today, the municipal have not only preserved the town, it was beautified with white paints to promote tourism.
We spotted an antique car parked outside a house. This certainly enhance the antiquity of the place.
At the high point of the hill is a castle.
The castle was built during the Muslim rule but subesquently fell to the Christian Crusades in the 13th Century.
The history of the castle was displayed at the castle wall.
View from inside out, you could see immediately the vantage point from here.
This is about the central point within the castle ground.
Another view of the high ground of the castle.
The trail leads us down to the old town again, but on another side.
It may be quiet, but we cannot get enough of this beautiful place.
It appears that only the senior citizens are staying here. To think that they have to walk up and down everyday, I am not sure if they do that daily.
Daniel and Keat enjoying the walk down.
Next comes the strollers.
We had lunch at the old town below the hill.
It is certainly far away from the madding crowd.
We left Aljzur and took head towards the coast a short distance away.
Another stunning coastline greets us.
This is Praia de Arrifana.
It is popular spot for surfers.
We did not venture down below as we were just passing by.
Our destination to end the day is Portimao, the largest city in western Algarve and the center for sardine fishing and processing.
The square fronting the docks is breezy and relaxing.
It's a very pleasant place to enjoy the cool air and breeze from the sea.
We wanted an early dinner before heading back to our villa at Boliqueime, an hour drive.
This restaurant opens early and we just went in and took our seats.
The proprietor looks like brothers, but they are not!
Even though it is situated by the roadside, we got used to the streams of cars passing by.
There, that's the restaurant where we had our last dinner in Portugal.
Lazily walking back to our cars after dinner.
Steven having a family photo for remembrance.
Daniel walking pass an old building with graffiti.
Relaxing after dinner.
Docks for fishing and sail boats.
That's where we end our day at Portimao.
The nine days we spent at at Algarve is certainly fantastic. Firstly, golfing is our priority and what better place to play than at one of Europe's top golfing destination. The rugged coastline ranks as one of the must see in some tourist magazines. Historically, this is the place during the age of discovery that starts it all. Portugal leads the world in venturing beyond their shores to the far east via sea route during the time when the world was thought to be flat.
This is one place that everyone should visit when holidaying Europe.
Our day of Golfing : Vale do Lobo Royal Course.
After a day of sightseeing, we are ready for our first day of golf. The Algarve Region is a golfing paradise and reputed to have at least 50 golf courses. Before coming, Daniel and I had researched the golf courses and we decided that you cannot go wrong if the courses had hosted any European PGA tournament. Vale do Lobo is one of them and we pre-booked it before coming. The green fees is 120 euro for the Royal course. The Ocean course is a bit more expansive but we settled for this because of a few signature holes we read about.
Having a feel of the green. The speed is surprisingly slow at 8'.
The day ended satisfactory for me chalking up a stableford point of 34 and having the pleasure of beating Daniel Reymond, my opponent.
Visiting the coast on western Algarve region.
Cape St Vincent.
This cape was named after St Vincent of Saragossa, whose tortured body was brought here to be buried by his followers in the 4th century. His sanctified body was protected by the ravens preventing the vultures from devouring the flesh until a shrine is built. Both ravens and vultures still inhabit the cape but not the relics of St Vincent. His body was exhumed and transferred to Lisbon in the 12th century.
Walking the rugged cliffs at Sagres.
The Western coast of the Algarve region is dotted with stretches of rugged cliffs. They are all without barriers and can be dangerous as not only they are high, looses gravel can make one slip and fall.
Lagos.
Lagos is one of the most visited city in Portugal for many reasons. Aside form many tourist friendly beaches and rock formation, it is an ancient maritime town. This town is the epicenter during the Portuguese Age of Discovery when sea routes to the far East were first explored. This eventually lead to the Portuguese domination of the East including the dark side of the slave trade that brings immense wealth to Portugal. Lagos is the launch pad of all Portuguese maritime discoveries.
The Sea Caves at Benagil
Just about 40 minutes east of Lagos is Benagil are some of the most impressive sea caves of Europe.
Quinta Do Lago Golf Resort
We had pre-booked this course before coming here. Quinta is less than 5 minutes drive from Vale Do Lobo, the first course we played when coming here.
Final day of golfing at Morgado Golf and Country Club.
Our last and final game is at Morgado Golf and Country Club, near the Monchique mountains. Two months earlier in May, The 2017 Portuguese Open was held here.
This time I was group in the same flight as Daniel, Steven and Keat.
Last day of sightseeing.
We are due to fly off the next day on 9.6.17 and had a last day of sightseeing. Near to Morgado is a market town of Monchique. The idea was to drive to the town and have a look then drive up to the highest point at Foia which is 902 meters above sea level. From here, on a clear day, you could see all the way to Cape St Vincent and nearby Portimao.
There is not much at Foia other than the view and we left the place and head towards another town called Aljezur.
Nice cool air and unhurried pace.
We left Aljzur and took head towards the coast a short distance away.
Our destination to end the day is Portimao, the largest city in western Algarve and the center for sardine fishing and processing.
The nine days we spent at at Algarve is certainly fantastic. Firstly, golfing is our priority and what better place to play than at one of Europe's top golfing destination. The rugged coastline ranks as one of the must see in some tourist magazines. Historically, this is the place during the age of discovery that starts it all. Portugal leads the world in venturing beyond their shores to the far east via sea route during the time when the world was thought to be flat.
This is one place that everyone should visit when holidaying Europe.
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