Loulé

Today's activity was a trip to historic Loulé, about 90 minutes by bus with about ten pickup stops along the way. Saturday mornings are a big market time every week. Not only the regular municipal market selling fish and fresh produce, but there's also a flea market set up in a dusty lot at the opposite end of the street.

It is a historic town. The chapel at the top of the hill is Catholic now but was a mosque in the 1300s . We also came across an old convent with a huge pine tree reaching to the sky from the centre of the cloisters courtyard. The town also features many old style residential buildings and are doing well in their efforts to preserve the old character while renovating the structures. The walkways feature the familiar black and white stonework while offering their unique patterns. The stalls and booths are everywhere in tourist areas, but the ones here have much more of a local artisan produced character and quality.

Loulé is the centre of a larger expansive county also called Loulé, and while the townsite is not on the ocean, its county extends to the coast. The county includes several fishing villages like Quarteira and Vilamoura. These were separated by some distance, but forty years ago moneyed folks started building summer homes at first, then hotels and now golf courses and tennis clubs and a huge marina for yachts and sailboats. The area is said to rival the French and Italian Rivieras.

We drove for miles through areas that were built up and beautifully landscaped. There is also a large water park with a ginormous water slide to serve the newcomers to the area. All the while we are told the traditional locals still live their fishing lifestyle.Read more