Aveiro

It was very difficult to leave our beautiful apartment early but we headed out to visit Nossa Senhora dos Remedios, a stunning sanctuary which sits on top of a hill reached by climbing 686 steps, with each level punctuated by sculptures, fountains and tiled religious murals. Surrounding both sides of the steps are gardens and trails. It was very peaceful as the tourist buses that frequent here hadn’t arrived yet so we just soaked in the views. Made our way back down for a coffee and the ever present pastry. Back at the apartment we packed up and got on the road to our next destination Aveiro which is south of Porto near the coast, around 90 km away. Decided on using toll roads today, which apparently Portugal has plenty off. The rental vehicle has a tag and any tolls fees are automatically paid with credit card at the end. Makes life easy. Aveiro is dubbed the Venice of Portugal which is a bit of a stretch. Yes there are canals and yes there are gondolas as such ( motorised mind you) but it’s not Venice. It is however a vibrant town with heaps of cafes and restaurants. Being Sunday there were lots of folks enjoying the sunshine (yes sun and fairly warm) and we just wandered the town, lunched, got a haircut and beard trim (first ever) and ate ice cream. Bit of a siesta then out for dinner. We are still doing lots of walking, but without any route or destination.Read more