The Long Road Home

We left Fatima at 9h50 and arrived at the house at 17h50!!!  Not a complaint from any of us as the drive was phenomenal.  We stayed off the major routes and took smaller roads all the way home.  What a glorious country this continues to be for us.   Every turn in the road provided us with extraordinary vistas……vineyards, both old and newly established.  Immense cork forests and pine forests…..and of course the ubiquitous eucalyptus.  The leaves change their colour and shape as the tree matures. In young trees and regrowth, the leaves are fat and silvery green but as the tree grows, the top leaves become longer and thinner and tinged with red.  Gorgeous to behold.

We stopped several times along the route to take a coffee and stretch our legs.  Lunch in Montemor O Novo…….delightful and delicious……a true Mom and Pop place.

What tremendous memories the three of us will have for the rest of our lives.

The old church in the tiny town of Raposa where we stopped for coffee then ended up visiting the church and cemetery.

Another angle of the church…..and yes, the sky was that clear and blue.

This was in the cemetery.

Marc makes new friends wherever he goes!

We thought this was a sweet potato dessert. It wasn’t but it didn’t stop the two of them!!!!

I think this elephant has broken it’s trunk!

Flowers all along the route both in and outside gardens.

I know some people who will love these? You know who you are.

This composition just jumped out at me.

Imagine, soccer balls in Portugal!

And one of my very favourites…….fields of yellow lupins as far as the eye can see. I nearly drove the car off the road when I rounded thee bend and saw these.

And more…..

And more………..both sides of the road….I couldn’t see the end of them.

How could I not pose for this????

My favourite photographer.