Boats – Travels with Ali

~ Discovering Comporta’s Hidden Gems: Vineyards, Villages and Cavalos ~

Over breakfast on Sunday, we chatted about what the itinerary would be for that day. Graham had been told there were some wineries in the area. I looked a few up and asked the receptionist to ring around to check which ones were open. I was surprised to find out there was only one open, being a Sunday. We booked a tour and lunch and off we went.

As we were approaching Comporta we saw huge birds sitting atop chimneys, lampposts and buildings. Moving closer we realised they were storks. A real treat seeing a stork in the wild.

I tried to get closer, but you can guess what happened.

Before we arrived we stopped and admired the ricefields. At the time not realising they were ricefields.

Flocks of glossy ibis feasting on the rice
with water water everywhere

The winery was called Adega da Herdade da Comporta. It lies with the sea on one side and rice fields on the other. The views around are absolutely stunning. We had arrived at the perfect place for our Sunday lunch. We were given a fascinating tour, visiting the wine cellars and learning about the history. The wine tasting was at our table and the measures were more than generous. We were served lunch with all the wine thankfully.

I was definitely looking forward to tasting this wine.

The view from our guide’s office window

**Enjoying a delicious charcuterie board with a variety of wines**

We all agreed that this place went above our expectations, although I think our lunch played a big part.

Our guide had mentioned a fishing village not far from the winery, she said we must go. So we did and what a fun find it was.

Cais Palafítico da Carrasqueira is a unique fishing village that sits on a multitude of wooden jetties on stilts. They zigzag along the muddy marshes with weathered huts standing on top. The huts are decorated in a myriad of ways all different. It is still a working village which was surprising, considering how rickety the small plankways looked. We spent quite a while here, all of us walking in different directions, daring each other to walk along the piers.

There was no-one around when we were here and I was wondering how the fisherman actually got to their boats.

A faded mural and some random numbers.

Let’s Pull Up a Seat and enjoy the view

Leaving just before sunset with the golden rays spreading slowly across the sea.

Before returning to our hotel we had another brief stop at an equestrian centre. It was just closing but the manager said we could still walk around. Being a horse lover Colleen was in her element. I’m happy there was fences between us.

I would have liked longer to long around as there were some fantastic memorabilia on display.

A fitting end to a perfect day. Back to the hotel for our last night in Porto Covo.

~ Escape from the City – Aberdeen to Lamma Island, Hong Kong ~

During our time in Hong Kong we caught a bus to Aberdeen. We hadn’t been to Aberdeen in over twenty years and was surprised at how nice the new promenade was.

Aberdeen dates back to the Ming Dynasty, and was originally known as Hong Kong. When the first foreigners landed they thought this town was the whole island. Even after they discovered this wasn’t the case, the name still stuck. The name Aberdeen comes from George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen, The former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1852-1855).

Aberdeen is still a thriving fishing harbour with many people living on their boats.

During our stay in Hong Kong there was a “Pandamic”, advertised as a “Pandastic event”. We saw hundreds of these being blown up in Hong Kong Harbour. I couldn’t work out how this related to Christmas.

We walked along the promenade and noticed a ferry that was about to depart for Lamma Island. This was another place that we hadn’t been to since we had left Hong Kong. So without further ado, we jumped on board and sailed away.

Sailing away from Aberdeen to Lamma Island

We reached Lamma around lunchtime and meandered along the seafront looking for a place to eat. Many of the restaurants only serve seafood, mostly local cuisine. We opted for one that served Western also.

After lunch we had a wander up and down the seafront. Lamma is a fairly large island with many hiking trails. Young local Chinese often camp overnight here.

Dragon Boats are human powered watercraft and generally made from Teak. Dragon Boating is a popular pastime in Hong Kong, there is even a public holiday for this event.

The end of the promenade, Sok Kwu Wan, Lamma Island

If you are ever in Hong Kong and want to escape the busy city life, here is a fantastic way to see another side of Hong Kong. It’s a great day trip and easy to do. Ferries leave from Central, Hong Kong Island and Aberdeen regularly. Many people who visit HK miss out on these smaller side trips. They are not advertised much internationally but are very popular with local Hong Kong people. Ferries go back and forth regularly, both from Central and Aberdeen. The islands of Hong Kong and Country Parks are lush and verdant, which is a surprise to many.

Ships, Boats and Stormy Skies – August CMMC

This week for Cee’s Mid Week Madness Challenge she has give us many choices from her photo. I’ve gone with a nautical theme.

“The storms come and go, the waves crash overhead, the big fish eat the little fish, and I keep on paddling.” – – George R. R. Martin, ‘A Clash of Kings,’

“Smell the sea and feel the sky. Let your soul and spirit fly.”

— Van Morrison, Irish Singer-Songwriter

Quays around the World

Cee’s Mid Week Madness challenge this week is anything featuring the letters Q and U. Quay seemed a good word to play with.

The featured image is from Lopud, Croatia

**Looking across the Thames from Wapping**

Looking forward to the day when I can travel the world again and visit beautiful places like these! Hopefully in the early part of next year. It’s been too long.

Sydney, still glorious

After our visit to Melbourne was over, we flew into Sydney for three nights. This was to catch up with relatives and friends that we hadn’t seen for a few years.

We stayed in the Oaks, Goldsbrough Apartments in Darling Harbour. Very well located and within walking distance to the CBD, Darling Harbour and the new Barangaroo wharves.

One of the things we noticed about Sydney after Melbourne was the contact tracing. Everywhere was so much more vigilant than Melbourne, with people outside making sure you checked in or restaurant and bar staff asking before they served you.

Goldsbrough Apartment Complex

It was originally designed as a wool store by William Pritchard in 1883. This building caught fire in 1935 and burned for two weeks, but was rebuilt by Stuart Brothers the original builders. In 1995 the building was converted to apartments. The outside was kept to the original Victorian outlook but the inside is to my mind, something like a prison! Fairly well appointed as a one bed apartment with spectacular views over the city. We were on the 11th floor.

Looking down to the ground floor apartments

My dear husband commented “I wonder when lights out are”

Over the next three days we met up with friends and relatives and also did – for me anyway – large amounts of walking. Compensating for the large amounts of eating and drinking we were also doing.

Our walk from the apartment to Waterfront Park, Pyrmont took around 20 minutes.

Looking over at the new Crown Tower in Barangaroo

Enormous rusted steel spheres, saved from the former CSL Sugar Mill, located on the former site.

The Glittering Lights of Sydney

Walking around Sydney

Crossing over on Sydney Harbour Bridge on the train

Barangaroo harbour and wharves was only in the early stages when we were in Sydney last, now it’s completed and another feather in Sydney’s cap. Sadly the rooftop bar in the Crown Casino is only open from Thursday to Sunday. We found this was the case with many of the restaurants. Also we saw many bars, cafes and restaurants that had closed for good. The places that were open had the minimum of staff, so the wait was long for the food.

Empty boats on the wharves awaiting tourists

I really enjoyed staying in the Pyrmont/Darling Harbour area with the waterfront restaurants and cafes so close by. The harbour front was buzzing and lively during the day and night. I hope business picks up soon for the businesses here.

And then it was back to Perth where we thought we had escaped quarantine, but unfortunately not. I think this will be the last of our interstate trips until they have stopped closing the borders.

After four days of no long walks, the boys had had enough and I came down to this in the morning.

My A to Z Travel Challenge – L is for London – Part Two – 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

This post features Camden to Little Venice and also Coal Drops Yard, King’s Cross

The North

Continuing the journey into London through my eyes! We’ll be travelling to the North and then to the West.

Camden Lock to Little Venice

This is a walk I’ve wanted to do for a while, but it’s hard to get my dear hubby interested in anything that doesn’t involve shops, even though he is a big walker and I’m not! We decided to give Camden Market a miss as it has become far too touristy. We took the tube and the bus to get to Camden Station, and then walked towards the start of the Regent’s Canal.

Shop fronts and art along the way

Then it was onto the canal to begin our walk. The map said it would take approximately 40 minutes but part of the footpath was closed so after a long detour, it was close to an hour before we finally finished.

I could have taken so many more photos as the colours were amazing. What I really would have liked would be to look around one! Most we saw were all really well kept and a few had small gardens at the front. I imagine it would be quite damp in the English Autumn and Winter on board.

It was such an interesting walk and we walked under many bridges along the way and saw some unusual sights as well.

Under the Bridges

There is a short story about Macclesfield Bridge. In October 1874 a barge containing coffee and nuts exploded under this bridge. The bridge was destroyed and three men were killed, but the iron columns were left intact. The explosion could be heard from a mile away and caused uproar among the animals at the nearby London Zoo.

Strange and funny sights

Towards Little Venice you start seeing the most spectacular houses rather than the apartments near Camden. I definitely would have liked a tour around one of these houses.

Fabulous Houses

Just near the end of the Regent’s Canal we came across the famous Feng Shang Princess Floating Restaurant. A wonderful handcrafted red pagoda sits right on the canal bank.

And so ends our walk to Little Venice, which is in the West. The canal now becomes the Grand Union Canal and hopefully if I can persuade Anthony we can do this next time we visit London.

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Coal Drops Yard, King’s Cross

Another day, another visit to London. This time it was Anthony’s choice. The reason he chose this place was, lo and behold, a designer shop he had found online and he had seen a waistcoat he fancied. At first I wasn’t very impressed about going all the way to King’s Cross, but was in for a nice surprise when we arrived.

Coal Drops Yard dates back to the 1850’s when London was powered by coal. The unusual buildings were designed to handle 8 million tonnes of coal which were delivered to the capital every year.

Now it is home to many designer boutiques, restaurants and apartment buildings. It is located alongside the Regent’s Canal.

Grade II Listed Cast Iron framework
now luxury apartments

I really enjoyed our day here and it’s well worth a visit if you are ever in this area. It seems that more of London is being resurrected every year with great new projects that incorporate old derelict buildings.

That’s all from the North!

I’ll finish with a quote from a very famous designer