12 October 2022 - Flamingos in the mist

Miles driven today = 0

Total Miles to date = 2,203

We were chatting with a British couple a few days ago who were touring Portugal with a view to finding an area they might like to move to.  They had Aveiro on their shortlist but having spent a few days in these parts they had scrubbed it off on the basis that if they wanted to live somewhere which was shrouded in mist most of the time they could stay in Southampton.

I thought they were being a bit overdramatic but we now understand what they mean.  Having decided to stay here tucked behind the dunes for another night we woke to an eerie scene which persisted all morning.  

So we did a bit of long overdue admin, tied the washing line to an orange tree and scrubbed some undies while we waited for the sun to appear.  Then after lunch we got the bikes out and went for a pedal round the lower reaches of the lagoon.

I kind of wish I had taken my camera with me rather than relying on my phone even if it would have been a bit of a lump to cycle with.  We did have our binoculars but no way of being able to take a photographic record of some of the birdlife we saw.

We spotted all sorts.  You'll have to take my word for it but in this picture alone there are flamingos, herons, both grey and white, spoonbills and cormorants plus numerous varieties of gulls, ducks and smaller wading birds.

We also saw a couple of birds of prey catching fish.  I can only assume they were ospreys, which apparently do overwinter here.  To avoid confusion this picture does not contain an osprey.

Before we headed for home we had a quick look at the beach a few kilometres south from here.  The mist was still present although strangely didn't feel at all damp.

Lisa has spent a good chunk of the time since we returned cooking up a Thai Green Curry from scratch.  We need to add Lemongrass to the packing list spreadsheet for subsequent tours but even with that minor omission it was fantastic nonetheless with plenty left over to pop in the freezer for another day.

Disappointingly the surf bar is shut this evening (and possibly for the season) so we nicked some of their chairs and sat on the beach with our neighbours Tim & Lynne and a couple of large G&Ts while we watched the sun complete another circuit.  They are planning to hang around for a couple more days but we now have a rough idea of where our next few ports of call will be as we zigzag our way south towards Lisbon, so tomorrow we will be on our way again.

13 October 2022 - The Roman ruins of Conimbriga