Road to Morocco 2013
On the Road to Morocco Sans Hope and Crosby
Our arrival into Lisbon on the morning of April 23rd proceeded without a hitch once we located Steve's missing bag. We proceeded to the Taxi cue whereupon we were introduced to our new and soon to be "very best" friend, John. Fortunately, John had an oversized taxi and was able to accommodate our small group of travelers with our vast array of costume changes suitable for any possible outing.
John found the Hotel which Toni had selected on the internet some months ago. The Lisbon Short Stay Apartments was ideally located in the center of old town, right in the middle of the action within easy access to the main square and transportation hub. John, had "offered" to be our driver while we were in Lisboa but we told him we would get back to him.
After checking into our wonderful three bedroom apartment, complete with kitchen, living room and top floor deck, we set out to explore the city. As with most major cities, we located "The Big Red Bus" for our orientation ride about the city. We decided that we would take John up on his offer to show us his country for a mere 180 euros for an 8 hour drive to the north thru the Palaces and the many Cathedrals that still existed.
As we had a two day bus pass on the line we headed up the hill and to the Castle that overlooks the city. After a quick look, we decided to ride the much touted Trolley #28E that had been hyped by Rick Steves and all of the guide books. We boarded the #28 Trolley and with our exact change out and ready for the operator perhaps we should have purchased the 2013 Portugal edition and we would have found out that the trolley fare had doubled. Steve tried unsuccessfully to argue the fare change with the operator as he was forced to pull out his larger currency to pay his way. She immediately jumped all over him for showing his money to strangers and running the risk of attracting the ever present pickpockets. Once the high finance of trolley travel was taken care of, we carried on with the #28 trolley car's version of Mr. Toad's Wild ride, and a ride it was.
Unfortunately for us, as we had boarded the trolley half way thru the journey and we were thrown off just a few short minutes later. We could continue to ride for another five Euros. Having no idea where we were, so we stumbled along until we located the town center and some familiar surroundings.
A ride up the famed elevator in the town center could not be overlooked as how often do you have the chance to pay $6 for a thirty second ride. We ended up in new territory, seated at an outdoor café drinking beer as the women took advantage of the limited shopping. We all ended up back together for a lovely little dinner of Bob Gaughran's default Bolognese dinner. He insists and rightly so, that you just can't go wrong with spaghetti Bolognese regardless of what country you are dinning in.
After dinner, the rest decided on a short walk down the hill while I opted to use the other half of my roundtrip elevator ticket. Trust me when I say that it was just as exciting going down as it was going up.
The next morning found us on the curb waiting patiently for our driver and compatriot, John. As we had contracted for the day I wasn't too concerned when I jumped in and saw his meter running. I figured it was for our benefit so we could see what a great deal he was giving us. We headed out for the Versailles of Portugal and as we approached this faded pink monstrosity I couldn't help but feel that somehow this 180euro day was headed in the wrong direction so very early on.
John was very helpful with the ticket lady as he assisted us as we spent another 54euros for the "3 Castle Package". I will be the first to admit that once you got beyond the shabby looks of the exterior, the interior proved to be quite wonderful. The interior of the Palace is very much in its original state with its furnishings and design touches quite lovely...........or as Toni is so very fond of saying "Charming" If I had a nickel for every time Toni has used the word charming, half my trip would have been paid for.
The exterior grounds and garden areas proved to be equally "charming" as well as massive in scale. The National Palace of Queluz was our first introduction to Portuguese culture and all of us were duly impressed. With one additional Castle stop in between, we arrived at the Pena Palace which proved to be the Disneyland of this area of Portugal as evidenced by the busloads of tourists and over-anxious merchants. John proved to be a very patient driver and allowed as much time as we needed to stroll about. (Wouldn't you with your meter running?)
We opted against going to the most eastern point of Europe in favor of heading directly to Cascais (John's Hometown) and our lunch stop.
Back at the previous Castle John had asked if we wanted him to call ahead for lunch reservations (and for How Many?). Looks as tho we'll be supping with John.
As we pulled into our lunch spot on the rocks overlooking the ocean, I noticed and over abundance of high priced cars and overly dressed people gracing the parking lot. As we approached the restaurant with its stunning views, I couldn't help but notice the far too numerous glasses and utensils adorning the linen covered tables..................................oops, we were definitely in over our heads for our little luncheon outing.
We were shown to our table and seated after John had his meet and greet with all of the waiters including what looked to be the owner. You know how when you take a tour and the guide takes you to..... his friends rug factory, his friends jewelry store..........gift store......etc, etc......It appears we were getting the bums rush but good and it just continued to get worse.
When we were seated, we found the table set with baskets of bread, plates of cheese, anchovies, olives and my favorite, a plate of barnacles. (One doesn't eat barnacles, one scrapes them off the bottom of one's boat and lets them sink to the bottom of the ocean) After asking John, we found the snacks at the table to be priced at roughly 18euros per plate so after sending back to the kitchen approximately 90euros worth of munchies we tried to find something on the menu that wouldn't break the bank. We all settled on the Monk Fish and Shrimp brochette (same price as the barnacles) and allowed John to order the wine (big mistake, actually not bad and under $20/bottle) We had to bring things to a halt when our driver asked if we wanted another bottle of wine We declined and he proceeded to order a beer..then a coffee....but we had to cut him off at dessert and said it was to time to hit the road and get back in that taxi. With the ongoing meter, now at about 130euros and counting we set our sites on our hotel in Lisbon.
After a few view stops we began our return trip to Lisbon but not before being given the option of stopping at a "World" famous gelato joint. We pulled up to the front of the shop and were greeted by +/- 200 people waiting for this world famous chilled, bill of fare. We politely declined saying nothing was worth that kind of a wait. While disappointed, he accepted our decision and we headed for the barn. As it was a holiday, we joined the other half of Lisbon's population in their return to the city after witnessing two awful auto/motorcycle accidents.
As we approached the outskirts of the city, the taxi meter was approaching the 180euro mark. He certainly wasn't going to charges us overtime, lunchtime, and waiting time as that certainly wasn't the deal we made.........or was it?
We arrived in front of the Hotel and we all jumped out and spent a few awkward moments with him looking at the meter now approaching 190euros. Steve and I pulled out our 90euros each, gave him the 180 and told him since we bought lunch he only owed us 10euros. He didn't find that humorous, but did take the 180euros and we called it a day, but did ask him if he wanted to take us to the car rental agency in the morning.
After arriving at the downtown Europcar location to pickup our 5passenger/5baggage car we were given a 4 passenger barely two bag runt of a car that was not going to work. So it was off to the airport in search of a larger vehicle.........which we did find and headed north for our stay in Obido, pronounced O Bee Dooooche. As this was my Hotel selection I was anxious to see how well I had done.
As in past trips, we have had good luck staying one or two bookings ahead of our travels. We are using booking.com and it has proved to be quite reliable and have yet to be terribly disappointed. The hotel was a mid-evil manor house situated outside of the Castle walls and proved to be quite delightful with underground parking, which is always a plus as parking can sometimes up to 20euros a nite.
We stayed two days in Obidos with day trips outside the town to Nazare (the place where the guy surfed the 100ft wave) and then on to Fatima to see if the Virgin Mary was still hanging out. No hundred foot waves and the Virgin Mary was not at home on that particular day. Fatima proved to be quite an experience and surpassed my low expectations of the city.
Not knowing quite what to expect when we reached Fatima, we began to see various numbers of pilgrims on their way by foot, many dressed in fluorescent crossing guard outfits. This garb seemed to be the costume of choice for these wondering hordes. We parked and walked onto the site and were totally amazed at what we had stumbled upon.
The first building we visited was a modernistic chapel with comfortable seating for at least 5000-7000 worshippers. As we hiked out of this house of worship (that surely Robert Schuller had been consulted on) we reached a knoll that overlooked a square that equaled Vatican Square in size and scope with a grand ornate Cathedral at the far end and another ultra modern house of worship in the middle of this plaza. A service was going on that re-created the children's original sitting of Mary back in the early 1900's
Approaching this smaller church were numerous pilgrims on their knees making their way towards the Cathedral. Since I have been looking into possible knee replacement I considered for a moment joining the group and avoiding the surgery down the line, but the pavement looked too hard and the pathway far to distant and that most assuredly would have guaranteed my forthcoming surgery.
And so with no virgin sightings to our credit, we returned to our manor home to pack up so as to continue our journey the next morning. So with reservations in hand we continued a bit south and to the east to the historic town of Evora with its much too narrow streets and ill marked signage. We located our Best Western Hotel in the heart of this tiny medieval city with its Roman Temple and Gothic Cathedral and then set out to find the Chapel of Bones.
We did finally locate the Chapel of Bones. This macabre chapel was built by three monks utilizing bones from some of the near-by church yards. Admission was 1euro and an additional euro if you wanted to take pictures.
Inside the Chapel the inscription on the wall tells it all We bones in here await for yours to join us. And so with those happy thoughts in mind and realizing that were are next on deck, We left Evora for the White Hill Town of Arcos with even skinnier roads.
Just when we thought that the roads couldn't get any more narrow, we folded in our side mirrors and entered the town of Arcos. Aside from being narrow and more than a bit difficult to navigate all roads leading thru Arcos are one-way so that if you miss your street there is no coming back. Our GPS system has proved her worth time and time again with only the occasional re-calculating comment and once again helped us arrive at our destination even with numerous cries of "oh shit.....o'jesus .and we're not going to make it thru.. from both pilot, navigator, and passengers.
We learned later that the roads were designed for donkeys with nerves of steel (without side view mirrors) pulling skinny carts. After arriving at La Casa Bavelos #9 we unloaded and were directed by our host "to just park down the way". Steve and I proceeded on and on and eventually found ourselves lost in the middle of town with no sense of where we were or how we were to get back.
At this point, walking back was not an option so we parked and looked at our GPS to see where we had been and what the address was as to where we were staying. A young girl working in the mini-Mercado directed us to a bus stop and told us to take the poqueno (small) bus. Following her instructions, we boarded the poqueno bus and headed back up the hill after a brief run out of town that included a change of drivers and numerous stops. As we proceeded up the side of the White Hill Town, buildings and landmarks began to look familiar until we were sitting in front of our Hotel and the bus driver was telling us we were home. How the hell he got his mini bus thru streets that I was barely able drive the car thru remains a mystery to this day.
Getting outta Dodge the next day was no easy matter either. A taxi was called and arrived promptly but in fact was not large enough. As we were attempting to load up, our mini bus pulled in behind us to save the day. I loaded back into the bus with a few bags and followed the taxi down the hill.
Now where the hell was the car? The taxi ahead with Steve and the Girls went one way and my bus went the other. We eventually got back together just a few paces from the car, loaded up for our final assault on Morocco.
Our decision to drive to Tarifa, the jumping off point for Tanger (Tangiers) proved to be a wise move. We were booked into a Hostal just a few blocks from the ferry which we would board the next day for our 35 minute crossing to Tangiers (No reservations necessary). A great Cheeseburger in town for lunch lead to cocktails on the patio after a short quick shop at the local Mercado for ice and tonic.
Next morning the Hostal Manager took us down for the 10am boat that was sold out. We did get on the 12pm boat but needed to let our host in Tangiers know of our delay as he was picking us up at the dock for the short walk back to the hotel.
We made contact and told not to worry and that he would meet us at the docks to show us our way back. The 35 minute ferry ride turned into a 90 minute boat ride with 1 or 2 time changes, I never did figure out what time it was. A lot going on for crossing of such a short duration.
I was not looking forward to our visit to Tangiers. I felt the same way Barbara Gaughran did about our overnite train ride and family stay in Vietnam. Andrew meet us at docks and somehow managed to recognize the four lost, looking gringos. We had re-packed into one small bag each and proceeded with our march up the hill to the Jan Darâ, a quaint looking B&B that had been well hidden amongst the winding alley ways of Morocco. Even with a good sense of direction, not only could I not find my way there, but once there couldn't find my way back out and then back in again.
After meeting his wife Jan who single handedly purchased and rebuilt the structure while Andrew remained in the States confronting the financial meltdown of ˜08, we began to settle in just a bit. In lieu of the Big Red Bus orientation ride, Andrew took us on an orientation walk of Old Town. Rather than dropping breadcrumbs so as to find our way back home, Andrew had developed a system of recognizable road markers.....right at the old door.......straight, then right at the telebotique. if you encounter stairs, turn back as you are headed for the Kasbah always wanted to meet someone at the Kasbah. Turns out the Kasbah is just the fortified section of the old town and is not the entertainment center promoted by Hollywood.
Believe me when I say, the city center is just like in the movies. The hordes of people, all presumed to be pick pockets and thieves in the night, The stores and stalls all selling products that I didn't need and really did want to buy. Initially I was a tad concerned about Alibaba and the Forty Thieves extracting all of our worldly possessions, but my concerns proved unwarranted as the people seemed warn and friendly with the exception of the occasional glue sniffers who populated the local square and in some of the darker recesses of the alley ways.
Steve and I sprang for a traditional lunch of soup, vegies, fries, and bread . $9 for the six of us. I could get used to this pricing but am not quite ready to retire here. Andrew was constantly testing us as we walked back to our hotel to see if we could find our way home........probably not as we received grades of "C" for our navigational skill and "C" did not stand for confident.
Andrew and Janet had arranged an even more extensive walking tour with a local. Scheduled for four hours (I've never walked four hours in my life since getting out of the Army) Abdulah met us in the central plaza and we began our exploratory jaunt. After about ten steps I knew I was in trouble as Abdulah's strides were twice what my normal step was.....so as Abdulah cruised along, I trotted after him as best I could. As we began to head out of the town center I began questioning the route he had selected for us........stark residential areas with little or nothing to see.......but we marched on (I was still trotting along behind and missing most of the commentary, which I understand was not all that interesting.
About 90 minutes later, just as I was about to hoist the white flag of surrender, this forced march came to an abrupt end as we sat down for tea at a restaurant overlooking the water. Being in a Muslim country, an ice cold beer was totally out of the question so I set about consuming the local drink that was set in front of me. The mint, green tea that was served resembled a small aquarium that hadn't been cleaned in quite sometime. The mint leaves and green residue of the tea made my thirst for a beer all that much greater as I perused my drink for any signs of sea life.
As we looked down at the view, I was startled to see just how far we had come on our sojourn but equally disturbing was how far back we had to travel to reach our domicile. At about the two hour mark we agreed to forego the last hour (even tho we were paying for four hours of torture) and head for the barn and a much deserved rest. The decision to head back early was laid directly on me and my bad knees........¦..truth be known, everyone's knees were aching and screaming for rest.
As we have learned, Andrew is quite the talker and very proud of his adopted city. He has learned a modicum of Arabic and is fluent with his sign language of customary greetings. He and Janet are making our brief stay all the more enjoyable as they share their wealth of knowledge with us. They seem to have somewhat of a routine going in that each shares and expounds upon his or her area of expertise. Occasionally, one will step on the other's line which totally disrupts the patter of the dialog and brings about hostile looks between the two. However, as we all readily admit our stay in Tangiers has been enhanced by their gift of gab and their willingness to go the extra mile on our behalf.
Arriving back at our home away from home we found that Andrew had made arrangements at a (in his words) local café. Not having noticed any signage for cafes we were quite taken aback when we entered this lovely restaurant, ala Hollywood slick after being welcomed my its owner.
Two steps in off the alleyway, we were totally blown away by the décor and ambiance of their "local café". It had all the trappings of a 4-5 Star restaurant with what we hoped would be cuisine to match.
We were not to be disappointed as we ordered our selections and the accustomed bottle of wine. Being in the Medina section of Tangiers ordering our wine took on the feeling of committing a criminal act. In practice the restaurant can be shut down by the local religious police, but given the appropriate payoffs, this rarely happens. But as Andrew points out these businessmen run the constant risk of being shut down at the whim of this band of enforcers.
So after our lovely dining experience, Susan and I headed back for the 10pm Call to Prayer while Toni and Steve, not being the religious sorts, headed out for a bit more shopping. Toni had located a shop that she felt comfortable in and made a beeline back before the close. It was during her shopping frenzy that Toni got an invite from the owner to attend a wedding celebration that was currently in progress.
As Toni was led away down the street, Steve was left along having tea with himself wondering if he'd ever see her again. Wedding celebratiions are traditionally 3 part affairs.........one day for the bride and her friends..the next day for groom's benefit, and the final day for the ceremony. As this was part one, Toni didn't quite know what to expext as she was lead away down the maze of alleyways to the ladies nite out. Toni admitted to being a bit concerned as to what was ahead and what the other guests would feel about her intrusion. Not being all that fluent in Arabic, Toni entered the party with a big smile..a lot ofchest thumping.and other symbolic gestures, wondering if she would be understood and somewhat accepted to the festivities.
Toni was probably more confused than the rest of the guests as they made her feel more than welcome and a part of the ceremonies in progress. As Toni has been on the wagon since Puerto Rico, the lack of alcohol at this gala event was a welcome relief and fit well into her program and her vow of sobriety. After viewing some of the rituals taking place, the hand painting and dressing of the bride, Toni bid her best wishes and fond farewells to all of her new lady friends. Fortunately, her "guide" was waiting outside (no men allowed at this function) to show her the road home back to the shop. Steve was waiting patiently for Toni's return. wondering whether or not he would ever see her again.
They managed their way thru the maze and made it back just in time for the final call to prayer. At this particular B&B we had a local Mosque right below us and so when the prayers started up it sounded as though they were in the next room. This was especially true for the first call to prayer at 4:40am as it echoed thru our room in multi-plex stereo............a pleasant way to wake up and start the day.
Our second day in Tangier found us back shopping again and wondering the streets with Andrew. What a find he has been, in familiarizing us with his city. That afternoon, we had arranged for a local driver to take us to a beach /restaurant resort for dinner and sunset cocktails. To say it was a wild ride out of the city would be drastic understatement. After terrorizing the locals on the street as well as providing us with a white knuckle experience we found ourselves several kilometers out side of the central city and making our way thru the first of many bottles of wine. Dinner was hand selected (by me) from a variety of fresh fish and vegetables that were prepared to perfection. Our ride home was not quite as terrifying as they bottles of wine had significantly quieted our nerves and we accepted his erratic driving as a matter of course.
And so the next day we depart Tangier with my Rolex still on my wrist and my money clip still in my pocket. We headed for the docks and our 35 minute boat ride back to Tarifa that would take a mere 90 minutes.
Once back in Tarifa where we had left our excess luggage in the hotel we spent the nite before heading out to Salema and back into Portugal. The drive to the coast took us a few hours but our arrival in Salema was well worth the effort. Bob and Debbie Marquis had recommended this spot after their visit a few years back. Rick Steves was also a fan of this town and gave it high marks for its quaint, small town feel.
This small town is located in Portugal's southern most region and reminds visitors how Portugal once was prior to the arrival of condominiums and golf resorts that dot much of the coastline. As luck would have it, our search for a place to spend our three nites lead us to a wonderful second floor, two bedroom ocean view apartment just a few steps from the water and the rest of this quaint town.
We arrived, unpacked, and crashed after our rather lengthy drive and proceeded with drinks on our patio balcony and watched as the sun went down. Toni and Steve ventured out for the obligatory Bolognese as Susan and I munched on offerings from the local market and tried to get the 12" television set working. Even though the satelite reception was good, the damn screen was just too small to recognize anything. Did manage to hear that the stock market was on a terror which is always good news when spending money at our current rate.
The next day found us ready to explore the surrounding beach areas and seaside towns. While the water remains a bit cool, the temperatures outside are Catalina like. After three rather lazy days we were rejuvenated for our final push back to Lisbon and our flight to France to stay with Cindy, Hank and Caleigh.
Portugal is a lovely country and we were treated well by her people. Aside from being nickel and dimed to death for every condiment, olive, peanut, piece of bread, and pat of butter we had a wonderful stay there. While the food. especially the seafood was touted as being wonderful, that was not our experience. The people on the other hand were extremely warm and friendly but seemed a bit underemployed and overly reliant on tourists for their income. As we drove thru the various towns along the way, it was evident that the country is suffering economically as evidenced by the boarded up buildings and severe lack of industrial activity. Lisbon, on the other hand seemed alive and well. Traffic in the city is brisk and the city center seemed to be bustling with commerce.
Our arrival back in Lisbon after a rather lengthy drive on some of the lesser traveled roads was a bit disjointed as I managed to piss of more than one commuter on his way home from work. We chose our hotel in the northern part of the city for its proximity to the airport. Unfortunately while we could see it from the various traffic circles we just couldn't manage to get there due to the construction, the one way streets, and the rude drivers blocking my every attempt at making illegal moves on their roadways.
After finally arriving at our hotel after a side trip to the local, well hidden gas station we settled into the bar downstairs for a well deserved few cocktails and FREE peanuts. It just couldn't get any better and it didn't. After a few drinks, we split a hamburger and fries, sans bun and tried to figure out how the hell we had spent 66euros (almost a $100). Oh well thats life on the Euro and just proves what a good value traveling in the US of A really is.
As I end this second phase of our on-going saga, the four of us find ourselves settled into Petit Clos. We arrived in time for wine and snacks last nite and ready to do battle with the French hinderlands. The Carman's leave for home on the 12th and Matthew, Natalie, Natalie's Mom and the Kids arrive on 30th .
Bye for Now.......................gb
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