Day 13 – Our Last Day in the Algarve

Grottos
The Algarve
Faro, Portugal
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

ONE THING we wanted to do was to see the grottos off the coast of the Algarve. Although they are found virtually everywhere, the most impressive collection of them are east of where we were staying, in the Faro area. As we walked around Lagos, we saw that there was a large marina there, and it became apparent that we would have not problem finding a tour. Bruce went online, found and booked one for us. So that morning, after breakfast, we took an uber to the marina, at the designated meeting place.

The ride was bumpy – almost painfully so

THERE WAS good news and bad news. The (mostly) good news was that we had a nice, rain-free day (though it looked a little threatening on the horizon), and we were pretty much assured to get a close look at these caves. The bad news (really minor in the big picture – but I think we all agree we might do things differently if there is a next time), was twofold. First, we didn’t realize how far the ride all the way up the coast from Lagos to east of Faro was. Probably 20-45 minutes on the boat. Not a huge deal in and of itself. But the boat was the real issue. As we were on the way to the marina, I joked about being on an RHIB (rigid hull inflatable boat). I was totally joking, as I was thinking Navy Seal style. Well. The boat was essentially a specially specced RHIB, with carnival ride type seats that were very close together. The boat held maybe 20 passengers. We rode the seats like a saddle. The ride was bumpy – almost painfully so (remember, we are 60 plussers). And, for a photographer, unless you have the very front seats (we didn’t) shooting was a definite challenge. While I did get a few shots that I felt were good enough to publish, I saw many, many more, where I would have liked to have: (1) an unobstructed view, and (2) the ability to ask the pilot to linger a bit in certain places. If I were to do this one again, I would definitely explore the viability of a smaller, more private setup. And, as totally an afterthought, there is a very nice marina at Faro; much closer to the caves. We probably could have booked our tour from there and saved ourselves that RHIB joyride. 🙂

Grotto
The Algarve
Faro, Portugal
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

O

N THE other hand, I have become fond of a saying: it was a “first world problem.” In other words, as inconvenient as it may have felt, it was nothing compared to things others go through in life, and I count my many privileges and blessings. Would I do that ride again? I don’t know (not if I could find a reasonable cost alternative). But we had the privilege and pleasure of seeing something not everyone gets to see in their lifetime. I’ll take that.

Grotto
The Algarve
Faro, Portugal
[Copyright Andy Richards 2022
All Rights Reserved]

T

HE FINAL day in the Algarve, was, practically speaking, our last “real” day in Portugal. We headed back to Lisbon the next morning, to stay in a motel that was quite close to our first Lisbon hotel. We had a mid-morning flight out the next day. On the homeward-bound part of this trip we encountered what may have been the most unpleasant traveling experience we can remember for some time. One of our parties tested positive for Covid 19 the day before we were to leave. He ended up having to stay an extra 4 days in Lisbon. Fortunately, his symptoms were not very bad, and once he tested negative, he was able to return. With that shadow over us, we navigated the awful customs system of the Lisbon airport (I would later read that all of Europe considers Lisbon to be the worst airport in Europe – we cannot argue with them there). We had some kind of customs/passport check at least 5 times from the time we entered the airport until we were in our seats on the plane. It made no sense to us. We had an otherwise uneventful flight back into the U.S. But as soon as we landed and turned on our phones, things again deteriorated. We happened to be traveling when several negative things (Covid, weather, airline logistics problems) all converged. We had messages from our carrier. Our flight (which was supposed to get us home around 6:00 p.m.) had been cancelled and we had been re-scheduled and re-routed. And we weren’t the only ones. LaGuardia was an absolute zoo. Before the night was complete, were re-scheduled 2 more times, missed a connection in Atlanta, and again rescheduled. We also lost our purchased seats (we were business class – non-stop to Tampa originally) and got whatever was available for the next two flights. We eventually landed in Tampa and then waited almost an hour for our Uber. We got home around 2:30 a.m.; exhausted of course. But we got home, and all of our baggage made it with us. In the sunlight of the following morning, I awoke, tired but happy. What had happened was – once again – a “first world” problem. And while it does make us re-think how we plan our travel it certainly hasn’t stopped us from charging forward. In August, we would again board a plane bound for Amsterdam (where we had read about nightmares with customs and baggage, but where we got through both very quickly and efficiently both going in and coming back out). Shortly after this entry posts, we boarded a plane bound for Rome and yet another adventure (accounts to follow). We were as excited as ever to travel, and thankfully, once again, neither luggage, nor customs were a problem on any of our flights.