Por-tu-gal Por-tu-gal!!

Portugal was amazing! My favorite place we visited in Europe so far...probably had something to do with the amazing blue sky and warm weather. We were able to wear short sleeves and sandals! Not the whole time, it did get chilly, but enough of the time to forget about the gray and rain in London.
The trip was great. We stayed with my Mom's friends, Joe and Martha. They live in a small town called Luz, in the Algarve region of Portugal. They were amazing tour guides, showing us all around the region, even taking a quick trip to Spain for a few hours on Friday. Joe grew up in Portugal so knows the area very well, which allowed us to see things and places we wouldn't have otherwise. We were also able to meet lots of their friends and family and really experience the culture. Everyone was so warm and welcoming and friendly, even with the language barrier everything still worked out great. We were treated to three fabulous dinners while there, tasting some fabulous new foods, lots of seafood - which the area is known for. I had the best clams I've ever tasted in my life, not to mention, all the fish, chicken and lamb that we had, as well as the pastries. After this vacation, even though it was short, I'm going to have to kick up the exercise for a little while to work off all the great food!I really want to go back, it was warm and beautiful in January, I can only imagine how much better the weather would be in the summer. And there is so much more to explore and experience. I'm so glad my Mom came to visit us in London so we were able to go to Portugal and stay with Martha and Joe and see how and where they live now. It truly was great.