Day-trip with some friends...

I made friends with 3 guys that were on vacation in Lagos together last week, 2 were Dutch and 1 was from New York. They all met 10 years before while they were traveling in Australia, and ever since then they have met up in places all around the world for vacations. Since 2 had girlfriends and 1 had a boyfriend, I figured they were quite harmless, so when they invited Aurelia and I on a road trip to the Monchique mountains and West coast, we didn't hesitate to take them up on it. We crammed ourselves into their VW Polo rental and off we went...gorgeous mountain vistas around every hairpin turn. We enjoyed some bicas (espresso) in a cute little cafe, and some homemade chocolate from a charasmatic chocolatier who loves Johnny Cash. We wandered up to an old monastery from the 1600s which was a bit sketchy, it looked like the guy who worked there also lived there, we walked past his washing machine on the way in...there was a goose tied up by the foot squawking away, and it looked like they hadnt had any visitors in years...very strange...

We then stopped on the West coast in a renowned surfing town...which...if I had my Portugal book with me right now I would remember, but it starts with a C and that is all I got. Regardless, there were at least 100 surfers in the water all trying to catch a good wave. No one was on the beach though, you would get sandblasted with all that westerly wind. We got some great pictures from the top of the cliffs though.

After a day of fun road-tripping with some new friends, we arrived back in Lagos just in time for Aurelia and I to go to work. Never know who your going to meet when you are traveling, or what side-trips youll find yourself invited on....its all part of the fun.