Madrid

We were ferried back to Lisbon where we spent one last night before flying to Madrid on Air Europa. That was the one flight which I had found using Expedia and we didn't know much about the airline except that it was a bargain at CAN$70 each for the flight.  Everything worked like a charm however until we tried to navigate out of the Madrid airport following my walking diagram.  There didn't seem to be any logical way of finding the path and, after much frustration and wandering, we deduced the nearest Metro stop to our hotel and opted to take the Metro in a long loop downtown and then back on another line.  This involved travelling about 12km in order to reach something that was 2km away.

But we finally got to the Maydrit hotel and were very happy with the results.

I took a walk through the park to the north of our hotel and wandered until I found a Metro stop.

Unlike Lisbon, Madrid is geared to bicycle traffic as seen in these excellent paths.

Scenes in Retiro Park

Cat Sanctuary in Retiro Park

Retiro Fountain & Falls (Ray's Visit)

I took the Metro to the Pyramides stop and walked down the river park which has some very striking features.

A very long bench

Bike and Pedestrian Bridge

Slides (they are called toboggans)

Later on, another park, nothing spectacular.

Scenes from the Railway Museum

Back to the Retiro Botanical Garden

Alfonso XII through the pillars

Madrid Airport Ceiling

We flew from Madrid to Heathrow and then onwards to Ottawa.  My MacBook Air was revived by the Apple Store at no charge in about three minutes.  The bronchitis is notably abating very day, the cats are happy, and I'm starting to think about next year's tour.

Jim

Lagos to Sagres

This was the day of wind and rain.  We started out from our hotel and in a few minutes faced a blasting wind, heavy rain and hills. The rain and hills were behind us in a short time but the wind continued.

Gale Force at Salema

Cape St. Vincent Tourists

Cape St. Vincent Cliff

My Balcony at Sagres

My Balcony View

Ray's View

The Route and Stats

Jim's Video

Ray's Video

Later,

Jim

Silves to Lagos

A little snack stop in Odiaxere

The waterfront in Lagos

Horse Grazing

Night view from my balcony

The Route and Stats

Jim's Video

Ray's Video

Later,

Jim

Alte to Silves

A nice restful day as we descend from Alte to Silves giving us plenty of time to explore the Castle in Silves.

We pull over in Sao Bartolomeu to a little cafe where we are offered an English Breakfast.  We sit outside and enjoy the views before enjoying a fast ride on a freshly paved road.

 I coughed and coughed during the night waking up to gobs of mucus as my bronchitis reached its peak. Fortunately, despite my rundown feeling, the riding kept my airways clear during the day.

Two Views from my Hotel Balcony

 Views from the Castle

Our Hotel from the Castle

The Route and Stats

Jim's Video

Ray's Video

Later,

Jim

Marco to Alte

This was our climbing day. We had been warned by the brochure that we were facing a number of steep inclines and we were not disappointed.  It was also a long day which, including our side trip to have lunch in Querença Village, added up to over 60km.

Somewhere around the 28km point we started looking for Querença and after a false start in the wrong direction and up a very steep climb, we descended, found the turnoff, and found ourselves faced with an intense climb up to the village.  We had a good meal in the restaurant before screaming back down the incline, a short respite before the next rise.

Starting to See Some Altitude

Up to this point I've not had to get off and push and I even managed the roadway up to the hotel but upon reaching their driveway I knew I had reached my limit. Rather than falling off halfway up, I got off and pushed.  Ray, undaunted, continued on two wheels.

 The Road to the Hotel

 A View from that Road

This is Baltazar, a friendly donkey in his enclosure on the main street of Alte. There is a slot for coins to help with Baltazar's upkeep and both Ray and I dropped in some of the weighty coins we had been carrying around.  Baltazar got lots of head rubs and scratches from all but he got a little frisky with me and gave me a hard nip on my right bicep which, even a week later, still shows remnants of the bruise.

 Baltazar

Sunset off the Roadway

The Route and Stats

(Note: Clicking 'View full route' shows details)

The Video

This was probably the start of my bronchitis as my coughing can be heard in the video.

Later,

Jim