April 4-6

We left the Falconry and walked a short distance to the stables, a long building with stalls lining each side, each with a window to the outdoors.  Most held a horse with a sign on the wall indicating their name and the feed mixture they would be consuming each day.  Four of the males were for sale at the time, with prices ranging from 8,000 to 11,000 Euros with two females going for 5,000 and 8,000 Euros. 

These are lovely looking animals, and many seemed familiar with our tour guide who likely works with them each day.  We walked the length of the barn, taking in the horse washing bay and the tack room before exiting and working our way back towards the resort as our tour ended.  With kids off to the wedding, we returned to our rooms for some relaxation before convening for dinner again in the restaurant.

It would be another nice meal, Joanna and I both opting for an entrée apiece; for her the carnitas like pulled pork served on a bed of creamy yams and for me, the Duroc (Black) Pork Cheeks in a tomato-based sauce with an interesting spiciness.  It was our turn to get wine for the evening and our 21-Euro bottle of local red (Tinto) was just the right choice leaving us with a total tab of just 60 Euros, often what just a bottle of wine costs us in the States.  The next morning, we would all depart, the kids back Lisbon for their flight home and the four of us (Kim, Marty, Joanna and Me) for Comporta, about an hour south of Lisbon.  But first we enjoyed one last breakfast and this time I’d get to order an omelet, prepared before my eyes. It was delicious.

We’d be spending one night in Comporta, originally planned for two but airline snafus caused us to cut out a night.  Our original booking was with Air Maroc back in December, but in January they permanently terminated our early afternoon flight on April 8th, designed to get us to our tour start on time that day.  I cancelled the rescheduled flight and booked new ones for the four of us on Air Portugal (TAP) for the same day around the same time, but for a much cheaper price.  A month later I received an email from them letting me know they had cancelled all of the Tuesday flights and booked us for the next day, Wednesday the 9^th, which obviously wasn’t going to work as we’d miss the start of the tour.  I called TAP and fortunately was able to move us to the flight on Monday the 7^th, but that meant cutting the second night out of Comporta, costing us a day of non-refundable prepaid lodging cost. 

We’d be staying at Cabana da Comporta, a small but charming beach bungalow in this seaside community for 117-Euros a night.  Our drive went smoothly, and we got to the house, unloaded the car and then drove a few miles closer to the beach to Cavalos na Areia, a stable where Joanna and Kim had made a reservation for an afternoon horseback outing. 

Marty and I dropped them off and drove back to Comporta to check out what the town looked like, observing enough restaurants and cafes to support a larger visiting population.  We then headed back towards the stable and stopped in at Dona Bia, a crowded seafood restaurant where the Sunday afternoon crowd was chowing down on some great looking food.  We were able to snag a table and ordered a bottle of Vinho Verde and a serving of French fries (we’d be having dinner later), timing our consumption so that we would finish at about the same time Kim and Joanna did. 

We all returned to the bungalow for an hour or two of preparation for our flight to Morocco the next day before taking the 15-minute walk to Gomes, Casa de Vinhos & Petiscos, our choice for dinner that night.  This would turn out to be one of the best meals of the trip with great food, wine, and service.  We started out with a Warm Salad comprised of bits of sliced ham mixed in with warm shredded cabbage. 

For entrees, Marty would enjoy a dish of clams and mussels while Kim and Joanna savored their Duck Pie and Breaded Filet of Fish, respectively.  And I would demolish my Pork Cutlet.  All of it would be accompanied by two nice bottles of Horacio Simoes Vinho Tinto, a locally produced wine.

We’d do it up right with dessert, ordering a Mousse Chocolate, an Arroz Doce (rice pudding) and a chocolate concoction I don’t recall the name of but the equal of the other dishes.  Marty and I would complement them with a glass apiece of a twenty-year-old port, a perfect way to end the meal. 

The next morning, we made the hour-long drive to the airport in Lisbon for our flight to Casablanca.  Check in with Air Portugal went smoothly and we had enough time to kill before our hour or so long flight to grab a bite to eat, for me a Iberica ham sandwich and a Super Bock beer from Paul, a French chain of bakery-café restaurants that started in 1889 and is now found in 47 countries.  I’d hoped to snag my favorite chicken sandwich with crudité (vegetables), like the ones I enjoyed so much in 2014 but struck out this time around.  This one did the job though for 11-Euros and kept me full until dinner later that day.  And we’ll cover Morocco in the next series of posts. 

Links

Cabana da Comporta: https://www.booking.com/hotel/pt/cabana-da-comporta.html?aid=2378099&label=postbooking_confemail;pbsource=conf_email_hotel_name

Cavalos na Areia: https://www.cavalosnaareia.com/

Dona Bia: https://portugalconfidential.com/restaurante-dona-bia-comporta/

Gomes: https://www.facebook.com/gomes.casa.vinhos.petiscos/

Paul: https://www.paul-bakeries.com/