The Final Day

With a frowny face I awoke on our final day, desperate to try and top up my tan as much as possible before I left.

Our flight wasn't until 9.35 that evening so we had a little bit of time to sit in the sun and take pictures in the grass.

We stopped posing to have some lunch, which was yummy Chicken Lasagne served by my very lovely Grandad.

After saying our goodbyes we headed to the airport to fly home, which was very sad indeed. The mood was not improved when we got to the airport and were told that our plane was delayed for 40 minutes so we wouldn't be flying until 10.15pm. In the end we got back to my parents house at 1.45am so it was a very long day indeed.

It's been such a lovely holiday and I hope you have enjoyed reading about it, I've enjoyed doing these so much - although daily blogging is quite hard! I hope it has been entertaining :)

C xxx

A Trip Down Memory Lane

On our second to last day we decided to take a trip down to Monchique, the village at the bottom of the mountain and my old home.

First we drove down to Caldas de Monchique, it's a tiny little village with a spa and is famous for the water - apparently it has healing properties...

...what it definitely has is lovely picturesque areas.

We had a walk round and bought a few bits and pieces before getting back in the very hot car and heading to Monchique where we stopped off at some of my favourite places and had an ice-lolly. Monchique really is a beautiful place and I was so lucky to be able to spend time there.

Once we got back to the Villa we had a splash in the pool before getting changed for mine and Leigh's anniversary meal, which the whole family was invited to as it was also our last night!

We headed to a restaurant called Solar Do Farelo, with as much wine as you can drink with your meal on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays so we took advantage of that!

We chose our starter and mains from the blackboard, there is only one blackboard and no menus so the owner comes to your table with it and talks you through the options and reads the specials before noting down your order.

I went for the Prawn Cocktail to start and Leigh went for the Wild Boar Salad, both of which were delicious. Sometimes I find you don't get enough prawns in your Prawn Cocktail but I had 10 massive ones so I would highly recommend it if you decide to go.

After a very tasty starter we moved on to the main course. I had duck with orange sauce, which was cooked perfectly and so lush with the sauce. Leigh had Oxtail Stew which was one of the specials.

 

We had such a lovely meal and I would highly recommend going there if you are in the Algarve. Remember to book though because it gets very busy!

 After we went back to the villa we spent a little bit of time looking up at the stars which were out in their millions. It is so lovely to be in a place where there is no light pollution and you can even see the Milky Way spread across the sky which is beautiful and a lovely end to our four year anniversary.

C xxx

A Very Full Day

After an earlier start and a slightly hurried breakfast the family set off en masse to Lagos. For as long as I can remember we make our pilgrimage to Don Sebastios, one of our favourite restaurants in the Algarve.

We are well known there and have our own table, being greeted like old friends when we get there. Before we sit down for lunch we always go to the same bar which is perfectly positioned with it's sitting area to  people watch, which my mother and grandmother do with relish.

They also do pretty big beers there too, which matches perfectly with my pretty big hat....

After we finished our drinks Leigh and I had a walk down the back streets until we came across one of my favourite artists shop. I have been buying this ladies paintings for nearly 10 years and every time I return I buy a new one. I have quite a collection at home! This time I picked a slightly different one, as I normally go for street scenes, but it will go beautifully in our pale yellow kitchen.

We had a quick walk around some of the other shops before heading over to the restaurant to meet the others. We walked in and started naming all fish instantly, I like fish but I have real issues with picking my own!

We sat down and tucked into fresh bread, cheese, olives and chorizo which cooks on your table. I tried not to eat too much as I didn't want to ruin my main course!

I had what I always have, seafood rice. It comes in a big pottery pot and includes crab, mussels, prawns,  langoustines and clams all mixed in with tomato flavoured rice. It is by far one of my favourite ever meals and made even better by the big bib and tools you get to eat it with.

We always have figs and walnuts to finish, served with a glass of 'on the house' port or amaretto. We all took turns trying to crack as many nuts as possible.

After finishing our glorious meal we headed down to the seafront for ice-cream. I got Rum and Raisin as it's my favourite, but not one you find very often.

Feeling very, very full we headed back to the Villa where we spent a nice evening watching films, whilst I did a food shop. All very glamorous.  

C xxx

Lime and Coconut Icecream - Recipe

Put the lime in the coconut and drink 'em both up......

Oh yes - it's that time of year when the sun is finally coming out and we all think that it's summer!

This recipe is quick to whip up and only takes 4 ingredients. The hardest part is being patient while it freezes but you could be supping on Pimms and gobbling burgers straight off the BBQ during this time.

Ingredients
2 Limes (the picture below shows 3 but I found it was very limey so 2 will do just fine. Unless you like limes then crack on!)
120g caster sugar
400ml carton of coconut milk
300ml carton of double cream

Method to the madness

Grate your limes so you have lots of lovely smelling zest

Put all the ingredients into a pan and heat (yes I know - bloody mental!) for a couple of minutes until all the sugar is disolved. Allow to cool. 

Once the mixture is cool pour it into a decent sized tupperware or old icecream tub (the mixture will expand as it freezes) and pop in the freezer.

Remove from the freezer after an hour and mix it all together using a whisk. When it’s fairly smooth, return to the freezer for a further hour, whisk and then for a final time you need to put it back in the fridge for an hour. After that 3rd hour is up your icecream will be ready. I left mine in overnight just to make sure it was set but there really was no need!

Serve with some lime wedges to make you look like you know something about presentation.

xxx