Restaurant, coffee shop, bar, discotheque, swimming pool, grocery store, swimming pool, games hall, communal dishwashing areas, and no fire pits, tables or assigned campsites...camping in Portugal is a bit different from what we're used to.
We ain't in Kansas anymore!
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Our purple tent on the far left.
You'd think sleeping on a bed of sand would be soft...mom and dad's hips say NO |
On a whim, we borrowed a tent and sleeping gear and packed up our little Fiat. We spent one night, Wednesday to Thursday (national holidays) at Praia da Gale, a campground about 1.5 hours south of Sesimbra.
Random note about the drive: The radio plays songs in English, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish, French, Italian...We had fun deciphering which was which.
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| Miraculously, it all fit! |
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| They were so excited to go camping! |
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They loved running down to the beach, and back up.
Barefoot all weekend, just like dad.
See the sand dunes - wind carves them like that! |
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| The campground faced west--the waves were MUCH bigger than our "ocean pool" in Sesimbra! |
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| Watching the sunset--we can see Sesimbra! |
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Wine, sunset, family and happy kids.
Life is so good! |
When asked what was different about the experience, the kids answered:
Gabi: "We get to pick our own spot--that's cool" - there are no assigned sites--you can pitch your tent anywhere in a set zone. You and a hundred others...You aim for morning shade so the blazing sun doesn't cook you. But as we were willing to walk a few minutes downhill from our car, we were the second closest to the ocean, and only had...5 other tents as neighbours.
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| "Camping is so cozy" - Yup, it is! |
Jonty: "There are so many people, close together". True, but our spot was far enough away from the central hub and, with the constant crashing of the waves, it was quiet and perfect for sleeping.
Jonty: "It made me homesick". We are big campers back home. We love being in the outdoors and the kids adore the freedom to explore and run around. Not surprisingly, camping reminded us of our true north strong and free.
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Poolside, enjoying ice cream, beer and Sangria.
I could get used to this! |
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We had no camp dishes, coolers or cooking gear.
Good thing there is a full restaurant in the campground! |
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| The view from our tent. Can you see the ocean past my cowboy!? |
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Forest fires are a big concern in Portugal. So no campfires allowed.
There are these communal BBQs though.
There is a fishmonger on site--sardines were popular this weekend! |
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| Pine cones are HUGE here! |
#campingisinourblood
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