Tavira Day 3 - Touring Tavira

This is our last full day here and after a lazy day on the local beach yesterday, we struck out to explore nearby Tavira and another of the barrier islands.

We did the short drive past Tarvira to Praia Barril, "Barril Beach". We parked the car, crossed a pedestrian bridge and took a little train for 1.5 km ride to the beach.

This is an old fishing village, most of which has been restored and renovated into a small group of cafes, bars and shops.

Try to figure out the prohibition on line two column two???? No fat people???

Our first visit was to the anchor graveyard, a dune field filled with hundreds of ancient ship anchors. Quite stunning and no Big Johnsons!

There is a cabana rental agency with loungers if you wish to stay for the day but we decided we would do a beach walk on this fabulous stretch of sand.

Again, we arrived at low tide which provided an expansive beach perfect for walking along the water's edge.

We walked for about 4 km and returned to the village around noon, stopping in a cafe for some cold water.

Crossing back to the mainland we were able to view the busy crabs in the marsh area during mid tide.

We drove into Tavira, nestled on either side of the River Gialo and after navigating the narrow one-way streets in the core, came upon a parking place along the river. A few steps away was a riverside cafe with shade and it didn't take long to decide to grab a table and have a bite to eat and a cold drink.

Recharged, we were on our way to explore the old walled city.

The remnants of the castle are still there and you are able to climb the ramparts and get some good overviews of the town.

I loved the hibiscus in the castle gardens.

I was intrigued by an attraction called a "Camera Obscura". I think we encountered one in Glasgow Scotland but never investigated. We paid the admission to the middle of the old water tower and marvelled at the simplicity of the live view 360 degree presentation of the hi lights of Tavira. No electronics, special effects etc., just plain old fashioned physics and optics.

We wandered the narrow streets and ended up at the waterfront.

There is a nice Roman bridge that provides access to the divided town.

Our last thing to do was to visit the Fado Museum, a tribute to the original folk music of Portugal. They provided a history of Fado and then a live performance of the evolving style of the music over the last couple of centuries.

We got back to the car and returned to Cabanas in time to unwind before heading out for dinner. It was Thanksgiving but there was no turkey on any menu so I had the Mar y and Monte pasta.