When we went to Seville we had the opportunity to see a little bit of the town of Tavira but only from the bus window. Today we catch the 8:58 am train out of Albufeira-Ferreira Station with round-trip Tavira tickets in hand. We change trains in Faro to continue the journey eastward, arriving in Tavira before 11 am.
We initially follow the crowd headed downhill towards the center and the river, but diverge off their path when we see some interesting buildings.
We initially follow the crowd headed downhill towards the center and the river, but diverge off their path when we see some interesting buildings.
Eventually we make our way to Santo Maria Church, the most important church in Tavira. It was built upon the site of an ancient mosque. After taking in the exterior we stop for a beverage and bathroom break at "a ver Tavira", the restaurant across the courtyard. It looks very nice, too bad we aren't hungry! Then we pay our admittance fee and see the interior of the church and the bell tower. It is believed that the church was built in the 1200's, right after the city was retaken from the Moors. Much of the church had to be rebuilt after the 1755 earthquake.
Across from the church is Tavira Castle, the remnants of the Moorish era. Some of the walls date back to the Second Century. It provides a good view of the town and we also enjoy the gardens which have been planted within the castle.
We walk down from the church and castle toward the River Galã and the center of town. Then we walk over the Praça da República, a bridge that also dates to Moorish times, but was revised in the 1600's to have more of a Roman look. There's a number of cafe's and restaurants along the river and we choose the Black Anchor for lunch.
After lunch we meander through the streets taking our time. We stumble upon Jardim da Alagoa, a small park where people relax and enjoy the sun. At the top of the triangular park is another church, Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Ajuda our de São Paulo. I check it out while William enjoys the park.
After lunch we meander through the streets taking our time. We stumble upon Jardim da Alagoa, a small park where people relax and enjoy the sun. At the top of the triangular park is another church, Igreja da Nossa Senhora da Ajuda our de São Paulo. I check it out while William enjoys the park.
There's more to see of Tavira, especially if we take a boat tour of Ria Formosa lagoon, but we've done enough today. We stroll back over Praça da República and make our way uphill to the train station for our trip back.
Once again we have to transfer trains in Faro. This time it creates uneasiness. We are supposed to catch the 5 pm train. We show one of the railroad employees our tickets and say "Albufeira" and he points us to a close by track. The platform begins to fill with people and we notice another train pull in and park three tracks away. It's now past 5 pm. An announcement is made in Portuguese over the crackling speakers. More people arrive on our platform while a few people make their way across the tracks to the other train. William encourages me to find the railroad employee again. This time he looks at me, says "Albufeira?" and when I nod yes he points me with an urgent gesture to the train three tracks away. We scramble over to the other train, sit down and are not assured when our fellow passengers can only tell us the train is to Lagos.
I'm worried. William is calm. His strategy is that if the train doesn't take us to Albufeira the worst case is we get a hotel room in Lagos for the night. A train pulls into the platform where we had been standing. It takes 10-15 minutes to load the train. When it starts to pull away in the direction of Albuferia. I breath one sigh of relief. Around 5:30 pm our train begins it's journey. After 10 minutes I am able to use offline Google maps to follow our train track and can see that it passes through Albufeira-Ferreira. I breath my second sigh of relief, sit back, and relax. Ah, the adventure of travel. :-)
Once again we have to transfer trains in Faro. This time it creates uneasiness. We are supposed to catch the 5 pm train. We show one of the railroad employees our tickets and say "Albufeira" and he points us to a close by track. The platform begins to fill with people and we notice another train pull in and park three tracks away. It's now past 5 pm. An announcement is made in Portuguese over the crackling speakers. More people arrive on our platform while a few people make their way across the tracks to the other train. William encourages me to find the railroad employee again. This time he looks at me, says "Albufeira?" and when I nod yes he points me with an urgent gesture to the train three tracks away. We scramble over to the other train, sit down and are not assured when our fellow passengers can only tell us the train is to Lagos.
I'm worried. William is calm. His strategy is that if the train doesn't take us to Albufeira the worst case is we get a hotel room in Lagos for the night. A train pulls into the platform where we had been standing. It takes 10-15 minutes to load the train. When it starts to pull away in the direction of Albuferia. I breath one sigh of relief. Around 5:30 pm our train begins it's journey. After 10 minutes I am able to use offline Google maps to follow our train track and can see that it passes through Albufeira-Ferreira. I breath my second sigh of relief, sit back, and relax. Ah, the adventure of travel. :-)
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