Azenhas Do Mar , Portugal
Afternoon Break in Azenhas Do Mar
In Lisbon there is always hope. After so much rain and biting cold, this week has come as a revelation. The Sun decided to stop procrastinating and offer us a few glorious days of fantastic weather. It´s easy to tune out somtimes and forget your surroundings. Like a conversation overheard on a bus, you never really start paying attention until someone pulls a gun. On my way home from work, I was confronted by the loaded barrel of an aqua-marine reflection out in the distance. It was the ocean. It caught me by suprise, almost if I had forgoten its existence, as if Portugal was some landlocked country not bordered by almost 1800 kilometers of coast line. Last weeks rain and clouds had temporarily erased it from my memory with giant swathces of grey. I knew at once what I had to do. I drove... I drove until I could match what I saw off in the distance with what I could smell up close. I headed north out of Lisbon, past Sintra until road ran out giving way to sand and water. Azenhas do Mar is a small white-washed village hugged by cliffs that drop dramatically to the Atlantic. In the past it was a small fisihng village and since has become a favorite destination for adventurous tourists and locals alike. In the 50´s a man made sea water swimming pool and restuarant that sits dangerously on the oceans edge were constructed making it an even more popular destination. Maybe I should use a word other than popular, because while there is a constant trickle of visitors it still remains a relative secret , just off the "beaten path," to most. When I arrived I was instantly greeted by the sound of crashing waves and could not resit the call to strecth my legs. So glad I did. Sometimes you just need to see what's in front of you to remember how beautiful life is.
Azenhas do Mar Google Maps