Portugal

Nazare, Portugal. This little Portuguese fishing village is home to the largest surf on earth. Watching some really huge waves here was a bucket-list item for me, so I kept an eye on the surf forecast models during the winter of 2019/20, and finally saw a huge swell developing in the North Atlantic in mid February. I dashed over to Portugal with a few days' notice and this is what I found. HUGE!!! Behind the breaking wave you can see a few jet-skis towing surfers into these giants. The tiny surfers & skis provide some sense of scale, but it's really hard to comprehend the true size of these waves in photos.

Nazare, Portugal. Many of the top big-wave riders from around the world were here for this swell. The top picture is Kai Lenny, the bottom one is Laird Hamilton, and the middle one is unknown. Only about a dozen of the world's most elite big-wave surfers were out in these waves; this type of giant-wave surfing is considered crazy even by most professionals. I measured the largest waves at about 12 times the height of the surfer, about 70 feet.

Praia do Norte, Portugal. This is the beach immediately to the north of the main (big) Nazare surf break. This photo looks like a bunch of tsunamis bearing down on these poor people but it's "just" the 20-foot-plus shore break. Scary enough. It would be utterly impossible to paddle out through this (why would you want to?), and even some of the jet-skis that got caught in this mess trying to rescue surfers nearly got destroyed.

Porto, Portugal. Enough surf already- on to wine. The pretty little town of Porto straddles both sides of the Douro River and is ground zero for port wine production in Portugal (and I guess therefore, the world). The grapes are grown along the Douro river valley and shipped down to Porto where they're processed, aged, and consumed in large quantities. I never liked port wine in the US, but it tastes much better here, right at the source. White, red, or rose, it's all good!

Porto, Portugal. The cafe-lined waterfront along the city center in this happy little wine-town. There always seemed to be a lot going on, even though I visited in the off-season (February). The buildings are typical throughout Portugal: vertical and narrow, 4 or 5 stories, flat plain exteriors, decorated only with wrought iron railings and lots of beautiful tilework.

Locals doing local things around Porto, Portugal.

Top left : Well-dressed college students relaxing with music and dance along the waterfront of the Douro River.

Top right : Making pasteis de nata, the local custard-tart treat. I ate my weight in 'em.

Bottom left : The nightly sunset ritual on a hilltop overlooking the Douro River, "tasting" port wine made just down the hill.

Bottom right : Street musician playing a traditional Portuguese guitar. Beautiful sound, very mandolin-like.

Douro Valley, Portugal. This valley was one of the most scenic parts of my 1,500-mile drive. It's Portugal's version of our Napa Valley, but a much more interesting drive with all the twists and turns of the steep mountain roads running along the winding Douro River. It's beautiful country, reminiscent of Italy. Many of these wine-producing farms also feature tasting facilities, restaurants, and B&B style lodging.

Sagres, Portugal. This is the wild and rugged coast at Cape San Vincent, at the extreme southwest corner of Portugal. Not much is out here besides a lighthouse and a couple of old forts. It's barren, rocky, and very very windy. And the best place around to watch the sunset over the Atlantic. The Cape is considered to be the most southwesterly point of Europe.

Sintra, Portugal. This suburb of Lisbon was once the summer retreat for Portuguese royalty and other VIP's. They're long gone now but their palaces remain and are huge tourist attractions today.

Top 3 photos : Quinta da Regaleira, the castle of a Brazilian coffee tycoon. Built in the late 1800's it looks like a cross between Disney and Lord of the Rings. Towers, castles, grottos and tunnels cover the huge estate. The craziest feature might be this ornate pedestrian-friendly well (above) that connects into an underground cave system.

Bottom 3 photos : Pena Palace, the summer home of Portuguese kings and queens until the early 1900's. Decorated in ketchup & mustard ??

Lisbon, Portugal. Scenes from around town.

Top Left: The intricately carved cloisters at San Jeronimo Monastery, built in the 1500's to celebrate local hero Vasco da Gama's discovery of a sea route to India. This tiny country used to dominate in the discovery of new lands.

Top Right: A very typical Lisbon scene: a San Francisco-like trolley runs in front of a Portuguese-style home. This photo was taken on a long walk through a typical 'working' neighborhood, well off the tourist path. It's a little rough around the edges but still safe & friendly.

Bottom: Sunset over Lisbon, from one of the many scenic overlooks that seem custom-built for the purpose.