Silves Cathedral and Castle

Today we headed inland to the town of Silves.  It was a lot warmer than it has been near the coast.  We managed to park near the Cathedral, not far from the castle.  The Cathedral was not too interesting, except for a couple of paintings that seemed out of place.

This is about all that is left of the old town.

Then on to the Castle.  The statue in front is of Sancho the First.

There were a lot of trees in town with flowers like those below.  I don't think I have seen these before.

Again there is porcelain art - at least it is not fish this time!

They are excavating the living quarters.  Everything they have found is in another museum down at the bottom of the hill - so we did not see it.

Storks have been everywhere in this part of Portugal.  There are 3 nests below.

There are many orchards of orange trees.  We were so tempted to pick some, but thought it might be frowned upon in public places.

Segres Fortress

Our last stop in Segres was to see the fort. It is built on a point and is know because it only has a wall on the inland side.  On the sea side - the shear cliffs are protection enough.  There were informational signs like the one below all over explaining the history of the fort.  Henry the Navigator was instrumental in getting the fort built.  Mostly to keep North Africa away.  It also played a big part in keeping Francis Drake out of Portugal.  Fantastic views of the sea and coastline.

Segres, the Lighthouse of Cabo de Sao Vicente and Lunch

Today was a cold blustery, sunny day which we spent outdoors.  First on our list was to drive to Segres and visit the lighthouse on the point.  This is the Lighthouse of Cabo de Sao Vicente on the southwest point of Portugal.  The lighthouse is quite new.  The views were wonderful.

A short distance away we stopped to see Fort Beliche.  It was not open but I took a photo through the gate.  The view below that is from their parking lot.

Another viewpoint on our way back to Segres for lunch.  If you look closely you can see some people standing on a ledge center left.  You can see the steps leading down to the beach from there.  Also note the dots in the water - these are surfers.  This whole area seems to be very popular with surfers.

On to lunch.  I have been wanting to have a great fish meal.  So far we have had no luck.  I did have fish once before, but it was dried and tasteless.  Rob found Segres Doca Da Pesco which is a restaurant with a Auction Hall for seafood.  We were too early for the auction which started around 4 - 4:30pm.  The floor at the bottom is where the seafood is shown.  Those bidding on the lots are seated above.  The restaurant is on the 3rd level.  I took a picture through a window of the restaurant down to the auction hall.

The fish was fresh and delicious.  This is sea bass. 

The port is called Porta da Baleeira.

The grands in front of the restaurant.

The boat on the left pulled in just as we exited the restaurant.