Beaches for days in Figueira da Foz

I woke up from my day/night at the Serenada full of hope & a heart filled with peace.  After breakfast, another walk with the dog & a visit with the host of the winery, I set off for my next destination.

I had chose the little seaside town of Figueira da Foz as my next destination, about 2 hours up the coast.  There was no particular reason for going there, other than I was longing for a walk on the beach & the towns website boasted the biggest beach in Portugal.  I just wanted to, so I did.  I did have a plan hatched though…I had booked a 10 day wellness retreat up near Tabua, which was basically nowhere, & I was meandering my way up to meet the hosts.  This was my main reason for renting the car…freedom to see more of the country.

I had booked another boutique bed & breakfast, Fonte Da Foz, & it was located on the narrowest, steepest street I had ever driven down. I actually laughed out loud with a hoot, sucking in my gut, as I crept down the little street with pedestrians stopping to gape at me.  Luckily, I found a place to park fairly close & expertly parallel parked like the champ I am, being careful to turn my wheels into the curb so my auto didn’t roll away & crash.

The bed & breakfast was absolutely adorable!  The woman checking me in was the perfect host & my room was gorgeous with the right amount of old-world charm meets modern conveniences.  I dumped my stuff & headed for the beach.

Figueira da Foz had every right to boast the largest beach in Portugal because it was frickin’ massive!  The boardwalk that jutted out to the ocean from the main promenade was practically deserted except for a few fisherman & the odd cyclist.  I sat on a concrete slab, took off my shoes & socks & walked for miles on perfectly manicured sand…not another person in site.  The waves crashed hard around my legs as I walked close to the water, dipping my feet in the beautiful North Atlantic Ocean.  I could watch the ocean for days.  I climbed up onto a high-point sand dune & sat until the sun started to set, crying a little bit…so happy my heart was aching with the beauty of it all.

The damn Portuguese have the same dinner hour as the Spanish!  No restaurants opened until 8 p.m. & the streets here were basically deserted.  I found a pizza restaurant with the funkiest ambience & ordered beer panache & a veggie pizza from the friendliest waiter who spoke not one word of English.

I walked back to my B & B, up & down the narrow streets, abandoned this time of year & called it a day.  Tomorrow I was headed to Tabua because the day after, my 10 day retreat started.  Since Tabua was only an hour drive away, I googled around to find out if there were sites of interest along the way & discovered Parque de Merendas de Moinhos de Gavinhos…ancient windmill constructed in the 12th century used for milling grains.  The countryside in Portugal is littered with thousands of these windmills & I was excited to explore the area, killing time on my drive in the best way.

I woke up, packed fairly quickly & headed downstairs to have the most delicious breakfast I’ve had in ages, served with such genuine care.   Afterwards, I packed the car, but because it was so early & I didn’t have far to drive today, I decided to have another beach walk. Since it was quite early, the tide was up & the sun hit differently…I walked barefoot up to a dune & watched surfers riding the waves for over an hour before deciding I should be on my way.  I enjoyed every minute near the water & I think my soul needed this more than I knew.

Feeling refreshed, I made my way back to my auto, carefully driving that crazy narrow street & out of Figueira da Foz…on my way to another adventure.