7 Countries in 30 days. Step 15: Ericeira, Obidos, Figueira da Foz, Coimbra (Portugal)

A 9 in the morning, as we prepare to leave Lisbon, the housemate of Magui comes back home. He tell us about the night outside, about which he doesn’t remember anything. Then, he takes a salad bowl full of green jelly and he starts to eat it with a soup spoon. There is no accounting for taste.

We’re going by car to Coimbra, where Magui has a house. The first step of this day is Ericeira, a really nice sea village, where we paddle a bit on a canoe, before to leave it singing at the top of our lungs an entire record of Backstreet Boys. At mid-afternoon we reach Obidos, a medieval town famous for Ginginha, a delicious cherry liquor. My Portuguese friend is making us to live an amazing travel experience, bringin us to see the best places of her Country. Every moment I’m more happy to have found her again after years, and this new trio turns out to be a inexhaustible source of laughter.

Surprised for the beauty of landscapes we are crossing, we arrive in Figueira da Foz for dinner. Sea bream on the grill, fish shrimp skewers, rice, beans, salad and french fries, with a pitcher of cinnamon white sangria. A luxury dinner for only 15€ make us to love even more Portugal. The huge city beach hosts a real oasis, from where the croak of frogs singing to the moon resounds. The hot churros at the village fair are the final touch for the perfect day, before to move to the near Coimbra for the night.

Coimbra is a University city. In august it is almost desert. As a city it is not bad, and to visit it with Magui is amazing: not only because she grew up here and she’s able to tell us every kind of curiosity about the place, but especially because we have a crazy good time for the whole day. In the square in front of the ancient University, we discover a curious custom: the young graduating students, dressed with the official robe, sell to the tourists poscards of the city, in order to pay their own post-graduation journey.

To leave our friend is sad. We spent some wonderful days and once again I realized how much better is to share a travel with special people, who are able to give a face to the places I’m discovering. But the journey is not stopping, today we’re reaching Porto, our last Portuguese step, and the enthusiasm for a new discovery is aligning to the sadness of saying goodbye.

Andrea Cuminatto

READ HERE THE STEP N°1: Munich (Germany)

READ HERE THE STEP N°2: Bayreuth (Germany)

READ HERE THE STEP N°3: Bruxelles (Belgium)

READ HERE THE STEP N°4: Bruges (Belgium)

READ HERE THE STEP N°5: Antwerp (Belgium)

READ HERE THE STEP N°6: Delft (Netherlands)

READ HERE THE STEP N°7: Rotterdam (Netherlands)

READ HERE THE STEP N°8: Amsterdam (Netherlands)

READ HERE THE STEP N°9: Luxembourg (Luxembourg)

READ HERE THE STEP N°10: Marseille (France) 

READ HERE THE STEP N°11: San Sebastian (Spain)

READ HERE THE STEP N°12: Guernica, Bermeo, Mundaka, San Juan de Gaztelugatxe (Spain)

READ HERE THE STEP N°13: Bilbao (Spain)

READ HERE THE STEP N°14: Lisbon (Portugal)