We left the Azores with a pre-dawn flight to Lisbon, and immediately hit the road to drive south to “the end of the world,” aka Fortaleza de Sagres. Along the way I soaked in the landscape: lots of pine and eucalyptus trees, and sure enough some cork and olive groves. The fort was built to defend Portugal from southern attacks, and where Prince Henry the Navigator sent out explorers. The fort itself wasn’t much to see, but the ocean views were great, and so was their exploration museum. It was a helpful history refresher, and helped me appreciate how our connected world is a product of all that exploration. Plus, it's hard not to love a place full of maps!
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View from the walk around Fortaleza de Sagres ("end of the world")
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Gazing out at the horizon, watching for ships
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Maps! (reproduction, but still)
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The fortress walls
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Arriving in Lagos, we enjoyed the gorgeous cliff walk near sunset, and after checking into our hotel did the downtown walking tour ala Rick Steves. Lots of interesting information, but seeing the jacaranda trees felt like a bit of home at the end of a long day. Amid all the glories of exploration, it was interesting to see how they acknowledged (or mostly didn’t) their role in the slave trade, with Lagos being the first slave market in Europe. Back at the hotel I attempted a bit of handwashing and a quick night swim in the pool before bed.
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| Ponta da Piedade |
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| Ponta da Piedade |
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The small slave trade museum--the fenced off area has a plaque acknowledging it
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Prince Henry statue, and jacaranda trees in the square
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Castelo de Lagos, and the entrance to the old part of the city
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Castelo de Lagos, blending into the walls of other buildings
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