Faro – Portugal – Boat trip

Today is a big day, we are going out to the islands with a boat. I am really excited to see them. Previously I was Google them and all of it looked amazing. Three different stops, five hours to spend.

If you follow up next to the port in Faro you will find the kiosks where they are selling tickets. There are four different companies: yellow, green, red and blue. We have listened all of them what they can offer, to be honest it is quite the same when you are listening it. We chose the green company as the girl gave us ten euros discounts plus this was the longest – five hours – out of all. It costs us fifty euros together.

On the way we have seen that the yellow company has a big catamaran, I think approximately forty people can go on it or more. It is big, but really busy. The red company has the nicest boat, looks expensive. Approximately ten people can sit on it, it was full also. I haven`t seen the blue company so I cannot give any detail about it.

Our boat has arrived, we are getting on it. It is a smaller boat, I think maximum nine people can sit on it. Before us there is a family – mom, dad and daughter. The skipper is showing them where to sit, also to us. He is giving us a binocular plus a sheet about different kind of birds. Here we go, the boat is moving. I love that this boat is not crowded at all, feels like a private boat.

The wind is quite cold here on the see, it was a good job to bring some warm clothes with us. The skipper is really friendly, telling everything to us about these islands. This experience is already seems amazing. Sitting on the boat, the sun is shining, the wind is blowing my hair – I already enjoying it. As the boat going ahead to our first destination, we are passing small fields full with birds. Everybody is looking through their binocular and trying to figure out what kind of birds those are.

First destination is the Desert Island – Ilha da Barreta – the most beautiful thing what I have ever seen in my life. We have forty-five minutes to look around – hope it will be enough. We are off the boat now, almost white sand around us. Looks amazing. I am going straight into the sea just to feel it, but it is really cold. There is a road made out of wood to the other side of the island, where you can see the sea. We are getting on this road and start walking. The view is beautiful – all around us just beautiful plants and flowers – I love that it is uninhabited. After a fifteen minutes walk we reached the other side of the island. I cannot find words to describe it. The most peaceful and beautiful thing what I have ever seen. On the shore there are quite a lot shells. If you are willing to take some home, this is the place where you can find some really beautiful one. Wish I could stay here all day just sitting in the sand and watching as the sea is making waves. Unfortunately we have to go back to the boat. Feels like this forty-five minutes is not enough on this island. You can have a sneak peek of it, but to really enjoy it you definitely need more time here.

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Our next destination is Farol Island – Ilha do Farol – which is inhabited and has a big light house. My friend has an obsession with light houses – just one of the crazy things – so she is really excited now. We are straight heading towards to the light house. Both side of the road there are houses, tiny white ones with beautiful vegetation. Not takes long to reach the light house. It is closed so we can only see it from outside. You should have seen my friend now – excitement and big smile on her face. We are going down on the road, which is ending on the shore. People are sunbathing here, although it is not full at all. Another beautiful view. I love watching the sea, do not know why but it gives me a good feeling. We have more time now, as this Island is smaller, so we have decided to just sit here and enjoy a bit of sun. There are some bars here where people can get food and drink if they are feeling it. We just had our breakfast a couple of hours ago – we are not hungry yet. Unfortunately we have to go back again to the boat. This island is nice, the tiny houses, the palm trees, the colourful flowers, the light house and the sea are making this experience memorable.

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Our next destination is Culatra Island – Ilha da Culatra – a fishing village with restaurants to eat in. At the port there are lots of different fishing boats – they are living from this here. We have some sandwiches with us so we are going to eat them , sitting next to the shore. This one is not as beautiful as the other ones. It has different coloured sand and it is full with oysters shells, as there is an oyster farm just ahead of us. We finished our lunch, so we are going to walk around here a bit. Not much to see to be honest, just houses after houses. We do not want to walk far as we have to go to the boat soon. I think this stop is mostly for eating in the restaurants. I do not like fish or any other sea creatures so for me it is a no-no. But if you like them then you should definitely try it. They are selling really fresh and tasty fish – as our skipper said it.

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We are heading back now to the port in Faro. It is going to be a long journey back home, but I do not mind it as I really enjoy sitting on this boat. After fifty minutes on the boat – which has gone really quick – we reached the port. I tipped our captain, as I thought he was funny and nice to let us know a lot about the islands. I think he is not used to this, as he was really surprised when I gave him the money. It is good to see him surprised and happy. He is doing this job all day, taking people to the islands. He deserved it!

It was an amazing and unforgettable experience. Will definitely do this again.

To be continued…