Portugal

Cultural Questions at the Casa Amarela Guesthouse I want to go to Germany, because I do not understand the German people.I believe that it is safe to say that there is such a phenomenon know as cultural tendencies; that various people from different cultures and corners of the globe evince shades of character that have [...]

The Portuguese, and the Spanish for that matter, have found a key to relieving stress, building solid family ties, and ensuring that they get enough sleep. This key is the siesta. That is right, everything in Portugal shuts down between the hours of noon and three, as everybody returns home to eat, sleep, and spend [...]

Thanksgiving on the Road I am an American. I celebrate Thanksgiving; it has been culturally breed into me. A harvest festival, a hark back to the days when men listened to the gentile hums of nature; the days when the Farmer’s Almanac was an oracle to believe in- I cannot think of anything worth celebrating [...]

Vila Nova de Milfontes, Portugal“These are the enjoyments which set riches at scorn, and make even a poor man independent.”-Buckthorn, Tales of a Traveller, Washington IrvingI hopped off of my bicycle and landed my feet upon the good earth at Vila Nova de Milfontes, Portugal. I have been here for the past two and a [...]

On Climbing a Cliff I went for a walk with Mira down to the sea near Milfontes, Portugal. Only my body moved towards the rolling waves, as my mind was still tangled in a web of thoughts about computers, writing, and irate university professors. When I looked up from my confusion to find Mira tenderly, [...]

Ryan Air, or The Penny Flight that Wasn’t“I found a penny flight from Porto to Marseilles” Mira exclaimed.Our bike journey needs to be fast forwarded a little bit. I want to visit my dear friends in the south of France and Ubertramp and the Pogues in England. Mira wants to get back to Latin America [...]

When Two Travelers Fall in LoveIt is hard. Sometimes it seems like a two headed snake trying to pull itself apart.Wade and Mira.We both are running our own roads together, though in a mutual state of detour. But a middle line is found when these two roads are combined, and, although there are rough patches [...]

From Setubal to Vila Nova de Milfontes by BicycleVila Nova de Milfontes, PortugalNovember 7, 2007Wade from www.VagabondJourney.comSetubal was a nice stopover, but it was time to move on. So we packed up our steeds (bikes) to their fullest extent, filled our yellow plastic milk crate gear basket with our rucksacks, and headed south- South to [...]

The Joys of Traveling by BicycleVila Nova de Milfontes, PortugalNovember 1, 2007Wade from: http://www.vagabondjourney.com/To take trains and busses is to merely travel from point A to point B; to travel the same route by bicycle is to feel it every rock, hill, breeze, tribulation and joy of the entire way. Traveling by bicycle is the [...]