April 2019

Antigua is the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda(population: 100,900), a member of British Commonwealth. We landed at the cruise terminal in St. John’s (population: 22,193), the capital city in northwestern part of the island. Having been to St. John, an island in U.S. Virgin Islands, a few days earlier, it was rather confusing to encounter another St. John name not too far away.

July 2019   [by Bill]

I left Reykjavik on an early morning south coast tour called “Fire and Ice”, a mix of glacier trekking and volcano/lava flow exploration(about $180). There were 6 others on this tour with me, so the tour guide/bus driver was able to be more engaging with each of us, always a good thing.

We visited the Lava Volcano Center, including an excellent interactive exhibit.

We hiked out to, and onto the Solheimajokull glacier. For about 2-hours walking up, around and through some of the crevices . We were geared up with a harness and clamp ons for our hiking boots, as without the clamp ons, you wouldn’t be safe to enter the glacier area.

I watched the waves crash over the basalt rock formations at Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach, although the rain came in from nowhere, as within a few minutes, rain and strong wind gusts making staying on the beach not practical.

I was able to spend time checking out the Seljalandsfoss, which is a very large waterfall, and has the added feature being able to walk behind this waterfall in a cave, so you can see through the falling waterfall, outstanding!

I also got to see the ridiculously beautiful Skogafoss waterfall, which has a 500 set of stairs to the top. I normally walk these type of attractions, but I’ve really been clocking in some huge daily mileage, and I felt my legs needed a break. After 2 amazing waterfalls, I was a bit soggy, but well worth it (just love them waterfalls).

The weather today was crazy, in Reykjavik, 58 degrees, sunny, a few clouds and a breeze. As we drove south, it was overcast, with temperatures in the low to mid 50’s. At the beach, strong wind gusts with heavy rainfall. 15-minutes later, bright sun. I’m told this is Iceland- weather changes can happen very quickly, kinda like micro bursts.

Iceland factoid:

Reykjavik is the most Northern Capital in the world.

May 2019                                           itinerary link                                       continue from Day 4

Our 5th day was also the last day in Porto, and we were determined to get the most out of it. We took a 10 minutes cab ride to the 150 year old Crystal Palace Gardens, an old exhibition center and gardens built to host the International Expo in 1865. I would think of it as the central park of Porto. It was perfect for a leisurely stroll, and the view of Douro River was amazing. Flowers bloomed in multiple colors and attracted butterflies. One can easily spend a couple of hours here.

Next stop: Soares dos Reis National Art Museum(5 euros), named after the Portuguese sculptor António Soares dos Reis. Just a short walk from the Gardens. We enjoyed the impressive collection of Portuguese art.

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Our favorite part of the day: lunch. We walked slowly downhill for about 15-20 minutes & arrived at O Caracas, Porto’s very own lunch special place. There was no obvious sign outside, but we managed to find it. Run by friendly ladies – supposedly all family members – they served delicious two course meals for 6.5 euros. Three choices daily: pork, beef, sea food. Never know how they will cook it, but you can be sure that you will have a delicious lunch. I will go back for sure!

All fueled up, we almost hopped down now-familiar-alleyways to reach the riverside. We HAVE TO do the boat tour, everyone insisted. One hour tour(15 euros) on an open boat was actually quite pleasant despite of the strong sunlight shining down on us. It led us almost all the way out to the western end where Douro met the Atlantic.

Now everyone was in a serious souvenir shopping mode to find the best and the lightest gift to take back home in a 21 inch carry-on. There was no shortage of shops, though. Tracking uphill was no problem when one had a goal. The only problem was the cash shortage: we had trouble finding a bank that provided foreign currency exchange service. Only one of us had an ATM card on hand, and she kept going back to get more cash for everyone. Next time in Porto, we will have to make sure to get money changed at the airport or carry an ATM card.

After a short rest, another cab ride of 15-20 minutes took us to the western seaside district of Porto called Foz. This is where Douro and the Atlantic actually merge: what we saw from a distance earlier on the boat tour was right in front of our eyes here. We got off at Hotel Boa Vista and went up to the roof top bar. We almost felt guilty that we were having the whole roof top to us to have an unobstructed view of the River/Sea merger. We ordered a bottle of wine and some light snacks and toasted to the falling red sun. We were happy just sitting there.

Sunset. Wait. We will catch that better by the ocean side, not from a roof top. We rushed out and walked over to the beach right out the door. Every sunset is different no matter how many time you see it. This one was really special. It looked so close that we could reach out and touch it!

We had a dinner reservation at O Rapido restaurant, near Sao Bento Station, at 8 PM. But it was already after 8, and the traffic was not friendly. With unstable cell connection, it was hard to reach the restaurant. Luckily, they accommodated us when we finally arrived almost an hour late. On a previous visit, this place had great grilled fish. But they only serve that during lunch now, they said. Still, we enjoyed some other forms of fish and meat dishes. Very friendly, reasonably priced(10-15 euros), restaurant. Food is, of course, excellent.

Some of us wanted to see the view from Luis Bridge one more time. As we walked back home from the bridge, we stopped at the Cathedral. It was closed at that hour, but we could see the beautiful facade nicely lit up.

Day 1: Porto

Day 2: Douro Valley

Day 3: Aveiro

Day 4: Guimaraes