Lisbon

We (Paul and Alex) left for a few days and caught the train to Lisbon with Chris, a friend who lived on his boat in Povoa. We went to stay with Alex's friend Andre who lives in Lisbon. After going to the wrong station we were eventually picked up by Andre who drove us back to his flat. He drove really fast, braking at the last moment, cutting other people up and hooting his horn. A white knuckle ride especially as there were no rear seatbelts for Paul (that's how they drive in Lisbon!). Andre worked from 3pm to 7pm so we spent lots of time watching Planet Earth on DVD. When he was around he showed us the sights and we had cheap Potruguese meals. Libon is just a big city with lots of bridges and a big statue of Jesus. He took us to a gig by Massive Attack, which was an experience though the band didn't really put their hearts in it.

Peniche

We (Helen and William) sailed to Peniche a small fishing town about 125 miles from Povoa de Varzim. There was a big swell and with the wind right behind us the boat rolled a lot all the way, which did not go down well with Helen's stomach. William made friends with a local man in a bar in Peniche who provided us with the local delicacy of grilled sardines, potatoes and salad, they were delicious.

Cascais

Next day we sailed to Cascais about 35 miles south and the nearest marina to Lisbon with berths available for visitors, The sea state was very different, with very little swell and the wind almost on the beam hence the boat sailed beautifully. We picked up Paul and Alex on the refuelling pontoon and then anchored in the bay. That night we had some spectacular lightening and it became very windy. William was worried about the anchor but it held OK. Next day we went ashore in the dingy and walked round the town, there was a citadel and a very nice park. We caused chaos at the supermarket checkout when Alex's rucksack set the alarm off. The security guard arrived and asked Alex to open his bag. Out came the contents all over the checkout, including Alex trademark, a draw string bag which he then had to empty and guess what it contained, yet another draw string bag (like Russian dolls). Plus his tobacco went all over and the checkout lady had to sweep up after us. As if that wasn't enough, I dropped my handbag and the contents went all over the floor.

Sines

After two nights at anchor in Cascais we sailed to Sines a small town 50 miles south and went into the marina which was nearly full. Here we experienced some technical difficulties with the boat, the galley sink pump broke but William managed to fix it with araldite and the plug on the shore power cable melted at a very inconvenient moment, just when I was drying my hair- typical! Luckily there is a chandlery in the marina which sold plugs. We met up with a British couple who have been exploring Spain and Portugal for 3 years. They kindly gave us an ensign to replace the one we lost to pirate dolphins.