PORTUGAL BUCKET LIST
OBVIOUSLY MOST OF THESE WILL HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL OUR CURRENT SITUATION AND STATE OF EMERGENCY (LOCK DOWN) HAS CEASED BUT IT’S ALWAYS GOOD TO HAVE A DREAM. I HAVE HIGHLIGHTED IN BOLD THE ONES I HAVE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED.
IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER:
Become proficient in the Portuguese language or at least be able to hold a conversation with locals.
Join Portuguese face to face lessons at a local school.
The Dão valley and complete The Caminho do Dão nature pilgrimage trail.
Bee keeping course and become a beekeeper.
Renewable energy source – explore solar power panels.
Renovate the old tiny garden ruin into a chicken coop and build a run so we can get Helen’s happy hens.
Keep Chickens so we can have fresh eggs daily.
Attend a local Portuguese church ceremony.
Bread Museum, Seia.
Arouca Geopark.
Complete weekly 5km jog without having to walk the 2 hills – jog the whole route – this is NEVER gonna happen (ha ha). So I have amended it to: Increase weekly jog to X5 weekly jogs per week, stopping when needed to rest on old ruins and taking in the scenery and looking at Portuguese farmers huge vegetables and walking a couple of steep hills especially when it’s over 30 in heat.
Build a stone BBQ outdoors.
Surfing – Adrian not me, I will watch from afar and admire all the 6 packs and beer bellies!
Nazaré.
Serra da Estrela natural park – hiking up mountains, visit the Torre and Covão dos Conchos.
Peneda-Gerês National Park.
Lisbon city self walking tour.
São Jorge Castle, Lisbon.
Fado Museum, Lisbon.
Beer Museum, Lisbon.
Cocktails in Lisbon with my daughter.
Belem Tower, Lisbon.
Jeronimos Monastery, Lisbon.
National Coaches Museum with the golden coaches, Lisbon.
Ride the cable car at Parque das Nações, Lisbon.
Coimbra city self walking tour.
Porto city self walking tour.
Aveiro (the Venice of Portugal).
Madeira.
Sintra and the famous palaces because I am a princess disguised as a middle aged housewife! also the Moorish Castle
Azores.
Visit a salt water pool.
Cross the boarder into Spain for a day trip/long weekend.
Grow melons from seed – if the slugs don’t get them first!
Grow Sweetcorn (Corn on the cob) from seed.
Foster or adopt a dog.
Transport Milo the bunny safely from UK to Portugal.
Experience a Christmas in Portugal with the children.
Skiing in the Serra da Estrela mountains at Christmas.
Buy and plant a lemon tree in my garden.
Buy and plant a cherry tree in my garden.
Make fig jam with all the figs from our tree (if they don’t all drop off onto the ground and the birds don’t eat them all).
Make other jams, marmalades, preserves and curds. I made orange marmalade, lemon marmalade and lemon curd – bloody delicious!
Cook and sample a traditional Bacalhau (salted cod fish) recipe from home and a Portuguese dessert. This is game on as it is our anniversary soon and we cannot go out to a restaurant so I have purchased all the ingredients needed to make a traditional home cooked Portuguese main meal with balcalhau followed by Arroz Doce (Portuguese rice pudding) which is made with multiple egg yolks. I will use the egg whites to make coconut macaroons if I have the energy. If it turns out a disaster we can always go to the bar – the bar in the corner of our lounge! White wine anyone?
A day trip to local attractions: Piódão and Fraga da Pena (waterfall).
Visit Tomar to include Castle and convent.
Braga and Guimarães.
Loriga river beach.
Poço da Broca river beach & waterfall.
Visit as many of the 200 river beaches that I can.
Spend my daughter’s 18th birthday with her in Portugal.
Quinta do Pôpa, Douro Valley wine tasting & private picnic, Casal de Loivos viewpoint & village of Pinhão.
Figueira da Foz.
Attend a festival and dance with the locals.
Get a part time job once I’ve mastered the basics of the language.
Not to scream at snakes.
Learn to drive here and become a more confident driver so I can venture out on my own.
Fully stock the bar in the lounge
Buy a dehydrator and dehydrate seasonal fruit, veg and petals.
Buy his and her walking boots.
Get back to my target weight of 9 stone 8 lbs.
Buy free weights and add regular short weighted strength workouts to my life.
Visit my new Facebook friends when it is safe.
A visit from my son Josh to show him our new house/life here in Portugal.
Re visit Douro Valley and stay overnight in a converted wine barrel overlooking a vineyard.
Watch a sunset on a beach.
Go wild swimming and try not to drown!
Make our Portuguese Wills with Notary.
The Chapel of Bones (Évora).
Lousã swing over the mountains – swing like I’m a child again!
Visit the Passadiços do Paiva trailhead/walkway in Arouca and hike both ways (16K+)
516 Bridge in Arouca – 2nd longest pedestrian bridge in the world!
Complete the PR2 Lousa schist village trail castle to shrine.
Douro Interactional Park and river cruise.
Ruins of Condeixa.
Parque Natural das Serras de Aire e Candeeiros.
Fatima.
Batalha Monastery.
Quinta panchea wine tasting & picnic in Lamego, Douro Valley also tourist sights of Lamego.
Coimbra stand up paddle boarding.
Rock and river kayaking.
Mira de Aire caves.
Caiscais.
Ericeira – visit some of the best surfing beaches.
Buddha Eden.
Peniche.
Obidos – see the sights and taste the famous cherry liqueur from a chocolate cup.
Azenhas Do Mar.
Eat a Pastéis de Belem pastry from the world famous shop in Lisbon.
Mateus house and gardens.
Visit a Waterpark.
Livaria Lello Bookstore in Porto.
Majestic Cafe in Porto.
Castelo Beach (the one with the Love Island in the middle) I want to kayak to the island.
E Scooters – ride around a city (we did it in Lisbon).
Monsaraz.
Alentejo.
View the bunny urban art in Porto.
Chocolate Museum Porto.
Have a day experience on an alpaca farm.
Spa afternoon at Aquadome in the H2otel Serra da Estrela.
Re-visit the Douro Valley for more wine tasting.
Mafra National Palace.
Monserrate Park and Palace near Sintra.
Historic Village of Sortelha.
Historic Village of Monsanto.
Foz do Douro.
Visit an Escape Room with my hubby and daughter – We visited Brain maze in Coimbra.
Wild swim with my daughter Teanna once she has learnt to swim. I am so proud of her!
Visit Alice in Wonderland Magical Garden exhibit in Porto or Lisbon. We visited the Porto one.
Queluz palace near Sintra.
Sunset SUP experience.
Trip to Berlengas Island.
Buy a house with a swimming pool.
Adopt 2 Donkeys and name them Leroy & Merlin.
Adopt 2 Guinea Pigs and name them Rick & Negan.
2 Comments
HFFC
4 years agoNo Guimarães and Braga in you bucket list? That are 2 very big misses, also the Passadiços do Paiva are a must if you like waking and nature, the entire Minho region is a must as it has the best portuguese food and is the most beautiful region in the whole country
Helen
4 years agoHi,
I have visited Braga and agree it is very beautiful. There are so many amazing places to visit in Portugal unfortunately I can’t add them all to my bucket list, I wish I could. Maybe when hubby retires that will free up time to explore more. We are currently spending most our time renovating our old house. I will research the places you have mentioned, they sound great.
Thanks,
Helen.