after, i returned to lisbon.
these are rita's pics the hitchiking to aljezur to meet iris iris and ourselves in arrifana beach some silly pics (yes, we're all this short) and a final adventure crossing a river, followed by a bee sting, more hitchiking, vila do bispo, and sleeping in a backyard while it rained.
after, i returned to lisbon.
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my journey started in zambujeira do mar. i joined two friends who were doing it since almograve there. it was something like this, and we tried to be as close to the ocean as possible, though sometimes we had to go inland to find a good track. the paths were all unmarked, the weather perfect, the landscape: the most beautiful i've seen in portugal. i was quite happy with myself as it was not as hard as i was imagining, or i'm not as bad as i always imagine. these pictures are from an old camera luis found at a house, i was trying it so the result was not as good as i expected. but further on i'll have more "waaaw" pics. this was my starting point, in zambujeira do mar. rita and rosa the beaches in this area are quite hard to reach and were alway desert at the time. they all look the same because i was always in awe everytime i saw a cliff! once we asked a nice man for directions and he gave us this huge flower! having a rest in praia da amália and this was in aljezur castle. the journey didn't end here, but the film did.
we hitchiked a few times and i was really excited with it as i never tried it before. i must dedicate the first attempt to radu! i hope i can show you more pictures soon a year ago i was leaving to slovakia. if you remember, my plane went on without enough oxygen for everyone so we had to make an emergency landing. today i'm leaving for another journey. i hope a bit more calmer and relaxing. with rita and rosa we will be walking down portugal by the coast starting in zambujeira do mar then odeceixe after, arrifana and aljezur and then carrapateira. i really don't know where will i end, so, i will decide there.
see ya! spring has arrived here a bit wet, but yesterday the sky was quite clean so me and luís went for a 10 km walk. i stopped calling the things i usually did "hikings" after i hiked in Dumbier. we were in sintra and made the "route of the capuchos". it was quite steep but that's just me maybe. i really needed to feel my body physically exhausted, i haven't moved much.
well, it was nice. so, after we arrived from budapest, we slept in bratislava and off we went do popradské pleso in the high tatras! (the revenge) luís was always sleeping and missed my favourite journey in slovakia. the train that goes bratislava-trnava-trencin-zilina-liptovzky mikulas-poprad-kosice is beau-u-u-u-tiful! from zilina on, it keeps getting better and better, with lakes, mountains, green fields, and of course, the tatras! and so we arrived at the popradské pleso train stop. from there on we should walk to the place where we would slept, right next to the lake. on the way, we passed by a symbolic cemetery which honours the victims of the tatras. and so we arrived, isn't it deaaaaamy? this country is so full of natural beauty! - natural beauty makes me corny. aaaahhhhhh let's ruin a landscape picture! after we arrived, luís suggested we walked up that mountain. i was thinking it was too steep for my unprepared body. and so, on the next day, we did. it was quite easy and in an hour and fifteen we were on top. cutchi cutchi II to see this, it was totally worth the visit! after we went down to catch the train in strbské pleso. it was a bigger lake but it had so many people and buildings around! oh tatras, me loves you. and so we returned once again, to bratislava.
faced with the unbearable heat in bratislava - the first good spring day in quite long time, with 23º - we've decided to spend the weekend where it rains. a lot. rms organized a teambuilding weekend in the low tatras! so we left bratislava and very calmly went in direction to dumbier, the destination of rms' teambuilding weekend! dumbier is the highest mountain of the low tatras, with 2043m high. some last maintenance check was needed before the big journey, and off we went! slovakia is so beatiful and green, inny? and with sun it's just perfect! before, we stopped at j.'s house near zvolen. it's the cutest ever. and there we met his horses pegasus and dante! o. d. after a while, we moved through banská bystrica and stopped the car i don't know where (help!). with our backpacks ready, we set off to dumbier! this is e., we hadn't started and she was already waiting, slovensko's own speedy gonzalez of the mountains! the view from the beggining of the hike. and after lightnings and thunders we had the chance to experience a storm as a storm should be. and so this is what we could see from above: mist, rain, and the day getting darker. however, after that we arrived at a wonderful night at chata m. r. stefánika (1740m). i believe it's quite common, except in portugal ans spain, to have little cottages, inhabited and well kept, along the hiking trails. nothing felt better than dry clothes, a fireplace and tea with honey! this was my dinner, i believe it is called parené buchty. i guess i dined a desert, what else could i ask for? these are dumplings filled with jam, coca powder and butter. it had pineapple as well, i believe that just to give some "healthiness" look to an extra extra fat dish! so, after a good night, this is what we saw from our room window: the sky had cleared and our hike to the top of dumblier would surely be worth it! needless to say: it really was. i saw some of the most beautiful landscapes i have ever seen. v. (upper picture by andrej) yes, it's a marmot!!! ah ah ah, the picture is from andrej as well, we've seen two marmots and rupicapra tatrica, well, goats that are originally from the tatra mountains. yey! back to the cottage, this was the view while i ate the best chips with ketchup. after some rest...it was time to go down. the worst really. no no, the worst was the way to the dead bat's cave! that final way up was deadly ehehe, but definetly worth it. i stopped taking pictures, but hopefully they will show up soon. the cave is huge, and with guided tours. please take a look! all in all, it was a wonderfull journey. pity for the bad weather (it started raining after we left the cave as well), but it fuelled me to get to know more of slovakia's mountains.
it showed me as well that they really appreciate and love their mountains. people hike for real. today i was asked "are you an extreme, or at least a good hiker?". compared to them, definitely not, i must pratice! |
i don't understandnerozumiem ti means "i don't understand you" in slovak. a tradition, let's say. after not understanding anything in granada, now i don't understand anything in bratislava. Archives
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