Vegan by Valerie

Carvoeiro, Portugal

Our last morning in Sevilla began with another stop at the breakfast buffet.  Nothing too exciting, but I was able to find some veggies in the form of tomato slices, pasta salad, and more peach juice.

From Sevilla we drove west heading to our next stop, Portugal.  We knew we would be staying at a resort hotel where we each had our own fully stocked kitchen, so we stopped at a grocery store along the way.  I love going to grocery stores in America, and found this Portuguese grocery store to be fascinating!

I found some food that was vegan….

And some food that was decidedly not vegan.  (Do people really eat canned hot dogs??)

The best part was the produce selection.  I was in heaven perusing the aisles and found many new-to-me fruits and vegetables.

I also loved the covered parking spots and the coin-operated grocery carts so that customers are forced to return their own carts.

Driving to the hotel:

Each “room” at this hotel was really a fully furnished two-story apartment.   

After admiring the beautiful view, we stopped to have lunch.  I was excited to try the new fruit that I had purchased!  I know starfruit (carambola in Portuguese) can be found in America, but I never buy it so I got one at store.    

It had a nice flavor but was too mild and bland for me to buy it again.  Very pretty though!

Next I tried the melano, or “horned melon”.  Once you cut into the horned melon, you have to scoop out the insides and discard the pointy outside.  It tasted similar to cucumber (just a tad sweeter) and had a very jello-like consistency.

Last I cut into the nona, which is the one shown in one of the grocery store pictures above that looks like a small artichoke.  Interestingly, the flesh of the nona tasted like a pear to me (and maybe also a bit coconut-y?) and also had the texture of a very soft, mushy pear.  I really liked it but no one else was a fan.

After lunch we took a walk to the pool. 

After lunch I fell in love with a couple stray cats that were desperate for food and desperate to come home with me to Chicago, but instead of sneaking illegal animals through customs I decided to feed them potato chips instead (for lack of any other food).  The poor things were so skinny and underfed…

Dinner that evening was perhaps the highlight of my entire Spain and Portuguese vacation.  We found a restaurant not far from our hotel that was located right on the oceanside cliffs.

There is nothing like eating a delicious meal and drinking delicious sangria while just a few feet from the ocean!

(Does the kid on the left not look like Rusty from National Lampoon’s European Vacation?? )

I had a ton of bread and olives (naturally), sangria, a delicious warm squash soup, and a tomato salad.

After finishing our meal we were each given a shot of port, which is customary in Portugal.

This will always stand out in my mind as one of my all-time favorite restaurants… what a view!!!

What is your absolute favorite restaurant and why?

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