Portugal: Obidos

We woke up really early and finished packing, we were heading to Obidos. According to google maps, the train station was only a 10 minute walk; but with our crew and all our luggage it took a half hour and we missed our train by just a few minutes. This meant we were stuck without an apartment for three hours until the next train left for Obidos. We made the best of it, it was very early so we went to a cafe in the train station and for the first time had a Portuguese famous pastry called Pasteis de Nata. I cheated on my diet and had a few. They were delish! Stan loved them so much, that he bought another box as we waited for our train to come. This was also a great time for souvenir shopping, and there were a few shops at the train station as well. Stan was happy to sit with the luggage and I was happy to go shopping with the boys. We bought them each a hat. They loved them and still wear them here in Ireland.

After two train rides we ended up in Obidos. It was a charming, medieval city that was built within a large castle wall. There is also a very large castle within the wall, and we were fortunate enough to spend Halloween night inside. It was very fun! It sometimes felt weird to walk within the castle without any supervision. It truly felt at times that we were the only ones there. It was a beautiful castle, and we had the largest room. One time we did run into a worker and he told us that the castle was private and we could not be inside. Stan showed him our key and he apologized and we were able to continue exploring. Afterwards we took a long walk around the castle wall. It was a bit thrilling, I was nervous that someone was going to fall off.

We were high up and there was not railing or anything to stop someone from walking right off the edge. The boys behaved themselves and kept to the inside of the walkway. I relaxed after a while and really enjoyed the walk around the castle wall. It was a beautiful warm evening, and it truly was a magical night.

Here is a panoramic view of the city and the castle wall. It is hard to see but the wall goes completely around the entire city. I know because we walked around the whole thing!

We also took a walk within the city. It was very nice, and we found a delightful, family-friendly place to eat dinner. 

This shows you how high up we were. I am so grateful no one fell off!

This is the castle where we stayed the night. It was a really amazing experience and the highlight of the trip. The boys of course thought it was the coolest thing ever. We didn't have to rush in and out, there were no lines or other tourist, it was like the castle was ours... well just for one night, but it was a very fun night. We found a little convenience store and bought a few bags of candy. That night in the castle we passed out candy and wished the boys a Happy Halloween. They thought it was perfect, and so did I.

We found these murals at the train station. I was very sad to say goodbye. But we needed to start our trek back to Faro where we would take the airplane back to Ireland. Obidos was wonderful, it was such a great way to end the trip.

Faro here we come.