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Good Morning! Towards the end of the day yesterday we grew increasingly disappointed with the Algarve....we had pictured miles and miles of empty, golden sandy beaches, but as we left Tavira and approached Faro and beyond the beaches were firstly obliterated by large apartment buildings and then miles and miles of golf resorts.....great for the golf lovers but not for us travellers who want to see the real Portugal! So we have decided to travel inland a little today to a town called Loule.[/caption][caption id="attachment_2635" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
What a gem of a town Loule is....we both absolutely love it. It is full of character, has a real community feel about it, arty, colourful and a place you feel instantly at home! This is one of the many hand painted, tiled street signs.[/caption][caption id="attachment_2636" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
One of the many old gates to the town.[/caption][caption id="attachment_2637" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
Loule has a fantastic town walking guide where one follows footprints on the pathway or on signposts, and at each place of interest is a board with a description of the building you are looking at and a gorgeous drawing of the structure....this one is of the town gate....[/caption][caption id="attachment_2638" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
The church....[/caption][caption id="attachment_2640" align="aligncenter" width="427"]
One of the many gorgeous windy streets....we found an amazing craft shop here that sold items that have been handmade in Portugal....we spent a long time in here, it was incredibly inspiring.[/caption]
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The theatre[/caption][caption id="attachment_2643" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
The market hall[/caption][caption id="attachment_2644" align="aligncenter" width="427"]
Just because it's lovely!!![/caption][caption id="attachment_2645" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
A little further into the hills beyond Loule is a tiny village called Alte. We were informed, by some very helpful ladies at the tourist information in Loule, that at this village there is a place called Fonte Grande where you are allowed to swim....in beautiful, clear mountain water...so, as we are always looking for somewhere to have a good clean up, we decided to go there and give it a go....[/caption][caption id="attachment_2646" align="aligncenter" width="427"]
A fountain at Alte[/caption][caption id="attachment_2647" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
...innovative seating in a shady spot...[/caption][caption id="attachment_2648" align="aligncenter" width="427"]
...this is the Grande Fonte....there is barely an inch of water in it and there is a big sign saying 'No swimming'!....it is beautiful even though! Just so you know, we found a public swimming baths in Loule to go and have a shower....we paid for a swim, but, once inside I realised that all the women were wearing swimming costumes and I only had my bikini...I asked a young girl if it was ok and her reply was..."it's a bit small...!!!" ,so I decided that I had better just shower and move on. I have to say...it was worth every cent of the two euros!!! BT had previously been suggesting that we shower at one of the taps, by the roadside, outside a house.......hmmmmm!!!![/caption][caption id="attachment_2649" align="aligncenter" width="640"]
Beautiful terracotta tiles on the roof of a tiny town house in Alte.[/caption]
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