a yellow fortress in Funchal Madeira
Europe, Portugal

Things to do in Funchal, Madeira

Funchal, on the Portuguese island of Madeira, is a port city filled with the scent of flowers and fruit, and people bustling here there and everywhere. Although there are plenty of visitors to Madeira who can spend time slowly exploring the place, there are just as many who arrive on cruise ships, with only a… Continue reading Things to do in Funchal, Madeira

the rooftops of porto on a day trip to Porto
Europe, Portugal

A Day Trip to Porto • Docking in Portugal’s Second City

It was quite a surprise to be in Porto, I'll tell you that for free. I was supposed to have left the ship a few days earlier, so when our ship docked at the port of Leixões, I had done absolutely zero research on this wonderful place. I made my way as early as possible… Continue reading A Day Trip to Porto • Docking in Portugal’s Second City

yellow building in Lisbon Portugal
Europe, Portugal

One evening in Cascais (It was pitch dark and I still loved it)

How do you spend only one evening in Cascais? What some people don't realise is that when you're a crew member of a ship you're technically not getting paid to travel the world; you're getting paid to work, and the travel is a bonus. On the day in question that we arrived in Lisbon, sailing… Continue reading One evening in Cascais (It was pitch dark and I still loved it)

Looking at the view from Boca do Inferno
Europe, Portugal

One Day in the Azores

Do you ever have one of those days that you just feel AMAZINGLY LUCKY AND HAPPY ALL DAY LONG? My one day in The Azores Islands in Portugal was one of those days for me- combining a stunning road trip through the island of São Miguel, with delicious food and some downright wonderful company. *This… Continue reading One Day in the Azores

hallway of an abandoned hotel
Europe, Portugal

The Monte Palace: Exploring the Abandoned Hotel in the Azores, Portugal

Exploring an abandoned hotel in The Azores was not something I had planned, or even vaguely expected to be doing that day. Or any day, for that matter.  The Azores, a string of Portuguese islands lying in the Atlantic Ocean about 850 miles West of the mainland, is one of the prettiest places I have… Continue reading The Monte Palace: Exploring the Abandoned Hotel in the Azores, Portugal

the Ionian Sea
Canary Islands, Europe, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, UK

A Rather Late Round-Up of 2017

I'm a bit late to the party here, given that we're almost one month into the new year, but at this particular moment in time I appear to be stuck in a hotel in Hamburg with not a whole lot to do. So what better way to fill the time than a casual reflection on… Continue reading A Rather Late Round-Up of 2017

pastel streets of the Alfama district
Europe, Portugal

What NOT to do in Lisbon • I made these mistakes so you don’t have to

What not to do in Lisbon. (You'll thank me later.) Our ship sailed into Lisbon one midday in April, gliding underneath a red suspension bridge which looked suspiciously similar to the Golden Gate Bridge, and past the Statue of Christ the King (ie, not Christ the Redeemer as they have hanging out in Brazil) overlooking… Continue reading What NOT to do in Lisbon • I made these mistakes so you don’t have to