New Friends, Lagos Portugal

One of the things I associate Lagos with is a good barbeque! Nothing better than a few new friends sitting around a Barbie with a drink and discussing the places they have been to and have yet to visit.

The Lagos Youth Hostel has been around for over a decade now and has seen thousands of travellers pass through its doors. The spacious central courtyard and adjoining kitchen make for easy social interaction. Couple that with the eagerness of the manager Pedro and the staff to please make it a refreshing stop on the traveller's itinerary.

With over sixty beds in dorm rooms plus a half dozen doubles the hostel is suited to all types of travellers. Age differences seem less of an issue as everyone chats at the free breakfast in the morning and then at the congregation of bodies in the modest kitchen in the evening. It is the bond of travel that unites people here and that is ageless.

The weather had been a bit mixed and with a coolness in the evening a barbeque seemed the best way to round off the Easter weekend. A varied selection of cooking skills ensured much laughter and questioning of the "doneness" of some of the larger pieces. Fortunately we had Ros on hand, a chef herself, to make sure no one was going to have problems the next day. That did not apply the to crazy mixed gang of Aussies, and the stray Colombian who had to get up at 5 am to catch their bus to Seville and insisted on one last trip to the bars before catching a few meagre hours sleep.

I have had many a barbeque and shared meal in places all over the world and it seems that they all share a common thread. It is the most natural of instincts in Humans to gather together for meals to tell stories and socialise. In our modern lives with the pressures of work we do this less and less, losing an important part of our social structure in the process.

Few people in cities and even small towns and villages know their neighbours, let alone invite them over for a meal and how often do we meet total strangers? The few times we do talk to total strangers is when we go on holiday or suffer a minor inconvenience such as the weather and we may engage in a short conversation with the person next to us on the train or in the bus queue.

Knowing how others feel about things and the interaction that takes place when we have these conversations is uplifting, with a sense of shared emotions. Travellers know this. We enthuse about the things we have seen and done and are driven to new endeavours by the tales of others.

I wouldn't necessarily say it would be a good thing to stop a stranger in the street and invite them back for dinner, although there are obvious exceptions! Nonetheless the next time you have the opportunity to talk to your neighbour or co worker or fellow traveller on the regular train to work strike up that conversation and ask the unusual or unasked question. You may get a short response but you will have opened the door.

We need to talk more and understand each other in deeper ways than we do at present. If we rely on the newspapers and politicians to tell us what our prejudices should be we are doomed. By talking to others we strip away the pre-conceived ideas of race and culture and delve straight into the individual themselves.

So pack your bags and get on the road. To quote Mark Twain "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness."

Peter J Smith Lagos, Portugal April 2009

Dahab Egypt, scuba diving in the red sea

Walk like an Egyptian, not likely! More like a Camel after a few beers! This is what the heat can do to you in midsummer in Egypt. Fortunately I was here in the late winter and early spring. A great time to visit with warm days and not so chilly nights

The Sinai is a huge expanse of land with most of the towns scattered around its craggy coastline. My story today is about Dahab, a gem of a village on the east coast and a million miles from the bustle of Cairo.

Dahab has grown over the years from a small bedouin outpost to a mature mix of hippies, backpackers, long term expats and day trippers from Sharm and the like.

With the completion of the boardwalk, a very good one I might add, it lends itself to idle stolling and lazy cafe life watching the never ending show.

There are restaurants a plenty for all budgets, mostly very clean and extremely cheap by western standards. You need to bring you own beer to most of them however, there is no charge for this and plenty of outlets to get cold Stella beer for the evening.

laying your head on a pillow is simplicity with a number of cheap camps or small chalets near the beach and, depending upon the time of year, very affordable and inexpensive.

But the thing that brings most people to Dahab must be the diving and snorkelling at the local reefs. There are many fantastic dive sites in the area, some for more advanced divers but plenty for beginners. The profusion of dive centres is amazing but understandable given the year round diving conditions here in Dahab.

Two local sites that stand out are the world famous Blue Hole and the accessible Lighthouse reef. Many more are just a short jeep ride away and have so many fish it will take your breath away.

Getting to Dahab is easy, a flight in to Sharm el Sheikh airport and a taxi ride of about 45 mins to 1 hour depending upon the Racing Skills of your driver! A taxi should cost around EYP 150-200 depending upon your bargaining skills at the airport. It may be wiser to get your hotel or camp in Dahab to send one for you, a lot less stressful after a long flight.

All in all Dahab is a great place to dive and relax in the Red Sea. The local people are friendly and not pushy at all, a welcome relief for Nile Valley tourists!

Most traders will offer you to come to their store and eat or buy, but they know its such a small place you will be back so they really don't hustle much at all.

I have several recommendations, for Scuba Diving try Red Sea Relax, they have a good centrally located operation. www.red-sea-relax.com If you send them an e mail info@red-sea-relax.com and mention my site they will offer you a special rate! For a great feed you can try Friends Restaurant by the bridge, for a beer and the footy it has to be the Furry Cup at the Blue Beach Resort.

A handy place to stay and one with Dorm options as well as hotel style rooms is the Hotel Neptune, attached to the Red Sea Relax dive centre you can make reservations Book a room in Dahab. I have found this place to be very central, very clean and with a great staff that go out of their way to help you get the most out of your trip.

No matter where you stay should you visit Dahab or with whom you dive I hope you have as great a time as I have had and pass on this wonderful location to other travellers

Have a great one,

Peter J Smith April 2009

Budget airlines, are they worth the hassle

You see the advert on the Internet or in a Sunday newspaper; the flight is next to nothing and is just where you would like to go, but what about the small print?

Extras such as baggage, a necessity I have always thought, check in desks, free toilets on board, charges for emergency oxygen when the masks drop from the ceiling! Ok I am being a little facetious here, but more and more budget airlines are competing on the sticker price. The extra charges vary depending upon the airline you wish to travel with and that can end up making the total bill a lot different than when you started and sometimes comparable with a regular scheduled airline.

So how do you sort through the chaos of charges, fear of overweight luggage at the airport and the excessive charges that can be brought to bear?

You need to ask yourself a few questions before it is possible to make a well judged decision on the airline you wish to fly with.

• Are you travelling alone?




If you are a couple or a family, in order to sit together you may have to either check in early to get to the front of the queue or pay for speedy boarding. A singleton doesn't really care so that will be free!




• Do you have access to a computer?




Many airlines are charging for airport check in and you will need to print out a boarding pass and check in online to avoid these charges.




• Are you carrying bags or sports equipment?




Some carriers, like EasyJet for example, allow one carry on item that is not weight restricted provided you can carry it and it is not dangerous. Others still have a paltry 5kg limit. Nearly all charge for hold bags and some have a fixed fee for sports equipment or musical instruments. I have been able to take my guitar on board EasyJet for free but had to place it in the hold on Ryan Air for 24 Euros at the airport!




• Do you want to eat on board?




Meals are invariably paid for and vary in quality although I can recommend the ham and cheese Panini on Ryan Air! Rumours abound about airlines charging passengers for bringing their own snacks although I think that will be a little harsh especially for diet challenged passengers.




• What if the flight is delayed or even cancelled?




Ok, here is the thing. Budget airlines are just that, they don't often have the interline agreements that allow them to reroute passengers to another airline or destination. They have a lot of aircraft admittedly but they are all tightly scheduled and delays can frequently cascade through the system.





It is possible therefore that during busy periods or inclement weather conditions that you and your party may get bumped of delayed. Have insurance and plenty of patience. If you are going to be travelling with a family or small children take that fact into consideration when choosing the airline. A regular airline will usually put you up at a hotel and cover immediate meal expenses if they cannot re route you.





If you have to be at work, need to catch a connection, have small children or limited financial means think long and hard about the airline you choose. The extra you pay for with a regular scheduled airline may actually be worth it and give you more peace of mind during that holiday you so deserve.





The flip side of course is that if you don't mind travelling early in the morning, have no bulky bags, can check in online and are prepared to rough it if there is a hiccup on the flight you can travel all over for next to nothing with a bit of forward planning.

So decide what is important to you and your travel partners and make the choice accordingly, happy travelling!

Peter J Smith April 2009

England, my England

Take one Englishman and an American, shake slightly in an old car, add a dash of bitter and take to the English countryside for a spring weekend.

A whistle stop tour of some great sights in the Home Counties was on the cards; with only a few days available it was a race against time to get as many in before my guest went back to the USA.

Brian had arrived a little worse for wear from his two weeks in Europe. I could see that look of trepidation as we met at Reading station. He was wary of what I had planned. He had reason to, I suspect, as our previous trips had been alcohol fuelled adventures but he needn't have worried as I had the car and was restricted by the licensing laws of England!

We set off towards the beautiful Cotswolds nestled in the heart of England. The area gets a lot of tourists in the summer but we were hoping that before Easter it would be a lot easier to get around and avoid the crowds.

Our first stop was Chipping Camden a traditional market town that has preserved its wonderful golden hued looks for hundreds of years. With thatched houses by the dozen and a restored market hall you could be forgiven in thinking that nothing had changed here for centuries.

The next day it was an early start getting as many good photos as possible before too many tourists turned up to spoil the view.

We moved on to Stow in the Wold and down to Bourton on the water with its peaceful brooks and tidy lanes. The calmness of the small villages was heaven compared to the last visit in summer with bustling crowds and the feeling of one big theme park. I do wonder how the locals get along with this.

We skipped smartly out of the Cotswolds and drove on the old Roman city of Cirencester for a short stop before powering on to Stonehenge. The itinerary was driven by Brian as this was a must see. Stonehenge is now all fenced in and visitors get the audio handset explaining the meaning of the curious stone pillars. As if they knew!

Leaving the ancient site it was a bit of a drive to Dorset through a few back lanes in time to catch the afternoon sun in Kimmeridge bay. You have to pay to get to the bay itself as it is on private land but it is well worth the visit. I have stayed here a few times, once in the White House that sits perched up on the cliffs overlooking the bay.

The village of Kimmeridge is quaint with a revitalised and popular tea shop but it is the bay that most people come to visit. A scuba divers haven small boats and shore divers dot the bay; some in training, some for pleasure and others in search of the supermarket below seeking out scallops and other great finds hidden in the rocks on the sea bed.

We relaxed on the Cliffside and enjoyed the afternoon sun lazily watching the divers and sailors do their thing in the spring sunshine. A bottle of wine and I would not have left. But with no wine and an agenda to follow it was off to Corfe Castle and Studland bay.

Corfe was its usual pretty self but with the sun getting lower in the sky it was given a short visit before heading over the ridge through to Studland bay with its golden beaches and Riviera feel. No crowds on the beach but we still had to wait almost an hour to cross on the chain link ferry to Sandbanks to continue our journey.

Bournemouth was unappealing and lifeless, as the fog drifted in from the channel we motored on along the coast in search of a hotel for the night and the most authentic seaside town we could track down. We had luck and soon pulled into the popular and quite homely Lymington with its busy marina and quaint cobblestoned streets. We haggled for our hotel room in good credit crunch mode and slunk off to the Kings Head pub for some well deserved beer and excellent food.

The last day dawned and we set off for the New Forest to take in Beaulieu and Buckler's hard. The former a stately home with the added attraction, amongst many, of a world class car collection and the latter a remnant of a centuries old shipbuilding community providing scores of battleships in the past including Nelson's Flagship.

With horses, deer and cattle roaming freely it was clear that we drivers were only visitors in the forest. Horses ambled along the roads taking their time and gazing coldly at us as we passed slowly by once they had let us know who the boss was.

Passing out of the new forest we made our way to Winchester for a short stop to admire the Cathedral and gardens taking centre stage in the city. Office workers and tourists alike were taking full advantage of the warm lunchtime to lie on the grass and pretend summer was here at last. In England you grab it when you can.

The trip was drawing to a close but I couldn't finish it without a few local beers in the surrey village of Shere at the white horse and a final farewell at the Ship Inn in Ripley.

We made it back safe and sound, Brian's head spinning from the whirlwind trip and the local beers, finishing the night off in the Old Vicarage in Ripley with a few friends and parting company for new adventures.

Peter J Smith April 2009

Lagos, Portugal a perfect spring break

Lagos is like a magnet for me, I try to get here at least once a year. In springtime the air is fresh, the sun is warm and there are few tourists to contend with. Don't go in the water though! It is freezing cold most of the year and a dip in ocean in April will certainly give you a jolt.

This year I decided to cheat a little and took the Brittany Ferries Pont-Aven from Portsmouth to Santander in Spain to ease the work load on both myself and the faithful truck I was driving down in. This was a great idea as it saved over 900 miles of driving through France and worked out cheaper.

From Santander the most straightforward route is to pass by Valladolid and Salamanca then on into Portugal taking the wide and swift motorway down to the Algarve. The only tolls to pay on this route work are in Portugal. If you wanted to avoid these altogether it is possible to travel via Seville in Spain.

The whole journey took about two days and with fine weather all the way it was a very pleasant drive. In winter this route would get some snow but by April all the routes are clear and the traffic is light.

Arrival in Lagos is always exciting, after the long drive you finally see the ocean and the golden beaches along the coast. The town itself has expanded dramatically over the last ten years, but that has been outward. The centre has retained its cobbled streets and narrow roads with plenty of scope for exploring.

The best beaches, for me, are the glorious coves cut into the coastline that seems to be carved into weird shapes with outcrops of isolated pillars and hidden caves. Small boats vie for trade along the Avenida in town coaxing tourists into grotto tours and more extravagant coastal ventures.

The coastline is accessible for miles in each direction and I have spent many a day walking the cliffs from Lagos to Burgau, a dozen or so kilometres to the west. Some visitors make the coastal walks the main part of their vacation and with the outstanding natural beauty who can blame them.

Apart from the natural aspects of the Algarve the draw of Lagos is the laid back lifestyle that it engenders. Backpackers from all over the world make the journey here and some coming for a few days have ended up staying for the season or even for life!

There are plenty of restaurants in town, some serving excellent fish and seafood dishes but my favourite is a small local hangout called……oh that would be giving the game away wouldn't it? You will just have to ask me!

Characteristic narrow bars dot the streets around the town and come alive after dark when the families have gone home and the fun seeking travellers are set for a night of revelry. The best of these bars range from the mellow but fun Old Tavern run by Michael and Marilyn to the mad and slightly bad Joes Garage with a reputation for bar dancing and wild parties. In Lagos you can choose your venue but remember the way home!

Peter J Smith April 2009