Arriving in Portugal the first thing I noticed was a softer more laid back vibe, compared to Spain. The people are gentle, kind, eager to communicate and a little more forgiving of our lack of local language. This first impression made us realise that our efforts to get to Portugal were well worth it and that we were in for a magical couple of weeks. Little did we know at that point, just how much we would fall in love with this beautiful, colourful, vibrant coastline.

Leaving San Sebastián we briefed the kids that we were in for some really epic travel days and we needed to have patience (parents too) and work as team. Day one, more than 8hrs of train travel with changes, overnight in Zamora Spain. Day two up at 5.30am for a 5 hr bus ride over the boarder into Porto, Portugal for just one night before moving further in to south to Lisbon.

Remembering we had six pieces of luggage, two oversize board bags, that made getting on and off crowded trains with disapproving looks from other passengers and finding space onboard a little hectic. Then not to mention arriving at our destination requiring two ubers and then negotiating/begging them to fit all our crazy luggage in, leaving us all in a hot sweaty mess including our surprised drivers.

So doing this back to back for a few days straight was not ideal. For Derek and I, those few days were tough but we were in complete awe of the kids. While they were travel weary, not once did they complain or whine about the travel. They took it all in their stride and found excitement along the way. We were very proud of them! *no kids or adults were harmed in this process and we now look back at it all in amazement.

I hadn’t done any research on Porto so I was coming in blind, much to the horror of our UBER driver, a passionate local and our first taste of Portuguese friendliness and hospitality. So in the 10 minute ride to our Airbnb I had a full agenda of where to eat, what to do and how to make the most of our less than 24hrs in Porto.

Top tip: Ask your driver for the hottest places to eat, drink and see. From my experience most are helpful and have the great insight!

Stop one, lunch at Cafe Santiago. Famous for Porto’s iconic sandwich “The Francesinha”. This epic sandwich it not for the faint hearted. Almost a skyscraper in height, layered with mortadella, smoked sausage, bacon, a medium rare beef steak, covered in melted cheese, topped off with a fried egg (for a bit more protein), served with a homemade tomato sauce and of course side of fries.

Now this sandwich is something that would go down perfectly on a Sunday morning, sporting a pair of dark sunglasses. We were just after a hearty lunch and thankfully we brought our appetite. The queue for a table builds the anticipation and when the mighty Francesinha is put in front of you, the mind and heart are screaming NOooooooo. After the first mouthful you just give in to the cheesey, salty goodness and pray your arteries keep pumping.

We walked off lunch with a stroll around town.  Porto is a beautiful, colourful city and the architecture style was quite different to anything we had seen before. I also instantly fell in love with the painted tile work you can find on many of the houses and had me mentally designing my next bathroom or kitchen renovation.

Next suggestion from our trusty Uber guy was a visit to the Maria Pia Bridge designed by Gustavo Eiffel (same designer of the Paris Eiffel Tower). Conveniently the @winequaybar (best wine bar in Portugal 2016) overlooks the bridge and provides the perfect setting for a glass of local wine and cheese as the sun sets. They also thoughtfully provide water pistols to ward off the pesky giant seagulls that stalk your cheese. The kids thought this was a hoot!

Like so many cities we visited we would of liked more time in Porto but we pushed on further south, a comparatively short 4hr train ride into Lisbon. We stayed for 4 days at Praia de Carcavelos. One of the longest stretch of beach on the Atlantic Ocean coastline and the coldest water of our entire trip at about 15 degrees. This was the perfect base for day trips to Lisbon and Sintra and easy access for refreshing ocean swims in the afternoon.

Sintra, a lavish hillside town where the noble and elite built their colourful and extravagant villas, places and decorative gardens. Pearl and I loved the whimsical and flamboyant Pena Palace, while fairly understated on the inside the outside is flamboyant in tile detail, hand carving and vivid colour. It reminded us of something from a fairy tail but dripping with culture and authenticity.

Derek and Miles had their own childlike adventure pretending to be knights and battling it out on the ancient walls of The Castelo dos Mouros. The Castle built over 1000 years ago is perched high above Sintra and offers spectacular views across the Atlantic ocean and Sintra region. A visit to this colourful and dramatic town is a must and offers something so different from any other historic European town.

We only had one day to explore Lisbon city, a friend of Derek’s had done a day tour via a tuk tuk. We though this would be a great option for us as we were limited with our time and meant we could cover more ground without the worry of burning out little legs in the heat.

At 35 degrees it turned out to be ideal, our guide had limited English (no judgment, we have zero Portuguese) but we enjoyed being driven around the city in the open tuk tuk, taking in the various monuments, churches and quaint back streets. A definite highlight was when he took is to the oldest bakery in Lisbon Pastèis de Belèm. They have been making their famous tarts since 1837. To say they have perfected the art is an understatement. The tart is served hot from the oven and sprinkled with cinnamon and icing sugar. Even with our drivers limited English he managed to tell us that for him one is never enough. Indeed it was not and from that day on they became a staple in our Portuguese diet.

Next we headed south to the Algarve coast, we were relaxed and found our groove moving about, but little did we know that the real magic was just about to begin.

Kite surfing is a fickle sport dependant on the wind. We had our fingers crossed that the wind gods would be kind to us for the next five days and the wind was predicted to be perfect every afternoon we were staying in Lagos.

On the first afternoon we missed the wind after an adventurous walk to the kite lagoon (much to Derek’s disappointment) but we scoped out the best spot, on the other side accessed only by a dirt road. This meant we need to invest in the luxury of hire car as taxis did not want to drive the road.

Alvor lagoon was stunning. Kite spots tend not to be too beautiful and often a little unpleasant for the non kiters, unless sitting on a beach in the howling wind with sand whipping you in the face is your thing. However Alvor was well protected at the shore by a low sand hill, the water was crystal blue and the sand beautifully white, every day the lagoon transformed from a deep choppy mess at high tide to a beautiful network of shallow protected glassy water in between long stretching sandbars and sand islands at the low.

As if we could get any happier with our situation, on that first day we met three other couples. All who were planning on hitting the kite spot for the next 4 days, with their own fingers crossed the wind would come out to play.

The blend of culture and adventures was intoxicating and we instantly bonded sharing our stories. Madeline 1 an Aussie dancer pursuing her dream OS and met her love Max a Dutch engineer and former kite instructor in Holland. Maddy 2 an Aussie dance who met her love Finn, also a dancer in Germany. Then there was Sarah and Max, french speaking pro windsurfers sailing around the world for two years with their delightfully gorgeous 6 month baby, Nile.

The pairing of matching names was a good omen and the wind delivered every day like clockwork, we met our new friends on the beach every afternoon for hours of blissful fun. If we weren’t kiting, we were, swimming, and chatting. The kids love getting to know the crew playing acrobats and swapping dance moves. Sarah and Max were in heaven as they had a babysitter on hand, giving them arms free to kite while their super placid babe was passed from one willing cuddle to the next.

As the sun and wind started to drop (close to 8pm) no one really wanted to leave and break the magic. It soon became habit that we would bring a picnic dinner and a bottle of vinho. We would sit on the beach as the kites dried, filling our hungry bellies with simple food, sandwiches or local fruit (the honeydew was simply to delicious), but enjoying the serenity and conversation. It was so perfect and all 11 relished in those magic days.

When we weren’t being kite hippies we spent the mornings, relaxing in our townhouse or exploring stunning beaches of the Algarve. The limestone cliffs make for some of the most spectacular cave beaches in the world and the most beautiful aqua blue water I have ever seen.

We ate out only the once at Atlântida, a recommendation from our new friends with beautiful fresh seafood. Atlântida set right on the beach meant that swims between ordering and eating was a viable option. We ordered fresh clams in garlic and butter, prawns in coriander and lemons, local cheese and of course bread. It was simple and delicious and we had to fight the kids not to eat more than us.

Were we so thankful we made the effort to include Portugal. Derek and I don’t say we would return to a place very often, there are so many place to go, but Portugal, one day we see ourselves in a camper van traveling down the coast from top to bottom and just taking it all in once again. We love every minute of Portugal and were so thankful for our time there. It could of been luck with the win, the beautiful people we met or it perhaps it was just a little bit of magic.