Today we set off into the stunning Nun’s Valley, taking the wide bus through the tight turns and narrow roads. Getting off at the Eira do Serrado lookout we had breath-taking views of the entire valley. Twice the height of Cabo Girão, Mum didn’t like it. Nonetheless, it was well worth the short climb up to it.

Popping back down we stopped at the cafe, where they had a variety of local treats. Mum and Dad got chestnut pies, like Pasteís de Nata but chestnut not custard. I got a walnut biscuit which was more like a cake. All were delicious and fuelled us up for the walk down to Curral das Freiras…

Me and Dad accidentally went down someone’s driveway and not the actual path down to Curral das Freiras. Mum called us back and we successfully found the trail. We discovered that the driveway had had much nicer steps! Zigzagging our way down, we saw many geological patterns on the high cliffs surrounding us. We made it to a lookout after a thousand switchbacks. We soon realised that there were still a million to go.

After ages, we made it down to the town, where we hoped to find the famous Restaurante O Lagar Antiguidades. Mum plugged it into Google maps and it said it was a 45 minute walk away. Soon we found out that it lead us through an impassable tunnel. Turning round we trudged back up the hill. Mum navigated us through the town, eventually we went down a path with concerning danger tape lying around.

Clambering over a landslide, we hurried out of there. Descending down a flight of steps we found ourselves on the opposite side of that impassable tunnel, sigh. We were now within 1 km of the restaurant. Looking up, we saw a group of houses and restaurants hanging precariously high up the mountains. Mum informed us that our restaurant was up there. Great.

A million billion steps later we finally arrived to have a well-earned lunch. We ordered a chicken and beef skewer, sides of potato and sweet potato, salad and bread. When it arrived, we didn’t know if we could eat it all. Luckily, they had me. The meat was perfectly seasoned and cooked. The beef was on a laurel stick, so had a lovely herb infusion. The chicken was charred to perfection, the meat just fell of the bone. But that wasn’t all…

Not only was the espetada good, the main reason we went there, but the sides were spectacular. The salad was fresh and probably dug up that morning, the potatoes were so filling we had to remember to eat the meat! The bread was fluffy and also delicious, too many great things!

We left only two sweet potato slices and a piece of bread. We had thought the bus stop right next to us would allow us transportation home, but no, we had to walk all the way back down to town. With a full belly.

Struggling on, we reached the bus stop, where we decided to just get a taxi anyway. It was accepted almost immediately and we had 15 minutes to explore the souvenir shops. We didn’t get anything, but Dad got to try some local liqueurs.

We also popped into a local cafe where Dad had some more liqueur and Mum too. The taxi arrived just as they had finished their drinks. Hopping in, we had a lovely ride back. An exhausting and food-filled day.