We arrived in Portugal yesterday, severely jet-lagged but otherwise fine. It took over an hour to get our car from EuroCar because our contract was not written correctly – frustrating but not a big deal.

We drove to Quarteira and found our apartment easily, but the parking space was a bit of a maze to figure out, especially on no sleep.

Sleep is caught up, and we are completely content. It’s 65 degrees outside – perfect for a walk on the beach.

The Gyor Book Festival is this weekend, so language barrier or not, of course I wanted to check it out. It is at the National Theatre, so I had the chance to see part of that building although the main stage area and audience seating was closed.

It was interesting to walk around and see all the vendors and there were speakers in some of the rooms – all parts I couldn’t enjoy. But a good inhalation of book puts me in a great mood regardless.

I left and went across the street to the Square Donut shop. I was disappointed that the squares were all pretty heavily iced and embellished. I would have gotten a plain one if there was such a thing. “Plain? I do not know this – plain,” said the young woman behind the counter.

We visited Bishop’s Castle later in the morning. There are a few hundred winding steps to get to the top, the castle’s lookout. It was worth the trip – the four-sided view of the city was gorgeous.

The cellar of Bishop’s Castle is where Bishop Vilmos Apor and others hid for protection from the Soviets during WWII. The bishop got shot protecting those people in the catacombs and he died a martyr. It is unsettling to be down there, with bullet holes still in the ceiling and some of the rooms just as it was.

We had lunch in a pub and walked around for a few hours, and planned the next few days when we will be in the ancient southern Hungarian city of Pecs.

photos: a view from the top of the castle; square donuts – not all that enticing; the start of the book festival

After breakfast in our hotel, we walked into the city, about a half-hour from where we are staying. There’s a bus and tram service close by, but it was a nice morning with temperatures in the sixties so traveling on foot seemed to be the best option.

It was an interesting walk – we passed very old buildings and narrow, pretty streets. We spent some time checking out the “Notre Dame de Clermont,” a replica of the famous cathedral built mainly in the 1300s. It’s black from volcanic ash outside, but inside it’s beautiful and used regularly, it seems.

We continued walking around and checked out some store, and stopped for coffee when a rain shower caught us off guard (without umbrellas). The sun eventually came out and we found a nice restaurant for lunch. We left a few hours later after eating too much delicious food and we started the walk back to our hotel and a comfortable reading spot.

Tomorrow: Lyon

photos- a narrow old city street

below – Notre-Dame in Clermont

from fromage at the farmers market this morning

We left behind the bustling city of Dublin this morning and took a bus to the airport to pick up a rental car. We were surprised to queue up behind at least fifty other people, but 90 minutes later we had our car and drove to Wexford, a river city almost two hours away.

Sitting on the righthand side of the car and driving on the British side of the road were a challenge for sure (not for me, I sat on the left) and making a right turn takes some practice, but all is well and we made it here.

With Hurricane Lorenzo threatening very bad weather tomorrow, I am glad we are in a comfortable quiet place, with a lap pool and full gym that looks pretty deluxe if we are hotel-bound tomorrow. If it turns out to be a decent day after all, we will explore this very old and beautiful city.

photos: top – the tables and chairs are off the hotel restaurant’s back deck as they prepare for Thursday’s storm.

bottom: the noisy, busy nighttime streets of Dublin

The River Slaney in Wexford, Ireland