Pieces of Portugal – Part 16 – Faro

Faro was our last stop in the Algarve region. It is also the capitol of the Algarve region. Once again, Faro is a very old, Medieval city, surrounded by the old Medieval walls. We had yet another tour, which turned out to be another private tour. This time our guide was Flavio. He was great, and again, very knowledgeable, informative and a lot of fun. He took us all around his home town and shared a lot of fun information, about the city of Faro and about is own personal experiences.

Our tour with Flavio actually ended here, but sometimes endings are good places to start. 🙂

We met Flavio in the park and while we were waiting, of course I was busy taking pictures. The Moorish influences are all over.

Faro was originally built by the Ancient Romans as the Roman town of Ossonoba, becoming a crucial Moorish port, and finally falling to Christian forces in 1249. Known for its resilience, the city survived significant sackings by English troops and the devastating 1755 earthquake, eventually becoming the Algarve’s administrative center and a modern tourist hub.

The protected storks get free reign. If they decide to make a nest somewhere, nothing can be done or changed about it. They liked this crane, and built a nest on the bricks. Everything is at a stand still for as long as the storks keep their nest here.

Entering through the gates to the old walled city of Faro.

Storks in art.

These were once fishermen’s cottages. Today they are abandoned and covered in graffiti.

The first Christian King after defeating the Moors in 1249, with the church and monastery behind him.

More azuljelos telling the history.

The story behind this beautiful building was that it was built by a wealthy businessman, but he never got to live in it. He died right after the construction of the house was finished. Today, it is a government building.

Before returning o sapo and heading to the airport to fly into Porto, we had time for a quick little snack at Faro Beach, where we were joined by some friendly sparrows who were begging for some scraps.

The Faro airport, while waiting for our flight to Porto.

This ends our southern tour of the Algarve region of Portugal. I fell in love with the whole Algarve. It is just stunning. It is also a good place for another intermission. Porto is our next destination. Porto is up north.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.