Tavira street
On Day 6, we decided we could no longer recycle our clothes; we had to find a laundromat because it was just ridiculously expensive to have the hotel do our laundry. We googled and found one conveniently located near to the old town of Tavira. I had quality time to shop while Steve noodled on the Internet and oversaw the laundry situation. We met up again at about noon to explore the charm of the city and its environs.
Palacio da Galleria Tavira.
Like so many cities in the Algarve, Tavira’s historic layers date back to the Roman era, with a period of Islamic rule starting about 700 AD when the Ummayad Empire conquered Spain and Portugal. The Nucleo Islamica, a part of the Municipal Museum, houses a small but lovely collection of ceramic tiles, domestic utensils and objets des arts that gives a sense of time and place before the Christian era became predominant as evidenced by the multiplicity of churches dedicated to Nossa Senhora.
We took a walk along the salt flats and then headed to Olhao, a different sea side town for sunset and dinner. With clean laundry in the trunk, a very productive day!
