Amarante, Portugal

Mr. Traveling Honeymooner was unable to join us on this leg of the trip, unfortunately, because he had to return home to go back to work. Boring eh?! We forgive him though because by the time we made it to Portugal, we had already been traveling Europe for about three weeks, with my family. Anyhow, I stayed behind with a few family members and we toured part of the Douro Valley and Amarante during our stay. Everywhere we visited was absolutely gorgeous and boy did we have a blast! I think we ate and drank more in the last four days of our trip than the rest of the trip combined! By the way, eating paleo ad gluten free in Portugal is as easy as can be, so I got to eat my little heart out.  If you are interested in our time in Porto and the Douro Valley, stay tuned…more post to come!

We had the pleasure of visiting this little town on our way back to Porto from the Douro Valley and loved every minute of it. Amarante is a small village with a population of about 12,000 people and is located in the northern Portuguese district of Porto, right on the Tamega River. It is a quint town that has a cozy and creative feel to it. When we arrived, we immediately felt a sense of calmness. We had to stop for a few minutes and just take in the views. There were not many people wandering the streets but we felt welcome and at ease. Even though the town center is small, they had a city center with restaurants, shops and a market. My favorite shop was an art supply store that was located along the main road. The store was small but had everything one would need to paint a beautiful piece of art or draw a pretty picture. The thought that kept running through my head as I walked the street was, ” I want to stay here for a week and just paint what I am experiencing.”

 

We visited the Sao Goncalo convent and church that is right across from the center of town. The first thing we noticed was that the doors of the empty church were open and it was free to enter. This was a bit shocking to us because we had been in Europe for about three weeks at that point and have never been able to enter a national monument for free. Once we walked in, we immediately noticed the gold leaf that lined the walls, which was stunning. We learned that Napoleon tried to demolish Amarate during his time and was successful in destroying almost half of the city, including one of the bridges that was located in the center of town.  The original pictures still hung on the walls but had large pieces of frame missing because Napoleon’s army removed parts of the gold leaf coated frames to see if more gold was hiding inside.

A luxury hotel sits in the heart of Amarante called Casa da Calcada, where the Michelin Star restaurant Largo do Paco can be found. We did not get the chance to eat here because we were full from our fantastic lunch in the Douro Valley, but we have made a note to come back one day.

This small town has so much history that you can feel, just by looking around. Above is a picture of the floods they have had over the years. To give you perspective, the lowest waterline that was recorded was almost six inches over my head and I am 5’6”.

This little town has so much to offer. The people are kind, the sites are exquisite and the history dates back to the 4th century. My wish is to return here some day soon with Mr. Traveling Honeymooners and stay a night or two in Casa da Calcada.

Thank you for stopping by!

XOXO

Mrs. Traveling Honeymooner

Lombok

We arrived in Lombok via fast boat yesterday morning and have felt relaxed ever since. What a change of pace from the bustling streets of Bali. Lombok doesn’t have traffic and the street are wide, with plenty of room for cars to drive both ways. If you have ever been to Ubud, you probably know what I am talking about. If not, you just have to experience the “traffic” for yourself while exploring Bali. I have LOVED every single place we have visited on this trip to Asia. Each place has been so unique and had so much to offer us. However, I have to say, the subtle sound of crashing waves and the sunshine here in Lombok have welcomed us with open arms and have allowed us to take a big deep breath and find deep relaxation.

From Ubud, the east harbor was about an hour and fifteen minute car ride. We chose to take Bluewater Express which apparently was the most reliable fast boat company. We didn’t really understand the meaning of “reliable” until we got all loaded up on the boat and were cruising at a fairly fast speed. About twenty minutes into our trip the boat broke down and we floated for a bit while the captain and his men tinkered with the engines. After about fifteen minutes we were on our way again. This routine happened three different times during our journey but we made it to Lombok safely. I would hate to think of what an unreliable company would look like. Anyhow, the boat ride was peaceful and enjoyable. We met lots of fun people and chatted with them about their travels. The total time spent on the boat was about two and a half hours. Normally the ride is about an hour and a half. The thing I liked about Bluewater Express was that you could choose to sit on the roof of the boat, or inside. It was a beautiful day so we chose to sit outside and enjoy the breeze.

Accommodations

We are staying at Qunci Villas on the main island of Lombok. From the Harbor, Qunci is about a thirty minute car ride. The hotel is beautiful and the service is great. Before our trip, we made sure all of the hotels knew that I have Celiac Disease and Qunci has been very accommodating to my gluten free needs.

Our first night here we were tired from being in the sun all day so we chose to eat at the Mediterranean restaurant at Qunci. The food was delicious and the kitchen even made be gluten free bread to have with my mussels. I think the key to gluten free traveling almost anywhere is to let the hotels know you are gluten free well in advance and remind them upon arrival. This has been incredibly helpful for me and would recommend it to anyone who has a food restriction.

The rooms are nice. The bed is a bit firm for our liking but we slept comfortably and loved that we could hear the waves from our room. One thing to note about this resort is that each room has it’s own bathroom, but the bathroom is all outdoors. Meaning the toilet, sink and shower are all private, but open air. This is very common in Indonesia but this is the first hotel where were we have experienced it. Overall we have enjoyed our stay here!

Exploring

Today we took a slow boat from Lombok to Gili Air, Gili Trawangan and Gili Meno which are small islands just off the coast of northwest Lombok. We had so much fun snorkeling and exploring the islands. The Gili islands do not allow any motorized vehicles so you can explore the islands on foot, bike or horse drawn carriage. We chose to rent snorkeling gear from the people at the Harbor in Lombok but you could rent snorkeling gear anywhere on any island. The only regret we have about visiting the islands was that we did not have a GoPro or waterproof camera with us to capture all of the beautiful fish and sea turtles we swam with!

Tonight we are going to eat in the town of Senggigi which is about ten minutes from Qunci Villas. We have been told this is the place to visit in the evenings for dinner and drinks.

Update: We went into town and ate dinner at Asmara Restaurant & Bar and had a great time! They were very accommodating to my gluten free needs and served us one of the best meals we have had since eating at Bridges in Ubud! The Restaurant also offers a free shuttle to and from our Hotel, and others in the area.

We are also considering visiting Kuta tomorrow. Kuta is famous for snorkeling, surfing and scuba diving. We shall see!

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO

The Traveling Honeymooners

Bangkok, Thailand

We made it to Bangkok! After traveling for 24 hours from Houston, Texas, we have arrived and have explored this busy city.

We chose to stay at the Shangri-la Hotel which is right on the Chao Phraya river. The hotel is large with two towers, multiple restaurants, spa and shopping area.  The amenities were nice to have, but we did not spend much time at the hotel so they were not necessary in our case. The two best things about our stay at the Shangri-la was that the restaurant where they served breakfast was right on the river and the hotel provided free shuttle boat rides to the night market.

We took the free shuttle boat to the night market one evening and had a delicious Thai dinner at Baan Khanitha and walked around the night market afterward.

Bonus: The Shangri-la served gluten free bread at breakfast.

Neither of us had ever been to Bangkok before so we decided that we would do a few tours to get the lay of the land. We are both SO glad that we did! We had the best time with our guides! I would highly recommend doing at least one guided tour while in Bangkok because there is so much to see and experience!

The first tour we took was of the Grand Palace and surrounding city Temples. It is a historical time in Thailand right now because King Bhumibol Adulyadej passed away on October 13, 2016. The entire country is in mourning of their beloved King for the next year. The King’s body is currently being held at the Grand Palace so people can pay their final respects to him. People were lined up for miles. The city is currently working on building a crematorium for him to be cremated in right outside the Grand Palace. The streets outside the Grand Palace are lined with kiosks offering free food for people visiting the Grand Palace. We also saw the Emerald Buddha and the original school of traditional Thai massage here. If you are in Bangkok, the Grand Palace is a must see.

Next we explored Wat Pho and were able to catch the Monks morning chant. For me, this was one of my favorite activities and it became a morning ritual for us to find a temple to catch the morning chants.

We also hopped on the public ferry and took a short ride across the river to Wat Arun which was once the grand royal temple to King Rama II. Our tour lasted about three hours and we were able to cover so much ground in that short time frame.

Our tour guide, Nancy, was great!

The next day we took a tour with Bangkok Biking Company, the name of the tour was Rickshaw and Hike: The Colors of Bangkok. Our tour guide, Amm, was fabulous! We explored many different neighborhoods, visited multiple temples, took a long-tail boat across the river to Lumpini Park and walked through fruit plantations and fed the fish. Afterward we took rickshaws to a local restaurant on the water which was delicious!

Overall, we had a great trip to Bangkok! I think there is a misconception that there is not much to do in Bangkok but I feel as if we only scratched the surface during our three night stay.

XOXO,

The Traveling Honeymonners