Tour of Silves, private lunch, and tile making - What an INCREDIBLE day spent with Francisco and his whole family! I contacted Francisco after finding his company name on an Airbnb “experience” listing. I knew traveling with a 4 year old and grandmother that the large hike portion of the day wouldn’t be suitable for us so I wanted to see if a different tour could be made for us. Luckily for us, Francisco was able to prepare a day just for us that was perfectly appropriate for our family. He picked us up at our Airbnb home and drove us to Silves. We toured the marketplace (where we met his grandmother who was selling her farm fresh produce), the Gotchic cathedral, historical museum, and Castelo de Silves. All of this touring was met with historical expertise, cultural information, and personal connections from Francisco. Then we went to his family’s farm where his beautiful 82 year old grandmother (who had just returned from the market) prepared lunch al fresco for us. What an absolutely amazing treat to be welcomed into the home of a stranger and fed the most beautiful and authentically prepared local cuisine. It was an incredible memory for our family and a true representation of the hospitality that we saw while visiting Portugal. After our meal with Francisco and his grandmother, we traveled to the home of Francisco’s parents. There, we were treated to a traditional Portuguese tile painting workshop by his father as teacher. Everyone in our family enjoyed learning about the tile making process and creating our own unique souvenir from our Portuguese travels. It seems that everyone in Francisco’s family is equally talented! We snacked, we laughed, we enjoyed our time together as families. We picked up our tiles after they’d been fired (a few days later) and they made it safely home in our luggage. There was nothing about this day that I felt wasn’t thought out or prepared. Algarvian Roots is a top notch touring and cultural experience. I would recommend a day spent with Francisco and his family any day!

In Silves I felt the real Algarve! - First time in Silves - a small town deep inside Algarve where I felt and saw the origins of the traditions. It was hot, but in July is really what we want! We entered some monuments and we were able to taste some of the traditional flavours of that region. The oranges and oregan still are two of my favorites .