My travel agent convinced me that I should drive while on my trip in Italy. I was reticent to do so because of the ledges and cliff roads along the Amalfi coast. I reluctantly agreed to rent one. When I got to the car rental counter, they told me all they had available were manual …
I have wanted to do this hike for quite some time after meeting some Spanish friends and hearing them describe it while in Nazaré last year. It is the Ruta Del Cares Trail in the Picos de Europa mountain range in Northern Spain. Since I live about an eight hour drive and now that I …
Continue reading Ruta del Cares hike – Asturius, Northern Spain
I combined my four day trip to Porto with a 3 day excursion to see the Douro River Valley and drive the famed N222, over and through the mountains adjacent to the plush, multi-tiered shelves of wine vineyards. I had done extensive research of the route that I wanted to take and the lookout points, …
Continue reading Douro Valley, Portugal – Amazing Wine Country!
My last post was all about the city of Porto, but only daytime drone and video camera shots. I showed you the wonderful, vibrant city during the day set to the beautiful Portuguese busker music of Bruna Costa. The city has such an amazing vibe during the day, but once the sun sets, it becomes …
During my retirement here in Portugal, I have been able to see and do so many amazing things in the past year and a half. I have found the options available to me here to be endless and that's a very good thing. Some of you that know me well will know that I am …
Continue reading Porto, Portugal: Set to amazing busker music!
In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Wonka has hidden five Golden Tickets inside his chocolate bars. The finders are rewarded with a tour of his factory, each accompanied by an adult of their choice, and a lifetime supply of chocolate. The children are unaware, though, that the tour is also a competition to test their …
It has been a dream of mine for quite some time now to see the big wave surfing at Nazaré. Last week, not only did I get to realize that dream, but I got to attend the once-in-a-year scheduled Nazaré Tow-in Challenge. This is an event that is scheduled for only one day between the …
I've been writing this blog and posting videos for just under one year now. I’ve come to learn that some people jump straight to the video and just skip the associated blog story. And that’s just fine. I love making these videos and I’m glad that people enjoy them. But I’ve also heard that some …
Continue reading Algarve, Portugal – Breathtakingly Beautiful!
This is one of those stories that really needs a prelude... I grew up in Youngstown, Ohio, as many of you know from my Instagram name @YoungstownToPortugal. I attended Catholic grade school which was where I was first introduced to playing organized football. I was in 7th grade. I have the same love for football …
Madeira Island is stunningly beautiful! And, twelve days is simply not enough time to see and appreciate all of it. Luckily for me, I have friends that live there and were able to help me construct an itinerary for exactly the things that I wanted to do and the things I wanted to see. In …
Continue reading Madeira Island: Pico do Arieiro to Pico Ruivo hike
Johnny Portugal 