I can’t believe I’m writing the last one of these “travel debriefs/ diaries” for Portugal!

Fifty -four days. Over seven weeks in Portugal. 

When we started, a month in Lisbon felt like it was going to be so long! And it felt bold. Now it feels like we barely scratched the surface.

So this was our final few days in the Eastern Algarve, and they were pretty chill, which is how we wanted to end our time there.

The Last Days in the Algarve

We bookended the week with beach days at Ilha da Tavira (Praia do Barril). It is a super cute beach.

We were able to walk there from our AirBnb, passing lemon groves where the fruit is still half green and half yellow on the trees.

There’s a little train that runs the last kilometer to the beach from the road, which is adorable, and while we rode it one time, we preferred walking.

The beach is wide and natural and gorgeous. Again, another “Outerbanks beach” vibe. Except a little bit more touristy. We rented chairs and an umbrella, and they added a windscreen that we thought was unnecessary until the afternoon proved us wrong. We stayed the whole day, and that was the plan. I love those kind of days!

We liked it so much we went back on our last day and did the exact same thing!

In between, there were work days. 

Back-to-back clients, walks squeezed in between sessions, simple meals at home. We kind of have a “working day” routine right now. 

And of course, we also managed to squeeze in some great meals. One highlight was an all-you-can-eat grilled fish lunch in Olhão. They literally just throw fish on the BBQ and bring you platter after platter. We counted at least eight types. Some of them we couldn’t identify. Some were better than others, but overall we really enjoyed it.

We also found some really cute and good local, family run places for dinner a couple of nights in Santa Luzia where we were staying. Those places are my favourite!

On the Thursday, we went out to Vila Real de Santo Antonio (VRSA) where I met a woman who may help me out with the tours for my group next year at my retreat. She wanted to drive us around a bit so we can see some of the off the beaten path beauty. Beautiful beaches, then we went up into the hills with some incredible views. You could even see Spain from across the water.

The town VRSA itself was fine, clean, good shopping, but it didn’t capture me the way Tavira did. Sometimes there truly is a reason why all the tourists flock to certain towns.

Our Last Supper

Our final night, we went back to the first restaurant we ate at in Tavira on our first night. “Bossa Tavira”. Of course it was fully booked:( But the lovely owner recognized us, remembered it was our last night, and said she’d give us a table if we could be out by 8:45… which of course was not a problem. Anything for their amazing food!

Rob had octopus (of course – number 19, if you’re keeping track. (Bcs we are!). I had tuna. It was so good.

The next morning, we woke up to rain. And it was the day to drive to the airport. We joked that Portugal was sad because we were leaving, so the skies were crying. We then caught our flight to London…

What Slow Travel Actually Taught Us

If you know me, then you know I like to reflect on things. I like to find the lessons, the analogies that I can use later on, and love just pondering and musing. 

So of course, wrapping up 54 days in one place, I’m going to have to debrief here. (But don’t worry, I will keep it short!)

We have always been go-go-go travelers. Even on vacation, there’s a pull to see everything, do everything, not miss anything.

There is a sense of not wanting to miss out on the amazing things a place has to offer. My nervous system is running on the “don’t miss out, keep moving” program.

This “trip” was of course different.

Firstly, we had the gift of time. So we knew that we could slow down. 

But, I also had work to do… I finished off my Advanced Training in Nervous System Resilience Sept 2025 cohort (Sept 2026 cohort here we come! Get on the waitlist here), closed down my Connections membership (which I ran for 2 years), launched my Becoming small group program (following my free week long Midlife Recalibration Week event), continued on with my private clients and my Midlife Nervous System Rewire Community, put out my weekly Building Resilience podcast, and got ready for the London Stationery Show where I am showcasing my 4 journals!

(In case you don’t know about my Mental Health Guided Journals and Stationery brand called Resilient Brilliance,here is a quick run down:) 

(1) RESILIENCE JOURNAL: A guided journal for emotional well-being and nervous system care. You can get it on Amazon here.

2) MY SAFE SPACE : AFFIRMATION AND JOURNAL PROMPT SET: You can get it on Amazon here

3) WORRY TIME PAD & PROGRAM : Evidence based program for managing anxiety, worry and overwhelm. You can get it on Amazon here. 

But on our days off, it was different. There was no rush. We did one thing per day. Or even some days we did nothing. It felt like we were living in Lisbon more than visiting it.

I think the slower pace gave our systems a chance to actually settle. We actually experienced what we were doing instead of just “collecting it”.

We could have easily done more than a month in Lisbon and certainly a month in the Algarve. So we have learned that that amount of time is really a nice way to decompress and get to know a place.

My Favourite Person and Our Future

The other thing I noticed is how wonderful it is when you take away some distractions. At home, even during down time, there are always errands to run, house stuff to do, people to catch up with . But here it was just us. For 2 months.

Kind of heavenly. 

I already knew I loved Rob, but this trip reminded me that he is genuinely my favourite person.

We laugh constantly. Even when we get on each other’s nerves (and yes, that happens sometimes!!), but we reach for humor. When I am the grumpiest, or feeling low, or anxious or overwhelmed, he can make me laugh – or at the very least smile.

We also had some thoughtful conversations about what we want going forward. Not vague “someday we should” conversations. Deliberate ones. What do we value? What kind of life are we designing?

There’s uncertainty in that, sure. But we’re choosing to remind ourselves that no matter what, our 85 year old selves, sitting on our front porch, will be reminiscing about this time and saying that it was some of the best few months of our life. We are always asking the question: will our 85 year old selves regret this or that. And that is helping guide our next steps.

Wise future selves we have (and I know we are always still laughing!)

I also noticed that I came into this trip with low expectations, and left feeling filled to the brim. There is a real sadness in closing our Portugal chapter. I think Portugal will be one of our forever-favorite places. Lisbon with all its colour. Porto and its charm -and our amazing restaurant . The Algarve – the west and the east. I’m so glad I will be back for my retreat next year!

But for now, the next chapter is calling, and I am excited to see what gets written.

xoxo