LIPS update

I just realised today that I had not updated my blog since February when I was off to Portugal golfing with the girls.
the holiday was fantastic. It was unseasonably windy, but still warm - much better than the cold, wet and windy weather we left behind.
Our hotel was very nice. There was a lovely outdoor pool, but unheated - brrrrrrr. NO - even the brave Wizzard did not venture in (well I did pop in my toe!). There was also a very chlorinated indoor pool - very tiny!

The day we got there was a "free" day - no golf. So my pal Olive and I wandered around the town of Villamoura and spent a lot of time around the harbour. We ended up in a very nice par overlooking the marina just as the sun went down.

The next day was our first golfing day on Pinhal and also my birthday. When I entered the breakfast room the rest of my party burst into song! HOW EMBARRASING! I had to wear the birthday hat all day long. this was very difficult cos I have a big head! The girls bought me a frog head cover and a dozen balls with my face on them!

We went out for an indian meal in the evening (well Portugal did have close links with Goa in the past!) which was my choice - wonderful.

Next day we had another "free day" so Olive and I had booked a massage at the sister hotel. Well, what a laugh. First of all you can tell from the picture that I am not a small woman! Well, we got given toweling robes, paper slippers and a paper thong! O-K-A-Y! The toweling robe was probably a size 12 - no way was it going to do up. We had to walk through the pool area to the massage rooms - there was me hugging towels to my very exposed front. Olive and I nearly wet ourselves laughing. We shared a massage room which was very different. We had these very tiny portugese girls doing the massaging, but boy did they have some strength in them! After the massage we sat on beanbags (still in the gaping robe) and had a cup of tea/glass of water.
That evening we found a Portugese restaurant just at the back of our hotel -that is where we ate from then on. We had the most delicious sardines with a lovely salad - delicious.
Two of the "old birds" as we affectionately called them introduced Olive and me to white port. Chilled. Fabby.
On our next day off - another golf course in between. Olive and I went to see her friends who were in the process of building a house - we got the tour of the house, huge pool, outside kitchen/bar and a garage for 40 cars underneath the house.

In all we played 3 golf courses - Pinhal, Laguna and Millenium.

We all agreed that it was a great holiday especially as we did not have to drive anywhere as we had airport transfers and transfers to the golf courses.

where to next year......