We said goodbye to our rental car at the Málaga Airport, logging 850 kilometers over the course of the trip to the brand new Citroën C4 SpaceTourer we started driving 6 days earlier. Though crowded when filled with our luggage and traveling crew, the vehicle served us well for our drive through the Spanish towns on our itinerary.
The airline check-in process was painfully slow, as we waited more than 40 minutes to get our bags checked. While waiting in line, we visited a bit with a couple from Dubai who shared two bottles of orange juice (consumed by Amanda and Emmie) and a strawberry (with a few small bites taken by Eilidh, a first for her food repertoire.)
The security checkpoint was comparatively quick, and we always breathe a sigh of relief when Eilidh’s medicine and food make it through successfully. Our flight to Lisbon, the first leg of our journey to Porto Santo, was delayed, allowing us time to grab an overpriced and somewhat underwhelming breakfast at Starbucks. Emmie almost left her nearly-new pair of glasses at the airport, but props go to GeeGee for tracking them down at the Starbucks counter, minutes before we had to board the plane.
Emmie was pretty excited about her ham, cheese, and mustard sandwich; she ate it all plus a piece of caramel cheesecake.
Noah loved his warm croissant sandwich but wasn’t crazy about the rendition of peach lemonade nor his breakfast dessert donut.
Gee Gee and I each had a green tea chocolate muffin; while not as fresh as the one I remember from Lisbon, it was still an enjoyable, right-sized treat.
We took a bus to our small propeller plane to Lisbon.
Eilidh was a happy traveler on this flight, from start-to-finish.
We’d expected a short layover in Lisbon, but our flight to Porto Santo was also delayed, leaving time to do a little bit of shopping, plus grab a few drinks and snacks before boarding another plane. Gee Gee bought a cute bag for Emmie’s sprawling colored pencils collection; Noah and I brought back a package of caramel chocolates made in Porto, Portugal, which was especially a hit with Eilidh; and I picked up an overpriced sippy cup for Eilidh at the convenient airport pharmacy.
Emmie models the chocolates purchased at the airport.
Eilidh ate two chocolates!
The flight to Porto Santo was uneventful, though we ended up arriving about an hour later than expected. The skies were more overcast than we’d experienced during our previous visit, and the taxi driver who took us from the airport lamented weather had been worse-than-usual for this time in June.
Nonetheless, it was a thrill to get back to our familiar vacation home, which was a highlight of last year’s trip to the small Atlantic island. The four bedrooms and three bathrooms provide much-appreciated space to spread out. With a six-night stay on the horizon, we had a great chance to unpack and organize our clothing and souvenirs, and the large-for-Europe and easy-to-use washing machine meant we could quickly address any laundry needing to be cleaned.
Once again, the housekeeper Claudia prepared a useful spread for our stay.
While Noah and I made the short walk to the nearest market, the girls took the opportunity to at least see the beach during our first day in Porto Santo. They snapped a few photos and dipped their feet in the water before we reunited at the house. Our original plan for a relaxed takeaway dinner went by the wayside when Noah and I grew tired of waiting for their evening food to be ready, so we all made the 10-minute walk to Maramao Ristorante, an Italian place which was a favorite from last year’s island visit.
Unfortunately, our Maramao experience wasn’t quite as good as last year’s, mostly due to the long wait time for our food. The kids’ pasta dishes came first, followed by our pizzas; once the food came, it was good enough, and we took home the few leftovers we didn’t finish.
Despite the wait, Noah was thrilled with his buttered pasta, and ate every bite.
Noah and I made the 25-minute walk to the city center for a visit to Pingo Doce, the island’s largest grocery store. As usual for my vacation grocery store visits, we purchased as much junk food as useful food, with bags of Ketchup Ruffles and soccer ball Cheetos accompanying the yogurt, milk, and water.
We walked along Porto Santo’s modest pier, and Noah was excited to pose for a photo with only water behind him, giving an “edge-of-the-world” feeling.
To save time and energy, we hired a taxi driver to take us and our food back to our Porto Santo home. By midnight, we were all asleep, looking forward to a relaxing Wednesday on the island.