July 11 - It’s a long bus trip today, on two buses. The first gets us to Faro, but everything onward to Évora is full until 16:00. We make the best of it by seeing a few things in Faro. The town has a nice feel, like Olhão, but with more tourists.
I stop by Capela de Ossos de Faro, officially our second bone church on this trip. It sits in the back of Igreja da Ordem Terceira de Nossa Senhora do Monte do Carmo.
Since Odette is uninterested in seeing bones, I go back and hang out at the bus station with her while Janet goes to visit the church. After this, Odette and I go visit the Live Science Museum of the Algarve.
The most interesting part of the museum is the touch tank, which we wait a long time to see, as it requires the presence of a tour guide, and the English version is third in line. In the brief time we are able to see it, learn a decent number of facts about the local sea animals. We are shown starfish that have broken themselves in half (and already growing new arms), an intentional act that occurs when there is a food surplus. Also a blenny, which has laid eggs on the underside of an abandoned shell and hangs out there peeking only its head out occasionally.
Back to the station and get on the bus. Fortunately, we take different roads north than the one we came on south to Lagos, so see different terrain. Pass through many tiny towns with an abundance of vineyards. Arrive in Évora near sunset, get a Bolt into the old city. Our apartment is a tiny place in a cobblestone alley.