New Year's Eve in Albufeira

Well, we'd been warned that New Year's Eve in Albufeira was up there with Edinburgh's Hogmanay celebrations but we didn't really believe it ... until we saw it with our own eyes.

We're not really big New Year's Eve people, in fact, we rarely even stay up until midnight when we're home. There was the time that Harri famously rang in the New Year with a bottle of Madeira wine and his very loud rendition of 'I feel pretty' from West Side Story but the less said about that the better. 

This year, we decided we were going to behave like grown-ups and rather than head to bed around ten o'clock, we were going out to celebrate. The plan was to wander down to Arte's Bar, have a few drinks then enjoy the fireworks from the outside seating area. We would then retire inside for a nightcap before meandering back to our villa. One of the thrills of living here, albeit for a short time, is the proximity of a great bar populated with interesting people from all walks of life. The lager is much cheaper than in the UK too. 

Old Town's main square was full of party-goers

Having learned our lesson on Christmas Eve when we turned up at seven o'clock and sat on our own for two hours, we thought it best to eat first and venture out a bit later than usual, maybe about 9pm. Remembering that everyone had taken food to Arte's on Christmas Eve, I suggesting our own donation might be the large bolo rei going to waste in our kitchen. It was a gift, a lovely, generous gesture from our lettings agent, but we had already tried this traditional Portuguese cake and weren't very keen on it. Rather than letting it go to waste, I argued, we could take it with us. Harri thought this was a ridiculous idea and pointed out that we didn't even know if there was a buffet tonight. Anyway, I let him talk me into leaving it behind, there was a buffet and our bolo rei remains in the kitchen untouched.

Albufeira's restaurants were packed out

The bar was quiet when we walked in; in fact, very few of the regulars made an appearance while we were there. We chatted to the bar's owner Dom (a former chef) about the best way to cook saltfish and fresh prawns, chatted about supermarkets and property to retired man from Leeds who divides his time between the Algarve and the UK and felt slightly let down. Where was the buzz we'd been promised, where were the throngs of Portuguese people out celebrating the New Year?

We heard the live music as soon as it kicked off at about 10.30pm. We couldn't see the beach, but we could hear that concert!  Though we had no idea who the female singer was at the time, I now know we were listening to Aurea, a 29-year-old soul singer from the Alentejo whose first album reached the top of the Portuguese charts and stayed there for 44 weeks. At midnight, a popular band called DAMA took centre-stage (three months ago, these guys were nominated in the category of the Best Portuguese Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards so they are clearly big over here!). 

The fireworks kept us all captivated

Unsurprisingly, Albufeira's free live concert plus fireworks is a massively popular annual event and Dom estimated that there would be over 10,000 people partying on and around the beach tonight. After weeks of relative peace, this was impossible to imagine, but if it was indeed the case, then I wanted to see the party for myself. Harri wasn't so keen, but eventually agreed to go for a quick stroll to investigate. 

Wow! As we got closer to Old Town we could almost taste the atmosphere changing. The sleepy streets we'd grown accustomed to walking along were transformed into bustling thoroughfares. Bars we'd never even noticed were crammed full of customers and restaurants that had been half-empty just a few days earlier were bursting at the seams. 

The large stage had been set up on the beach, but while there were plenty of young people dressed up ready for a night of partying, there were large numbers of family groups out to enjoy the night's celebrations too. Everyone dazzled and glittered, from the teenage girls in their impossibly high silver heels to the little ones with flashing Minnie Mouse ears.

We could see fireworks along the coast 

After wandering around for half an hour or so we were exhausted and headed back to Arte's Bar. As Dom had predicted, the streets were now lined with parked cars as more and more people arrived to enjoy the legendary fireworks. We grabbed another drink and made our way to a grassy area high above the town where we could see all the way along the coast. 

In the distance we could hear the crowd counting down to midnight and then the fireworks began. In the distance, we could see them going off in (what we guessed) were nearby Quarteira and Vilamoura and then, a few seconds behind, in Albufeira. For ten minutes or so, fireworks filled the immediate sky and, as we stood there surrounded by Portuguese families, I realised that after just one month here I am starting to feel part of the local community. 

Half an hour later, we were celebrating Hogmanay again, when two Scottish women burst into the bar and started kissing and hugging everyone. It was getting on for 2am and we were both a little bit squiffy when we finally got home ... and spotted something sinister lying there in our front garden. We tiptoed across to it and burst out laughing when we realised the suspicious-looking item was nothing other than a large Chinese sky lantern. 

A Chinese sky lantern landed in our garden

We may or may not be here in the Algarve next winter, but if we are, I know where I'll be heading on New Year's Eve.