#culatra

[voluptama]

peladinha

© Luís Niza

[lonelybynight]

Easy like sunset on the boat.

[badlypackedtraveller]

Culatra’s dark secret.

In Alcoutim it is a short but tough walk up to the Castelo Velho but one worth making. These ruins would have been founded during the Emirate period (8th/9th centuries) of the Umayyad dynasty, and it was at its zenith during the Caliphate period  and the kingdoms of the taifas (10th/11th centuries). At the end of the 11th century , with the Almoravids and a time of great instability, the collapse of the fortifications began leading to complete abandonment by the time of the Almohads (12th/13th centuries).

Alcoutim’s more recent history is one of smuggling and contraband. In fact, an annual highlight of the cultural calendar is the Contraband Festival when the town’s population swells by over 40,000. The Gaurdiana River forms the border with Spain here and for years Alcutim and its Spanish neighbour, San Lucar, have evaded taxes by making use of the short hop across the river to trade much needed goods.

It is while we are enjoying a snack in one of Alcoutim’s riverside cafes that we learn of present day smuggling and contraband, and Culatra’s dark secret.

Unbeknownst to us sunny, sleepy Culatra is a dropping off point for large quantities of North African hashish en route into mainland Spain. Games of cat and mouse are played out between the drug runners and the police in high-powered speedboat chases along the Guardiana River. It is not uncommon for local fishermen to supplement their meagre income with 50kg sacks of hashish dumped by fleeing drug runners and washed up on the banks of the river.

[vector65]

#ilhadofarol #culatra #algarve #portugal #lighthouse #lighthouselovers #sonya350 #vmribeiro (em Ilha Do Farol) https://www.instagram.com/p/CmR8FrQMqI9/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[imanel]

Unas fotos de mi estancia en el Faro del Algarve portugués

[jeremiebaldocchi]

08 Juin, 13h46 - Île de Culatra, Village de Farol, Portugal #culatra #culatraisland #culatraportugal #farolculatra #farol #portugal #portugal🇵🇹 #travel #travelphotography #travelphoto #voyage #voyages (à Ilha Do Farol, Faro, Portugal) https://www.instagram.com/p/CelAp2oLvMN/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[jeremiebaldocchi]

08 Juin, 13h23 - Île de Culatra, Village de Farol, Portugal #culatra #culatraisland #culatraportugal #farolculatra #farol #portugal #portugal🇵🇹 #travel #travelphotography #travelphoto #voyage #voyages (à Ilha Do Farol, Faro, Portugal) https://www.instagram.com/p/CelAaqfLIYP/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[jeremiebaldocchi]

08 Juin, 12h59 - Île de Culatra, Village de Hangares, Portugal #culatra #culatraisland #culatraportugal #hangares #portugal #portugal🇵🇹 #travel #travelphotography #travelphoto #voyage #voyages (à Ilha dos Hangares) https://www.instagram.com/p/CelAA8gLe2U/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=