Silvercoast Friends was set up a year ago by a number of young (or young-at-heart) dynamic and multi-talented women who decided that they were definitely NOT in Portugal to retire! The ages of the women who get together for a two-hour coffee-break twice a month are between 23 and 70. We are very happy to welcome young and old- just bring along your generosity of spirit, enthusiasm and energy! To save some friends a lot of travelling, we are also delighted to reveal that a second Silvercoast friends group is being set up in Torres Vedras. Watch this space....

Please scroll down to see some of our activities since our group set up only a year ago.....

Email us for more info:

Friends only page (password needed):

Click here for events and news items for the area:

Not yet able to join us but would like EXPAT & LOCAL INFO?

The women who come along bring their own talents and personalities whether from home-keeping or professional. We have at least one (and a number of some) of the following: artist, poet, yoga expert, dress-maker, interior-designer, painter-decorator, soft-furnishings maker, furniture restorer, theatre lover, singer, photographer, book-lover, homeopath, keen-gardener (and cuttings pincher!), pool-player, ceramics painter, reiki practitioner, chef, history & culture lover, hairstylist, teddy-bear maker, budding amateur-dramatic, astrologist, jewellery-maker, dog-watcher, walker, badminton player, table-tennis and environmental enthusiasts and last, but not least, we all enjoy wine-tastings and eating out!

JANUARY, FEBRUARY 2008....Two recent additions to the friend's activities: Our cycling group meets every third Sunday. The routes are planned so that you can go at your own pace! The other is the tennis played in Obidos every Sunday morning - usually mixed doubles. Members and partners and visiting guests very welcome!

NOVEMBER DECEMBER 2007.....The Silvercoast Friends walking group below (dogs welcome ... and partners too!) of recent walks near Sao Martinho. The scenery as you can see is fantastic, as was the weather. There are two levels of walks one for the serious 'hikers' and the other for the 'strollers'......not sure which one's which tho...... !

Tee-shirts even in November.....           Serra da Pescaria walk December....     Salgado walk January 08

CHRISTMAS 2007.... Glad rags on........ a fantastic Christmas party was enjoyed by 80 of the friends and their partners and despite all their hard work and effort our organisers managed to look amazingly cool-and-collected (like swans on a lake - serene on top paddling furiously underneath)! The hotels' portuguese kitchen staff were even taught how to make decent gravy and roast turkey so very well done!

SEPTEMBER OCTOBER 2007

Carly had her 'hen night' with many of the friends group and managed to survive the festivities to marry Chris at a specially arranged wedding in the beautiful medieval town of Obidos. We would all like to wish Chris & Carly all the very best for a fantastic future together......

AUGUST SEPTEMBER The Obidos Mediaeval Festival....

The Silvercoast Friends outing to Obidos Mediaeval festival was good fun and enjoyed by everyone tho we would recommend going along a little later if you want really lively. Lynne and Liz dressed up and got in FREE thus leaving plenty of money for the market stalls full of herbal and natural products (admittedly the mead was most appealing). There were many different mediaeval-themed stalls and shows taking place within the castle walls. With the setting of the castle and smell of pigs roasting on the spits as well and mediaeval music our visit really felt as if we were back in the middle-ages. Well worth a visit when it comes back here next year and definitely worth dressing up - not just to join in the spirit of things but also to avoid the queues (especially later on) - you can just walk straight in as long as you make enough of an effort!

JULY AUGUST 2007.....A recent barbeque beside the lagoon at Bom Sucesso involved the boys doing most of the cooking (for a change). Give the guys some flames and watch those caveman instincts emerge!

JUNE JULY 2007......These are pictures of a recent evening meal together at Adamastor restaurant in Foz Do Arelho. Great food tho' we really should have taken the chef up on the offer of a pre-ordered set meal for everyone instead of the a la carte menu. Thanks for a lovely evening to the staff who were a bit too busy for comfort!

MAY JUNE 2007... These are pictures of our most recent trip to a Buddha garden and vineyard near Loridos.

Partners too...

The men-folk join us for lunches and walks and get to know each other through other things like pool competitions (always good for a laugh tho' some take being beaten very seriously - typical!) One week the walking group involves a long difficult walk (to try to get rid of the wine-tasting and eating-out calories) and the following week an easy-peasy get-together stroll followed, sometimes, by homemade soup at someone's home or coffees (and cake of course) in a nearby cafe. We all get to know the area around each others home-towns and it's a great way to get to know more of this lovely country whether you're an ex-pat or a local.

We are not an 'english' friends group nor are we an expat group. Women of all nationalities, religions and ages very welcome......

Our am-dram group in the performance of the alternative Cinderella this Christmas ! Recruits welcome for our next performance - don't be shy....see below.

Email us for more info:

Friends only page (password needed):

Click here for events and news items for the area:

Not yet able to join us but would like EXPAT & LOCAL INFO?

Below are some of the quotes gathered by one of the girls in the group- we think they sum up some of the charm and frustrations of ex-pats living here!

“We have been bowled over by the welcome and have experienced nothing but warmth and friendliness- even from local people who clearly think that we are slightly strange choosing to live in their very ‘ordinary’ country!”

“Living in the countryside we frequently see the small tractors, used widely around here, winding up the road past the house with the mulher (woman) sitting in the back (of said tractor) on a white plastic chair often reading a magazine. It is not uncommon to see these vehicles parked in supermarket car parks since many older people don’t have cars nor, I suspect, a driving licence. Portuguese people generally work hard, often for very low wages, but they always have time for a chat and ‘stress’ is not a word you hear often!”

“We have had to get used to upside-down light switches, frequent, if brief, electricity cuts and life without cricket, real ale, ‘proper’ tea bags, baked beans, HP sauce, Marmite and Golden Syrup (although all the foodstuff has been supplied by guests who couldn’t manage without!). We have had to adapt to the continental way of doing things- a guy brought some railway sleepers and gravel for the garden four weeks ago and promised to be back the next day to build the steps. We haven’t seen him since. The kitchen tap is faulty and has developed a crack so that, unless I place a cloth over it when I turn it on it sprays all over the kitchen. The plumber was coming two weeks ago with a replacement but…yes you’ve guessed it! We know these jobs will get done, we just don’t know when. But in the wide scheme of things it really doesn’t matter – none of these are life or death issues. This is Portugal and, most of the time, this is part if the charm!”