Toes on Tail, Head, Fins, Ripcurl … that’s the international language of Surfing. And for one week I was part of it.

Many times in the past I lodged in Hostels, Backpackers, Youth Hostels – all around the globe. It was the cheapest way of travelling when I was a student und here it happened that I had some of the happiest encounters in my life!

And now I caught the possibility again: Spending one week in a Surfhostel in a small town in Portugal. Why not? It was my lifelong dream to learn surfing, breaking the waves, catching them over and over again. I always loved to watch Surf movies and listen to that easygoing sound of songs.

And here I was! One hour north of Lisbon. At Magikvanilla, a hostel in pretty Ericeira at the shores of the Atlantic ocean.

Did I had some déjà vu-experiences? Definitely yes! It was almost as before: The atmosphere, the helpful staff, the easy going lifestyle and, of course, the endless talks about that sport and the fascination for it. Even when staff and most guests were much younger than me I had an adventurous week.

Especially since I did arrive without any luggage – only all my electronic devices I had in my hand luggage. The airline Vueling managed to lose my backpack on a direct flight from Barcelona to Lisbon. And it did not appear anymore. Not for the time being and also not afterwards for a total of 10 days. Nevertheless, I experienced so much helpfulness from people who were complete strangers to me. Ericeira is a pleasant town but not the place to get really well equipped with things I missed from my luggage. Aurelija from Norway borrowed me without even knowing me half of her clothes and some anti allergic cosmetics which I desperately needed. She had been a real angel because I felt quite helpless in a situation like that. Helpless is the right expression, even when you are a lifelong traveller. There were some favourite things in my bag and of course lots of memories involved.

After 2 days I started with Surf lessons. The hostel has 3 surf teachers: Jay and Steve are from England and Andre is Portuguese. Jay took care of me the first lesson. He explained the security matters. That’s one of the most important parts when you are into surfing. And then he taught me how to manage the surf board. It was easy because I learned it at the beach. Well, the real surf in the waves is another thing. And standing at the surfboard is again another thing. Completely another thing!!

I am standing … at least for some seconds! Yeah!

It looks easy but it is very difficult. You need years of learning, of experience, of ocean knowledge. It doesn’t come at once to you. It means hard work. The teachers were very responsible towards us and always funny. There was all the time laugh involved. Yeah, British humour at its best! And they did a good deal of motivation. I had 4 lessons and I recognized that I will never be a perfect surfer. But that’s absolutely fine since I just wanted to grab the experience of surfing and being on the board by my own. In the following days we took attention to the rhythm of the waves. We started in the early afternoon and even one morning we were at 8 am in the ocean. Brrr, freezing cold! I learned how unpredictable and dangerous waves can be, especially those of the Atlantic.

Beyond Surfing I had lovely encounters in the hostel with international people. Sitting together in one of the spacy community rooms, at breakfast or outside in the garden with BBQ. Or just watching the unbearable sunsets from the upper terrace. Almost every day came a Yoga teacher. After the exhausting exercise in the ocean it was good to balance your body again with some muscle stretches.Just 10 minutes walk and you are right in the city center of Ericeira. With good bars for watching the sunset at the horizon, restaurants and nightlife spots in case you are in the mood for going out after all the tiring fun at the beach and in the water. More about the beauty of Ericeira you see here!

We are Surfers!

Suzie, owner of Magikvanilla, with her 2 dogs.

And, another important aspect: Lisbon is just around the corner. There are good bus connections and after one hour you are in the charming Portuguese capital.

My conclusion: The hostel, the teachers and Ericeira itself is the place to be when you want to get into surfing. Don’t miss it!

sl4lifestyle did not get sponsored for this trip. My opinion is as always my own.

www.magikvanilla.com