After visiting Sintra, we drove further west, to the westernmost point of mainland Europe, Cabo da Roca. Cabo da Roca is a cape located on the western coast of Portugal, and is known for its rugged cliffs, and views of the Atlantic Ocean. As we reached the parking lot, there was a guy directing people in parking spots for tips. It was so strange because this place is in the middle of nowhere and somehow this guy is using this opportunity as a way to hustle for money. I thought we had escaped that kinda stuff from Lisbon.

There is a monument located at Cabo da Roca that commemorates the site as the westernmost point of mainland Europe. The monument is a stone cross with an inscription that reads: “Here, where the land ends and the sea begins.”

The views from Cabo da Roca are truly stunning. From the rugged cliffs of the cape, people can gaze out across the vast expanse of the ocean, taking in the sight of endless waves crashing against the shore, and the contrast of the blue sea against the rocky cliffs.

From here, we continued onto our next destination in our trip, Porto. It’d be another 3 hours of driving up north.

See more photos of Cabo da Roca here

On my first day of the trip, I headed out along the southern coast of Iceland along the Ring Road. My flight landed early in the morning and because of my poor planning, I would be driving six hours along the Ring Road after 7.5 hour flight. At least the drive was quite scenic during the day!

This was my ride.

Seljalandsfoss

A lot of people come to Iceland to see nature, and waterfalls are among the sights. It reminds me of the kind of waterfalls you’d see in the Pacific Northwest.

Skógafoss

Another waterfall along the Ring Road that’s easily accessible. I’d say it’s even more impressive than the previous one!

There’s also a staircase that takes you to the top of the waterfall, but the view from up there isn’t as interesting.

Solheimasandur Plane Wreck

This place is a bit out of the way. It’s an actual plane wreck of a US navy plane that crashed landed in 1973. It’s on private land and the owners didn’t want to allow vehicle traffic to go there, so it’s a 45 minute walk (one way) from the parking lot alongside the Ring Road. The walk is PRETTY BORING since there is nothing interesting the look at along the way, but it’s pretty worth it when you get to the actual plane wreck. You can even go inside it!

Reynisfjara Beach

This palce is well known for having black sand, and its basalt columns, formed after volcanic activity.

The rest of the drive

It was starting to get dark as I passed the town to Vik, and I ended up spending the night near Diamond Beach, in preparation for the glacier cave tour that I would do the next day. By the time I got there, the roads were pretty much pitch black.

The only place I didn’t get to see that was a part of my plane was Dyrhólaey, which is a small peninsula just off the Ring Road with a view to the ocean with a stone arch on the water, and a lighthouse.

Photos along the Ring Road here