Tag: mother daughter travel

We started our morning with yet another fabulous breakfast at our hotel followed by a morning stroll and…liquor! That’s right it was not yet 11am when Betty Lou and i had our first drink! We walked back down to the Rossio Square to see what it was like on a non-Sunday (lively and bustling) and we happened by this little hole in the wall bar. I use the word ‘bar’ loosely however, as all it is is an opening the size of a small walk-in closet with a bar, a bartender and several bottles of red liquid. The place is called Ginjinha and it has been there for about 150 years serving only one drink to locals buy single shots of this boozy concoction and drink it standing outside. We had to indulge. I heard it called gin, but it is sort of a cherry brandy; not offensive, but far too sweet for my liking. Betty Lou thought it pleasant and clinked glasses with the local men. I know it was early for drinking, but it had to be 5:00 somewhere, right?

After that, much of the rest of the day was spent exploring. We went to the ruins of a medieval church and had lunch on a cafe patio on the square, but mostly we just walked.

I really can’t explain how fascinating the streets are. These super narrow alleys, lined with buildings that were once brightly painted, but are now mostly faded and peeling, while others are tiled in exuberant colors and patterns. Many of the street are quite shabby looking and seem almost desolate, but then you turn a corner and there is a charming and unexpected hole in the wall restaurant or vegetable market. And have we mentioned the laundry? Strings of drying clothes hang from every window like streamers for a parade. Simply delightful.

Anyway, we are basically done with Lisbon and are ready to head to Sintra, which we will do in the morning.
Tchau.

Today we ventured out of our neighborhood, down several steep flights of stairs to the Baixa & Avenida districts. These areas are much more conventionally European looking, compared to the pseudo medieval Alfama. We meandered around grand squares featuring fountains and tall statues of men on horseback serving as impressive perches for flocks of pigeons.
The squares were lined by cafes and shops, however, as it is Sunday, all of the shops were closed (except curiously for the stores selling underpants).

We took a bright yellow funicular up to the Barrio Alto district where we went to the Sao Roque church as a service was getting underway. We went back down by taking the 100 year old Elevator de Santa Justica, a frilly, metal sort-of free standing elevator.
We had coffee on Rua Augusta, which is a wide, pedestrian street with outdoor cafes running down the centre. (Sort of like South Beach´s Lincoln Road.) After that we perused some artwork being sort on the street and Betty Lou picked up a splendid watercolor painting.

We took a tram to another area – Belem – which was extremely lively with restaurants, a great antique flea market and lots of pedestrians and tourists roaming around in the nearly 30 degree sunshine. The reason for going to this area was to visit the Mosterio dos Jeronimos, a stunning monatstery\cloisters and church where Vasco de Gama is entombed. (Betty Lou and i must admit that Vasco de Gama is pretty much the only famous Portugese person we could name prior to coming here.) The courtyard in the cloisters was lovely and we laid on the grass in the sunshine until the heat became too much for us.

The ride back was less pleasant as it was a tram crammed with hot, sweaty bodies, but it got us back to Rua Augusta where we had a great meal. Now we are both exhausted. It will be an early night.
Time is running short on the internet, so i will just say Good Night.

Bom Dia from Lisboa!

We arrived yesterday in the late afternoon. We are staying at a lovely (fancy) hotel in the Alfama district, which is a tangle of hilly, cobblestones streets winding up steep hills to a Castle and to our hotel which is just outside the castle walls. We have spectacular views.
Last night we went for a walk and had dinner at a little outdoor eatery where we listened to Fado.

We shared wine – Vinho Verde – with a table of drunken Japanese girls from Spain. It was a perfect evening.

Now a new day and adventures to come.