Lisbon, you beauty!

And we are off to our next capital city, Lisbon!

After a quiet night, but an early wake up, my human did some writing and after breakfast sorted out our toilet and water situation. Then we took off, headed for Lisbon.

It was quite a drive and GoogleMaps had some funny ideas of where we should go. After the third "One-horse-town" and people looking at us in a "What are you doing here?"-way, we finally got back on something like a highway, which, eventually, lead into the city. But not before we passed a ongoing bull fight in some small city on the outskirts of Lisbon. Right next to the road was the "arena" and the traffic jam that came with it was thick. I still don't get it. Nor do I want to.

When we finally arrived at the hotel, we were greeted very warmly. They even removed the Porsche, sitting on one of only two hotel owned street parking spots, driving it into the garage, so I could be parked right outside the hotel, with 24/7 surveillance. This gave both me and my human great peace of mind.

After checking in, my human spent some time in the gym, then at the pool. She didn't really want to go to town yet, since her friend, Steffi, would only arrive late at night and they wanted to go around together, of course, over the next few days. 

She did head out briefly for dinner and then awaited the arrival of her friend, ticking of her weekly Spanish lesson in the meantime, doing some reading and calling her family.

Steffi arrived close to midnight and although they were both tired, there was so much to talk about! So they did, girls being girls.

Friday started with a metro ride into town and a very interesting three hour walking tour through Lisbon. With their guide they checked out a few important neighborhoods like Barrio Alto, Chiado and, of course, Alfama. This is one of the oldest, and certainly the prettiest, area of the city. With tiny cobbled alleys and colorful houses, this place has charm, character and homeliness written all over it!

After lunch they did some more walking around, checking out a couple of churches and view points, enjoying a coffee and Tarta de Nata on a park bench, before heading back to the hotel for a quick dip in the pool. Steffi had made a reservation at a Fado restaurant for dinner, so soon they were on their way to town again. 

Elevador de Santa Justa; designed by one of Eiffel's pupils

Fado is a very Portuguese tradition. It involves singers, musicians, specific instruments and has a very special flair. They enjoyed a 3-course-menu and they both loved the show. Afterwards they had another glass of wine on a little terrace, overlooking a small plaza in the center of town.

Saturday morning, after breakfast, they opted for some more pool time before they took a train to Sintra. It only takes 40 minutes to get to this extremely touristy, extremely wonderful place. Right at the train station you get pestered by TukTuk drivers and other people offering their services. Ignoring all of them, they walked to the historic town center and found a nice spot to have a late lunch.

Then they took the public bus to get to the most interesting sight of Sintra, Palacio Nacional de Pena. This fairy tale looking concoction, palace, fortress, castle - all rolled into one, sits on a 450m high hill, overlooking town. As mist rose from the surrounding forest, the whole place took on an even more enchanting air. 

The history of the castle starts in the Middle Ages, when a small chapel was built here, dedicated to Our Lady of Pena. It was enlarged, damaged, re-built, ruined and added onto many times by many Kings and Queens over the time. In 1838 King Ferdinand decided to make it his summer residence and the current design was envisioned by the German architect Eschwege.

They walked around town a little more, exploring the tiny alleys and walkways, maybe enjoying a small glass of the famous cherry liquor while doing so, before heading back to the train station.

Because they had a late, and big, lunch, they were not very hungry. But thirsty. After arriving back in Lisbon around 8.30, they headed for Barrio Alto, one of the nightlife areas, sitting down outside a small bar in a very busy street lined with restaurants, bars and pubs. Tonight, they agreed, they would go to bed earlier, because they hadn't slept much the two nights before and the wanted to get up early on Sunday.

At four in the morning two very happy, very tired ladies walked right past me and into the hotel. So much for going to bed early.
On their walk home, they established a short set of questions one could ask my human to get to know her a little better. They are very simple and cover her basic needs and preferences. Here we go:

Metro or walking? Walking.
Up or down? Up.
Are you hungry? Yes. Always.
A small beer or a large one? I don't understand the question.

Unsurprisingly, they didn't get up all that early. But after half a liter of coffee and a hearty breakfast, they were ready for another day. Which they used to go on a bike ride along the waterfront towards Belem.

Belem is a part of town to the West of the center. Here stands a huge monument dedicated to the early Portuguese explorers, the Torre de Belem and the Monasterio de Jeronimo. All famous landmarks of the city. And one as impressive as the other. 

After getting back to the hotel, they went for a quick dip and very soon headed out again to get to their dinner location on time. To do so, they had to get down to the docks, take a ferry across the river Tajo and walk along the waters edge to Ponto Final, situated close to Ponte 25 de Abril, a Golden Gate Bridge look-alike, and just at the foot of the hill topped by Lisbon's Rio de Janeiro look-alike Jesus statue. 

And just as they were seated, the sun set into the river, painting the sky in red and pink and purple, putting every artist who ever painted a sunset to shame. 

After enjoying great food, a good bottle of wine and fantastic views, they made the journey back home, this time hitting their goal of getting back early. Which was vital, of course, since Steffi had to be at the airport at 7 o'clock the next morning. 

Lisbon, so far, is one of the prettiest, most interesting cities we have been to. And I am quite sure, it wasn't the last time here, at least for my human.

And sharing this with a friend of over 30 years made it all the more special. 

And in case you are wondering since when my human is taking great photos of high quality - she isn't. All the pictures were kindly provided by her friend Steffi. So please, don't get used to it!