Saturday, December 22, 2012

I Heart Lisboa


Voted favorite new place ever: Lisbon, Portugal.  We stopped here 3 times on my contract.  Would have been a fourth but Portuguese ports were on strike that week.  We ended up in Cadiz, Spain on a pouring, rainy day.  Pictures not necessary.  This was the last port on our Mediterranean cruise.  Mom's last port in Europe and her favorite also!  Imagine September in the gorgeous Med weather.  What more could you ask for?  We actually didn't spend much time in Lisbon when Mom and I were there.  We were given a free shore excursion that basically dropped us off in two great little towns.  

Sintra, is a quaint fortress town at the top of a very lush hill.  Beautiful views out to the water, lots of little shops, churches, cafes, and of course fortresses.  Located northwest of Lisbon.





Laundry picture included for Mom.


Did you know Portugal is the world's largest exporter of cork?  You can find some amazing cork postcards.  There is also quite a bit of ceramics and tile work.  What sort of fabulous and exciting souvenir did I take home from my favorite country???-a spoon rest in this pattern below.  Oh yeah!  My mom raised an eyebrow but I assured her I could really use a spoon rest.


Swept away back on the bus along the coastline with this incredible view.  Headed down to a beachy town called Cascais, west of Lisbon.  This town really speaks for itself with it's pictures.  Nothing fancy, just a lovely place on the beach.  Not even much of a boardwalk but plenty of cute shops and restaurants.





I was determined to return to Cascais again.  Tara and I made it back out here, this time in October.  There were no more sunbathers but we did find a guy who was very serious about his sand castles!



I did manage to spend an entire port day in Lisbon itself.  I guess what I loved about the city was it's lived in feel.  It really isn't a wealthy city, but far from a run down place that smells funky.  I found the buildings covered in ornate tile that were falling apart just beautiful.  If Lisbon had a makeover renovation I can't say it would seem as wonderful and homey.  Also great transportation system, which is how I made it back out to Cascais.





I have no idea what this building is for...




Now a few of my friends had an incredible feast here back in September and highly recommended this little restaurant.  So on our last venture out in October, Tara and I were on a mission to find this place.  Quite a search, but well worth it!  We split the meals and still had leftovers.  We raved about it to our waiter (really cute young Portuguese sailor) and mentioned our cruise ship friends who recommended it.  From that point on he was our best friend and practically sat down with us.  He had been in the navy and stationed all over including the U.S. with as long as 29 sea day stints.  Tara and I will shut up now about getting ready to cross the atlantic over 8 days.  We got to talking about where we lived and before I know it he is running into the back room to pull out his Red Sox sweatshirt to show me!


Last but not least we always know how to make an entrance and an exit.  Barely fitting underneath the 25 de Abril Bridge!

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