Hap-pea Travels

Adeus Lisboa

After a wonderful few days, it was time to say “Adeus Lisboa, obrigado” and head back to the airport. Having whizzed through security, we made an error when approaching passport control. The line for EU citizens was, of course, very short, the line for electronic passports ( which could be used by UK, EU, US & (I think) Canadian citizens) was quite long, but the line for “All passports” was non-existent. So we chose that one. Mistake! It simply led you down a corridor into another, very full, hall of people waiting to have their passport checked.

To be fair, the queue moved quickly and after forty minutes we were through, with plenty of time before our uneventful flight home.

I loved Lisbon – pretty, full of character, but completely unpretentious. Other than a day of rain, the weather was warm and pleasant (although a few days later it was hit by torrential rain – we were lucky!), on the whole a cheaper European city, I’d happily return (although I suspect Porto will be next on our Portuguese agenda)

Obrigado, e adeus.

And the sun shone

Today we went to Lisbon’s seaside resort of Cascais, another 40 minute (5 euro return) train ride away, and the sun shone gloriously all day long.

Cascais is a very pretty seaside town, with several sandy beaches to explore. Being on the Atlantic coast, the sea is tidal, giving a different vibe from the meditation coast line we normally explore. Being buy the sea on a clear, warm sunny day, looking out to the infinity of the horizon does it for me every time. Although calm and still on the day we visited, there was a ruggedness to the coastline as we walked as far as Boca do Inferno – Hell’s Mouth – where sat and chilled overlooking the swirling sea, and swarms of fish – big fish – swimming at the surface. Whilst I am glad the weather was as wonderful as it was, I suspect it would also be quite dramatic to be at the same spot when the wind is howling and the sea surging.

Closer to town, the blue and white lighthouse created an iconic landmark

and with all this water and pretty beaches …

my resistance was broken and, despite having no trunks, and a towel the size of a postage stamp, I was inevitably drawn into the water myself. It wasn’t as cold as I had feared and, to me at least, better than luxuriating in any bath. The perfect end to a perfect day.

Sintra (in the rain)

The weather forecast for the day was not good, and, sadly, it lived up to its predications. We decided that, despite the weather, we would go to Sintra for the day – about 50 mins from Lisbon on the train – a tourist “must see” when you spend time in Lisbon.

Lisbon’s public transport network is extensive, cheap, and easy to use. We took a 10 minute metro ride to the Rossio district, where we boarded a train to take us to Sintra, I always like travelling by train, these were on time, clean and effective, and we were afforded glances of the fairy tale Pena Palace sat high on the hill overlooking the town as we approached.

On disembarking from the train, we first encountered a sea of guides offering to whisk us up to the palace and castle, but we ignored them as, in true hap-pea traveller style, we were going to take the bus. But before we had even left the station, the clouds descended, totally enveloping the castle on the cliff, and then the heavens opened.

We decided instead – umbrellas raised – to walk into the historic centre.

Along the way (a flat, level pavement) we encountered a number of sculptures to pique our interest.

If I’m honest, Sintra was a bit of a disappointment. Rammed with tourists (mea culpa – we were part of the problem too), and not much to it, although pretty enough, really just a disneyfied tourist trap, not somewhere I would rave about, or recommend. Now, I may have had a different opinion had it been a glorious day, and we’d gone up to see the palace with a back drop of blue sky, but I suspect the magic would have been dissipated by the volume of tourists. One of the things I have loved about Lisbon has been its authenticity – its not pristine and perfect, a little grubby in places, and faded around the edges but that gives it its real world charm, it is a working city, whereas I think Sintra now exists solely for the tourist.

But a slightly disappointing day was hugely improved by a magnificent meal back in town, at an authentic Italian restaurant round the corner from our apartment. The setting was lovely (thinking – hoping- that the rain had passed, we elected to eat outside, a good choice) the food fantastic, and a melody of ’80s hits a welcome relief from the dirge like Fado music that had accompanied our dining experience on the previous two evenings. And great value too, we had pistachio nuts and bread to start, Becky enjoyed a pizza, I demolished a delicious pasta bolognaise, we share a tiramisu, had two beers and two coffees all for less than 50 euros.

Revolution, the New World, and more tales from the riverbank

To my shame, my knowledge of Portuguese history is very limited, but I will endeavour to put that right over the coming months. But I have learnt that in April 25th, 1974, Portugal had a largely bloodless coup, now known as the Carnation Revolution in which they over threw their ruling party – Estado Novo.

Today, we bought 7 euro travel cards, giving us 24 hour transport on tram, tube and bus, and we explored the city to the west, first riding the iconic 28 Tram line, before visiting the LX Factory and then the Belem region.

From the Torres de Belem, it was easy to imagine explorers sailing west to discover the new world. I enjoyed ambling along the riverside, in the warm sunshine, taking in the sights

It was a day when the modern world collided with the old world. The bridge was spectacular, as was the MATT building, a day of doing nothing, but also everything. I enjoyed ambling without purpose (possibly helped by the being on the flat, rather than in the hills of Lisbon!)

Food, Fado, and steps (many steps!)

A mere minute from our apartment, we found a small, but wonderful, bakery, that would become our first stop each day for a delicious breakfast of cakes, toast, coffee and orange juice, all for less than a total of ten euros (that’s a total of ten euros, not ten euros each)

Suitably fortifided, we headed off to discover the streets of Lisbon, with no more of a plan than to head towards the Basilica de Estrella, because we knew we could climb onto its roof. So we began to walk, and we walked and walked and walked!

We saw red doors, and red aliens,

brand new murals, and brutalist architecture,

as well as more traditional Portuguese streets. We went uphill seemingly endlessly, before finally arriving at our destination. However, after all those steps and hills, we took a quick break, and I had my first Pastel de Nata of the trip. Delicious!

We then went into the Basilica and ascended the 149 steps to the roof, to take in a sweeping vista of where we had walked from.

We then walked some more, finding more street art, and view points

but we needed somewhere to have lunch, and stumbled across this little gem:

The food was fantastic, and cheap, Becky eating “Grandma’s chicken” whilst I enjoyed a chick pea curry. Salud!

Later in the day, we went out to eat in the evening – having traipsed so much of the city in the daytime, we didn’t want to go far, so picked a local grill, on a street near our apartment. The food was fine, a very rustic feel as we sat outside on benches near the bbq grill, and we were “entertained” by some Fado singers. I will be honest – not my favourite music, very earnest and worthy I’m sure, but just a wailing melancholic woman singing in a language I didn’t understand – perhaps if I’d done the three months study instead of thirty minutes on the plane it would have meant more to me, but I don’t think any Fado tracks will be making it onto my Spotify playlists.

Always pay attention …

Today we flew to Lisbon, Portugal, for a few days away, hoping for a little October sun, and European culture, and looking forward to leaving behind an increasingly cold, grey and damp UK. We flew out at the sensible time of 1.40pm, so Bristol airport was less busy, and I was less tired!

We boarded the jet and awaited our departure. Ever the rule taker, I listened to all the pre-flight announcements and heard the chief steward ask if any EasyJet plus members could make themselves known, so I did, by pressing and pinging the overhead attention button. I’m glad I did – we were “upgraded” to the empty front row, enjoying extra leg room and a spare seat.

The comfort and space gave me an opportunity to try and cram some Portuguese – I think I managed 3 weeks in our two hour flight, rather than the necessary three months the book required, but it did give me a couple of words to use on our trip.

On landing, we were a little worried about the potential for delay – Lisbon airport has a bit of a reputation for queues, but being at the front of the jet meant we were first off the plane, and no waiting at passport control – within 20 minutes of the wheels greasing the tarmac we were heading for the Metro for a 30 min tube ride to our home for the next few days.

The metro was clean, functional, cheap (circa £1.65 for a tap on tap off fare) with one change to make.

Emerging at the cruise ship port, we then had a 10-15 minute walk to our apartment – it was hot and humid and we were humping our bags up and down cobbled streets, but we soon found our flat and flopped in. After a shower and change of clothing, we headed out into the gathering dusk, to begin to explore.

We soon saw our first tram – icon symbols of Lisbon, and then spotted our first Bodello 2 piece of street art,

and many, many tiled houses:

before heading home (having eaten) through the quaint cobbled streets of Lisboa.