After almost 3 months of cavorting around Europe, we are heading home tomorrow and looking forward to the 30 plus hours of flying……NOT!  Bring on Business Class!

We negotiated the train to Lisbon even though there had been a taxi strike in both Porto and Lisbon. It just meant dragging suitcases up and down cobblestoned streets , but we made it.

Our little house in Lisbon is in the Alfama district (UNESCO listed) , the oldest part of Lisbon and again narrow winding cobblestone medieval streets.

Can you imagine Greg’s reaction when our door was opened and we saw the stairs!!!!

 

However the area is great and more importantly quiet at night. There are heaps of restaurants in the area so no chance of going hungry.

The old trams rattle up and down the narrow streets and are always packed so we choose to walk, although after 7 days of walking up and down around Porto and Lisbon , Greg’s knees are telling him that they have had enough!

 

There are some beautiful squares in the city. We liked the Praca do Comercio and it is one of the largest squares in Europe.

The Rua Augusta Arch was built to commemorate Lisbon’s re construction after the 1755 earthquake which destroyed most of Lisbon.

Lisbon has many miradouros or viewpoints where you can get nice views over the city and the Tagus River.

 

The Square , Praca Luis de Camoes was a good spot to sit and rest and have a coffee and nata or 2! (Portuguese tarts!)

Whilst sitting there enjoying our coffee and natas we saw people entering into a building that we thought was a theatre! Well guess what….it was a church! Sorry Greg , but we did go in and it was quite impressive! So impressive that he took a photo!

We are still enjoying the good food here in Portugal. We had (in Rhonda’s opinion) the best sea bass for the trip at Pateo 13. It was an enjoyable night chatting to 2 lovely German ladies.  ( Go Stuttgart)

Whilst wandering the streets of Alfama you find plaques on the walls with photos of the locals who live there. Apparently , we were told that if they find you looking at their photographs they will give you their life history. A nice touch we thought.

We have wandered down the main shopping streets. Rhonda has scored a pair of shoes but there is still some more shopping to do!

We did a great food and wine tour here in Lisbon. We would highly recommend “Ruthy’s Tour”. We spent nearly 4 hours wandering the Alfama streets , eating and drinking. It was fabulous! Greg even tried “sardines” which he vowed he would never eat. Mind you he didn’t like it at all.

 

We finished up with the “Award winning” Pastel Feijao. It is a “modern take” on the old Portuguese recipe of cannelloni bean and almond pastry. OMG it was delicious and in our opinion they are better than the Pastel de Nata!

 

 

Whilst on the subject of Pastel de Nata , we have tried quite a few ( Greg more than Rhonda!) but our favourite are the ones we had in Belem. We took a 30 minute tram ride, specifically to go to the very popular Pasteis de Belem Patisserie.

It is the “home” of the Pastel de Belem or Portuguese tart. In 1837 , this café began making the tarts from an ancient recipe which was give to them by the monks at the Monastery in Belem. They are all hand made and to watch them in production is amazing. It is quite an art.

It was from Belem that Vasco de Gama departed on his voyages to discover “the world” and the sail shaped Discoveries Monument , built in the 1960’s is dedicated to all the Portuguese explorers and adventurers. It was quite impressive.

The UNESCO listed Belem Tower was also rather nice and built in the 16th Century as a fort to protect the coast.

The most impressive building however is the massive Jeronimos Monastery , built in the 16th Century and the final resting place for Vasco de Gama. Being a Monday the Monastery was closed so (in Greg’s words) thankfully we could not visit!

 

On Greg’s wish list of food to try here in Portugal ( as well as the tarts) was Portuguese chicken. Well, we must say it was the best roast chicken we have ever had. The rather spicy piri piri sauce just gave that little kick to it. The restaurant has been “cooking chooks” since 1960 so after all that time they have certainly got it right. Delicious!

We also visited the ” Time Out ” Market and these little suckling piglets looked pretty darn good too!

We have been enjoying wandering the streets , then finding a little bar to sit and enjoy a refreshing sangria or beer!

However unfortunately that has all come to an end! Well almost!

So for the Last time, it is that time again!

By the way flights are booked for next year! ( Sorry Ez)

So adios until next year!

Greg and Rhonda

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By the way , our last day here in Lisbon is 35 degrees! Can you all please organise some good weather back in Melbourne for us!