Portugal
Tram 28
When deciding our vacation destination for 2023, we played a game of “Where in the World?” while combing through our timeshare website. Ultimately, we landed (virtually, of course!) on the island of Madeira - part of Portugal, but just off the coast of Morocco in the Atlantic Ocean. Since we had two weeks off work and just one week on the island, we decided it was a great excuse to spend a few days on the Portuguese mainland. A friend of mine is from Lisbon and she’d been posting photos of her hometown all through COVID times, so it was already high on my list of places to visit.
As soon as we landed in Lisbon, we checked into our hotel - the quaint and welcoming, Emerald House Lisbon - then set out through the streets of Lisbon to explore. Our room wasn’t ready yet, so the concierge held our bags. We’ve found that most hotels will do this, so don’t be afraid to ask if you’ve got time before or after your stay.
It was raining when we arrived, so we thought sandals would be a better choice than soggy sneakers, but boy were we wrong! The beautiful mosaic sidewalks of Lisbon are slippery in the rain and more than seven miles later we were determined to make a better choice for day two.
Along our way, we enjoyed breakfast with cappuccino art at Café Janis, we tasted a cheese-filled cod cake (a common Portuguese snack that we found everywhere, but I wasn’t really fond of) at the Beer Museum in the historic Baixa neighborhood, and we sipped on a caipirinha at the Time Out Market - a sweet little memory of our time last year in Costa Rica. We kissed by the Tagus River, we marveled at the beauty and intricacy of the architecture, and we were just generally happy to be here.
Before leaving the U.S. for Portugal, I bought us each a 3-day Lisboa Card. This was a GREAT tip I heard and highly recommend. The Lisboa Card gives you free, unlimited access to public transportation - including the iconic Tram 28, subway, buses and funiculars of CARRIS lines - plus free or discounted admission to many museums and other attractions throughout Lisbon. It was well worth the cost and made transportation in and around Lisbon easy.
Breakfast every day at the hotel was an all-you-can-eat buffet, including made-to-order omelettes and mimosas. Our first full day in Portugal, after breakfast, we jumped on the subway and headed to Cascais, a beautiful fishing village on the southwest corner of Portugal. It was about an hour train ride and we got to watch the scenery as it passed by.
When we arrived, we walked into the frenzy of Ironman Portugal’s pre-race days! As an Ironman myself (another story for another time), I was super excited to see all the athletes and be immersed in the pre-race excitement.
We stopped right away at a little outdoor cafe where we sipped our first Portuguese porto oceanside while watching the swim course setup. From there, we took off on foot to explore.
We walked through the Citadel of Cascais, an old fortress turned luxury hotel, where Todd had a staring contest with a statue and I tried gazing through some larger-than-life binoculars, then through the adjacent park where we found more statuary, roaming chickens and peacocks.
We were not-so-subtly reminded of the ocean’s power when a wave unexpectedly crashed over us while standing on the rocky cliffs of Boca do Inferno (hands down the most terrifying part of my day!). While other people had ventured out toward the edge of the cliffs and we followed to marvel at the beauty of the ocean, it was a strong reminder of the inherent dangers there. The ocean appears far down the cliffs, but beware, as the waves crash, they sometimes carry enough force to crash up and over the edge.
Later, we enjoyed a delicious seafood dinner (what else in a fishing village?!) at the Baía do Peixe restaurant in Cascais Bay before heading home.
Funny thing though… On our way home, the subway train didn’t stop at our stop. Instead, we rode to the end of the line and found ourselves in the hustle and bustle of Lisbon at night. Lesson learned… Know the train (or bus) schedule since there may be hour and/or day closures at designated stops. Lucky for us, with so many bars and restaurants open at night that had been quiet during our daytime wanderings, this turned out to be a happy accident. We wandered the streets toward our hotel until we found just the right spot… A tiny little jazz club with live music. We got the best seats in the house, cozy leather armchairs, where we sat listening to music while sipping a glass of moscotel and eating chocolate cake and ice cream. Not a bad way to end our day and another reminder that sometimes being comfortable wandering can lead to an unexpected surprise.
Our third day in Portugal, we again set out walking the streets around Lisbon. Planes, trains and automobiles are great ways to get around, but nothing beats exploring a new city on foot. Walking with little to no true agenda allows you to take in all the splendor and little surprises that give each city its personality.
While exploring the Chiado and Barrio Alto neighborhoods, we found local artists selling original art depicting some of our favorite aspects of Lisbon (the bright yellow, iconic Tram 28, and stunning blue and white tile work Portugal is known for). We stopped for tapas and pastries and sips of local wine whenever we had the urge. And we browsed through more than one street fair nestled along the alley ways and city squares.
Rossio Square was filled with people and flowers and fountains.
At Martin Moniz Square, we joined the queue of so many fellow tourists to hop on Tram 28. Thinking we’d ride it from end to end, we instead spontaneously hopped off mid-way and found a few more little gems, including
A street side table offering shots of porto or ginjinha (a tart cherry liquor) in chocolate cups
A rooftop bar offering bread, cheese, cocktails and beautiful views of the city at night, and
An awesome little artists’ shop where we did a little shopping
We sipped porto and enjoyed beautiful panoramic views of Lisbon from the top of the Elevador de Santa Justa and we finally ate dinner at one of the many super cute, tiny restaurants that come alive at night. Every step of the way, we laughed and loved and felt so grateful to be exactly where we were (even if we didn’t always know where that was!).
“Travel can be hard sometimes. But it can also be so rewarding,” my husband kindly and wisely reminded me when our day trip to Sintra started off on a rough foot. Lessons we learned:
Again, always know the transit schedule because random train stations might be closed at specific days and/or times. Our planned 1-hour train ride from Lisbon to Sintra turned into a 3-hour train, Uber, subway and bus ride due to closures and communication barriers.
Rarely trust bus drivers. This might sound harsh, but in more than one country, we’ve had trouble with bus transit. For some reason, bus drivers aren’t always nice - even if they can be incredibly skilled drivers - and for tourists in unfamiliar territory and with limited local language skills, this can be discouraging.
People can be really nice. Just when I was ready to skip the trip to Sintra, we met another wanderer trying to catch a bus to her destination and being denied by the bus driver for unexplained reasons. A quick Uber request and invitation to share the ride got us back on track.
We finally got off the train in downtown Sintra with just enough time to explore the Moorish Castle and Pena Palace, and enjoy a charcuterie tray of Portuguese cheeses, sausage and chutney with a glass of wine at Incomum.
Definitely get a hop-on/hop-off bus pass in Sintra. The trip from downtown to the castles is a very narrow, steep, twisty-turny adventure that was scary on the bus, but would be terrifying on foot, trying to avoid the buses sharing the same space. In some cases, there was quite literally an inch to spare between the bus and a stone wall! And don’t forget to use your Lisboa Card for discounted admission to the castles.
I wish we’d had more time to explore Sintra’s little downtown shops and cafés, but I’m happy we made the trip. Wandering through the lush grounds surrounding the Moorish Castle, taking in the sweeping vista views from the top of the towers, and imaging how life must have been in the 10th century when it was alive and bustling was incredible. In contrast to the rough stonework of the Moorish Castle, the colorful opulence of Pena Palace was almost overwhelming. There was intricate tile work, brightly painted exteriors, carved stone gargoyles, mosaic ceilings, and so much art in every conceivable space, that if you closed your eyes, you could almost imagine being transported back to the dangerous and romantic era of King Ferdinand II.
Portugal has so much more to offer than our four days allowed, but with a little planning and our wandering spirit, we were able to experience pieces of its history, artistry, food and culture.
Obrigado, Lisbon. Until next time…