Seems like forever since I wrote, sorry. Traveled with family to mainland, just for a short trip off island. Stayed at a friend’s apartment, rented a car, and had a great time. Never enough time to see everything you want; visited shops, fantastic bakeries, beaches, landmarks, and malls.
The one greatest thing about retiring outside the U.S.A. is the unbelievable diversity. I was never raised as a “meat and potatoes” kind of guy, and traveling in mainland emphasizes that every minute. Of course, they have meat and potatoes, but also every manner of fish, cous cous, rice, pastries, and candies. One of our best meals was fire-roasted pork ribs and potatoes in a little out of the way restaurant near Sintra, run for decades by an magnificent lady called Alice — thus I dubbed it “Alice’s Restaurant.” So we sat at the Group W Bench and chatted with Alice about her history, the good times and bad, how she had stayed with the business so long, etc. (Officer Obie was long gone by then:)) She was wonderful, the food was wonderful, and there is no way I could find this place again without GPS. But I will try, believe me!
For a history buff, Lisboa has a lot. I have visited many times and only scratched the surface. I’ll keep going back as long as I can. One trek I still want to make is to walk over the Roman aqueduct built in the 1600s. You can walk from one end to the other, and it completely bisects the town so the view must be awesome. It’s not a “ruin,” it’s in perfect shape, so the folks who built it really knew what they were doing! Not to mention museums, cathedrals, gardens, narrow streets and stairways, and of course, the warm reception from nearly everyone.
So please put Lisbon on your list. It’s awesome, fun, crowded, and warm. I think you can’t help but love it. See you there!