Christine in Lisbon, Portugal

In Portugal, Lisbon is actual Lisboa.  And what a hot city.  Not just the fun and excitement.  I think I visited Spain and Portugal during the hottest time possible.  It's a wonder I didn't melt.  Oh, don't look for ice cream in Lisboa.  It is impossible to find.  I confirmed this with a Portuguese friend.  I spent a day and a half visiting the city.

Very cool art on the building:  

I hiked up to see the Castle of Sao Jorge.  In 38 C (100 degrees F) heat. That is quite an accomplishment.  

A view from the castle grounds:

Inside the castle:

Lisbon has a famous Tram 28.  It goes around many tourist attractions, to include the castle.  Not that I would take the Tram up there when I can walk.  I later took the tram to see the Christopher Columbus memorial.  It was across town.  And remember, it was 40 Celsius.

The Mosteriro dos Jeronimos is beautiful architecture.  I went inside the church (to the right) but mass was ongoing.  So no pictures inside.   You can thank Maria (the greatest travel partner ever) for these pictures.  I think if it was just me, I would have quit before I walked up to see the castle.  But I didn't want to ruin her vacation.  I remember DC hot.  And I think I liked it.  But I have definitely acclimated to Stuttgart, Germany temped weather.  Where hot is over 20 C (or around 75 degrees).

Lisbon has a huge Christopher Columbus Memorial.  Notice anything familiar in this picture?  Hmm, what about that bridge?  Besides the fact it is super high.  One of the Stuttgart Tuesday Night Dinner participants was Portuguese.  He told me it the United States paid for it.  And the same architecture from the Golden Gate bridge designed it.   Only the Americans would build a ridiculously high bridge.  The rest of Europe has short bridges.  The train from Faro to Lisbon travelled over it.  Trust me, it is high.  I know high.

I visited the Calouste Gulbenkian Museum.  Essentially, the Armenian left his fortune to his adopted country.  Included is amazing Oriental and Occidental art.  There were gorgeous rungs and pottery to admire.  I don't take many pictures of art, because I'm a believer of enjoying it in person.  But I did love The Boats by Claude Monet.  (Or maybe I don't take many pictures of art because it is hard to center the art without a tripod.  Hmmm.)

Thank you for traveling with me Maria!  I loved every minute of our vacation.  And we should vacation more often.

Christine

Christine in Faro, Portugal

Vacation equals laying on a beach.  That's the whole purpose of visiting Faro, Portugal.  Faro is a scenic, 2 hour bus ride from Seville, Spain.  We drove past rolling hills.  Though most were brown.  Because it was 40 C (104 F) there.  And, as best I can tell, no rain.  Ever.  Well, not during my journey.  There are no pictures.  I may have fell asleep part of the way.  I'm sure you all are shocked.

The ocean. (I've skipped to the fun part.   We'll get back to the city in a second.)

Faro is also the southern most point of Portugal.  Learn something new everyday.

After arriving, we toured the old town.  Check off the church.  And the boats.  The food was spectacular.  We shared shell fish paella (which is actually a Spanish dish, but whatever).  Amazing tasting.  And drank sangria.  So refreshing.

The main event of the trip was the Deserted Island.  I took the 40 minute ferry ride over.  The island has a restaurant that serves fresh fish from the waters.  The fishermen live right there.  And some umbrellas and chairs to rent.  A nature trail walk and lots of sea shells also occupies the island.  We spent the whole day being lazy by the water.  What a great day.

From Faro, we took the train to Lisboa (Lisbon).

Christine

Christine in Seville, Spain

I love Spain!  Beautiful country.  Amazing food (love tapas).  But hot.  In July it is hot hot hot.  I understand why Spaniards take naps in the middle of the day.  Cause they would melt otherwise.

Seville is what I think of when I think Spain.  The Cathedral is the 3rd largest church in Europe but largest Gothic church anywhere.  Christopher Columbus's tomb is located within the church.  Once I again, I climbed a church tower for you.  The Giralda Tower is actually a ramp, not steps.  Originally part of a Moorish mosque, people rode horses up the ramps to call Muslims to prayers.  It became the cathedral's bell tower after the Reconquista.

The ramp up:  

View from the top:

Seville houses Alcazar, one of the loveliest palaces I have visited.  Built in the 10th century, it was for the Moorish governors.  However, it still functions as a royal palace today-the oldest in use in Europe.  The king and queen use an apartment upstairs still (which you can tour at certain times--unfortunately, I did not make it during that time frame).  The tile work within the parts of the palace is fascinating.  The Hall of the Ambassadors was King Pedro I's throne room.  I could have stared at the half dome ceiling for hours.  It is a starry heaven.  The Gardens were massive.

One of my favorite all time places and pictures.

Take a tour of a bull fighting ring if you ever have a chance.  The Spaniards say (and I agree) that bull fighting is an art.  As it is so hot, you pay extra for seats in the shade during a bull fight.  The matador actually has a team of people to help him.    (Read more on bullfighting:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish-style_bullfighting.)

If you look closely at the view from the church, you can see the bull fighting ring.

The food was amazing.  I love tapas.  You get to eat lots and lots of samples.  And you aren't stuck with just one thing.  The octopus salad is still my favorite.  And the first night I tried the local soup-salmorejo.  Best cold soup ever.  But I don't think I had one bad taste while there.  Though I admit that some were better than others.

 The first restaurant we ate at and I fell in love with the salmorejo:

Lots of wonderful sangria:  

Jamon (Spanish ham):  

Christine