Portuguese Paradise

We touched down super late into Lisbon, found our hotel by taxi and crashed into our beds! The next morning we enjoyed breakfast at a cafe not far from our hotel. Basking in the sun and cheap eats we followed up breakfast by a trip to the park to burn some energy and get the vibe of Portugal. So far, so good. A hidden gem for me; I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get here! Inexpensive, cheerful and warm, the rusted red landscaped houses are as picturesque and they are functional. I love all the bursts of colour. Back to our traditional Europe days, we decided to walk to our next destination 30 mins away (aka 1.25 hours with kids) but we enjoyed the leisurely stroll through tourist eateries, mosaic cobbled streets lined with tourist shops and fountains in the centre. Baked goods and cafes at every turn, art for sale and on buildings, a huge fountain to make a wish, not to mention beautiful buildings and happy tourists. Lisbon we love you!!!

We made it to the medieval castle with 360 degree views of the Atlantic Ocean. Honestly spectacular views in every direction! We walked the caste walls, peeked through defensive lookouts and imagined we were protecting ourselves from ocean invading intruders. The Fort was fabulous and super sturdy, but we were shocked at the low walls and no tourist supports put into place. I’m not usually a nervous Nellie, but Miss T bopping around as usual, I had to hold her down!! it made me super nervous.

We watched the sun set with some drinks in the same park, getting more of the local flavour before half of us headed for dinner and half of us headed to the hotel for pizza delivery and an early bedtime.

The next morning we had breakfast at the hotel before taking a cab to the tower of Belem. Really beautiful tower right on the ocean. My water babes immediately took to the beach finding sand crabs and building a new home for them while Joe visited the military museum and Nina and Duncan took a walk/listened to an artist playing music. Alas the tide washed in and set the crabs free and we took a cab to the X Factory art district. Colour and creativity inked every inch as we chose American fare for lunch. The kids have seriously missed burgers, fries and milkshakes!

We walked all around after lunch, looking into windows and stopping in stores. B got his ears pierced to commemorate our trip and I tried to talk Joe into matching tattoos (no such luck)! We took the train and the tram back to the park for a stop at our fave convenience store. We enjoyed drinks with Nina and Dunc while listening to the traditional Fado music of Portugal. Nin and I grabbed takeout from across the street while practicing our French with a charming man in the lineup. So many French speakers in Portugal, it’s been a treat! Traditional Portuguese food; we ordered peri peri chicken, roasted potatoes, sautéed spinach, buttery soft salmon, rice and veggies. We chowed it down before bedtime.

The following morning Duncan and Joe grabbed rental cars at the airport and we all drove to Sintra for breakfast and sightseeing. We took the local bus to the top of the hill and bought tickets to the gorgeous gardens of the Peña Palace. We got up to the gate two mins later only to be told the workers decided to strike and the park had just closed. We pleaded, argued and glared but sadly they would not let us in. Very disappointing since this was our main reason for coming to Sintra. B and E snuck in to grab some pics while we waited and waited for a bus. Another traveler in front of us was pissed to put it lightly. She was raging at everyone she could and insisted on a full refund even if she had to walk down the mountain.

Eventually we decided to pay for a private jeep ride down and walked back partway through the adorable tourist village. More colourful shops, art and tourists winning and dinning. The shining sun every day has really added to our Portugal enjoyment and wiped away much of the earlier annoyance. We took the scenic coast drive and made our first stop in Praia da Foz da Lizandro a quaint surfing town that’s heavily populated during the summer months. The kids had a blast on the beach building a fort and then enjoyed an early dinner before our last hour drive to the Peneche peninsula. The kids were worn out at that point and chose to stay in while the four adults went downstairs for a most delicious seafood dinner. We paired dinner with never before heard of vino verde (green wine) which is apparently only made in one district of Portugal. Delish!