June 9th, Portugal Here We come

We left home on time and caught the bus into the airport.  We even had time for a happy vacation drink.  Then the trouble started.  Just before we boarded our plane to Philadelphia, Neal noticed that our flight to Portugal was going to be late.

When we got to Philadelphia it looked like our next flight was going to be four hours late.  This meant we would miss our train.  Fortunately we had plenty of time to change the train.

Once we got on the plane we were both so tired we actually slept for most of the flight. It was about 1:00 am and we are not known as night owls.

When we landed in Lisbon it was easy going through customs and catching a taxied.

The train station was large and kind of confusing for two tired travelers who never did figure out five words in Portuguese.  However it was a beautiful day and the train station was beautiful. We got to see our first mosaic sidewalks and they were not what I expected.  They are acres of mosaics just like on tables back home.

We could have caught an earlier train but we already used up our one change so we had a few hours to kill.  There is a big modern mall across from the station so we put our bags in a locker and headed for a snack and place to explore.  All the usual stores were there.  I felt like most of the products were a bit ahead of us but then I have not been in a mall in a while.  It was a national holiday so kids of all ages were everywhere.  We stopped for hot chocolate for me and coffee for Neal and little custard filled pastries that I have read about.  Neal was thrilled when they topped them with more cinnamon.

We found our train whit no trouble and settled into our seats for still another nap. We had a three hour train ride but it passed quickly.

We had a very sweet young taxi driver waiting for us at the train station.  He took us directly to our apartment.  There was a woman named Grace waiting to show us around.

We have landed in paradise.  This apartment is something out of a magazine.  Later we found that there is no soap or shampoo but other than that, we have landed in Heaven.  There is an upstairs bedroom with a terrace overlooking the river and the bridge to Gaia. There is a second bedroom and bath down stairs.  Wood floors and interestingly paneled walls make this a really beautiful space.  I love feeling my way around all the spaces. I love finding the furniture and how people accent the space.  I could live here.  I will take home ideas for our house.

We went store for dinner at the RC Restaurante.  It is a quiet place that seems to be mostly locals.  We had green cabbage and sausage soup and garlic shrimp. I had Vinho Verde to drink.  We wanted to order port and cheese but that never quite happened.  Then it was time for bed.

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