The various alarm clocks worked and we were down for breakfast at about 6.30am with our bags packed. We checked out and thanked the staff for a great time before wandering out into the early morning sunlight to wait for our cab. After a few nervous minutes, he appeared outside the hotel and drove us smoothly to the airport.
Checking in took some time but we were among the first for our flight in the Easy Jet queue which meant we got put in group A for boarding. Having off loaded our baggage we headed off through passport control, using a microchip scanner for the first time. It was very simple to use, you just lay your passport down on the reader with the photo showing, and then stepped into the booth where there were two green feet for you to stand on. Don't look down to check your feet are on the right place because the machine will take a picture of the top of your head and you then have to wait for it to try again...but once it has taken your picture it lets you through. We then wandered off to the waiting area for our flight.
We were late taking off as the previous flight didn't leave on time due to lots of late passengers, apparently there had been a problem with the passport control system after we went through and hundreds of people were having to dash down corridors to make their flights. Eventually, we were moved to another gate, luckily it was on the other side of the corridor from the one where we had been sat for the past 2 hours, but we did have to take a bus to the plane because of the problems with other flights not being able to leave on time.
The flight home was quiet and we had plenty of leg room in the front row of seats. The landing at Luton, to quote the steward sat opposite us, "was quick". He did seems a little wide eyed at the rapidity of our descent, but we were all alive and ready to go home.
After customs clearance and baggage collection, I rang up the parking company and the car was delivered to the airport for us. We loaded up and headed home in the glorious sunshine of an English summer's day...
Post script - just the 980 photos to download, weed out and process. the best ones are available on Flickr.com in my Lisbon Holiday 2009 set.
Monday 31 August 2009
Monday 29th June: Butterflies and bus trip
Monday morning started as Sunday had, with rain showers. After the reception staff helped us confirm our airport taxi pick up for Tuesday morning, we headed out for the day. But this morning the Sao Sebastian metro station reopened and it was a quick dash into El Corte Ingles for the Guardian and a coffee while we waited for the shower to pass. Having a metro stop within the shop meant we did not have to get wetter and we headed off into town, getting off at Avenida metro and walking through the back streets to find the entracne to the Botanical Gardens.
A stroll round found us at the butterfly house where they were breeding Monarch and Cleopatra butterflies. They flew around us and settled long enough for me to take several pictures.
We then headed out of the gardens and off into the Bairro Alto until we came across the viewing point on Rua Dom Pedro V (Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara) at the head of the Elevador da Gloria funicular which we took down into the square.
Once down, Sonia bought herself a fan from a traditional hat shop before we went to the Swiss cafe for lunch. Sonia had burgers and a salad while I went for the Portuguese staple of boiled cod served with whole fired potatoes, which we topped off with port and coffee mousse/cake. From here we headed up to Largo Sao Domingos (the square by AGinginha) for a photo of the Jewish memorial and off through the grid of streets of Baixa to a Fair Trade shop where, surprisingly we didn't buy anything!
With our shopping heads on we caught the 28 tram to Largo by Baixa Chaido metro and Rua Garret and walked down the "The Wrong Shop", but it was closed with a "back soon" sign up. We headed round the corner to the cafe in the square for a glass or two of iced tea. Sitting at the table, we realised that we were at the entrance of the Elevador de Santa Justa. We rode the elevador down to the square and took an open top tourist bus trip round the city for 90 minutes.
This took us to several places that we had already visited but also to many parts of the city we had not had the time or energy to see.
When we got back, we headed back up the elevador to The Wrong Shop and I finally bought a souvenir tee shirt. Having done our tourist shopping, we got on the metro at Baixa-Chaido. Getting off at Sao Sebastian meant we were able to walk straight into the supermarket section at El Corte Ingles to each buy a bag of local sweets to take back to the folks back at work.
We made it back to the hotel about 6ish, and as the night before, we settled down in the bar for sandwiches, beers and cuba libres while watching England lose to Germany in an Under 21 game. We gave up at 9.15 with England 2-0 down as we had to be up early the next morning for our flight. The hotel staff assured us that breakfast would be available at 6.30 if we wanted it so we thanked them and headed off to pack.
A stroll round found us at the butterfly house where they were breeding Monarch and Cleopatra butterflies. They flew around us and settled long enough for me to take several pictures.
We then headed out of the gardens and off into the Bairro Alto until we came across the viewing point on Rua Dom Pedro V (Miradouro de Sao Pedro de Alcantara) at the head of the Elevador da Gloria funicular which we took down into the square.
Once down, Sonia bought herself a fan from a traditional hat shop before we went to the Swiss cafe for lunch. Sonia had burgers and a salad while I went for the Portuguese staple of boiled cod served with whole fired potatoes, which we topped off with port and coffee mousse/cake. From here we headed up to Largo Sao Domingos (the square by AGinginha) for a photo of the Jewish memorial and off through the grid of streets of Baixa to a Fair Trade shop where, surprisingly we didn't buy anything!
With our shopping heads on we caught the 28 tram to Largo by Baixa Chaido metro and Rua Garret and walked down the "The Wrong Shop", but it was closed with a "back soon" sign up. We headed round the corner to the cafe in the square for a glass or two of iced tea. Sitting at the table, we realised that we were at the entrance of the Elevador de Santa Justa. We rode the elevador down to the square and took an open top tourist bus trip round the city for 90 minutes.
This took us to several places that we had already visited but also to many parts of the city we had not had the time or energy to see.
When we got back, we headed back up the elevador to The Wrong Shop and I finally bought a souvenir tee shirt. Having done our tourist shopping, we got on the metro at Baixa-Chaido. Getting off at Sao Sebastian meant we were able to walk straight into the supermarket section at El Corte Ingles to each buy a bag of local sweets to take back to the folks back at work.
We made it back to the hotel about 6ish, and as the night before, we settled down in the bar for sandwiches, beers and cuba libres while watching England lose to Germany in an Under 21 game. We gave up at 9.15 with England 2-0 down as we had to be up early the next morning for our flight. The hotel staff assured us that breakfast would be available at 6.30 if we wanted it so we thanked them and headed off to pack.
Sunday 28th June 2009: Tram and boat trips
Sunday did not look promising as we woke to a grey sky and rain drops on the balcony. With all plans on hold we decided to spend some time tidying up all the leaflets and guides that we had collected. Then, while Sonia read her holiday book, I "snoozed and snored". The rain passed and we decided it was OK to head out about 11ish. We walked down to the Parque metro station, hopping off at Restauradores to pick up a copy of The Observer and to have a drink at Cafe Nicola.
Having pepped our selves up with caffeine, we caught the Elevador de Santa Justa up and out through the back streets of Chaido to Praca Los De Camoes.
We caught the 28E tram from Praca Los De Camoes to Graca. We had an entertaining journey as we headed into the narrow streets of Alfama. The tram tracks merged into a single track due to the narrowness of the streets, and we came round a corner to find the downhill stuck. It had come down just too far for our tram to pass, but it couldn't reverse back up hill so our driver had to swing the boom and she then reversed back down the hill to the points so we could let the other tram pass. Hidden behind the tram were a load of cars and two other trams who had been held up while this "tram jam" had been sorted out.
We eventually made it up to Graca, where we jumped on to another tram and headed down to Rua Victor Corden. We then cut through the back streets, heading for Cais do Sodre where we planned to catch the boat trip. When the rain suddenly started up again, we dived into a handy Irish Bar for lunch.
The rain eased up a bit and we headed across the road to the Cais do Sodre station where we bought tickets for the boat trip to Belem. We set sail from Cais do Sodre and headed down river toward Belem, passing under the Ponte 25 de Abril, and enjoying the panoramic view of the city.
We arrived at Belem, where we had half an hour to wander around before the boat headed back. We decided not to go into the famous Torre de Belem but visited the memorial to Overseas Combatants, that not only commemorates those who fell in Portuguese wars but those who died on UN and humanitarian duties.
The trip back was another chance to enjoy the panorama of the city. We passed two contrasting forms of water transport on our way back, the sailing ship Principe Perfeito and a submarine (possibly Russian from the flag).
As we turned to dock at Cais do Sodre, we looked back at the approaching rain clouds (see above) and decided that we might not bother with any more walking than was absolutely necessary, so we caught the metro from Cais do Sodre up to Prace da Spanha. From this metro station it was as short walk to the Gulbenkian museum for coffee and a donut in the cafe. We made it back to the hotel at 6pm just as it started to rain again. Looking at the weather, we decided this evening would be the ideal opportunity to try out the hotel's bar snacks. While I watched the USA lose 3-2 to Brazil (having been 2-0 up at half time) on the bar's TV screen, Sonia used the netbook and the the hotel's wi-fi connection before we headed up for the night.
Having pepped our selves up with caffeine, we caught the Elevador de Santa Justa up and out through the back streets of Chaido to Praca Los De Camoes.
We caught the 28E tram from Praca Los De Camoes to Graca. We had an entertaining journey as we headed into the narrow streets of Alfama. The tram tracks merged into a single track due to the narrowness of the streets, and we came round a corner to find the downhill stuck. It had come down just too far for our tram to pass, but it couldn't reverse back up hill so our driver had to swing the boom and she then reversed back down the hill to the points so we could let the other tram pass. Hidden behind the tram were a load of cars and two other trams who had been held up while this "tram jam" had been sorted out.
We eventually made it up to Graca, where we jumped on to another tram and headed down to Rua Victor Corden. We then cut through the back streets, heading for Cais do Sodre where we planned to catch the boat trip. When the rain suddenly started up again, we dived into a handy Irish Bar for lunch.
The rain eased up a bit and we headed across the road to the Cais do Sodre station where we bought tickets for the boat trip to Belem. We set sail from Cais do Sodre and headed down river toward Belem, passing under the Ponte 25 de Abril, and enjoying the panoramic view of the city.
We arrived at Belem, where we had half an hour to wander around before the boat headed back. We decided not to go into the famous Torre de Belem but visited the memorial to Overseas Combatants, that not only commemorates those who fell in Portuguese wars but those who died on UN and humanitarian duties.
The trip back was another chance to enjoy the panorama of the city. We passed two contrasting forms of water transport on our way back, the sailing ship Principe Perfeito and a submarine (possibly Russian from the flag).
As we turned to dock at Cais do Sodre, we looked back at the approaching rain clouds (see above) and decided that we might not bother with any more walking than was absolutely necessary, so we caught the metro from Cais do Sodre up to Prace da Spanha. From this metro station it was as short walk to the Gulbenkian museum for coffee and a donut in the cafe. We made it back to the hotel at 6pm just as it started to rain again. Looking at the weather, we decided this evening would be the ideal opportunity to try out the hotel's bar snacks. While I watched the USA lose 3-2 to Brazil (having been 2-0 up at half time) on the bar's TV screen, Sonia used the netbook and the the hotel's wi-fi connection before we headed up for the night.
Saturday 29 August 2009
Saturday 27th June 2009: Parque das Nações
Saturday morning found us on the metro to the Parque das Nações (Park of Nations), with a brief stop off at Baixa-Chaido for the Guardian. Getting off at the Oriente metro station, we found ourselves walking through the giant Vasco da Gama shopping mall to get to the park. We arrived just before the ticket office opened so we had a little rest in the sunshine before buying a ticket each that gave us entry to the various exhibitions as well as a couple of cable car rides.
We rode the cable car down the front to the Oceanarium. I took a lot of photos in there...penguins and sea otters playing in the water, a giant sun fish, sharks, and rays swimming past at eye level. I could have stayed in there all day. Here's just a few of the hundreds of photos I took...
After the Oceanarium, we visited the Water Park and the Science Museum (which is wasted on kids) where I rode a bike on a high wire.
After playing with all the scientific "educational" stuff like the giant bubble maker and hovering ball in a stream of air, we caught the cable car back to the other end of the park to have a look at the Torre Vasco da Gama and Ponte Vasco Da Gama.
Having sated my desire to look at tall buildings and big bridges, we walked back through the different botanical gardens until we ended up at Anthony Gormley's Rhizome II sculpture.
This stands near the Pavilhao de Portugal, an amazing structure with it's swooping curved concrete roof spanning an open space that is used for civic events and concerts.
We then decided it was time to use the bits of our tickets that allowed us a ride on the little train around the site.
This was fun, waving to the kids as we went past and bumping along over the cobbles, it brought out the big kids in us both. After all that excitement, we headed off into the Vasco da Gama shopping mall for some crepes with ice cream and a pint of lemon iced tea each. A wander round the shops and we headed back to the hotel. I was impressed with the coordinated public transport set up. The metro station was linked to the bus and train stations above via a futuristic concourse, and the train station canopies especially caught my eye.
We got back to our room at 7pm, having left the hotel at 9 that morning. A quick freshen up and we were off out again at 8pm for dinner, catching the metro at Parque station and heading out into the streets from Baixa-Chaido. We found the Cervejaria Trindade restaurant up Rua Nova da Trinidade. Set in an old monastery, the food and drink was great. Sonia treated herself to a Mateus Rose while I enjoyed a 50cl glass of black beer (the local stout). Sonia's Portuguese steak came grilled with garlic and a slice of ham/bacon, my Black Pork loin was served with apple sauce. Both came with what the menu described as "old style fried potatoes". These turned out to be freshly made hot crisps. We followed these with a couple of creme custard based desserts, served with sauces - mine was a rich port and caramel sauce and I could have licked my plate clean. Finishing off with a cup of tea for Sonia and a Bica for me (small sweet strong coffee, a bit like Portuguese Espresso), we wended our way back to the hotel through the evening crowds for a well deserved rest.
We rode the cable car down the front to the Oceanarium. I took a lot of photos in there...penguins and sea otters playing in the water, a giant sun fish, sharks, and rays swimming past at eye level. I could have stayed in there all day. Here's just a few of the hundreds of photos I took...
After the Oceanarium, we visited the Water Park and the Science Museum (which is wasted on kids) where I rode a bike on a high wire.
After playing with all the scientific "educational" stuff like the giant bubble maker and hovering ball in a stream of air, we caught the cable car back to the other end of the park to have a look at the Torre Vasco da Gama and Ponte Vasco Da Gama.
Having sated my desire to look at tall buildings and big bridges, we walked back through the different botanical gardens until we ended up at Anthony Gormley's Rhizome II sculpture.
This stands near the Pavilhao de Portugal, an amazing structure with it's swooping curved concrete roof spanning an open space that is used for civic events and concerts.
We then decided it was time to use the bits of our tickets that allowed us a ride on the little train around the site.
This was fun, waving to the kids as we went past and bumping along over the cobbles, it brought out the big kids in us both. After all that excitement, we headed off into the Vasco da Gama shopping mall for some crepes with ice cream and a pint of lemon iced tea each. A wander round the shops and we headed back to the hotel. I was impressed with the coordinated public transport set up. The metro station was linked to the bus and train stations above via a futuristic concourse, and the train station canopies especially caught my eye.
We got back to our room at 7pm, having left the hotel at 9 that morning. A quick freshen up and we were off out again at 8pm for dinner, catching the metro at Parque station and heading out into the streets from Baixa-Chaido. We found the Cervejaria Trindade restaurant up Rua Nova da Trinidade. Set in an old monastery, the food and drink was great. Sonia treated herself to a Mateus Rose while I enjoyed a 50cl glass of black beer (the local stout). Sonia's Portuguese steak came grilled with garlic and a slice of ham/bacon, my Black Pork loin was served with apple sauce. Both came with what the menu described as "old style fried potatoes". These turned out to be freshly made hot crisps. We followed these with a couple of creme custard based desserts, served with sauces - mine was a rich port and caramel sauce and I could have licked my plate clean. Finishing off with a cup of tea for Sonia and a Bica for me (small sweet strong coffee, a bit like Portuguese Espresso), we wended our way back to the hotel through the evening crowds for a well deserved rest.
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