Arrived LAX past 3pm for our 5:55 pm boarding to Heathrow . Met Sandy who just arrived from Sacramento . Skipped lunch .. Now starving ..Conveniently there’s a restaurant across our Gate 43 terminal 3 .. The grilled salmon was pretty amazing with edamame and ponzu sauce .. Finished the whole plate .. Yum! Who would think airport food could taste this good?

Dreading the 9 hour flight via AA.. Then another 2.5 hour flight from London to Lisbon. Need to really love traveling to endure this much seating..

Finally Lisbon. Stayed at Behotelisboa. Good centrally located hotel . Its a 5 minute walk to the heart of the city, Baixa. Clean , friendly hotel clerks but best part was fresh baked pastel de Nata served in the lobby for all guests with matching Port wine .. very nice added surprise treat . Warning: the pastel de Nata is “addicting”.

First a little bit about Lisbon. It’s the capital and largest city of Portugal. Its the oldest city in Western Europe predating London, Paris and Rome by centuries. It is the political center of the country and where the head of state resides. It enjoys a mediterranean climate and has one of the warmest winter in Europe.

Dos and Don’t While in Lisbon

I. What to do:

1. Wear comfy shoes. Lisbon is the City of Seven Hills. Expect lots of walking and steep hilly walk way ..your pedometer would thank you . Hitting 10,000 steps is a breeze . Averaging over 20k a day .. that’s around 7-8 miles easily burning 600-700 calories . Yes !

2. Pastry heaven . Favorite Pastel de Nata . Check out Fabriça de Nata . Crunchy crust and creamy custard . Divine

3. If you like cod and sardines . This is the place to get all the variations .

4. Try renting a car . Just make sure you can drive a manual since that’s what most of them are in Portugal. Went to Fatima and Porto on day one . Total driving one way 3 to 5 hours depending on traffic. Although Sintra is only 45 minutes from Lisbon and we took a tour guide, you can easily drive there. So if you rent for a couple days, you can get more out of your trip. Be ready for the tolls–you can use cash or card but not Amex. Traffic can be bad and seem crazy, but if you’ve driven in San Francisco and LA, then you’ll be fine.

5. Bring sunscreen , hat, sun glasses .. expect lots of sun this time of the year . Also, bring a light jacket and or scarf, it could get chilly at night . It drizzled one morning and another afternoon, but within a couple hours, besides occasional clouds, the sun was out.

6. Expect a metal post here and there , that’s around 2.5 feet high that sticks out in the middle of roads where pedestrians and tourist frequent… Never seen this before.. When the light’s red, the post blocks entry, but it comes down automatically* on some streets when light turns green or manually (some officials go on the side of street to pull out a cover where a key is inserted then the metal poll comes down back to level the road.. so when google map takes you there .. and the metal post is sticking in the middle of the road .. don’t immediately think it’s a permanently blocked road ..

7. Do the sunset river cruise on Tagus . Spectacular view of bridge ( Golden gate copy but designed after Bay Bridge to address the tectonic plates since Lisbon is in a quake zone, theirs seems slightly longer from end to end) , and view of the city showcasing the monastery , pantheon , castle , old residential buildings with orange ceramic tile roof and balconies sticking out with dainty metal railings .

8. Do ignore the designated staff who stands in front of restaurants . Their main role is to nag and “pester” tourist to try their dish .. they will walk with you , and follow you till you say no for the 3rd or 4th time .. if you intend to walk alone, bring head phones if you wish , to block off these peddlers .. pretend your intently listening to your music or on the phone , some even would approach you for weed , viagra( if you’re a male over 40) , cocaine etc .. pretty surreal ..

9. Do expect most of locals to speak English enough to carry out transactions and or exchange pleasantries… mostly warm and friendly people

10. Surprisingly, quite safe town . We felt safe walking around at night ..except for some reports of pickpocketing . Locals warn tourist everywhere .. as usual, of course exercise judgement and be mindful of which part of town you are in ..

11. Electric powered Tuk~tuk is their tourist transpo that takes people around town . It’s a tricycle or light motored car that could carry 4-6 people…

12. Expect to be entertained with local talents demo-ing their craft .. there’s a puppet master who lets his puppet play the banjo.. teens busting their energetic dance moves (almost like a revival from the 80s break dancing but with a twist of unique modern moves ),.. local musician playing smooth jazz using odd utensils and hard card board .. wild, unique and it works ..

13. If not direct flight , make sure connecting is at least minimum 2 -3 hours to avoid missing your connection ..

14. Try their Gelatos . Pleasantly surprised . Thought Italians make the best , but Lisbon proved it otherwise. Their lemon rosemary with honey was delish .. Not too sweet , hint of sourness and oh so refreshing . The vanilla with basil was also fabulous .

15. Uber seemed reliable and there are taxis in the tourist areas and ubiquitous squares/praças, for when your feet are beyond tired.

16. Try to stay near Baixa. Our hotel is located there. Its an elegant district peppered with retail stores, sculptures, monuments, restaurants and medley of local artists showcasing their work. It is also a short walk to the waterfront.

17. It’s a must to see Belem. It is where famous Portuguese explorers set of their voyages of discovery. The famous tower or Torre de Belem, is situated there. This tower was built as a fortified lighthouse to guard the entrance to the port.

 

II. What not to do:

1. Don’t do a just a day trip in Porto . This city is magical . Plan to stay at least a day or 2.. or at least overnight.

2. Don’t expect great coffee . Not their thing I guess .. no great cappuccino around.. but their espressos are real kickers for the coffee lovers.

3. Try not to take British air from Heathrow to Lisbon . You have to pay even for water.. Imagine that . First time in so many travels . Even Southwest gives water coffee or tea with pretzel or peanut ..

5. Don’t diet in Lisbon . Forget it for Pete’s sake. Part of enjoying Lisbon is trying their culinary crafts. Walking will burn it off anyway .. plus you will miss out on their one of a kind delicacies from their amazing pastries, seafood delight, local wine and cheeses ..

6. Don’t expect same service from tour guide . First one we tried who did the city tour , the driver got a poor review from us . He was 45 mins late, ended tour earlier and dropped us not at our hotel but 20 minute walk to our hotel .. couldn’t believe . It was our first day and we weren’t quite oriented and we got lost and took 40 minutes to get back . On the other hand , the other 3 tour guides deserve a 5 star . Knowledgeable , friendly , willing to accommodate some out of the agenda request..

7. Try to avoid Madrid connection .. . long line to get through passport control even for transit passengers leaving EU … it took us around 40 mins .. Luckily, we had another hour before boarding for a light breakfast.. Others weren’t too fortunate . Missed their flights and you could just imagine the drama and temper from all these exhausted travelers . Babies crying , people from all walks of life expressing their frustration and screaming at those who tried to cut through the line. Its like Tower of Babel with mix of different languages all trying to talk at the same time.

8. Don’t expect two singled beds to be apart .. we first got a king bed. We asked to get 2 single beds . First hotel clerk said it’ll cost as 30 euros each night . Told them we reserved room for 2 single beds . Finally, the next day we tried our luck again and this time the manager, Nelson , transferred us to the room without extra cost . But yeah .. their 2 single beds are 2 beds squeezed together to form one .. didn’t expect that but it worked , the big window that opens to a terrace overlooking the town square was totally appreciated… Hotels in Baixa district are typical European small hotels with small and compact rooms in city centers, with very few that might even have a spa. But the access to all the sightseeing delights is a great trade-off.

9. No PDA near monasteries or near playground .. Frowned upon.. park or church attendant would go out of their way to tell you off . Double yikes ! ..So keep hands to self 😉

10. Don’t bring outside pastries to cafes..strictly eat what they have on their menu while you are at their premise .. Don’t dare take a single bite from your to-go box from the nearby pastry shop .. waiter will literally lecture you . Yeah . That happened. Nuff said 😉

May 7

Left Lisbon . Transit to Madrid .. 12 hours of butt warming , bone aching flight to Lax .. food served by Iberia was so-so but hey it’s warm and balanced with veggies on the side , dessert and a roll.. The choices were meatballs or lasagna . Got the meatballs. It was salty. Would be nice if they warmed up the rolls , like other airlines .However , the Spanish red wine they served was pretty tasty and surprisingly delightful .

One good thing about long haul flight is it allows you catch up on movies or books you’ve put off forever. Like those that you totally want to watch but have no time to .. Or read books that have steadily collected dusts in your bookshelf .. Watched 4 movies . . Thank God for Bose headset (got to bring your own headset ). Checked out “Hacksaw Ridge” ( directed by Mel Gibson , Andrew Garfield as Desmond Doss, the war hero , based on true story ) , “Why him?” (comedy starring James franco and Bryan Cranston ) , “Split” (psych thriller , directed by M night Shyamalan , starring James McAvoy, superb acting ) and finally, “Deadpool” (starring Ryan Reynolds, my favorite movie of the 4, appreciated the witty and hilarious script ) all four movies needless to say totally helped with passing time .. Imagine if you happen to get on a seat with video and audio defect. We’re still lucky despite getting the middle row seat .. off all times to get that .. Oh well .. Sandy wanted to scream and swore to pay $500 more for a direct flight with at least an aisle seat or window.. I can think of other ways to spend my $500 + .. especially since one can reasonably spend that in 5 days in Lisbon without adding crazy shopping indulgences. Food and drinks are nothing like prices in Paris and London.

In conclusion, Lisbon is an under rated gem of a city with lots of hidden surprises .. it’s coming to the city without much expectation that favorably amplified the trip for me . From the food , the people, the artistic tiles , the diverse architecture, there’s lots to delight all your senses .. we say “why not? try it out”, explore Lisbon and prepare to be dazzled and amazed beyond your expectations .. only when you see, feel, hear and taste the city that you truly can grasp the magic of this place ..