Ho la,

    Before going any further I need to correct something. People from Lisbon are not Lisbon's!   They are called Lisbeth's.

 

At the risk of having both the Lisbon mafia and the Russian mob after me,  I have noticed some similarity in speech between the two languages. OK, time to run and hide.

 

I have also noticed that, unlike Korea, most older women do not dye their hair. If they do it is a light auburn colour. All the men just let it turn grey. Must say that I have seen some very striking heads of hair. Now that you have stopped laughing I´m sure that you know what I mean.

 

There are four types of eating and drinking places here.

Pastels: yep, calorie hell. You see lots of people come in and stand at the counter to drink their black coffee and eat a sweet something or other.  There is no alcohol served.

Small cafes: usually beer, sandwiches and some sweet pastries. You can also stand at the counter to eat and drink. some tables outside.

Restaurants. These are the fully functional restaurants where you can only sit down to eat

and drink. Lots of them have tables outside.

Last but not least are Gonking´s. They are small places where you get a shot of cherry brandy in either a plastic cup to go,  or a glass to stand and sip. It costs 1 euro, and I must say that having tried two or three I am a fan. It is not the sweet stuff that grandma used to serve. This is the real thing. Plus you get a fermented sour cherry in the cup......

 

I went back to Belem. I like the place. Even with all the tourists it has a charm about it that I like. It is less crowded than other parts of Lisbon and it feels a good few degrees cooler.  I went to a restaurant that was ´touted´in the book. Bit disappointing. Seems as though fame as changed the ´local ´restaurant into a money making venture. It was n´t that the food was bad it was just that it did n´t have the local feel that I was expecting.

I did however find a REALLY good wine bar. The selection is formidable but the prices are are not bad. It was n´t open for drinks, however I had a good chat with one of the owners about, um, three guesses!

I will be going back later this week.

 

Found a local restaurant, my local area,  for supper. Had an excellent beef stew washed down with a red wine. There was a TV and I wanted to watch the Korea Nigeria game. There were quite a few locals and I was voted down. They bought me a jug of house wine as a consolation.

The washroom has a metal holder for cigarettes. I haven´t seen one of those for a few decades. It also seems that the locals keep their fish and meat in the owners fridge and pick them up on their way home. Have to like that.

I saw someone eating a plate full of shells. Asked what they were. He wrote the name down. I´ll try some tomorrow. The counter has stools around three sides. You have to stand on a rail that is about  two feet high before you  able to sit on the stool.  All in all I like the place.

 

Today 23rd. I wandered about. Lisbon is built upon seven hills. I have climbed four of them. Some by choice others by accident. One of the accidents bought me to a short cut to my hotel. I liked that.  It sometimes feels like I am in the Robert Frost poem. Surprising, and for the most part enjoyable, the things you find when you venture of the beaten path.

A nice little cafe for a sandwich and a beer that was half the cost at the bottom of the hill.

Went for my four tastings of wine at Vino Portugal. Must say that I am getting to know a few of the grapes quite well. Sat for a pleasant hour.

 

The shells were snails. I had a plate and a bottle of Vino Vherdi. I followed that with a huge fish steak. grouper I think, boiled potatoes and green beans. I liked it but felt the 26 euros a bit expensive. Think I´ll look for somewhere else tomorrow.

 

Thursday. Took at tram ride this morning. The journey lasted 45 minutes. The trams are made of polished wood inside. There are seats for about 25 people. The route covered a lot of the places that I want to see so it was a good way to find out where they were. Some of the roads are so steep it´s a wonder that the tram gets up them.  More amazing is the thought of the labour that went into laying the tracks and hanging the wires. On some of the steeper climbs it sounds as though there is ´ booster rocket ´ because the tram speeds up!!!   Some of the streets are so narrow that pedestrians have to flatten them selves against the wall as the tram goes past. If there is a delivery truck on the track the tram just waits until it moves. No one yells or gets upset. I know that the drivers, as in all cities, do the same route each day. However, here the tram routes are not very large and it allows the drivers to wave and talk to people that they know.   Of course the drivers in the buses can´t do that,  but it does give you a sense of, um, dare I say it,  tramquility!!!

 

Still with traffic. Cars stop for you even if you are n´t quite at the crossing, and there is a surprising lack of noise, read horns honking.  Drivers are polite and obey ALL signals. ( Korea it ain´t).  Lisbon has a relaxed feel about it that I like.

 

I was having a mid morning cherry brandy when I heard the sound of a drum and cymbals. Across the road in the big square were a troupe from Macao. They were performing  a dragon dance. Their costumes were brilliant yellow pants, white shirts and black shoes. Quite a contrast to the bright blue of the sky and the white and dark blue

cobblestones of the square.  Must admit,  at that moment I did wonder what you were doing!

 

As in all cities that have something for the tourists to see almost everything has a charge.

The costs run from 1 to 6 euros entry fees. Starts to add up if you want to see many of the sites. Lucky for me I don´t, and those that I do want to see are easy to get to on a Sunday. Sunday?  All museums are free. Of course you have the crowds. But the places I want to visit I don´t think are high on most peoples list.

 

Lots of squares and parks here.  The parks have lots of trees, flowers  and benches.  Very nice.  It is quite relaxing to take a pew for a while and just watch the world amble by.

I did that this morning whilst munching on some cherries. One kilo cost 2 euros.

 

I am heading back to the wine bar in Belem this afternoon to sample some their wine.  Not sure what I´ll do for supper. Zebra steak maybe!!!!!

 

I´ll let you know what I find.

 

Terry