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Carmel Brennan

Carmel Brennan

Life is a journey

Carmel Brennan

Life is a journey

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Monday, April 3rd,2023

Posted on April 4, 2023 by carmelbrennan Leave a Comment on Monday, April 3rd,2023

I’m sitting in Lisbon at a bus station waiting for the yellow hop on hop off bus to come along. Apparently they stop at 5 PM so I’m going to buy a ticket for 24 hours and hopefully I’ll be allowed on tomorrow. I’ll check that out first. It’s a good way to see the city just with an overview. The first time I was here I spent a lot of time in Lisbon waiting for buses. I remember my first arrival day February 1, I had waited and waited and found out later the bus had been cancelled.
OMG! The seat is vibrating. I realize there’s a subway right beneath me!
It wasn’t a bad drive in this morning, but when I got here, even with Google map directions, I circled around and around until I got the right turn off, to take the car back. Oh, was it frustrating? I got a cab to my hotel. I’m staying in the old part of town; it reminds me a lot of Porto. The Avenue da Liberdade, a boulevard in central Lisbon that I’m sitting on at the moment, is similar to Barcelona’s Las Ramblas, all tree lined, maybe all inspired by Paris’ Champs-Élysées. Avenida da Liberdade is apparently, according to my taxi driver, the most expensive street to rent or buy property on in Portugal!
It’s weird being in a big city again; I’m really not quite as comfortable as I was in Zambujeira. It’s as usual with cities , always under construction, noisy ,with traffic jams.

Oh but it isnice not having to worry about the car. I could barely fit everything in my suitcase. I actually have my backpack stuffed and I having another bag, so I’m going to have to sort that out. I didn’t buy anything. That’s the funny part but I came with warm clothes on my body, because it was cold when I left Toronto and cold when I got here, and it all seemed appropriate but now, it’s warm, so I either have to dump some stuff or look at my packing again.
I had my breakfast/lunch, whatever you call it, mid afternoon because I was really hungry by then, at a restaurant just down the road from my hotel, called Lusitania. I had my usual omelette, which is a staple for me when I’m travelling. The restaurant was nice enough, but it felt a little bit intimidating for some reason, not the warm feeling that I got in restaurants in the small town I was in.
Tonight, I am at an Indian Fusion Restaurant for dinner. It’s just around the corner from my hotel. I am late because I was on the hop on hop off bus cruising in the city. I will be back on that bus tomorrow, once I do some reading on where to get off and walk around.
It was a great meal tonight, chicken tikka . Lovely atmosphere here and I felt welcomed.
Back to my little room after and watched a movie for the first time on TV in a couple of months. I laughed. It was the Robin Hood movie with Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett in English with Portuguese subtitles
Sleep certainly came quickly even though it is noisy , as a city is.

Looking down from my tiny balcony.
My balcony!
My bed in this tiny room.
The treacherous cobblestones are everywhere.
One of many, many restaurants down the street.
The street where I live for two days!
The main square(Praca Do Comercio)at the waterfront.
View from my rooftop patio
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