Lost in Lisboa

I think one of the things you get use to when you travel is getting lost. I arrived in Lisbon yesterday and yes, got lost trying to find this hostel. You misread a map, misunderstand directions or swear you are going the right way, only to realize all the streets seem to look the same. Suck in the pride and ask for directions with broken English, French, Spanish, Hindi, etc, hand gestures and map pointing. Don´t always assume people are literate because they simply nod at a place on a map and you walk off only to get lost again. Some cultures don´t say ¨no¨ like Indonesia where I remember asking if this a way to some site and they would respond ¨It could be!¨

As for Lisbon, it´s a pleasant city that is small enough to walk around on the tiled sidewalks and plenty of tiled buildings and plazas to admire with the Castelo de Sao Jorge sitting above on a hill . Walking around the downtown core can be a bit of a workout for calfs as this city built around several hills and ends on the river front. Lisbon has plenty of these funky trolley cars and trams you can ride on.

Prior to Lisbon, I went to Viseu and got picked up at the bus station by a doctor I had met earlier at a hostel.We drove to his parents´ summer country home in the tiny village of Calvos, thirty kilometers outside of Viseu. A village where you are likely to bump into a relative offering sweet grapes or a seventy-five year old guy riding a fifty year old motorcycle. Their home was surrounded by a garden full of tomatoes, potatoes, watermelons, cucumbers, onions, herbs, and of´course grapes to make wine. Although the parents didn´t speak any English (and it was back to the international language of hand gestures), they were extremely cheerfull and hospitable. My clothes got washed !!!!!

We ate meals in the wine cellar surrounded by the wooden barrels. I loved the traditional grilled bacalhau in garlic olive oil. It´s particularly tasty with crumbled white cornbread which generiously soaks up the wonderful oil. Sitting in the wine cellar while the parents and relatives argued over old family politics, the grandchildren rode a tricycle around the table and the food got slowly eaten is another pleasant side of Portugal I´ve experienced. The two small grandchildren were typically shy at first but they loved to sing, especially soap opera theme songs. That´s the thing about the Portuguese, they love soap operas!!!! It doesn´t matter what time of day, there´s almost always one on.

I visited Fatima after, where it is believed an angel and the Virgin Mary made several appearances to three children who shepherds, and later to crowds in 1916 and 1917. Although Famitma is a modern town and does not have the medieval atmosphere and history of Santiago, the nightly candle light service was really nice and the chapel of apparitions and catherdral late at night is a good place for pray and reflection. The resturants in town were way over-priced. I also visited the great little town of Tomar with cheap eats and a complact old town, and the impressive castle/ convent of Cristo. It was also the head quarters of the Knights Templar and the church and chapel were wide enough for the horses to go through. It figures the movie theater was playing what else.... The Da Vinci Code. Time to get lost in Lisbon and then a day trip to Sintra.