Carrying a Pack is Economical but less than Fun

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Yesterday Lisbon, Today Evora

As I told you in yesterday’s blog, today was our first adventure using mass transit within Europe. Last night we had a decent dinner at a restaurant in Barrio Alto where we finally got a chance to try Vinho Verde, which is a carbonated wine. We tried a red variety and found it to be quite tasty (just like you said Leigh C.) but it also packs a decent punch. After the bottle was done I felt a little light headed and Kel was half way drunk.

After dinner we got some pastries (Pastel de Nata: see previous blog entry) and then went and got ice cream at Haagen Dazs (SP?). Kel and I each had a single scoop in a cone and sat in a plaza and enjoyed our surroundings. After a few minutes of enjoying we went back to our hotel and posted last night’s blog. I then proceeded to pack while half drunk Kel-Kel watched TV and then went to sleep. This has been a long standing feud betwixt Kel and me. I being the consummate pre-planner enjoy getting things done early while Kel is the great procrastinator and therefore will always put her work off until later if possible. Thus, I finished at night and Kel started at 9am.

I hadn’t slept incredibly well, nerves and the crappy bed we were sleeping in, so I stayed in bed a little longer while Kel started packing. I finally dragged my sorry behind out of bed and finished packing the few things I needed to put in my “giant sack of rocks.” When we were both finished we got a quick bit of food, checked out of the hotel and headed for the bus station.

This is not luggage…this is manual labor

For all of you who have been ribbing us about taking backpacks to Europe I have a couple of pieces of news. First, I am still glad we chose to travel this way. No matter how hard it is to carry, its still an easier and more acceptable plan in Europe. Second, these things are damn heavy and a complete pain to carry. We carried the bags down to the metro station and then on the metro and then on to the bus station. All in all, it was about a mile and about 25 minutes with the packs on our backs. By time we put them down our legs were tired.

The bus ride was really nice. 10.80 Euro a piece for the 1.5 hour trip to Evora. We sat in the front of the second floor of a double decker bus. The ride was smooth, quiet and very clean. In the station, and then later in Evora, we met a nice lady from New York who talked to us about Evora and Lisbon. She even offered to let us keep our winter stuff in her apartment when we leave Germany for SE Asia. It was an incredibly nice offer, even if we won’t be able to follow through on it.

From the bus station in Evora its about a n.75 mile hike up a 25 degree hill to our hotel. This may not seem like much but with 40 plus pounds on your back, it’s a hike. When we arrived, we, of course, had to walk up two flights of steps to get to our room. We are staing in Pensao Policarpo which is a really nice old hotel in the old part of Evora. Our room has a bathroom and a much better bed than our last one. It will also be quieter since a) Evora is dead compared to Lisbon, b) its a hotel, not a hostel and c) we are on the top floor so there’s no one above us to clomp around. If you can’t tell I’m excited about a better bed and a good nights sleep, which is completely tied to last nights lack of rest.

Right now we are sitting in the main square in Evora which has Wi-Fi and a nice outdoor café. Kel’s drinking Sangria and I’m having an “Imperial,” or small draft beer. Hopefully you are all having a great time as well. We will talk to you soon!

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Photos

Old Guy selling Quail and Rabbit
They are so very fresh!

Comments

[Leigh K (not C)]

Glad you liked it!!!
I'm glad you tried the wine and love hearing the effect it had. My job is done here.