The week of trips begins...Lisbon

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Today's location is Lisbon, and driving in from the airport only renewed my determination to stay holed up in my hotel room! Am staying at the Tivoli Lisboa (apparently, there are two Hotel Tivoli's here, so the distinction is important). The hotel is good, reminds me of Germany but with scarier elevators and no assistance with the bags. I decided I love the mirrored closest and that the tub is great because it's long enough to accommodate my legs. And the Molton Brown bath gel is unbelievably relaxing - although I'm not in too much need of relaxing since I had a whole row to myself on the flight over.

Turned out I was having dinner with one of our lawyers. We drove into the Old Town, with steep narrow roads and too many parked cars. The restaurant, which was called Via Graça Restaurante, overlooked Lisbon. I can imagine that it must be quite stunning at sunset, but much like in Barcelona, we dined late - I met Mario at nine - so I didn't get the full effect. The food was delicious, except for the lobster and scallop that I was forced to try, which I pretended to enjoy. Oh, and the lovely piece of plastic that was hidden in my dessert like a strange sort of cracker jack prize. At any rate, I was reminded of Barcelona, with the easy, late pace of the meal and it was quite nice. Maybe, just maybe, if I have time tomorrow, I'll walk up the street a little - tune in and we'll see!

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