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Published: February 10th 2009
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The walk to Belem
The bridge that looks just like the Golden Gate Bridge and the Jesus statue in the background. I went to Lisbon for four days, and it was such a great vacation. I traveled with six other friends from my school, and we all had a lot of fun together. One of the best parts was probably the hostel where we stayed. It was call "Easy Hostel" and multiple times it had been rated by HostelWorld as one of the top ten in the entire world. It was such a great place just to hang out and meet new people. The first day we went to Belem, a town a little outside of Lisbon. It was about an hour walk by the water and I got to see a bridge that looked identical to the Golden Gate Bridge, and a huge white statue of Jesus across the river. The walk was definitely worth it, because in Belem there is a very famous pastry shop. I split about 5 pastries with my friend, and they were all so delicious. After that, I couldn't help but eat a couple of pastries a day, they were the best that I have ever tasted! If only I had the words to describe how delicious they were I would, but unfortunately such words just
do not exist. After Belem, I explored Lisbon a little more. A friend and I walked up to Barrio Alto, a neighborhood that sits on top of a hill in Lisbon. It was a very cute little area with a beautiful park and some awesome views of the city.
The next day we traveled by train to Sintra, a town about 40 minutes away from Lisbon that is famous for its castles. We climbed up a huge hill to get to them, but it was worth it because of the great view that we saw. We went into the Moorish castle, and we were able to see the land all around us. There was another castle that we could see from the Moorish castle that was very unique because it was made with a bunch of different bright colors. It rained a bit that day, but it still didn't stop us from having a great time. We also learned a great lesson that day. We went out to eat, and when we got our bill we found out that in Portugal, you get charged for every single piece of bread, butter and other condiments that you eat before you
get your meal. We ended up having to pay about 30 euros altogether for the bread that we had eaten that we thought was free. You live you learn I guess.
After going outside of Lisbon the past two days, we decided to spend a day exploring Lisbon. We walked to another area in Lisbon that we had yet to visit. It was a lot older, and at some times I felt like I was in Greece because of the old beautiful buildings, and the ocean right next to us. My favorite was this little lookout point right next to the water, where there was a street performer playing very soothing guitar music. I have encountered street performers all over Europe, but for the first time I decided to give this guy some of my change. I had my fifty cent piece out and ready to drop in his case after he finished his song, when I accidentally dropped it over the edge. It was a very sad moment, for both me and the guitar player I am sure! We walked around Lisbon some more, and discovered that at all of the restaurants, there will be someone standing outside
with the menu who will come up and talk to you to try to get you to go into their restaurant. My friend Kaitlin and I actually talked to one of the guys for about 20 minutes, and he was so nice that we decided to go there with all of our friends that night. It was a nice restaurant, and I got to have some of the seafood that Lisbon is known for. That night, me and two friends went out to Barrio Alto which is where the nightlife is. It was very cool, everyone would just get their drinks inside a bar, and then hang out on the streets. It was cool to see some streets packed with people, and the atmosphere was really fun.
The next day was our last in Portugal, and we finally went to the one city that we had been planning on going to the whole time. It was Cascais, a quaint little town right on the beach. When we first got off the train, we were right on a beach where there were a bunch of surfers. My friends and I walked along a dock, watching the huge waves roll in.
I couldn't remember the last time I had been at the ocean, so I decided that I had better take off my shoes, walk in the sand and savor the moment. It was cold, but I decided that while I was at the ocean, I better feel the water at least. My friend Kaitlin joined me, and for a good half an hour we acted like little kids playing in the water. It was so much fun, and I was very sad when all my friends, who weren't enjoying the ocean like we were, wanted to leave. After that we headed up to Boca de Inferno a really pretty place right on the ocean where the waves crashed up into these pretty caves. On the way there, my friend Kaitlin and I fell back a little from the rest of the group. We discovered a little store where we could rent Segways. At first I was a little unsure, but then I thought, "Hey, I'm in Portugal, of course I am going to rent a Segway!" So Kaitlin and I rented our Segways and caught up to our friends. It was probably the best money I have spent so far
in Europe, they were so much fun to ride! So because of the beach and the Segways, that day was probably one of the funnest in my life!
After that, we had to head back to the airport. It was sad, but I had really enjoyed all of my time spent in Portugal, and I hope to one day return!
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