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Lisbon Plaza
fountain and sidewalkLisboa
Stopped a purse snatching!
Outside of Praca Figueira with statue of man on horse and many animal rear-ends, I saw a man cramming a huge purse into his tiny hand bag. When he noticed me watching him, I asked him, "Is it yours?" .. it didn't look like his colour. He gave me an utterly surprised look, as "oh, how did
this get in my possession?!" and behind me a woman was frantically searching for her purse, so i tried to get her attention. He then ran the massive hand bag back to her claiming some boys took it and he was a hero, then pretended to make a call on his mobile and blend in to the crowd. Schmuck.. But having done my good deed for the day, I treated myself to a Pasteis that wasn’t as good as the Pasteis de Belem I had the day before. But still delicious.
Spent the night out with 3 guys I’d met in the hostel, wandering about and drinking at
Bairro Alto which was an amazing experience in itself. The streets were full of really young people boozing it up and carrying on, leaning on parked cars, going in and
Wonky sidewalk
I loved the walkway designs out of clubs and bars, breaking bottles in the streets. It’s amazing this happens frequently but in the morning it’s so cleaned up you’d hardly notice! Astonishingly, taxis were attempting to squeeze past everyone in the narrow alleyways to drive people around. We stayed out until the sun came up where the remainder of the night was having one of the guys
trying to yell at me because I had not heard of his ‘made in america by americans’ crappy shoe brand which donates shoes to Africans; because, according to him, there are NO Africans that own shoes, which is why they can't go to school, which is why they are all so stupid, which is why they can't make their own shoes... so, in his mind, this was his way of doing his 'good citizen worldly deed': buying overpriced rubbish shoes that fall apart quickly, thus stopping the barefoot pandemic, solving world peace and ending world hunger.. I regret not having punched him in the face.
Sintra
As I was up all night with the ignorant shoe-loving uneducated moron and his one-sided "debate" (his words), I just stayed up for the first bus at sunrise to
SINTRA, an
Train station
Lisbon, Portugal absolutely stunning daytrip that I wish the freezing persistent rain hadn't ruined and cut short for me. Took train to Sintra then bus to Pena Palace and Park which I spent too much time wandering in- though it was lovely and I enjoyed the entire time there, it had cut short seeing of other places… Loads of trees and non-native plants, breath-taking views and pretty phenomenal hiking trails. I always enjoy seeing the Islamic design structures which there were a few fountains and pavilions I could admire. Got caught in the Palace of Pena behind loads of old women who took their time going from room to room in the roped-off exhibits, with walkways narrow enough for 1-2 people wide, making it impossible to overtake any of the crazy bats- so thankfully they didn’t allow anyone to take pictures, or I may
still be in there glaring at the back of a 4’8 Portugese woman’s head as she commented on every old dish, royal artifact and painting to her troop of elderly ladies in between their gossiping.
By the time I escaped from this Palace, the perpetual drizzle of the day had become a shower, soaking my water-resistant clothing
But not giving up, I explored the Moorish Castle, a very long ascent up uneven stone stairs in freezing wind to (what should have been) an amazing view that was blanketed in fog, but still a good time. By this point I was so soaked and looked like a pathetic aquatic creature so didn’t see any of the monasteries or other wonderful sights at Sintra, which further saddened me. And having seen everyone around me with an umbrella staying mostly dry, I was tempted to throw a tantrum and tear a hole in each of their umbrellas.. But luckily for me (and them) I had squirreled away some delicious cookies and that usually puts me in a good mood 😊 as I sat on the unnecessarily air-conditioned bus munching on junk food and grinning like a child who'd gotten her way.
Lagos
Spent the last few days of Portugal in Lagos, a quiet, sleepy, seaside town which is nice to wander around for a day or two.. so I did. Wasn't too impressed, as it was a lot of plazas, tourists, shops for tourists, over-priced food because of the tourists... The supermarket was cleverly concealed
like a local's secret; they apparently didn't want any one to find, so it was well hidden and so inconspicuous on the busiest street and it didn't look like a market from the outside.
Ah, how I love taking 6am buses .. Still dark out, about half a dozen people, a handful of stray dogs, and a very grumpy bus ticket-seller are the only creatures up at this hour. Crossed the border back into Spain, painlessly, heading to Seville, transfer across town to the train station to
Puerto de Santa María, which is pretty close to Cádiz. Then nearly getting left in the train, as my bag had gotten caught on the seat in front of me, I nearly had to cut it loose before the train left with me still on it!
Cádiz
I was thrilled to find a cheap wash machine in the hostel; first time I got to properly wash my clothes! (No more hand washing today!) Did a bit of stork-watching as they were all nesting on top of the old Cathedral in town. Chatted with a homeless chap from Netherlands I met who was nearly 50 and claims he chooses to wander Spain
and Portugal for the last 20 years with just the pack on his back and sleeping on benches, in parks, etc. He then kept on talking to me for a good half an hour sharing stories of his odd life and travels and near death experiences and previous drug addictions and all the sorts.
Took ferry ride to Cádiz, as the hostel receptionist said it was much prettier ride; it was, but not by much. Industrialization and constant construction tend to ruin many of Spain's splendors (well, all over the world, really). Cádiz is a nice town to walk in a circle for the day, admire some buildings, walk along the beach, and call it a day...
As this is the last bit of travelling before I volunteer at the donkey centre, I'm a bit relieved to be settling in one place that isn't a hostel for a duration of time. I don't know exact how long I am going to stay there; guess it depends on how much I like the place or if I get the urge to wander off again. The plan is head in to Morocco in May but shall see what happens... I
am always where I need to be...
And now, off to the Donkey Rescue Centre!
^Út Í Óvissuna^
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