Portugal, Sicily, Greece and the Balkans

[Flyfrequently]

Thanks @Cruise Luxury. Sintra is on our list.

And we had a lovely day at Cascais @Scash , the train gets  very busy when the weather is good.


We took a train at 8.00 am, busy with daily workers commuting, but when we returned the queues at Cais do Sodra were incredibly long!

 

[Flyfrequently]

And Uber is very cheap in Lisbon

Agree, and thanks to my shabby foot Uber became our best friend @VPS !

 

[Scash]

The Trip Begins…

We were originally on EK431 in J departing BNE at 01:55 on Tuesday the 6th May, however availability in First came up so we swapped to EK435 departing 21:00 on the 5th, which is not a bad way to start the trip!

The trip actually begins with a lift to Nambour train station thanks to our friends, and then a 1 1/2 hour train trip to Brisbane (thank you 0.50c public transport fares). We will catch up with our other son and daughter in law for an early dinner and then head to BNE International for some lounge time and a few glasses of champagne.

We haven't been to the BNE EK lounge before so quite looking forward to it. We have been to the EK lounges in DXB and SIN and in my opinion the F&B offerings in the EK lounges are far superior to what we have experienced at the QF International lounge at BNE. Also excited about being able to board direct from the lounge.

 

[Scash]

Currently in the BNE EK lounge waiting to board in about an hour’s time. A glass or two of the obligatory champagne plus a few snacks to tide us over till we board for the main event!

 

[Scash]

Well we finally arrived at our hotel in Lisbon at about 10:00 pm local time Tuesday, taking around 40 hours from when we left home on Monday. It was a long and arduous trip but somehow we managed to cope . Think I drank my body weight in Dom!

 

[Scash]

We arrived in Dubai a bit early at around 5:00am and then had a 9 hour wait for our flight to Lisbon. This Lisbon leg was in J and despite having lounge access I was a bit over it after a few hours. We boarded pretty much on time only then to be delayed due to a late incoming connecting flight. We were given a glass of champagne upon boarding but no further drinks were offered while we were waiting.

We landed in Lisbon about an hour late but for some reason we didn’t have a gate and we parked at a remote stand. There were then issues with the stairs and so there were further delays. Finally got to the hotel about 10:00 pm Tuesday local time.

A quick bite to eat and then bed . Went to the closest open restaurant but disappointed. We both tried local dishes me the suckling pig and Mrs Scash the octopus but both ordinary.



Note to self:- don’t pick restaurants when you’re tired and just want to eat and go to bed!

 

[Flyfrequently]

Well we finally arrived at our hotel in Lisbon at about 10:00 pm local time Tuesday, taking around 40 hours from when we left home on Monday. It was a long and arduous trip but somehow we managed to cope . Think I drank my body weight in Dom!View attachment 442765

Good to see you taking one for the team @Scash

Lisbon airport is notorious for it's remote stands whilst under renovation.
Enjoy Residencial Florescente !

 

[Scash]

OK…time for some updates. I’ll might jump around a bit so bear with me . We’ve had a couple of little hiccups and have had to change plans due to a strike by the Portuguese Rail employees. Instead of getting the train from Lisbon to Porto we’re currently on a bus. The trip is about 3 1/2 hours so I will try and catch up on my report.

Despite the late night and long flight we still woke early on our first day so went for a walk. We basically had the town to ourselves but the downside was we couldn’t get a coffee as nothing really opens to at least 8:00.



The Santa Justa lift. When we walked past later on our walking tour there was quite a long queue of people waiting to go up (will say a few things about this later).



The Rua Augusta Arch and Commerce Square. The arch was designed to celebrate the reconstruction of Lisbon after the 1755 earthquake that devastated most of the city.


Cafes were now starting to open so we stopped at this place for the obligatory Pastel De Nata and espresso. There are so many places selling the tarts that it’s hard to know which is good or bad, but this one was quite good and I would go back (but didn’t as I wanted to sample as many other places as I could ).

 

[Scash]

After brekky we wandered around a bit more before joining our walking tour there. The tour covered pretty much the same places we had walked earlier and it was good to now learn the history. The tour itself was more about the city’s history and not so much about seeing sites.

I mentioned earlier about the Santa Justa lift and the long queues. The cost of the lift was around €3 however our guide took us up the stairs beside the lift (lots of stairs) and then across a bridge to the top!

The below photos were ones I had taken prior to the tour.

Lisbon train station.



The statue of the two guys represents the portuguese mestres calceteiros (cobblestone masters) who shaped and laid the cobblestones. It’s a declining skill and would have been one tough gig.



And just some random photos

 

[Scash]

After the tour Mrs Scash wanted to visit a cafe whose name translates to “The Best Chocolate Cake in the World”. It was about a 50 minute walk up lots of hills for a piece of cake that is self declared as the best! The upside of the walk was that we were preemptively burning calories in anticipation .

So was it worth it? The cake was delicious but in my opinion not worth walking that far for.

Would I have it again? Probably but I would have to be literally passing by to tempt me.

 

[VPS]

Lisbon is a beautiful city - enjoy

 

[VPS]

After the tour Mrs Scash wanted to visit a cafe whose name translates to “The Best Chocolate Cake in the World”. It was about a 50 minute walk up lots of hills for a piece of cake that is self declared as the best! The upside of the walk was that we were preemptively burning calories in anticipation .

So was it worth it? The cake was delicious but in my opinion not worth walking that far for.

Would I have it again? Probably but I would have to be literally passing by to tempt me.

View attachment 442946

then you need to tell us the name of the cafe

 

[Scash]

By this stage we had walked just over 26,000 steps up and down a few hills and needed a rest. And of course after all that walking we needed to rehydrate and luckily we found a nice rooftop bar. Who’d a thought

 

[Scash]

then you need to tell us the name of the cafe

Here’s the website plus a couple of reviews .

O Melhor Bolo de Chocolate do Mundo by CBL

O Melhor Bolo de Chocolate do Mundo by CBL é uma receita de uma deliciosa sobremesa e que conta com lojas pelo mundo fora.

www.omelhorbolodechocolatedomundobycbl.net

Have you heard of “The Best Chocolate Cake in the World”?

You can't help but try "The Best Chocolate Cake in the World" again and again! Layers and layers of gluttony.

lisboasecreta.co

The shop in Lisbon that calls itself The Best Chocolate Cake in the World...and almost their best recipe - Saucy Dressings

This a a chocolate cake recipe which comes from The Best Chocolate Cake Shop In The World - which is in Lisbon.

saucydressings.com

 

[RooFlyer]

What I'd like to see is a place set itself up as the best pastel de nata ...

I just checked some photos from 10 yrs ago. I'm pretty sure I was at the location of your bar, but it was a small park, with a pastel de nata truck parked there. Like you,I sat down and admired the view .

 

[Bengingerflea]

The Balkans can be tricky to navigate, so the guided tour seems like a smart move.

 

[RB]

The Balkans can be tricky to navigate, so the guided tour seems like a smart move.

Maybe you can detail the problems you have encountered because it is not something we have faced there

 

[Scash]

Our next few days were spent exploring Lisbon and a trip to Sintra to see the castles. The plan was to catch the train but due to the strike we ended up getting a Bolt (Uber equivalent). We then caught the bus which loops around to all four castles. The plan was to go to the Quinta da Regaleira first but for some reason the bus took a different route so instead we stopped at the National Palace of Pina and the Moorish Castle.

 

[MARTINE]

After brekky we wandered around a bit more before joining our walking tour there. The tour covered pretty much the same places we had walked earlier and it was good to now learn the history. The tour itself was more about the city’s history and not so much about seeing sites.

I mentioned earlier about the Santa Justa lift and the long queues. The cost of the lift was around €3 however our guide took us up the stairs beside the lift (lots of stairs) and then across a bridge to the top!

The below photos were ones I had taken prior to the tour.

Lisbon train station.

View attachment 442932

The statue of the two guys represents the portuguese mestres calceteiros (cobblestone masters) who shaped and laid the cobblestones. It’s a declining skill and would have been one tough gig.


View attachment 442933
And just some random photos

View attachment 442934View attachment 442935View attachment 442936View attachment 442937View attachment 442938

Portugal is so great
Currently staying in Cascais which I love (especially Santinis icecream).

 

[Scash]

We caught another Bolt back and went via Pasteis De Belém, the home of the original Portuguese tart.



Afterwards we wandered along the esplanade to burn off some calories and came across some interesting street art.



And to finish off the day a Portuguese favourite Piri Piri chicken and some refreshments.