Lisbon, Portugal

Trying to get on the flight to Lisbon was quite the challenge. We arrived at the Munich airport and went to the check in area over two hours before our flight was scheduled to depart. When we got to the front they said that Tyson didn’t have a ticket. Since he was going to be sitting on my lap I didn’t think he needed his own ticket and it’d be a simple change in their system as it generally is with airlines we’ve flown with in the past. The lady that was helping us was clearly new because it took her about 45 minutes to figure out how to get Tyson a ticket for the flight. We felt bad for her because she was trying her hardest, but for a while there we thought we may miss our flight and have to sleep with Tyson in the airport. That would have been a blog post for the ages. Luckily, after 4 phone calls, two supervisors, and an hour of waiting we got his ticket for only about 25 Euros but definitely a lesson learned to ensure we don’t assume an infant doesn’t need their own ticket for next time.

We arrived in Lisbon around midnight and the owner of the apartment we are staying at was kind enough to pick us up from the airport for free. We got in at about 1am, unfortunately; Tyson still got up at his usual time of 6am the next morning so none of us got much sleep that night. We didn’t have anything planned in Lisbon and hadn’t even researched the major sights to see. So when we woke up on our first morning we just casually walked towards the water to see what was in that direction. We decided to buy a 24 hour pass for the tram to explore the city. While we were waiting in line for the first tram we ran into a couple from Vancouver, Canada. They said they were on their way to a free 90 minute walking tour in the historic area of Belem, so we decided to join them. It’s always challenging to do long tours because we never know if Tyson is going to last the whole time. In this case he was wanting to be out of the stroller running around at first but then fell asleep about 30 minutes into the tour. We enjoyed listening to the history of the area and checking out the sights nearby. Lots of towers, castles, and traditional architecture for the area. A recommended area to go to, although very touristy.

The next morning we decided to check out an area of Lisbon called Alfama. We walked about 20 minutes to a big castle on the top of a hill (of course). Thankfully, the castle has an elevator that takes you from the bottom of the town up to the top of the hill. Right outside the elevator was a great café with a huge patio and a panoramic view of Lisbon and most of the sights. We stopped there for a cappuccino and lounged on their comfy couches while gazing at the great view and letting Tyson wander around a bit. When we finally got to the entrance of the castle, we figured we’d walk along the outside and check out the ‘neighborhood’ it was in and got antsy to see the famed Alfama area. So we decided to walk back down the hill in search of the small cobblestone streets and tiny alley ways. We came to a restaurant called Portas Do Sol that had a ridiculously good view of the town and the ocean. The coolest part was the bean bag lounge area that you can sit at to eat lunch. We claimed the best spot in the house (corner patio area) and quickly decided to make a day out of the spot. The waiters were very helpful and got a kick out of watching Tyson playing with the little lunch tables next to the bean bags. He was picking them up and turning them upside down to make a chair for him to sit on with the feet as arm rests. He couldn’t figure out why he couldn’t pick up the chair when he was sitting in it…but a waiter snuck up behind him and picked Tyson up inside his table chair so Tyson thought he had picked himself up. We all got a really good laugh out of it.

Marshall and I were parched, so we decided to try some of their white sangria that the waitress was recommending. It was by far the best sangria we’ve ever had (note for later: Mint is the key to make it bomb diggity). For lunch I ordered a chicken salad and Marshall had mini sausage patty hamburgers with cracked quail eggs on top. There happened to be (VERY) friendly birds that would fly and land on your plate to share your meal if you’d let them. Marshall thought it was because they were taking vengeance for the quails, but Tyson saved the day by throwing some of his food on the ground to distract them so we could devour our meals while they were preoccupied. We stayed there for several hours since Tyson fell asleep while we were eating. That view, the amazing food/sangria, fun people that joined us at the bean bags, and watching Tyson have a great time was by far our favorite moment in Lisbon.

Today we decided to take it easy and hang out in our room to play with Tyson and give our feet a break. We briefly ventured out to grab pizza for lunch and some groceries to make pasta and sausages for dinner. Tomorrow, we will take a 30 minute train ride to a town called Cascais that has a nice beach near our hotel. We’re looking forward to playing on the beach and building sand castles with Tyson for the next few days. After that, we have no idea where we’ll head. Portugal was a last minute decision and we’re loving it, so we think that may be the way to go for a while.

Next stop: Cascais, Portugal