We arrived on Easter and fully expecting many businesses to be closed, decided to book a ship excursion. In truth we also just didn’t feel like planning knowing that we would be coming back in late May when we begin our hiking/walking adventure. In hindsight not the best use of time or money, but we did get to (very quickly) visit areas outside of Lisbon that we very likely would not have ventured too.
We booked the “4×4” tour that took us to the town of Sintra (a UNESCO site), Europe’s western most point (Cabo da Roca) and the seaside town of Cascais. Although this was supposed to be a 4×4 tour, we were told most of the mountain areas were closed due to recent rains and we only spent about 20 minutes actually off-road. We also had very limited time to spend in each of these areas. In Sintra, we visited a Sardine Shop that had over 57 varieties of canned seafood (pictured) and were finally successful getting Euros out of an ATM. That took most of our 25 minute allotted time. The western most point of Europe is along a very rugged coastline with steep cliffs and a lighthouse. It was nice to walk around that area, however the most interesting sight was the scores of Sunday motorcyclists who ride to the top of the hill so they can swerve in and out of traffic racing down the hill before returning to the top to do it all over again. Our last stop was Cascais. As we entered town from the west we learned that many international soccer players and European celebrities have homes in this part of the community. We were allowed about 30 minutes to walk around and decided it is a place we could come back too. Think Carmel-by-the-Sea but with more resorts, a better beach and warmer weather. The biggest thing we learned from this excursion is that we don’t enjoy excursions or tours that require you to sit in a vehicle most of the time as they try to cram in as many sights as possible, while having no control over the amount of time you get to spend in each area. Ironically we were speaking with our driver Hugo, who lives in the UNESCO town of Sintra, and he said he found it odd that people would want to take trips that do not allow them the time to actually get to know and enjoy an area. That said, the trip did give us a quick taste of what is on the western coast of Portugal outside of Lisbon.
When we returned to port Hugo recommended we start walking straight up the hill to explore the old quarter of Lisbon. This walk was so steep that you walked up stairs in most places as you climbed the hill. We only had about an hour to spend wandering around, but decided we will spend more time this part of Lisbon when we return.
😊