Lisboa Day 3

When we woke up, we noticed it had rained the night before and was a little cloudy so we headed out with our rain jackets and umbrellas ready for anything. We stopped to get some pastries and chocolate milk for me and ate breakfast down by the Rio Tejo. From breakfast we headed to the tram station and went to Belem, a little suburb just 15 minutes away.

First we saw the monument dedicated to the explorers of Portugal. It was quite impressive! Vasco de Gama was a Portuguese explorer who found the water passage to India. This was huge for Portugal because it meant they wouldn't have to pay taxes to cross the Mediterranean. We also saw the Torre de Belem which was a tower that combined an old style of the tower and new style of the twin deck cannon platform to help protect the Lisbon ports. The tower let them see things from a long way off and the decks were situated near groundwater so they could make long range shots with cannons. The angle the cannons sat at allowed the cannon balls to skim across the water and they were able to make long range shots with much better accuracy. I believe we accidentally entered this monument for free. I stood near the lady at the cash register to pay but she was chatting away with the guard so Ben just walked on through and I followed.

Next we saw the Monasterio Jeronimos. We walked around the cloister first because mass was still going on. As we walked back to enter the church, we started to head up the ramp when a lady came rushing towards me screaming bloody murder and yelling "NO! NO!!" I paused half way up the ramp and she looked at me as if I was the most inconsiderate person in the world and yelled "That is for the handicapped!" I wish I would've been quicker and told her I had a prosthetic leg but instead I just blinked, said sorry and got off that ramp as quick as possible. Another man told us we could enter around the corner through the main doors.

Vasco de Gama is buried at the church so we got to see that which was pretty neat! We also saw a friend from our Bible study, Ana Laura. We found out later we had been in Sintra on the same day and that later that night we would both end up at the same restaurant for dinner. She went later than us though so we didn't run into her at the restaurant. Next we headed to a pastry shop to get the famous pastries of Belem. Apparently the secret to making them is closely guarded and only a selective few are able to make them. The place was packed! Partly because at this point it was down pouring and people were headed indoors but also because they were so good! We headed for cover at a museum that Ben wanted to check out while we ate our pastries. The museum is a modern arts museum and is by far the strangest I have ever been in. Excessive awkward male and female nudity along with a room of a video of a naked women rolling around on the ground and a recording of a man hurling insults. Once the rain let up a little we got out of there and headed back to our hotel.

It was still a little wet outside so we channel surfed until we found a James Bond movie to watch.

For dinner, Ben had asked the guy at the front desk a good place to eat. He told him that Cervejaria Ramiro would be a good place. We walked over there and when we got there I turned to Ben and asked "Didn't you tell him your wife doesn't eat seafood?" From the looks of it that was the only thing they served!! Portugal is known for their seafood, especially Lisbon and Ben really wanted to try some so we headed in to see if there was any non-seafood stuff on the menu. There was one thing. Out of maybe 20 dishes they had one non-seafood option, filet tenderloin. They didn't even have fish on the menu! So that is what I ordered for dinner in the seafood capital of Portugal, some good ol' red meat. Apparently you aren't supposed to order it as a main dish though. It is what you eat after all the seafood. I didn't care though. I will say though that I tried Ben's giant prawn and clams and I stand firm in my not liking seafood. At least I tried it though!

From how packed the place was, we knew we had come to a good seafood restaurant. The couple next to us said they had driven 120 kilometers to eat there! They said they live in southern Portugal but every once in awhile they will drive to Lisbon to eat at this particular restaurant.

We ended the night back in hotel room with a carton of ice cream and TV in bed. It was nice to have a relaxing day after the busy previous day of touring.

 Some how when packing I only packed one lid to my contact case so I had to improvise.

Breakfast. The guy punched a hole in the cap of the milk for my straw. 

 The monument to the explorers.

Can you see Ben? 

At the top.

The plaza outside the monument. 

The monastery from the top of the monument. 

 Torre de Belem:

Looking down from the window seat we were sitting in 

The monastery.

The resting place of Vasco de Gama.

Our friend Ana Laura.

 At the Museu Colecao Berardo.

Seafood! 

Vihno Verde, Portugal's specialty wine.