The 4th of July is coming up and I’m taking the opportunity to spend it somewhere else. Portugal! For the duration of my stay, I will be in Lisbon and Lagos. I’ve been looking forward to this trip for a long time. It’s mostly because I have Portuguese blood running through my veins. Therefore, it is important to discover my roots! With all the influx of travel this season, and the news reporting on cancellations, my guard was up about this trip. I did have a positive experience with the flights and connections to my destination (except for the medical emergency about an hour and forty-five minutes before landing)…but I’ll discuss that later. Anyway, it’s time to catch an Uber and a flight! Portugal, here I come!
Day 1: 07-03-22 7:54 AM
Let’s rise and shine! The flight is scheduled to take off at 11:51 AM so I get myself ready and head out to the airport. Fortunately, I packed a week in advance, so I’m on top of it. I arrived at the American Airlines international check-in at 9:35 AM. The last time I flew with them was as a kid. I’m curious to see how they perform. Within 10 minutes, I had passed through TSA pre-check, and wow, is it worth it! Within 2 minutes, I was out of there. I’d say that’s well worth 85 bucks. After stopping for a snack and a drink, I was at my gate by 10:00 AM. The flights were on time. From what I’ve seen so far, AA seems promising. My layover is in Philiphdia before I head to Lisbon. Both flights have aisle seats for me. I’ve learned my lesson. As soon as we arrive in the city of brotherly love, I’m off to my connecting flight. It’s 9:51 PM and we’re off to Lisbon, Portugal! Everything seems to be running smoothly until… BOOM! A chaotic situation ensues. As someone’s kid is walking back to his seat with about 1hr 45min left in the fight, he passes out. I am sitting next to his mom who hurdles over my body like Reggie Bush while I have my headphones on! (USC Reggie, not NFL Reggie) His father follows suit. My headphones are on, so I don’t know what’s going on. However, the child was fine, disaster averted. I don’t have a kid, but I can’t imagine anything more frightening than being thousands of feet in the air in a metal tube and my child having some kind of medical emergency.
Day 2: 07-04-22 8:33 AM
My checked luggage was waiting for me after I breezed through immigration check-in. I was taken to my hotel by taxi. LX Boutique Hotel. Unfortunately, my check-in wasn’t until 2:00 PM, so I had three hours to kill. Since Time Out Market is near my hotel, I decided to grab a drink and relax until my room was ready. I grabbed a drink but I was feeling exhausted (12 hours of air travel and jet lag had caught up to me.) I headed back to the hotel and waited in the lobby. After settling into my room, I took a much-needed nap before my Pub Crawl. The sun is still out when I get up at 8:00 PM to get ready! Over here, sunset doesn’t happen until like 9:00 PM! When I arrive at the pub crawl meet-up location, it’s time to start. Our departure time is around 10:30 PM During our night out, we visited about three bars and one club. I enjoyed meeting people from Austria, Germany, and Sean and his girlfriend from New Jersey! They were pretty cool. Headed back to my hotel to get ready for the next day!
Day 3: 07-05-22 3:30 PM
I basically slept through the morning and afternoon after staying up till 4 or 5 AM the night before. At some point, I had to get ready for a food tasting tour at 5:30 PM. Meet my tour guide Anne at a really scenic spot near a picturesque area called Miradouro Sano Pedro de Alcantara near an amazing fountain. Aside from exploring some hidden spots in Lisbon, we ate and drank delicious treats. Her knowledge of the city and its cuisine made her a very helpful guide to be around. In the end, though, my favorite was the Pasta de Nata from the Fabrica de Nata. You’ll love it! It’s like a custard-baked pastry cream cake! I liked it better than I expected. Anyway, we’d been walking for hours. Once we said our goodbyes, I headed back to the hotel and stopped at a souvenir shop. The next day is going to be busy. I’m exhausted.
Day 4: 07-06-22 8:00 AM
Up early for breakfast at the hotel and then meet my personal guide through the scenic routes of Portugal. The breakfast was incredible and my guide showed up on time. Smith was his last name too. We started at the Queluz National Palace, where all the kings and queens of Portugal stayed. There was an earthquake, tsunami, and fire in 1775 that pretty much destroyed Lisbon, but after that, they built the palace more inland and that became their spot. It was cool to see all the artwork and all the kings, queens, and princesses that lived there. The grounds were also very beautiful and there was a lot of history there. Our next stop is Sentra, a small village up in the mountains of Portugal with a lot of history, shopping, museums, and local food. After taking a few photos and getting a bite to eat, I headed off to Colares to see the most western point in Europe. After that, It was lunchtime and my guide knew a quaint mountain restaurant in the mountains that served delicious food and so I had some steak and wine sauce. Amazing! On to Cascais Beach along the coast. It was a beautiful area with a hotel directly across and several beaches nearby. This area had lots of shops, restaurants, and an incredible ice cream shop. On my next trip to Portugal, I’m probably staying here! What a gorgeous spot! After that, we drove along the coast to see some other beaches and were back at the hotel by 3:30 PM. After a quick shower and nap, I woke up around 9:00 PM to get ready for a late-night dinner at the hotel. They were serving sushi that night, not the best but then again sushi in other countries is obviously going to be different. Once that was done, it was off to bed for another big day tomorrow at the museum and back to Caracas Beach!
Day 5: 07-07-22 7:00 AM
My day starts early this morning with another delicious breakfast and exploring Lisbon and its surroundings. I’m going to visit the National Coach Museum in Belem. After that, it’s over to Cascais Beach. I eat breakfast around 8 AM, then jet lag kicks in and I feel like I need a nap only a few hours after waking up. So I slept until almost noon, then Ubered over to the museum. Don’t forget that the days are much longer in Portugal. It’s sunny until 9 PM, so I’ve got time. I loved the museum. The coaches from long ago were awesome and very interesting to see. Spend about 2 hours there, then take another Uber to Cascais.
Once I got to Cascais around 2:40 PM, I walked around, visited a few shops, and had lunch before relaxing on the beach. There are lots of shops and restaurants here, and a hotel is pretty much right on the beach. Those waters are ice cold. I had to ease into it. It was really enjoyable to lay out in the sun and get a healthy tan. This is where I’ll stay for sure if I ever come back to Portugal ( and I am sure I will). When I got done at the beach, I stopped at an ice cream shop called Santini, one of the most famous ice cream shops in Portugal. It’s true! My order included vanilla and coconut scoops on a cone. I must say this is the most delicious ice cream I’ve ever had! Highly recommend trying if you are ever in the area. Around 7: 00 PM, I finished up and went back to the hotel for a shower, dinner and to see some of the nightlife in Lisbon. Clubbing and hanging out in unfamiliar bars doesn’t appeal to me as much as it did in my 20s, but this is a travel blog, so I’m sure anyone reading this wants to get some insight into that aspect. First of all, Lisbon’s nightlife is lively just like any other downtown area. Nevertheless, Pink Street is where the action is (roughly for a block the street is in fact pink!). I started out at a nearby club, but it was pretty dead. That’s fine, I just wanted to absorb the atmosphere. To be fair, it’s a Thursday night, so I’m sure they have more going on at weekends. After that, I headed over to Pink Street and hit up the “Music Box.” There were a lot more people there and a lot more excitement. I never had a problem with the bar being overcrowded. The live DJs kept the crowd entertained. I spent a few hours here and was fine. In my opinion, it’s a little seedy in the area at night, so I’d be cautious. Luckily, my hotel is not too far from there, so I wasn’t worried. Anyway, I needed to get some rest because I had to wake up early for check out so I could catch a train to Lagos!
Day 6: 07-08-22 7:00 AM
I skipped breakfast in order to check out early. It is imperative that I get to the train station by 10:00 AM. My train leaves at 10:15 AM, but I’m having trouble getting an Uber, so the hotel calls me a taxi to get to the station. Right from the start, there is confusion as to which platform and which line the train is on. It will be like 15 minutes before the train arrives and no one speaks English. I’m nervous I’m going to miss this train. I get on the train, but I’m not sure where I’m supposed to go and no one is on the train to guide me. After going from cart to cart for about 45 minutes, I met a nice American family who helped me find my seat. On the train, there were a lot of stops, and I was sweating profusely. Next, there was the train switch. Since most of the people heading to Lagos spoke English, it was a touch smoother.
Again, at 1:45 PM, we hop onto the second train, and once again, I am neither guided nor helped, so for most of the stops to Lagos, I stand. After about 4 stops, I managed to snag a seat, but the journey was long and laborious. It was beginning to seem like coming to Lagos was a mistake. That is until I reached the hotel. After catching an Uber from the station, I arrive at the Tivoli Hotel and Resort. Every aspect of the hotel was fantastic, from the lobby to the pool to my room. If you are visiting Lagos, I highly recommend staying here. For lunch, I head next door to Birria Tacos I had at Matias Crispin & Nunes as I mentioned it’s next to the hotel and was amazing. I took a dip in the pool and relaxed a bit before going to bed early. There’s a big day tomorrow: A half-day cruise along the Lagos coast!
Day 7: 07-09-22 7:30 AM
After breakfast, I used Uber to get to the marina for my Half Day Boat Cruise, which isn’t too far away, but it’s too hot to walk. I arrive at the Marina a little early and grab a late morning beer to cool off before heading to the boat. There were a lot of great people on the boat, there was a bar, lunch was included, and there was an area for the ladies to lay out on the front of the boat. During our ride around the coast, we anchored in a claim area where we played games, swam, paddle boarded, and swam. There were no sharks present. That was good. We had a great time and could not have asked for a better Saturday in Lagos. The trip was over in four hours. I returned to the hotel, took a shower, napped, and ate dinner. Getting a little sunburnt was worth it, but the sun did drain me. I’m looking forward to the Lagos beaches for the whole day tomorrow!
Day 8: 07-10-22 8:00 AM
After breakfast, I decided to take an early dip in the hotel pool is a very nice area and I like the vibe. I head out to the beaches around 11 am. There are 3 main ones all next to each other via cave tunnel walk! Praia Da Batata, Praia dos Estudantes (my favoriate),and Praia do Pinhao. I pretty much lay on the beach took in the sun and took a few dips in the ocean. Lots of people on the beach it was very hot! Topless was a thing here. So there was that. The waves were strong the water was ice cold I didn’t care. I just enjoyed the day. Could not stay as long as the unwanted sunburn was starting to hurt even with sunblock. I went to a cafe and had a beer over the looking all the beaches it was breathtaking. I Ubered back to the hotel took a shower had a great lunch down by the Marina and had some ice cream. I got my bags packed and ready to go for the next day my time was up in Lagos. Time to hop the train back to Lisbon to fly out on Tuesday.
Day 9: 7:51 AM
It was my last full day in Portugal. I grab my last breakfast at the hotel and even a Fanta at the bar before checking out. In case there are any problems, I take another Uber back to the train station early. In contrast, this time I relaxed and thought about my entire trip during the 4-hour train ride. As soon as I get to the station, I take an Uber to my one-night stay at the Hotel Starr. As a side note, it was nice. Arrived and checked in. Then I settled in and ate at the hotel dining area before heading back to my room where I finished writing about the trip before going to bed. It had been a long day and I had another long day tomorrow.
Day 10: 6:00AM
The time has come to head home! The hotel is conveniently located near the airport. After breakfast, I shower and head to the airport early to catch my flight. After checking my bag, I settle in. Checking in for my flight at 10:00 AM. We check in but are taken to the plane on the tarmac by bus. Hmmm, I see. It was a smooth 6-hour flight back to Philadelphia. Not so much, though, when it comes to returning to Vegas. As soon as I finished customs check-in (which was fine), I re-checked my large bag, only to realize that my 5:30 PM flight back had been canceled. I got the last seat on a flight that leaves two hours later thanks to the American Airlines app on my phone. Unfortunately, it’s in the middle. That’s awful. However, I had to accept it. Tomorrow is work. My return to Vegas is around 10:00 PM local time. The luggage makes it back safely. I was surprised there were never any issues with that. I Ubered home. I throw my luggage aside and head off to sleep. Overall, the trip was amazing, and I enjoyed every aspect of it. The food was great, the beaches were amazing, and the landscape and architecture were stunning. History is still preserved in the museums of a time long ago, from the beautiful statues to the amazing tiles that they are famous for. My Portuguese blood gave me a sense of belonging. It felt like….. home to me. That’s all for now, until my next adventure… Same bat time, same bat channel.