Change of plans.

   I had a funny thought today. I think I might have given my cab driver from the airport the other night a 12 Euro tip on a 8 Euro ride other then the 2 Euro tip on the 18 Euro ride I had expected. I had asked how much the ride would be when I got in the cab and he said in his thick accent "aye-ti" which I couldn't tell whether that meant 8 or 18. I asked again and I was pretty sure he had said 18. When I he pulled over at the hostel he put my bag on the ground and started to give me change from the 20 Euro bill I had handed him. I said to keep the bill and he was extremely thankful! He thanked me repeatedly and lifted my backpack and helped me put it on my back. I thought "Wow! The Portuguese are extremely happy, thankful people! This is great!" Now that I think back, I remember checking the estimated cab price online and I was quoted at 10 - 15 Euro to the city center. I am pretty sure I gave the cab driver a ridiculously huge tip. Oh well, I guess its good karma for the start of my trip!

  Anyways, on to today. I had intended on heading to Sintra for the day but I slept a bit longer then I had expected and was feeling lazy first thing. I had a bit of a late start to the day. I find that since I have been here I wake up in the morning almost feeling lost. Its not a bad thing. Just different then I am used to I guess.  I am used to waking up in a familiar bed, in a familiar city, doing my familiar routine and seeing familiar people. All of that has been flopped on its head the last several days. Nothing is familiar other then the things i carry on my back. Its refreshing. 


   I headed out today around 11:30p. My first stop was the Botanical Garden. It was beautiful but for anyone planning on visiting Lisbon I would say its not a must see. I did enjoy my time though and I took several pretty pictures of the plants. There were Palm trees and succulents galore. My favorites! I wandered down to the Assembleia da Republic. The Assembly of the Republic is the Portuguese parliament.  Its a beautiful white building. I can't even begin to imagine how they keep it such a pristine white!

   After dragging my tired legs up the hill to the Estrela area I had a nice break in the Jardim de Estrela (Garden of Estrela). It was absolutely delightful. Such a pretty, relaxed park. I stopped at the little cafe in the park and made some notes in my book about the day. I noticed one of the cafe attendants kept looking in my direction but didn't think much of it. When I went to leave I brought my plate up to the counter and thanked them, "Orbrigado!". The cafe attendant had a huge smile and blurted something to me in Portuguese that I did not understand. Either he was hitting on me or he was just surprised I brought my plate up. It was hard to tell... but I am guessing the former judging by the size of his smile. One thing I have found is that the men in Lisbon are very respectful, not to mention good looking and well dressed. In fact, all of the people in Lisbon seem to be well dressed. Especially the older generation. Its quite refreshing seeing so many good looking, well dressed people. Unlike Canada where pajamas, sweat pants, and slippers are basically an acceptable form of public attire. Since it is "winter" in Portugal right now everyone is fully layered up with wool coats, boots and scarfs. Yet here I am in a sweater and leggings sweating my little tush off most the day walking up all the hills!

   While in Estrela, I went to check out the Basilica da Estrela. It was absolutely stunning on the outside. I wandered in to take some pictures and I noticed a sign stating that tours to the roof were every 30 minutes so I decided to check it out. I went in to the cathedral to kill some time before the tour started. After a couple pictures my friend from the hostel, Mihaela from Romania, came in just as I was heading to the roof tour. We both went up together and were able to get a lot of pictures for each other. The roof top was amazing! We were able to wander all over, into the bell towers, and even into the loft inside the vaulted ceiling. It was beautiful, breathtaking. I took a lot of beautiful photos. It was definitely the highlight of the day and for 5 Euros it was totally worth it.

  After that amazing adventure, I wandered down to the Palacio de las Necesidades. It was a beautiful all pink building with armed guards and a wonderful across the street. I sat in the park and relaxed, pondered life, the usual park things people do.

   
  I ended yet another long, eventful day at the Parque Eduardo VII with a ham and cheese flaky pastry sandwich in hand and a bottle of water. I laid in the sun and observed the pedestrians. It was relaxing and calm. The sun was just going down. I had a realization that I finally understood the reason for parks in cities. After growing up in a small town with a slow pace, moving to Victoria seemed exciting and fast paced but I still always thought parks were just meant to be pretty places amongst the concrete. I guess because in the grand scheme of things Victoria is such a slow paced, laid back city I was never able to fully put parks to their full use. Of course, anyone that knows me knows that I am huge fan of just wandering through Beacon Hill and laying on the hillside for hours over looking Dallas Road but only now did I fully understand them. Laying in the park today after two full days in the hustle and bustle of Lisbon, with all of its sounds and buzzing vehicles and energy I felt total relaxation and refuge amongst the craziness. It was an amazing moment.

   Anyways, I am back at the hostel for the night. Turns out one of the guys here is from Victoria/Washington. Him and the Australian guy have been jamming on the guitars all night which has been wonderful. Good night, Canada!