I’d like to blame it on pregnancy/mommy brain, but unfortunately this one is all on me. Jeff and I had scheduled one last “quick family trip” to Lisbon, Portugal before Carson and I headed back to the states for the holidays.
Our things were packed, we parked at the airport and were checking in when I suddenly realized I had forgotten our passports at the house. Since the flight was international, we wouldn’t be able to travel on just our Aufenthaltstitel (German residency card). As soon as we realized this, Jeff hopped out of the check-in process and headed straight for the car. The only thing that was on our side was that the plane was delayed by 40 minutes and there are many stretches of the Autobahn that don’t have speed limits.
We made it! 45 minutes later, my knight in shining armor came racing through the terminal with passports in hand. Since we travel with a stroller, we were guided to the family security line and made it through security in under 5 minutes (for the record, that never happens). We were also flying out of the gate that is closest to the security lanes (again, never happens). We got to the gate just as they were calling preferred passengers and families! 🙌
Flying into Portugal was fantastic. The flight pattern takes you out over the ocean and back to land so you can watch the waves crash along the beautiful coastline then fly over the hilly coastal city with the red-roofed, white buildings…gorgeous. We landed around rush hour on a Thursday afternoon, so taking the train into the city was our best bet of getting to the hotel quickly. It’s also Jeff’s favorite way to travel.
We stayed near the Marques de Pombal & Avenide de Liberdade so getting around the city by either walking or taking the train was quite easy. The only thing not easy were the hills and this pregnant mama! Oh, the hills.
Since it was a quick trip, we let our friends Kelsey and Adam lead the way. They had already been in Lisbon for a bit and it wasn’t their first time. They took us down the Avenide de Liberdade, past the colossal Starbucks, through the hilly streets to Bertrand book store. Established in 1732, it is the oldest operating book shop in the world. We then headed to my new favorite place, the TimeOut Market for lunch. It was glorious. So many different types of food to choose, fresh seafood, meat & cheese galore, and delicious pastels! (We went there multiple times on this very short trip).
Jeff and I also stumbled upon the Convento da Ordemdo Carmo (Convent of Our Lady of Mount Carmel) a medieval church and convent that was completed in 1407 and destroyed in the Lisbon earthquake of 1755 when the nave collapsed. There is also a museum in the back. Well worth the 5 Euros per person.
Lisbon is one of the larger cities we’ve been to lately and since we didn’t schedule a lot of time there, we took a hop on/hop off city sightseeing bus tour. Well worth it! The tour picked up at the Marques de Pombal (near our hotel), took us all the way out to the Padrao dos Descobrimetos & the Torre de Belem, past the Praca do Comercio, up the Avenide de Liberdade, back to the Marques de Pombal.
We also explored the city at night. Everything was beautifully lit and festive! I’ve heard great things about Lisbon during the warmer months but must say that we definitely enjoyed our time there in December.
