We pull ourselves away from the beach and make our plans to head to Portugal, since the train is a very long night ride we decide to book a flight instead.  Being last minute folks who usually make decisions on where to go a day before we travel  can be tough at times.  This time we’ve still got to get from Torremolinos to Madrid for our flight and as we knew it would be, traveling over Easter is a bit tricky.  We manage, thanks to a very helpful ticket agent to find our way in time for our flight. Lucky we left early as Madrid has 4 terminals and although it has a great system you still have to catch a shuttle from one to the other. I just love how there is a metro from the train station to terminal 4 even if we’re going to terminal 2.

So here we are in Lisbon and although not the immediate wow we’ve experienced so far it does grow on us as we make our way around. The weather is a little cloudy and rainy, probably adding to the slower warm up process. By late afternoon though we’re in full swing having discovered some of the many wonders this city holds. I must admit that I didn’t know much about Portugal prior to this visit but have come away with a new appreciation for a beautiful city.

Sintra

One of our favourite discoveries is a town about 20 minutes west of Lisbon, a UNESCO heritage site called Sintra. This is romantic, historical and well worth the trip. We walked to the top a of Castelo dos Mouros, 420 metres up but with all the twists and turns, it felt a lot further. Beautiful village, amazing views from the top and a fantastic work out.  This place is a definitely high on the things to see in Portugal list.