Exploring Portugal...

Sorry for the delay in posts and pictures. I've had my first visitors in town! My dad and his girlfriend have been here the last two weeks, so I've been happily touring around playing the guide and the tourist. The weather unfortunately has been terrible around here, but thankfully stopped raining enough for us to enjoy the sights in Lisbon and beyond and even get in a day at the beach in the Algarve. Since I saved up the touristy stuff around here for when guests come, it was great to explore and see a lot of places and things I haven't before. It was especially fun to tour around Portugal with my Dad since it's where our people are from :) The first week we spent pretty close to home. Went into Lisbon and took the tram up to the Castelo de Sao Jorge...well, we tried to take the tram...after missing our stop and walking a bit, we finally found it. It's gorgeous up there - incredible views of the city! The next day we took a little day trip to Sintra. It's a town about 25 minutes away with beautiful views and castles. The ride is a little curvy, but once at the top - at the Palacio de Pena - the views are absolutely incredible. We only went in the one castle, so I'm looking forward to exploring it a little more. We also found a great lunch spot - the acorda (sort of like a stuffing) tasted just like my great grandma's stuffing - it was so good! On the way home, we decided to take the scenic route and go to Cabo da Roca - the most western point in Europe. It was incredible views and a really cool spot. We were hoping for a beach day to relax, but the weather didn't cooperate. So, we just took a day to rest our legs and regroup. Next up we ventured across the Tagus on a ferry and had lunch at this quaint little spot along the river - it was really cool to be on the water looking back at Lisbon. Then we made our way up to Cristo Rei - Lisbon's much smaller version of Christ the Redeemer. Another incredible view spot! We managed to sneak in one day at the pool at the nice resort my dad was staying at and squeezed in a visit to Belem and of course piri piri in Lisbon before heading south to the Algarve! The weather was not cooperating on the way down...it was terrible. The first night we just stayed at the hotel in Lagos and ate at the restaurant there and then the next day, after a few morning showers, we got some sun!! Dad and Denise went shopping and Lisa and I hit the beach (of course!). We had wanted to take a grotto tour and realized while we were at the beach (Praia de Dona Ana) that we could take a boat from there. We hired the man with the shell horn and the loudest whistle (out of his mouth) that I've ever heard. The guy was hysterical!! And the funny thing was we ran into my dad and Denise on the water - we'd both decided to take the tour at the same time :) Not sure they had the same crazy driver we did, but he also pulled us up to the party boat full of boys and told him we needed 3 cervezas - obviously Lisa and I picked the boat to take us out! The grottos were so cool - they go speeding in these little narrow openings and then the water color on the inside is just gorgeous - colors you've never seen before. And they have all of these names for what the rocks look like - I always had a hard time seeing it and he wouldn't move on until I found it...very entertaining. After that, we headed back to the beach for a little more sun and for some lunch above the beach to take in the views. Dinner that night was on a nice spot overlooking the water (everyone in the town couldn't be nicer!!) and then Lisa and I went to explore the town. We were accosted by an Australian in a cow poncho who led us into a fun bar. On the way walking home, we got caught in a major downpour!! At least it was a night and not during our sun hours :) The next day we got up for some pool time and then hit the road. We decided to take the scenic route along the coast and through Vila Nova Milfontes. I had found a restaurant there that looked great - we managed to find it, and it was incredible!! I had one of the best dishes I've had yet and the people were wonderful. I told them I would definitely be back! The beaches there were great too - it was absolutely gorgeous and we were all very happy we decided to hit that on the way back and not in the downpour on the way down! We made it back last night and just relaxed today - of course woke up to rain...again...ugh. Hate to complain, but I am ready for some beach days!! My dad and Denise leave on Wednesday - we've had such a great time! Lisa and I will be relaxing for a week and then are off to Italy a week from Wednesday - can't wait to go back and eat lots of pizza and gelato - and of course drinks lots of Italian wine :) We're getting pretty good at the Portuguese and French wines, so it's time to conquer the Italian. We're also becoming quite the locals around town - have our favorite restaurants and have met some very nice people. We managed to find an awesome sushi restaurant too - a nice break from the Portuguese cuisine when we feel like something different :) Hope everyone is doing well - I will send more before Italy and then hopefully can send some pics from there! xo

Paris, Amsterdam and more...

I'm back from our first road trip and it was a blast!! We picked up our car (little buddy) and took off for San Sebastian. I had been there on my trip last year, but the weather this time was incredible and made it even more beautiful. We got there later at night, so wandered to find a dinner place (Anne & Squid - actually found some great food there) and then called it a night. The next day, we walked around town for a bit and then hit the road again. We decided to stop in Bordeaux the second night and were hoping to do some wine tasting, but by the time we got there, it was too late. So, we checked into our room (see photos) and created our own little wine tasting tour. Went to a nice wine bar across the street from the hotel and tasted some excellent wine - the girl that worked there was really helpful and picked out some good ones. Then we found a great place for dinner where I cluelessly ordered a couple things - the menu was all French. Apparently I like ratatouille :) We also found a Mac store while we were there - thank God - we were tired of listening to the 2 cds we had and the radio. The iPod hook up for the car was key for the rest of the trip! Next we were off to Paris. I'd never been before and it was incredible - absolutely loved everything about it. The first day we walked the entire city...our hotel was close to the Marais and we walked all the way to the Arc de Triomphe and back. That night we had my favorite meal of the trip at a place called Bistro les Sans Culottes...it was adorable and delicious. The next day we cruised around again - hit a couple museums (the Louvre was packed....almost too much for us to take!) and then of course ended up on Ile St Louis for gelato. That night we went to dinner by the Eiffel Tower and thought we would cruise over after to see if it was still open and it was - it was amazing!!! As you can tell from our many pictures, it was a highlight of Paris. The best part was it was about midnight, so there weren't very many other people around - definitely the way to go as that city is crawling with tourists and lines. The next couple days were more of the same...exploring Paris and good food and wine. Next up was Amsterdam. Also incredible, but in a totally different way. We stayed at a house on one of the canals and it was so great. Perfect location and an amazing view. We cruised around the city and saw all the sights and then just enjoyed the weather and all of the outdoor bars and restaurants. My friend Jesse is working on a tour boat there for the summer, so he joined us for a couple days in Amsterdam for wine and cheese on the canal and many beers. We all had a blast! We loved it there so much that we decided to stay and drive up to Hoorn for the night where the boat Jesse is working on is docked. I am so glad we decided to do it - driving through The Netherlands and stopping in an adorable town called Alkmaar was beautiful. There is nothing like it. I really wanted to see the tulips and we saw a lot on the drive. That night the weather was again perfect, so we of course had more wine and cheese on the deck of the boat and enjoyed the sunset. After that, we headed into town and hit the local skipper's bar...it was awesome. No tourists and just real locals - my kind of traveling! I love to really be around the people that live in the different towns. Needless to say that night was also a blast and the next day we got a little bit of a slow start on the road. We decided to head to Provence for a night. The drive turned out a little longer than we'd hoped and we were exhausted by the time we got there. Stayed in a town called Arles and really just had time for dinner and to sleep. At first, we couldn't find a hotel (I am not good at the spontaneous travel and finding hotels), but finally found a nice one. The next day we took off for Toledo - we thought it was going to be a nice 6 hour drive, but it turned out to be closer to 10...brutal. We tried to find this one hotel we'd read about in town and it was insane...the streets were SO narrow I almost had an anxiety attack driving through them (we had to pull in the mirrors) and when we finally got there, all they had was a room with a twin bed and hardwood floors. We were so tired, but not that tired, so I navigated out of the teeny streets and we found a nice big hotel on the main road just right out of town. Unfortunately we didn't get to enjoy the place b/c it was beautiful, but plan on going back when we head back to Spain. We had a nice quick drive back to Lisbon and were definitely ready to relax a little and wash our clothes!! It was such a great trip - and seemed nice and long. I can't wait for the next one! My dad arrives this week, so I'll just be hanging around town for the next couple weeks and exploring more of Portugal. Very excited! I added the pics from the road trip - they tell the story better than I can :) I attempted to condense them, but to capture it all and the fun times there are definitely a lot. Sorry for the long-winded blog...a lot to cover in the last few weeks. Miss you all and can't wait to share all of my stories live with you when I get back! xo

Road Trip...

Still on our road trip and having a blast!  Paris and Amsterdam were incredible.  Right now I am sitting on a boat in Hoorn - about 30 min outside of Amsterdam. My friend Jesse is living here for the summer so he met and stayed with us in Amsterdam and today we drove through the beautiful countryside and are staying on the boat with him tonight - so fun!  Weather couldn't be more perfect. Lots of pics to come when I get back to Lisbon on Sunday!  xo