Lisbon, April 20-22, 2008

After leaving our new friends on the Rotterdam- many went on 12 more days to Athens- we checked into a modest- that's being kind- Lisbon hotel. The location, however was excellent. We were in the very old section next to the Gloria elevator- an ancient yellow tram that just goes up the steep street and then back down- probably a 45 degree angle. The highlight the first day was the Gulbenkian Museum. Mr G, donated his vast private art collection to Lisbon 50 years ago. Everthing from ancient Roman and Egyptian artifacts to Renoirs, Monets, Degas and Lalique with a little of everything in between from coins to rugs, silver and furniture. Three museum buildings, very modern and situated in several acres in the north center of the city. There were ponds, flowering trees, paths and sculptures. Peaceful and serene ,it was a real find. We even ran into some of our former shipmates on the street.
The next AM we took the train about 40 minutes northwest to the village of Sintra. This was the site where the elite of Portugal built their palaces and castles. For a few euros we took the bus to the main attractions. First, the Moorish Fortress which overlooks the city from high overhead. We climbed the walls to see the magnificent valley and gazed over to the ocean. We then hopped back on the bus going even higher on a winding and twisting one lane, one way road to the Pena Palace. This was the summer palace of the Portugese kings reminiscent of Neuschwanstein in Bavaria. It sits 1500 feet up on the top of a mountain. Very colorful and more tiles than could be imagined. Portugal is justly famous for its gorgeous tiles called "azuelos". They adorn everything , walls, floors, ceilings, even streets.
After touring the many rooms we descended via the bus to the village. There we had to see one more palace, the National Palace of Sintra. Again the tiles were stunning. I especially was taken with the swan room. It was a huge ballroom or hall probably 80 feet long and the ceiling were covered with various designs of swans. There was also a room which was totally tiled with the family crests of the 86 ruling familes of Portugal. The kitchen area concluded the tour and had 2 gigantic smoke chimneys for ventilation. By this time we were palaced out and after a nice lunch we took the train back to Lisbon to get ready for the flight home in the AM.