Day 2 27/2/11 - Portugal, England

Lisbon -> London

Highlight

• Decided to head to Belam, and so did all the other tourists, so a mad scramble for the tram
• There was also a line to go to the Jerónimos Monastery
• Was definitely worth the wait, and didn’t hurt that it was free on Sunday morning.
• Wondered around the beautiful cloisters, taking pictures all around.
• Managed to bump into PJ and co there as well.
• Off to the famous birthplace of the pastéis de nata, Antiga Confeitaria de Belém. Service was like all the other teahouses, we were ignored for a long time, but at least the tarts were worth waiting for.
• Walked around enjoying the squares at Balem.
• Visited the Coaching Museum because it was free on Sunday – relatively interesting, but once you’ve seen about 3 coaches, you really didn’t need to see them all.
• Watched all the people enjoying Al Fresco lunch along the Rua Vieira Portuense.
• Walked down to see the Monument to the Discoveries, then enjoyed a lovely stroll on another beautiful day along the seaside, with the Ponte 25 de Abril in the background, to the Tour de Balem. We didn’t bother going in because of Allie, instead decided to head back so we are not rushed.
• Well, so much for that. The ride back to town was not as crowded, but still bad. We managed to have one more custard tart and one more port before heading back to our hotel
• Waited at the bus stop for an airport bus for over 40 minutes. It turned out 2 buses didn’t come so we had to squish onto a bus when it finally came. We were the last people able to get on, everyone else on the stops after us we didn’t stop for.
• This didn’t give us that much time at the lounge. We had to eat really fast and didn’t really get to relax.
• The flight back was very full, but at least it was on time, and Allie got some crayons to play with.

Food

• Eleven almond cake
• ham and cheese roll
• orange juice
• Pastesis de Balem:
  • custard tart (€0.90)
  • duck pie
  • meat pastry
• Ginja berry port (€1.20)
• Air France Lounge:
  • ham and cheese sandwich
  • fish pie
  • seafood croquette
  • lemon tart
  • almond cake
• BA flight:
  • turkey and cranberry roll
  • apple juice