Say hello to our new friend…Lisbon

Lisbon surprised us.
We were expecting…something more traditional in the way of atmosphere.  Like friendly old lady’s selling Nata’s (an awesome custard tart) and doilies with rooster’s on them.
All those things are available to you here but there is sooooo much more to Lisbon.

As is our way, we drop our bags at our rental spot, see if there’s a coffee maker, filters and what kind of cooking paraphernalia is present and head out towards the water.
Or at least in that direction.
It’s always a good plan cause we don’t really ever know where we are so a plan of really no plan is still a plan!
Chances are good we will pass interesting stuff along the way to said waterfront so it works for us.

This is what we see as we approach the waterfront.

I am not a photographer, an artist or an architect but I can say the feeling here is pretty overwhelming and I imagine that’s what it must be like for those artistic types.
Just look at the cobblestone streets!  Each piece shaped and pounded in by hand – even to this day!
Stevo has the eye for these things and thankfully brings them to my attention.   My initial intake of the scene is more of a ‘feeling’, a sum of all the parts.
Ok, I’m the one constantly tripping off sidewalks and bumping into things cause I’m trying to look EVERYWHERE!

Maybe I’m a bad blogger for:
a.  starting this sentence off with ‘maybe’
b.  not knowing what this archway is called or when it was built etc…
Here’s the deal though, it’s ok to not to research every single thing.
It’s ok to not know ANYTHING about the country you’re going to.
How does this help you?  Maybe (again) it doesn’t.
Or maybe it shows you that getting lost or finding some awesome thing to take a selfie with is still awesome even if you don’t know everything about it or that it existed at all!
Start wandering.

So we dodge all the selfie sticks and smiling faces and ta-da!

This is the massive courtyard on the other side.
There’s more selfie sticks than you can shake a …selfie stick at!
There’s a news reporter steadying herself on the cobblestone with her sparkly silver high heels getting ready to do a live report in front of the camera.
There’s groups of scouts listening to their fearless leader.
And…there’s Pickachu.

Helping to raise money for disadvantaged families – and making people smile whilst doing so.

Along both sides of the courtyard there’s beautiful archways to take you to the waterfront.

There is no destination here, it’s all about the journey.
Every part matters, every part is worth the effort.

The actual waterfront goes on forever.  There’s lots of places along the way to sit and soak up the sun, read a book, do yoga – whatever really, along the way.

This gentleman likes to pile rocks up in whatever way they fit.

He spends a lot of time doing this.

When you look real close – it’s pretty…involved.
He’s made it his thing and you know what, people like it and put it on Instagram.
He gets to hang out chatting with people in the sunshine at the waterfront and some people knock his stuff down cause they touch it.  (WHY are you touching it!)
Others throw change in his box.
Everyone’s got to find their thing.
This is his.

We walk over to the Marina one day.  Note in point:  it has very few catamarans.
It’s a marina and here’s a casualty of neglect.

No one loved her enough.
Boats don’t wake up in the morning looking all show ready and sparkly.
They are loved into that state.
This one wasn’t.

So we go to a magical spot we found (we had no idea existed) where loved boats do their thing.

And Stevo does his thing.

This guy does his.

And I do mine.

I have learned wandering around as of late that the whole world isn’t on TripAdvisor.
The parts that happen to be, are open to interpretation.

A very smart friend once told us it’s possible to get paralyzed from over analyzing.
We urge you to wander friends.
Smile.
Try to speak the language of the country.
Get lost.
We promise this – there will always be someone willing to help you get to where you need to go.
Honest engine or whatever!

And also know there’s an Irish Bar waiting to take you in, pour you a cold one and ask you to sing along.