Spring in Lisbon, Portugal

A weekend away in late May, I expected to get some colour in my pale skin by booking a long weekend away to Portugal. However, the weather did not cooperate with its rainy skies and cool temperatures, so a relaxing holiday turned out to be a primarily sight-seeing one. That was alright by me, though I wish we had been a little luckier with the weather. On the other hand, Portugal (Lisbon) is a beautiful place to visit with plenty of sight-seeing opportunities. I booked four nights to stay in a hotel in Caicais and was not far from Lisbon and not far from Sintra, a National Heritage area in the moutains north of Cascais. The palaces and castle here were the highlights of the trip. Additionally, I enjoyed Lisbon's cobbled streets, the castle, the elevator (built by the same man who built the Eiffel Tower), and the quaint trams zipping around (and up hills). Lisbon is a fairly small city, and the central sights were easily viewed and walked to within a day. Another collection of tourist sights are located just west of the city, along the coast.

Cascais ended up being an excellent base for exploring. The village is on the coast (west of Lisbon; this was about a thirty minute journey on the train) with beaches, a shopping mall, and restaurants within the main square. The food was delicious here, and the prices were good value; the wine was also delicious and cheaper than the United Kingdom, but then most places are cheaper than the United Kingdom.