Just a note though, this hotel does not include wifi. I have almost taken it for granted that hotels and hostels prices include wifi. It pays to check before booking if this is important for your selection making. This hotel charges 3 euros an hour for wifi access!
We stayed at Fatima until 10am before heading for the bus to Lisbon. Another 1.5 hour bus ride.
The first thing we realized as soon as we stepped off the bus was that it is much hotter in Lisbon. The previous night was extremely chilly and I had to put on a jacket. In Lisbon I was desperate to get to the hostel to change out of my three quarter pants to something more comfortable and breezy.
We stayed at the Good Night Hostel. The moment we stepped inside I knew we had chosen the right place, our hostess Magda greeted us warmly and like we were long awaited friends. The atmosphere inside was youthful and vibrant. The hostel oozed friendliness from it's walls!
After getting changed into more comfortable clothing, we headed out for the sights as advised by the very helpful Magda.
We stopped at what at first appeared to be a shop similar to Subways for lunch.
My seafood sandwich combo for 5 euros includes drink and jelly.
Here are some photos of central Lisbon.
As advised, we purchased a one day pass from the metro station, which allows us unlimited assess to the metro, buses, trams in Lisbon for 24 hours all for 4.30 euros.
We took no. 15 tram to the Monastery of in Belem in search of the original natas!
What are Nata? If you have been following my blog you would have read my post about Nata in Porto. We were quite disappointed, however, Magda said this is the best place as this was where Nata originates from. Only three people in the world knows the original recipe.
Not giving up we decided to head to Belem to see if we can find anything better than Macau Nata.
It is not hard to miss the tram stop, as it passes right by the shop, Pasties de Belem, where at all hours there is a queue outside waiting to purchase the lovely custard tarts.
After queuing for 5 mins, we got our hands on the tasty treat!
It is absolutely amazing, very different to the ones we tried in Porto, this one has creamy custard and deliciously crunchy and flaky tart casing. It blew all the other Nata I have tasted before out of the water!
We all had two and wished for seconds!
The tarts were delicious but man cannot live on tarts alone, we eventually made our way to the Monastery Chapel.
The monastery museum charges 11 euros for entry, as we only had half an hour before closing, we decided not to venture inside.
Instead, the boys wanted seconds on the Belem tarts!
Unfortunately, as Martin took the first two out of the box he accidentally dropped them! We heard crowd of queuing people behind us go Ohh...
A pity!!
That night, following Andrew the coin cutter's advice, we found his friend the other coin cutter and his highly recommended restaurant. A Provinciana.
Andrew gave us the following directions: This place is off Rua de Portas, on the street on the corner of the Benfica shop, the second on the right.
Lucky for us, his coin cutter friend was working right in front of the shop and as we chatted he pointed us to the place no problem.
This place doesn't even have proper signage. The locals probably knows it location and it doesn't do much tourist business. This was the only signage outside, not a word of English for tourists like us.
We meet a lovely old man there called Manuel who explained to us in broken English how terrific this place is and also shouted Martin a glass of sherry.
Here is a shot of the owner opening a casket of red wine.
These are all local diners. There was only one other tourist there seated behind us. See the rockmelon on the top right? It is common for the people here to have rockmelon either as an appetizer or as dessert. We have tried some earlier but found the taste of this Spanish variety a little bland compared to what we have available back home.
Doesn't look gourmet but trust me, the flavor was good and very authentic Portuguese. If you are looking for fancy restaurants, then the main street outside may suit you better, but if you don't mind the homeliness of this place, the staff is friendly and the food is great. A must try if you happen by Lisbon!
It's cocktail night nearly every night in the hostel, for 3 euros the hostel staff makes delicious drinks for the guest. I was too tired to join in, but I think you can imagine what a lovely and vibrant hostel this is to stay in.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Location:Plaza de Ponce de León,Seville,Spain
No comments:
Post a Comment