It’s nice to be back in Lisbon ( pronounced liʒˈboɐ in Portuguese), where seabirds glide and dip outside the windows, pastels de nata beckon from store windows, the consonants are softer, I get to say “obrigada” again, and yes, nearly everyone speaks English (we Americans are very spoiled).
We are spending our last two nights in a two-bedroom apartment on the top of a sixth floor building in the heart of the Chiado neighborhood (using a tiny elevator that freaks out Edwin), a block from where we stayed our very first night of the trip. It’s a beautiful neighborhood of narrow, steep streets with bars, restaurants, shops, and squares, which also means the streets don’t sleep until the not-so-wee hours of the morning. Thank goodness these windows shut tightly; we have transitioned to a much later schedule while in Portugal and Spain, eating dinner between 8:00 and 9:00, but we’re not out in the square drinking until 2:00.
We have one full day here instead of two because of the car debacle, so we’d better make the most of it tomorrow.
My Corner of the Village 