Praça do Comércio
Lisbon is a vibrant, historical city, with so much to explore, eat and drink. We had no expectations upon arriving here and it has been nothing but joyful. The food is amazing and after months in Panama where the selection is limited, we are in food heaven. The Pastel de Bacalhau Codfish Cake with a glass of Port is our new favorite. The Pastel de Nata is an incredible egg custard tart and it appears that in 2009, The Guardian rated it as one of the 50 best things to eat in the world.
After a few days of recovery from Trans Atlantic weariness, we learned the Metro subway system and ventured out. Our own neighborhood was very convenient with a croissant bakery downstairs, numerous restaurants close by, an amazing grocery store, Continente, down the block, as well as the Metro station entrance and the Jardim Mário Soares park. Randy’s Portuguese is improving daily, however the majority of people speak some English, with many completely fluent. Another takeaway is that the cost of living here, groceries, dining, transportation is less than in Panama. Of course, we usually travel and stay outside of the major tourist center where prices are higher. On another note, we haven’t been this cold in a long time. Temperatures drop to 58F (14C) overnight, while In Panama it is more like 74F (23C).
Exploring Lisboa
We took an enjoyable 1 hour city tour in a bus with a video screen.
Walking the Avenida da Liberdade with the Rodeo Drive brand stores and stopping for a drink and a snack in our neighborhood park, Jardim Mário Soares.
Randy with a Pastel da Nata, the custard tart, Robin with a ham and cheese croissant. Yes, we love the food in Portugal.
Bread and pastries everywhere.
A fortuitous meet-up with Karen and David from Ajijic, Mexico. We got together at Lisbon’s Time Out Market (mercado da ribeira).
The market was packed inside, so we ate at a cafe outside and Randy brought his cards.
Praça do Comércio
Santa Justa lift and a Sangria stop.
A sardine store?!
Our typical breakfast at Sam Croissants, 2 ham and cheese croissants , breakfast tea and abatanado coffee, all for about $5 US.
Lisbon Zoo
This was an incredible zoo, with multiple entertaining shows, modern, well maintained habitats and a skyway cable ride. We spent about 5 hours exploring here.
Sumatran tiger
The dolphin show was amazing!
The Enchanted Forest bird show was fun with some unique birds and animals
Wow, there was even a pet cemetery in the corner of the zoo. I thought it was for zoo animals, but no, just dogs and cats.
Riding the zoo cable car skyway about the zoo treetops.
Lisbon Aquarium
The aquarium is very modern and well laid out. Sea otters, sharks, rays, jellyfish, penguins and loads of fish are present throughout the 3 level facility.
Cuttlefish
We found Nemo!
Lisbon was awesome and now we are off to Lagos, Portugal in the Algarve for 5 weeks. After that, we will be returning to the Lisbon area, staying across the river in Almada.
Até logo! (See you later!)
Randy and Robin's Roving Retirement 
Wonderful!
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