Well, I'm watching the sun set from a street side cafe with a beautiful view of Lisbon, although its cooling off quickly so I will write fast!
Today was a beautiful day, sunny and 70, couldn't have asked for a better day. I of course asked for several more, but what can you do ;-)
Took it easy today, went to Belém, a nearby suburb on the river with several monuments and museums. Took a nice long lunch, then came back to town and walked around a bit. Tonight a light dinner and to bed early for the trip home tomorrow!
To add to the comparison to SF, Lisbon has a very close replica of the Golden Gate which is the exact same color and apparently was even built by the same company. The towers are different, but from most angles you can't really tell. It's kind of eerie!!
I'm sad to be ending my trip, but kind of glad to be coming home to different clothes, my own bed, and my friends. I've missed everyone even of I have talked to everyone on AIM several times!!
They are shutting down the cafe so I'd better jet. See you all back in the States!!
Saturday, March 7, 2009
3:00 pm, Sintra - outside Moorish Castle
I've decided Portugal has the lousiest weather, ever. Even the UK had nicer weather when I was there!! All three times!
The weather has been both a pain and an attraction in itself today. I'm just finishing the sights in Sintra: the National Palace (nice, but full of annoying Portuguese teenagers), Pena Palace (gorgeous, but militant about their no photos rule - why double-staff a room to prevent photography? I don't get it), and the highlight for me, the Moorish castle ruins. This is going to date me, but it was exactly like the castle ruins where they had the sword fight at the top of the Cliffs of Insanity in the movie Princess Bride. I wonder if that's where they filmed it? LOL. Anyway, the castle and Pena Palace were both on top of this huge mountain, and the clouds/fog combined with the wind made for some fantastic pictures!! Very eerie, but way cool. Unfortunately I forgot my hat today and my hair is suffering the consequences, big time. Why didn't I buzz it before this trip again??
The weather has been both a pain and an attraction in itself today. I'm just finishing the sights in Sintra: the National Palace (nice, but full of annoying Portuguese teenagers), Pena Palace (gorgeous, but militant about their no photos rule - why double-staff a room to prevent photography? I don't get it), and the highlight for me, the Moorish castle ruins. This is going to date me, but it was exactly like the castle ruins where they had the sword fight at the top of the Cliffs of Insanity in the movie Princess Bride. I wonder if that's where they filmed it? LOL. Anyway, the castle and Pena Palace were both on top of this huge mountain, and the clouds/fog combined with the wind made for some fantastic pictures!! Very eerie, but way cool. Unfortunately I forgot my hat today and my hair is suffering the consequences, big time. Why didn't I buzz it before this trip again??
Top Twenty Things I Learned in Portugal
1) Elevators are a luxury. Treasure them as you would precious jewels, or children.
2) The Portuguese go out MUCH later than you do. Accept that, and go to bed early.
3) However you think the word "conceição" is pronounced, you're wrong.
4) Sardines don't taste as bad as you think. Actually, they're kind of good...like canned tuna, but a little stronger. A fun side effect is lethal sardine burps which ward off vampires and the British.
5) Pigeons are BACK! And they're pissed.
6) British tourists come in two types: timid, doddy old fart couples who complain that they can't get baked beans for breakfast, and 20-something wannabe soccer hooligans with mohawks looking to get fucked up beyond recognition.
7) Portuguese schoolchildren are never seen in groups of less than 20, regardless of the circumstances.
8) All streets and sidewalks in Lisbon are paved with tiles and cobblestones. While aesthetically pleasing, this will make you want to cut your feet off at the ankles with pruning shears.
9) An unfortunate side effect of hilltop castles is extreme wind conditions. Kings must have had bad hair like, all the time. I guess that explains crowns.
10) Here's a fun exercise: Go to a map. Pick any city in Portugal, large or small. Chances are excellent that the city you picked has more train stations than the entire US Northeast. Crossing the country will run you about three bucks. Oh, and the train system here is considered slow and primitive by snooty countries like France and Belgium.
11) As in Morocco, most women here are named Fatima. They even named a city Fatima. I don't even think it's a very good name.
12) "Portugal" comes from the ancient Roman name for the city of Porto: Portus Cale, which is Latin for "hilly, windy place that is obsessed with fish".
13) ATMs here dispense €10, €20 and €50 bills only. Most places of business have an irrational fear of any denomination larger than €5. This poses a real probleml for, well...everyone.
14) Do not, under any circumstances, accidentally lapse into Spanish when trying to communicate with a Portuguese person. They hate the Spanish and will bludgeon you unconscious with a mackerel.
15) Do not try to apply your newly acquired North African mad bargaining skills while buying toothpaste in a Lisbon supermarket. Homey don't play that.
16) You are allowed to walk along castle walls here. However, Moors and medieval Portuguese did not have the technology to build handrails to prevent your falling into the castle courtyard. They also did not erect signs to warn you of this, as that would spoil all the fun.
17) It's not considered rude at all to honk your horn incessantly on a residential street at 5am. Earplugs are a wise investment.
18) In 1494, Portugal and Spain drew an arbitrary line down the globe and each took half. Not knowing what the world looked like at the time, the Spanish got all the good stuff except Brazil, and Portugal got...Brazil. They are still really mad that they got hosed.
19) Port wine, a key export of Portugal, is made by adding brandy to wine, then boiling it down until it has the consistency and sugar content of maple syrup. In spite of that, it's delicious.
And finally...
20) In Portugal, shrimp are served with the tails removed but the heads on! There's nothing quite like buggy black shrimp eyes and antennae to remind you that you're eating sea roaches.
2) The Portuguese go out MUCH later than you do. Accept that, and go to bed early.
3) However you think the word "conceição" is pronounced, you're wrong.
4) Sardines don't taste as bad as you think. Actually, they're kind of good...like canned tuna, but a little stronger. A fun side effect is lethal sardine burps which ward off vampires and the British.
5) Pigeons are BACK! And they're pissed.
6) British tourists come in two types: timid, doddy old fart couples who complain that they can't get baked beans for breakfast, and 20-something wannabe soccer hooligans with mohawks looking to get fucked up beyond recognition.
7) Portuguese schoolchildren are never seen in groups of less than 20, regardless of the circumstances.
8) All streets and sidewalks in Lisbon are paved with tiles and cobblestones. While aesthetically pleasing, this will make you want to cut your feet off at the ankles with pruning shears.
9) An unfortunate side effect of hilltop castles is extreme wind conditions. Kings must have had bad hair like, all the time. I guess that explains crowns.
10) Here's a fun exercise: Go to a map. Pick any city in Portugal, large or small. Chances are excellent that the city you picked has more train stations than the entire US Northeast. Crossing the country will run you about three bucks. Oh, and the train system here is considered slow and primitive by snooty countries like France and Belgium.
11) As in Morocco, most women here are named Fatima. They even named a city Fatima. I don't even think it's a very good name.
12) "Portugal" comes from the ancient Roman name for the city of Porto: Portus Cale, which is Latin for "hilly, windy place that is obsessed with fish".
13) ATMs here dispense €10, €20 and €50 bills only. Most places of business have an irrational fear of any denomination larger than €5. This poses a real probleml for, well...everyone.
14) Do not, under any circumstances, accidentally lapse into Spanish when trying to communicate with a Portuguese person. They hate the Spanish and will bludgeon you unconscious with a mackerel.
15) Do not try to apply your newly acquired North African mad bargaining skills while buying toothpaste in a Lisbon supermarket. Homey don't play that.
16) You are allowed to walk along castle walls here. However, Moors and medieval Portuguese did not have the technology to build handrails to prevent your falling into the castle courtyard. They also did not erect signs to warn you of this, as that would spoil all the fun.
17) It's not considered rude at all to honk your horn incessantly on a residential street at 5am. Earplugs are a wise investment.
18) In 1494, Portugal and Spain drew an arbitrary line down the globe and each took half. Not knowing what the world looked like at the time, the Spanish got all the good stuff except Brazil, and Portugal got...Brazil. They are still really mad that they got hosed.
19) Port wine, a key export of Portugal, is made by adding brandy to wine, then boiling it down until it has the consistency and sugar content of maple syrup. In spite of that, it's delicious.
And finally...
20) In Portugal, shrimp are served with the tails removed but the heads on! There's nothing quite like buggy black shrimp eyes and antennae to remind you that you're eating sea roaches.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Rockin' out in Lisbon
I made it to Lisbon in one piece! I'm sad that this is my last city, but it's been a great trip and I'm actually about ready to come home. I know, I thought I'd never see the day! I am happy that I only have to pack once more, though...I am tired of living out of a suitcase.
Lisbon is an amazing city...imagine if Paris and San Francisco had a bastard child with a weird accent, and there you have it. It's got some fantastic neighborhoods, trolley cars, a bridge that looks suspiciously like the Golden Gate...and so far, cold, shitty weather. But it's Europe in early March, so I knew what I was getting into. Today I just walked around the city, went to the castle, the cathedral and the main museum, i.e. the standard European city day. Tomorrow I'm going to Sintra, which was the "royal getaway" town, I guess kind of like Versailles, except not. Then Saturday probably just bum around town, and Sunday I come home!
I'm about out things to say...it's hard work being a man about town and I'm pooped. I'll write once more before I leave, if I can!
Oh, before I go, I'll leave you with this thought: the Portuguese are all about some bendy straws. That is all.
Lisbon is an amazing city...imagine if Paris and San Francisco had a bastard child with a weird accent, and there you have it. It's got some fantastic neighborhoods, trolley cars, a bridge that looks suspiciously like the Golden Gate...and so far, cold, shitty weather. But it's Europe in early March, so I knew what I was getting into. Today I just walked around the city, went to the castle, the cathedral and the main museum, i.e. the standard European city day. Tomorrow I'm going to Sintra, which was the "royal getaway" town, I guess kind of like Versailles, except not. Then Saturday probably just bum around town, and Sunday I come home!
I'm about out things to say...it's hard work being a man about town and I'm pooped. I'll write once more before I leave, if I can!
Oh, before I go, I'll leave you with this thought: the Portuguese are all about some bendy straws. That is all.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Bem vindo a Portugal
Well Portugal certainly is a culture shock after Morocco! It's weird to be back in a place with rules, order, and regular trash pickup. And also - this is the toughest part so far - no one even cares that I'm here! I have walked by hundreds of shops and not a soul has tried to force me to come in, unroll his carpets, or offer me mint tea. It's funny how you miss that a little when it's not there anymore.
The food here is pretty boring, and surprisingly similar to British food: lots of sausages and fish, eels, sandwiches covered in gravy, stuff like that. No wonder all the British come here! Me, not so impressed. But oh well. I'm headed to Lisbon by train this afternoon and hoping a bigger city will offer more "colonial food" as the Portuguese did have some interesting colonies. No more fish for me, please! I realized how little Portuguese I knew when last night for dinner I inadvertently ordered a ham, cheese and hot dog sandwich. Not that it was bad...it just didn't make any SENSE. Kind of like peanut butter and bacon...it may be delicious, but who's the crackhead who thought to try it??
Porto is a cool town, but it is very compact and there isn't a ton to see. I went to the cellars where they age port wine (cool), a cathedral (kinda cool), the Ribeira district (cool), and now I'm out of things to do that don't involve eating, drinking or shopping. And I'm out of room in my luggage, so that leaves eating and drinking. I tried to reserve a river cruise yesterday, and the site said wait for an email with details which never came...so I went to the train station where they meet, and nothing. At least I hadn't prepaid...oh well, wasn't meant to be I guess. And today it's pouring so even a short river cruise is out of the question.
Portuguese is a very strange language, is sounds kind of like Spanish with a very noticeable lisp and/or speech impediment. There are lots of unexpected vowels, and a lot of "sh" and "zh" sounds. It's fun to speak but it totally feels like I'm doing it wrong!
I'm on the 3:45 train to Lisbon this afternoon and am really looking forward to it. I think I've seen all I want to see in Porto. And from what I hear Lisbon is a much more exciting city. This country is dirt cheap too; my ticket was only about $30 for an express train (2 1/2 hours)...compare that with a similar trip on Amtrak! Coffee is less than one euro, and most meals are between €4-8 euros, even at the touristy places. Other than all the shopping this really has been a cheap trip!!
I guess I'd better shower and check out...it's hard to get motivated in this weather. Will post soon from Lisbon!!
The food here is pretty boring, and surprisingly similar to British food: lots of sausages and fish, eels, sandwiches covered in gravy, stuff like that. No wonder all the British come here! Me, not so impressed. But oh well. I'm headed to Lisbon by train this afternoon and hoping a bigger city will offer more "colonial food" as the Portuguese did have some interesting colonies. No more fish for me, please! I realized how little Portuguese I knew when last night for dinner I inadvertently ordered a ham, cheese and hot dog sandwich. Not that it was bad...it just didn't make any SENSE. Kind of like peanut butter and bacon...it may be delicious, but who's the crackhead who thought to try it??
Porto is a cool town, but it is very compact and there isn't a ton to see. I went to the cellars where they age port wine (cool), a cathedral (kinda cool), the Ribeira district (cool), and now I'm out of things to do that don't involve eating, drinking or shopping. And I'm out of room in my luggage, so that leaves eating and drinking. I tried to reserve a river cruise yesterday, and the site said wait for an email with details which never came...so I went to the train station where they meet, and nothing. At least I hadn't prepaid...oh well, wasn't meant to be I guess. And today it's pouring so even a short river cruise is out of the question.
Portuguese is a very strange language, is sounds kind of like Spanish with a very noticeable lisp and/or speech impediment. There are lots of unexpected vowels, and a lot of "sh" and "zh" sounds. It's fun to speak but it totally feels like I'm doing it wrong!
I'm on the 3:45 train to Lisbon this afternoon and am really looking forward to it. I think I've seen all I want to see in Porto. And from what I hear Lisbon is a much more exciting city. This country is dirt cheap too; my ticket was only about $30 for an express train (2 1/2 hours)...compare that with a similar trip on Amtrak! Coffee is less than one euro, and most meals are between €4-8 euros, even at the touristy places. Other than all the shopping this really has been a cheap trip!!
I guess I'd better shower and check out...it's hard to get motivated in this weather. Will post soon from Lisbon!!
Monday, March 2, 2009
Leaving Morocco
11:30 am, Marrakech airport
After 8 days, it's time to leave Morocco and on to Portugal. While I'm very excited about the next part of my trip, I have mixed feelings about leaving here.
True, this country is a pain in the ass at times. But there's something so unique, so authentically exotic and (for Americans at least) undiscovered about this country, that I feel like there is a lot I haven't seen. I always try to strike a balance between breadth and depth of experience, and I think I got it right this time, but I leave feeling there is so much more left to see. I didn't get to the Sahara, or Meknes, or Rabat, or Tangier, and I feel like I could have driven around for another week and found something exciting around every bend. So in that sense I hope that someday I will come back and finish what I started. But I'm leaving on a positive note, and with some distance I expect the memories will only get better.
I have to admit, I owe a big part of my good experience in Marrakech to the riad I stayed at. It was such an international, but English-speaking group, both the staff and the guests. Unlike anywhere else I've stayed, the common area truly was that - almost like a public family room. I'd go out there to read or catch up on email, and find myself sidetracked for hours having mint tea and talking with the Irish couple, or the English couple, or the American girl who arrived yesterday whom I really bonded with. We talked for about two hours about Morocco, traveling in general, etc and we ended up going to the square together to have dinner. I introduced her to some Moroccan dishes and we walked around for a little while after that. It's funny how quickly you bond with someone when you're so far from home and have just a few things in common.
I have to talk about the square for a bit. It's called Djemma El-Fna, and it's without question the nerve center of the entire country. It's a huge, irregular open space that feels like a combination between a park, a carnival, a craft fair and an open-air cafe. Unlike a lot of public spaces I've been to, although a tourist attraction it was obviously also a huge draw for ordinary Moroccans, too. During the day it's largely open space, with lots of street entertainment (magicians, snake charmers, fortune tellers, traditional musicians and the like) but when the sun sets the stalls are set up. Oh, the stalls!! Every kind of food and drink imaginable is available, from boiled snails (gross) to goat heads to orange juice to tagines to kebabs to spice cake, and so on. It's all dirt cheap -I ate dinner every night there and pigged out, but somehow never spent more than 8 or 9 bucks. I could have spent my entire time in Marrakech there and never gotten bored.
I haven't had a drink in over a week now, and what's funny is I haven't missed it one bit. It's just not something you crave here - the country is already such an assault on the senses that it almost would be a waste to drink here for fear of missing some experience (or getting suckered into buying a carpet or something!). It ought to be quite an interesting transition, from a dry country to one that is very wine-centric. I'm sure I won't have too much trouble adjusting, though! :-)
I'd better get wrapped up, it's almost time to board. More from Portugal in a bit!!
After 8 days, it's time to leave Morocco and on to Portugal. While I'm very excited about the next part of my trip, I have mixed feelings about leaving here.
True, this country is a pain in the ass at times. But there's something so unique, so authentically exotic and (for Americans at least) undiscovered about this country, that I feel like there is a lot I haven't seen. I always try to strike a balance between breadth and depth of experience, and I think I got it right this time, but I leave feeling there is so much more left to see. I didn't get to the Sahara, or Meknes, or Rabat, or Tangier, and I feel like I could have driven around for another week and found something exciting around every bend. So in that sense I hope that someday I will come back and finish what I started. But I'm leaving on a positive note, and with some distance I expect the memories will only get better.
I have to admit, I owe a big part of my good experience in Marrakech to the riad I stayed at. It was such an international, but English-speaking group, both the staff and the guests. Unlike anywhere else I've stayed, the common area truly was that - almost like a public family room. I'd go out there to read or catch up on email, and find myself sidetracked for hours having mint tea and talking with the Irish couple, or the English couple, or the American girl who arrived yesterday whom I really bonded with. We talked for about two hours about Morocco, traveling in general, etc and we ended up going to the square together to have dinner. I introduced her to some Moroccan dishes and we walked around for a little while after that. It's funny how quickly you bond with someone when you're so far from home and have just a few things in common.
I have to talk about the square for a bit. It's called Djemma El-Fna, and it's without question the nerve center of the entire country. It's a huge, irregular open space that feels like a combination between a park, a carnival, a craft fair and an open-air cafe. Unlike a lot of public spaces I've been to, although a tourist attraction it was obviously also a huge draw for ordinary Moroccans, too. During the day it's largely open space, with lots of street entertainment (magicians, snake charmers, fortune tellers, traditional musicians and the like) but when the sun sets the stalls are set up. Oh, the stalls!! Every kind of food and drink imaginable is available, from boiled snails (gross) to goat heads to orange juice to tagines to kebabs to spice cake, and so on. It's all dirt cheap -I ate dinner every night there and pigged out, but somehow never spent more than 8 or 9 bucks. I could have spent my entire time in Marrakech there and never gotten bored.
I haven't had a drink in over a week now, and what's funny is I haven't missed it one bit. It's just not something you crave here - the country is already such an assault on the senses that it almost would be a waste to drink here for fear of missing some experience (or getting suckered into buying a carpet or something!). It ought to be quite an interesting transition, from a dry country to one that is very wine-centric. I'm sure I won't have too much trouble adjusting, though! :-)
I'd better get wrapped up, it's almost time to board. More from Portugal in a bit!!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Another Top Fifteen Things I've Learned in Morocco...
1) European men STILL wear Capri pants.
2) A short toot of the horn from behind means "Hey there...moped behind you. Just wanted to let you know" and is very helpful for avoiding pedestrian-vs-moped collisions. A long toot of the horn means the same as it does in the States.
3) To Moroccans, eye contact from white people means one of three things: "I would like to buy everything in your shop", "I am desperately lost and will give you money to take me to the main square", or "I'd like to give you money for no reason at all". Liberal use of sunglasses, even in covered markets, is the only antidote.
4) After a couple of days in the same city, you start seeing the same tourists over and over again. Either that, or all French people look alike.
5) Restaurant pimps will let little girls walk up to your table to try and sell you tissues. However, if hungry little girls ask for your leftovers, they will be really mean to them and shoo them away.
6) No one should ever go hungry in Morocco. There are enough orange trees on the street to feed millions.
7) Boiled snails are possibly the most revolting smell I've ever encountered. They are, of course, a delicacy...aka "acquired taste"...aka gross.
8) Whatever good or service you want to purchase here, it's more than likely they have a place in the souk for it. This includes, but is not limited to, nuts that look like giant boogers, and lamination of documents - or as it is so elegantly said in French - "plastification".
9) The billboards of the Moroccan king are actually a series! There's "happy" king, "sad" king, "I was in the middle of eating a fig when he took this picture" king, "I'm trying to focus on a distant object" king, and "I'm wasted out of my mind but trying not to make it too obvious because drinking is frowned upon here" king.
10) McDonald's has a halal version of the McRib sandwich called the McArabic. It comes around 24 times a year, but always for a limited time only. If you order a combo meal you can pick from either fries or "special potatoes", which are just wedge fries, and a regular drink is about 6 oz.
11) Snake charmers get really, really mad at you if you take a picture without giving them money. Oddly enough they will offer to cover you in snakes if you give them money. I'd bet they'd do a much better business if they threatened to cover you in snakes UNLESS you gave them money. Just a thought, snake charmers...just a thought.
12) There are many, many signs for dentists in Moroccan streets. They are either very underused or very ineffective.
13) Dare-based traffic motions are a common form of entertainment in Morocco. White people ALWAYS lose.
14) Groups of Moroccan women walking down the street in front of you are like a football team's defensive line, if they had their backs turned to you but could sense your every move. If you're going to try and get past them, be prepared for a scuffle and possibly a concussion.
And finally...
15) There is no Arabic equivalent of the word "tacky", as in "I think that carpet with the fifteen colors and twelve alternating patterns is tacky".
That'll do it for Morocco. Next up, things I learned in Portugal!
2) A short toot of the horn from behind means "Hey there...moped behind you. Just wanted to let you know" and is very helpful for avoiding pedestrian-vs-moped collisions. A long toot of the horn means the same as it does in the States.
3) To Moroccans, eye contact from white people means one of three things: "I would like to buy everything in your shop", "I am desperately lost and will give you money to take me to the main square", or "I'd like to give you money for no reason at all". Liberal use of sunglasses, even in covered markets, is the only antidote.
4) After a couple of days in the same city, you start seeing the same tourists over and over again. Either that, or all French people look alike.
5) Restaurant pimps will let little girls walk up to your table to try and sell you tissues. However, if hungry little girls ask for your leftovers, they will be really mean to them and shoo them away.
6) No one should ever go hungry in Morocco. There are enough orange trees on the street to feed millions.
7) Boiled snails are possibly the most revolting smell I've ever encountered. They are, of course, a delicacy...aka "acquired taste"...aka gross.
8) Whatever good or service you want to purchase here, it's more than likely they have a place in the souk for it. This includes, but is not limited to, nuts that look like giant boogers, and lamination of documents - or as it is so elegantly said in French - "plastification".
9) The billboards of the Moroccan king are actually a series! There's "happy" king, "sad" king, "I was in the middle of eating a fig when he took this picture" king, "I'm trying to focus on a distant object" king, and "I'm wasted out of my mind but trying not to make it too obvious because drinking is frowned upon here" king.
10) McDonald's has a halal version of the McRib sandwich called the McArabic. It comes around 24 times a year, but always for a limited time only. If you order a combo meal you can pick from either fries or "special potatoes", which are just wedge fries, and a regular drink is about 6 oz.
11) Snake charmers get really, really mad at you if you take a picture without giving them money. Oddly enough they will offer to cover you in snakes if you give them money. I'd bet they'd do a much better business if they threatened to cover you in snakes UNLESS you gave them money. Just a thought, snake charmers...just a thought.
12) There are many, many signs for dentists in Moroccan streets. They are either very underused or very ineffective.
13) Dare-based traffic motions are a common form of entertainment in Morocco. White people ALWAYS lose.
14) Groups of Moroccan women walking down the street in front of you are like a football team's defensive line, if they had their backs turned to you but could sense your every move. If you're going to try and get past them, be prepared for a scuffle and possibly a concussion.
And finally...
15) There is no Arabic equivalent of the word "tacky", as in "I think that carpet with the fifteen colors and twelve alternating patterns is tacky".
That'll do it for Morocco. Next up, things I learned in Portugal!
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