Lisbon Trip - Day 3

Early start, heavy heads. We headed straight for the Moorish Quarter and caught the Route 28 tram because that's where it starts and there were big queues eve at 9.00am, we managed to get on though so happy with that. We didn’t manage the round trip, the driver just pulled to a stop halfway through and kicked everyone off, but it didn’t matter as we were in a good part of town now! We wandered through town, weaving through the streets and soaking it all in.

Stopped in that huge Zara where I hoped to finally find the jacket I’ve been after, but no luck. From there we carried on up to the castle, that was good being at the highpoint over looking the city. It was enjoyable exploring that and walking along the battlements. After a while we then made our way over to the Time Out Market. Far too busy, so we bailed and found a great little place for tapas instead — really good food, especially the hummus. (Funnily enough, it's exactly what Clare and Greg Barnes did so we took and sent them a photo)

Back to the main square afterwards. Tried booking the North African restaurant we’d been eyeing up, but the whole process was painful and got us nowhere. So we headed back to the hotel, grabbed a very welcome 40-minute sleep, and then went back out again.

First stop: the car park rooftop bar. This was something Tash had found and it was so random and well-hidden but a brilliant find. It's not sign-posted at all, you need to go into a multi-storey car-park and get to the top and then it's there. It was crowded but we got a seat and the sunset was amazing - really enjoyed it there.

Then after a couple of drinks we made our way back to the restaurant we were unable to book earlier — they let us in early, thankfully, and the food was excellent. Rounded it off with a brandy, which was by accident, didn't know what I was ordering - it was fine, bit of an acquired taste so not sure I'm quite a brandy drinker yet!!

My choice afterwards: a cocktail bar called Cabal. Turned out to be a brilliant pick — great atmosphere, great drinks. By then we were flagging, so we walked back to the hotel. One more drink in the bar to finish the night, and then finally, bed.

Reflections:
A long, slightly chaotic but very enjoyable day. Nothing went quite to plan, yet everything still worked out — good food, good bars, and enough wandering to feel like we really explored the place. Even with the tiredness, it all had that fun, easy holiday rhythm.