Portuguese is NOT the same as Spanish

I love Portugal. Lagos, a small ocean town that I visited a few weeks ago, and Lisbon, where we just spent a 4-day weekend, are really different but both wonderful. The drive to Lisbon was about 5 hours. We entered the city by a huge suspension bridge over the river Tajo. (There's a picture below.) Lisbon is a sprawling city right by the ocean. We visited a castle, a monastery, and a tower by the river, among other things. It also has a modern feel-- there's an enormous aquarium, lots of museums, and even a metro system! The bullring in Lisbon (which was 2 blocks from our hotel) is a good example of how the new and old coexist-- the beautiful old building has a shopping mall under it!

This trip was lots of fun for us also because we had a few tastes of home. Blake, our friend Zach Barnes, and I played lots of frisbee right in front of the bullring. Portuguese TV has a lot of American shows-- we found Grey's Anatomy, America's Next Top Model, Pushing Daisies, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, and more. Our first dinner in Lisbon wasn't especially American but definitely memorable. We went to a restaurant called "Chimarrão," an all-you-can-eat meat place. They served us about 8 different types of meat off the skewer, as much as we wanted or until we exploded! Among the meats was beef, which we NEVER eat in Spain, so in that sense it was homey, for sure.

Next weekend-- Paris. Look out!















The bullring, with the mall entrance under it















Rachel, Michelle and me enjoying the grass in the cloister of the monastery. I love this picture.














The Cristo Rey, a massive statue on a cliff overlooking Lisbon. There's one a lot like it in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.














The view from the base of the Cristo Rey. Here's the suspension bridge-- yes, built by the same guys that designed the Golden Gate.

Trent leaning off the wall of the castle. In the distance-- more castle, Lisbon, and the river/ocean

Michelle, Vicky, Chaille, Sara, me, and Rachel