We had booked a car through romecabstransfer.com and Claudio was there right at 8:30 to pick us up in his Mercedes sedan.  Funny thing was that he grew up in the building right next door.

The Star Alliance lounge was a nice way to spend the time before the flight.  We had a good breakfast in there and then off we went to Lisbon.

Our apartment for 2 nights in Lisbon is a little weird, but super modern and clean.  It will be fine. We have a great view of Chiado Square, and soundproof windows. A must have if you want to stay in this area.

The day was sunny and clear so we set out immediately for the ancient church with no roof , the Carmo Convent, which functions today as an archeological museum. It was destroyed by a devastating earthquake in 1755.  This place is a photgrapher’s heaven. With the late afternoon light, I was snapping away with my iPhone. We spent some time outside of the church last year, but the lines were so long we didn’t enter.  Now, we just walked right in.  These pictures don’t do it visual justice.

We spent some time in the acutal, indoor museum part also:

Time for a walk around this Chiado neighborhood. I love stopping on top of a hill and seeing the river in the distance. Lisbon’s tiled walls just add to the local beauty.

So many restaurants!  We passed by one, Bistro 100 Manieras, that our friend Andy had liked and made a reservation. 

Dinner was very nice.   I didn’t know that chef Ljubomir Stanisic was a local celebrity and that this was a “hip” place to go until I looked it up later.  We are so spoiled. The food was solid and the service was great.  Best thing was the bread course with olives, olive oil and humus.  And I had a great gin and elderflower cocktail.

We walked around gawking at the Christmas lights.  This town is dressed to the nines for the holiday.  I felt positively festive walking home from the restaurant!

This is the Praça Luís de Camões square.

Happy holidays, all!