Destination: Lisbosa Part I

Portugal: Tiles, ceramics, the face of the witch when looking at the map.

Okay, small view of Portugal so it's a good thing I went to check it out- right? When I saw the Rock 'N Roll Half was taking place in Lisbon and tickets were super cheap I knew it was time to make Lori start training, make a long weekend, and pack a bag.

So I did.

Upon arrival we got tickets for the hop on hop off bus. Hey, we were there to run a race, so we couldn't be walking all over the city!

Wait. It didn't start here. Rewind.

We drove up to Rome. Trusting my GPS to get us to the hotel. There were some doubtful moments as we drove through the darkness (it was 11pm) and after 3 hours of singing Dixie Chicks one too many references to "Goodbye Earl" whenever our backseat passenger wasn't playing nice. We made it.

Next morning we flew out of the airport. Landed in Lisbon a few hours later.

Found the expo. Picked up our packets. Starred at the bridge crossing the water (river...not ocean!) and began to panic about the race I was running in 2 days. That bridge is something like 17km long! Walked along the water before deciding it was time to check into the hotel.

Checked in. Headed back out to find second lunch because after the early morning start and time difference- we needed food. Stumbled upon a place not too far from the hotel to experience some local cuisine. The meal was alright, a little bland but something new. The meal included dessert and knowing I don't like flan (ick), we both picked caramel mousse. (Lori, if you're reading this, just skip ahead because you know how it turns out and well, don't relive it.) Said dessert arrived looking more like pudding, but not creamy and dense. Some spoonfuls later to try to figure it out I called it quits. Lori had quit after fewer tastes. Our plates were cleared with a you didn't like? and we sat waiting for the bill. While we waited, I noticed the man behind the counter retrieving our bowls from the dish pile. Lori noticed him pulling back out the large container of "mousse" and scrapping our bowls back into it. Yep. The bowls our germ covered spoons had been in. Yuckity, yuck, yuck. Hopefully we're the only 2 who have ever had this batch and didn't like it.

Lori, it's safe to start reading here -->  Queue waiting for the bus.

We hopped on the bus to see the the red (or was it blue) round. Within a few stops the  temperature dropped and as those smarter than I headed in, the cool air felt refreshing, even with the sky started to spit just a tad. I'd like to say that there were some interesting things along this line, but I sure don't recall any. I recall the rain picking up and I just started laughing as I saw people darting downstairs and to the few seats with overhead covers. When we ended up back where we stared

Determining that none of us were hungry, we headed back to the hotel for a short nap before going out. I think within 2 minutes of laying out on my bed (twin size with race packets, jacket, and other various things taking up more than its fair share I was out. That's the last I remember of the day one in Lisbon because the next time I woke up the sun was shinning though the window and I was still laying on top of the bed cozy with my backpack and I was dressed and ready to go...in yesterday's clothes. Oops.