lisboa. the kitsch edition.

Our hostel, named the "KITSCH" hostel, was adorable and lived up to its name. The walls were papered with magazine cut outs and giant cat portraits and the ceilings were lined in silver and butterflies hung from the beams.

We found a wonderful cupcake/tearoom called Tease in the Bario Alto neighborhood. The cupcake menu depended on what was baked that morning and each cupcake was served on an old fashion china pattern plate. There were big comfy velvet armchairs to sit in and we had a lovely iced coffee and lime juice drink to go with our dessert. Yum.  

We went hunting Saturday morning for the famous Lisboa Thieves and Fleas Market. We found it along the shore line with booth after booth of people selling everything from cell phones and car parts to antique furniture and children's toys. Anything and everything could be haggled and bought and then off to drink some freshly squeezed lemonade after your efforts.

fish.

This was by far the best fish I have ever eaten. My friends and I found a very small restaurant where nobody spoke English and ordered the "special" of the day. It came out on a huge platter and was about a foot long. We picked it to the bone. Wonderful.

lisboa. the standard edition.

Tram wires.

I loved the tiling that could be found everywhere in the city. On every building and walkway there would be beautiful mosaics. So lovely.

Medieval elevator to the top of the city. You could take it up for pretty views of the city, but it did look a little strange and out of place between the simple row house style buildings around it.

View from our hostel. The top of the hill in the way back of the picture was the hill we trekked up each night to land us in the hip and happening Bario Alto neighborhood, where all the bars and restaurants were.

 



lisboa. the yellow edition.

I have found a new love. The city of Lisbon (Lisboa for everyone else who is not American). It is a beautifully quaint city that reminds me of San Francisco, or maybe now San Francisco will remind me of Lisbon. There are many hills (seven to be exact), old fashion wooden trams that zip through the city, and even a bridge that looks like the twin sister of the Golden Gate. But added to that are beautiful tiled buildings, worn cobble stone streets, roosters abounding, and enough cool art and graphic design centers to satisfy any modern aesthetic seeking peoples. And then there is the food. Lisbon is a coastal city so the fish and all other seafood taste like it was grabbed from the water the moment you ordered it and quickly grilled and handed over to you. And then there is the sangria and port that can be found at any restaurant, not to mention the sweet bread and custard at every cafe. I know I am gushing right now and sound like a travel brochure, but if you ever do get the chance to go to Europe, please please please stop in Lisbon. It's well worth your time.

yum.

the wiring at top is for the tram system.

 

There are more pictures to come. If it wasn't apparent already, I really liked this city.

happy fall.

The first day of fall is tomorrow and it's still 85 degrees over here. At least there are lovely bookstands that make me think of back to school, apple muffins, cider and everything else fall related, even if the weather won't cooperate.

the morning after. tiber river edition.

The Tiber River, once the critical trade route of Rome and the place, as legend has it, that Romulus and Remus washed ashore when they were thrown from the hillside, takes on an entirely non historic and unimportant role on weeknights. Come Thursday evening and into the wee hours of the Sunday morning it is transformed into clubland, with clubs composed of cardboard walls thrown up to house Italians and tourists alike who want to party on the banks of the famous river. An interesting scene at night is an even more interesting scene the next morning when the wreckage is left strewn along the sides of the walls.

For a city that has a very defined four part recycling system and fines you 350 euro for accidentally throwing away something that could be recycled this seems a little hypocritical.



monte catillo and villa gregoriana.

Neptune's Grotto in Villa Gregoriana

The city of Rome is absolutely wonderful. The constant people and life that surround it still amazes but it does lack one thing, greenery (well greenery and peanut butter, I'll more than happily give you my address if you want to send me a tub!) So it was nice to take a short day trip to Monte Catillo and the Villa Gregoriana, in Tivoli Italy, to do some hiking and get my fix of the outdoors. Although the two places are literally right next to each other it seemed like two different lands. Monte Catillo is a rocky, open climb, scattered with bright yellow flowers and thorny bushes galore, while Villa Gregoriana is damp, forested hike, with waterfalls and grottos down every side path.

Monte Catillo

Some wild horses interrupted our hike to walk through. Although we had seen some pretty big signs of their presence on the hike we didn't actually see them until right at the very end.

Even though it rained while we were trekking through Villa Gregoriana, it was still my favorite of the two hikes. The waterfalls were beautiful and the rock formations were cool to explore.

Villa Gregoriana



The Great Cascade, which measures 102 m. in height (334 ft. for us Americans not on the metric system)

And to make the hike even better, some of the leaves were turning! Come on fall in Italy. I refuse to believe you don't come until the end of October.