REASONS TO: VISIT LISBON

In my brief hiatus (read: t-o-t-a-l abandonment) from this here blog, I successfully stuck six more push pins into my imaginary cork map. Rather than ruin the magic of each location with my terrible memory, it seemed much more fitting (and much less demanding) to simply share the very best bits. Enjoy.

Think back to August of last year. I won't blame ya if it takes a moment; summer feels like a lifetime ago. Well, Jack and I packed our bags and hopped on a plane to the home of scrumptious custard tarts. Yep, you guessed it – we paid a visit to Lisbon (I mean, the clue is quite literally in the title). I'd heard more than a handful (an armful?) of raving reviews and so I had set the bar fairly high... which made it all the more disappointing when the bar was knocked onto the floor.

Now, let me be clear – Jack and I had a lovely three days in the coastal city and I'm sure it would have dazzled me had my expectations not been set so high. It's definitely worth a visit, so don't let my (badly thought-out) limbo analogy put you off. Here's what I ~did~ love:

- I adored the 'outdoor wallpaper' look that all the buildings were sporting 
- The inspiring graffiti around every corner gave the city a really cool artistic vibe
- The impressive views from the castle were well worth the steep climb (especially of the 17km Vasco da Gama bridge)
- Pena Palace is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen – it felt like walking into a fairytale
- The Santa Justa lift also offered incredible views of the city (top tip: don't wait in the mahoosive queue for the lift itself – take the 3-minute talk instead)
- Lisbon Zoo (yes, we visited the zoo) had such a lovely variation of animals and the cable car tour was definitely an interesting experience
- The transport system is so straightforward – for people who get lost a lot, we found Lisbon super easy to navigate
- The old-fashioned yellow trams give the city an authentic vibe (and if you're lucky/willing to queue, you'll get to ride one!)
- Lisbon seems to have a strange enthusiasm for sardines (!?) and has an entire carnival-themed shop where you can buy tins labelled with your birth year
- And who can forget the aforementioned custard tarts? Pasteis de Belem is ~the~ place to go. I'm drooling just thinking about them...

Perhaps Lisbon wasn't the be-all and end-all, but it definitely warranted taking a few days off from my (not so busy) schedule. It provided me with plenty of funny memories, one too many photos, and – most importantly – a tacky fridge magnet. So it ~was~ a winner, really.