5 of us extended our trip further to Lisbon, Portugal. Arrived Portugal at night, and we quickly hopped into a taxi to the hostel that we booked in advance.
Hostel:      Next Hostel
Website:   http://www.nexthostel.com/find_us.html
Rates:    €30 (2 nites - 6 bedded dorm)

Address: Avenida Almirante Reis, 4 - 5th floor, 1150-017 Lisboa,Portugal

actual photo taken by us

photo from the hostel website

photo from the hostel website

photo from the hostel website

photo from the hostel website

actual photo taken by us

This is my first experience staying in a dorm but I am very lucky to have the whole room with 6 beds of peoples that I know. We were supposed to travel in a group of 6. One of us couldn't make it due to work arrangement, but she still pay for the bed as she can get back the reimbursement from the company. So we have no stranger in our room at all. The bed room is clean and spacious, just that there is no room service on the next day. The shared bathroom is also better than my expectation. It is clean with good water pressure.

Day 1:
The day starts with a simple breakfast provided by the hostel - Toast with jam and butter, cereals with milk and coffee.
Our destination of the day is to Sintra.
Sintra is both a town and a municipality in the Lisbon Coast region of Portugal. Its spectacular setting, 28km from Lisbon houses a Royal Palace, used by generations of Portuguese royalty prior to the 1910 revolution. The surrounding hills are surmounted by the remains of the Moorish Castle and by the nineteenth-century Pena Palace. Historic Sintra is an heritage patrimony sight declared by UNESCO. The Estoril coast is often considered to be part of the Lisbon coast, which includes Cascais, Lisbon, Sintra, and other nearby municipalities.

Departure time 9.31 to Sintra

@ Rossio Station

We walked to the Rossio Station from our hostel, and purchased the ticket direct to Sintra. If I don't remember wrongly the journey takes estimated 20mins.


Ticket for the feeder bus

We took the circular 434 bus route to the Palácio da Pena, the Castelo dos Mouros (Moorish castle) and other sights. Tickets are only €4.60 and can be used for the whole day.

One of the stop by the feeder bus

Try Ginjinha here - which is a favourite liqueur of many Portuguese and a typical drink in Sintra

Palácio da Pena

Palácio da Pena


The carving on the wall of the castle

Moorish Castle (Castelo dos Mouros): One of the highlights of Sintra not to be missed. Ruins of a castle built by the Moors from the 9th century onwards. Apparently, when Cascais was under the rule of Sintra, a huge fire would be lit here annually to remind the people of Cascais that the Moorish Castle is there to protect them.

Had a good lunch of the local Portuguese food. (Clockwise from top: Bacalhau a Bras, Pizza, Sardinhas Assadas (Grilled sardines) and Omelette with fries (for my vegetarian friend))

(Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacalhau_%C3%A0_Br%C3%A1s)

The last pic in Sintra while waiting for the bus to fetch us to the train station ;)

Leaving Sintra in the evening and arrived Lisbon for our next destination - The Santa Justa Lift

The Santa Justa Lift (Elevador de Santa Justa) ,also called Carmo Lift (Elevador do Carmo, is a lift in the city of Lisbon situated at the end of Rua de Santa Justa. It connects the lower streets of the Baixa with the higher Largo do Carmo (Carmo Square.)
The Santa Justa Lift was designed by Raul Mesnier de Ponsard, an engineer born in Porto to French parents. Construction began in 1900 and was finished in 1902; originally powered by steam, it was converted to electrical operation in 1907.
The iron lift is 45 metres tall and is decorated in neogothic style, with a different pattern on each storey. The top storey is reached by helicoidal staircases and has a terrace that offers views of Lisbon Castle, the Rossio Square and the Baixa neighbourhood. There are two lift cages, each with a wooden interior and accommodation for a maximum of 20 passengers.
The lift has become a tourist attraction in Lisbon as, among the urban lifts in Lisbon, Santa Justa is the only vertical one. Others, including Elevador da Glória and Elevador da Lavra, are more like funiculars that help climb the slopes of Lisbon.
(Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Justa_Lift)

the view from the roof top of the lift

Day 2:
We went to Belem District on this day. Taking Tram 15 from downtown heading to Jeronimos Monastery, Discoveries Monument and the Belem Tower.

Jeronimos Monastery

UNESCO says...
Jeronimos Monastery was declared a World Heritage monument because: "Standing at the entrance to Lisbon harbour, the Monastery of the Hieronymites - construction of which began in 1502 - exemplifies Portuguese art at its best."

The Jeronimos Monastery is the most impressive symbol of Portugal's power and wealth during the Age of Discovery. King Manuel I built it in 1502 on the site of a hermitage founded by Prince Henry the Navigator, where Vasco da Gama and his crew spent their last night in Portugal in prayer before leaving for India. It was built to commemorate Vasco Da Gama's voyage and to give thanks to the Virgin Mary for its success. Vasco da Gama's tomb was placed inside by the entrance, as was the tomb of poet Luis de Camões, author of the epic The Lusiads in which he glorifies the triumphs of Da Gama and his compatriots. Other great figures in Portuguese history are also entombed here, like King Manuel and King Sebastião, and poets Fernando Pessoa and Alexandre Herculano.

Belem Tower

UNESCO says...

Belem Tower was declared a World Heritage monument because: "It is a reminder of the great maritime discoveries that laid the foundations of the modern world."
Built in 1515 as a fortress to guard the entrance to Lisbon's harbor, the Belem Tower was the starting point for many of the voyages of discovery, and for the sailors it was the last sight of their homeland.
It is a monument to Portugal's Age of Discovery, often serving as a symbol of the country, and UNESCO has listed it as a World Heritage monument.

Discoveries Monument

Across from Jeronimos Monastery, reached via an underpass by its gardens, is the Discoveries Monument, built on the north bank of the Tagus River in 1960 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the death of Prince Henry the Navigator.
It represents a three-sailed ship ready to depart, with sculptures of important historical figures such as King Manuel I carrying an armillary sphere, poet Camões holding verses from The Lusiads, Vasco da Gama, Magellan, Cabral, and several other notable Portuguese explorers, crusaders, monks, cartographers, and cosmographers, following Prince Henry the Navigator at the prow holding a small vessel. The only female is queen Felipa of Lancaster, mother of Henry the navigator, the brain of the discoveries. The pavement in front of the monument is decorated with a mosaic that was offered by the South African government in 1960, representing a compass with the map of the world charting the routes taken by the Portuguese explorers.

Belém's main street is Rua de Belém, in which there is a 160-year-old pastry shop, at which can be purchased one of the famous pastel de Belém (plural: pastéis de Belém) - custard tarts made with flaky pastry.

It is believed that pastéis de natas was created before the 18th century by Catholic nuns at the Jerónimos Monastery (Portuguese: Mosteiro dos Jerónimos) of Belém, in Lisbon.The Casa Pastéis de Belém in Lisbon was the first place outside the convent selling the original creamy dessert, after the monastery was closed in 1820s, and there they are called pastéis de Belém, after the name of the area and its famous bakery. Since 1837, locals have gone there to get them warm out of the oven and sprinkled with the cinnamon and powdered sugar. These are very popular, with tourists literally waiting hours for them.