To Tuk-Tuk or not, that is the question.
Lisbon, Portugal 12 December
The tour titles just did not appeal. Panoramic Lisbon, Lisbon by coach, Lisbon by tram and coach, etc.; You get the picture of the sedate "adventures" the cruise ship had in mind for our day in port.
Not being captivated by the titles or descriptions of the activities, we decided to venture into the unknown on our own. It didn't seem to daring. We were equipped with a a local map, Euros, the departure time of the vessel, and a few key phrases of Portuguese-- even if we would slaughter the pronunciations.
All the normal procedures for leaving the ship were followed and away we went ready to hit the streets of Lisbon! We managed to survive the gauntlet of taxi drivers trying to peddle their English skills as tour guides and the hop-on-hop-off sales folks to arrive at the first street.
After several near misses by local busses and cars passing through the green pedestrian signals, we got to the second block in the city.
Along the street sat a row of tiny, colorful tuk-tuks. Memories slipped back to the warm days of late spring in India 2012. Unlike the two seat Indian vehicles, these were clean and looked to be well maintained. Curiosity and adventure got to us and we inquired as to the cost of a tour. Besides the adventure aspect, the fluency of the driver's English skills made us decide THIS was the thing to do! Following a quick dash back to the boat to secure a bank card (I wanted to have enough Euros to thoroughly enjoy the city), our guide was ready to share the neighborhoods of Lisbon.
We learned our tour guide/driver was named Miguel but sitting behind him, with the street noises in our ears, we had to ask a second time. Sweetly, he said it is Michael in English and we could call him that if it was easier for us. It was Miguel from that point on.
Miguel asked us what we would particularly like to see in the city, but we really had no idea. You see, the ship provided a brief history of Lisbon, surrounding towns, and sites but that was consumed, digested, and quickly forgotten. The lecturer mostly talked about wine, as we recalled but that was at the "next" port-of-call. We asked Miguel to show us what he felt were his favorite places in Lisbon and off we went.
The tuk-tuk engine whined as it climbed up steep, narrow, century old streets of the city. We stopped at neighborhood squares, churches, shrines, view vistas, and even Miguel's neighborhood. The rare glimpses into the housing and an idea of how people of the past had lived came to life. The panoramas of the city were breathtaking; the ship became a miniature from those heights.
As we zipped down the narrow streets it appeared we were destined to run into street posts blocking traffic, but they magically retracted into the street as Miguel commanded, "Open Sesame!" This was much to our delight and intrigue.
As we toured the city, we also chatted about politics,commerce, customs, and life in general for the people of Portugal in general and Lisbon in particular. The fresh air was refreshing as was the conversation with our nice young man. With all the adventure and developing friendships, we almost forgot about eating . . . but not completely.
We still need to see the twin of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Christ on the Hill! Fortunately, the clouds and fog cleared somewhat so we were able to see both. Also fortuitously, there was an ATM (a goal for the day) and several restaurants a brief walk away where we warmed up, had pizza, beverages, and more lively conversation.
Sadly, our time was getting short and we had to end our day with Miguel. Naturally, we forgot business cards, again, but that handy I-pod made it easy to exchange email addresses and promises to keep in touch. It was definitely a day to remember!
