24hrs in Lisbon, Portugal
With our work clothes packed away, the van loaded up, and our backpacks prepped for travel, we said goodbye to North Carolina.
We had about a week with both families and enjoyed being able to celebrate Thanksgiving with them this year. The visit was short and sweet though. The Saturday after Thanksgiving we were at the Atlanta Airport boarding a plane heading for Lisbon, Portugal. This would be our 16th flight of the year (with two more left)!
We landed in Lisbon the next morning around 8am.
It felt SO GOOD to be back in Portugal! All the familiar sounds, smells and beautiful views! There is a reason Portugal is one of our favorite places in Europe.
We immediately took the subway to the city center and headed straight to our hostel to drop off our bags.
*Fun fact: Most hostels will hold your luggage for you if you arrive before check-in.
Our hostel, Selina Secret Garden was about half a mile from the city center. This place was AWESOME. Definitely caters to the digital nomad and less toward the party crowd.
With a few hours to kill before we could check in and take a nap, we headed out into Lisbon to find some caffeine and explore parts of the city.
Sarah had done a bit of research before arriving, and found Fabrica Coffee Roasters. They buy directly from farmers and roast all their beans in Portugal.
Lunch was at a place that we had visited the last time we were in Lisbon. The coolest surf shack cafe, Boutik.
We always end up here because the lunches are light, the smoothies are amazing, and the atmosphere is really relaxed.
Boutik was just a short walk back to our hostel, so after our meal, we made our way back to shower and get a much needed nap.
There is this huge food market in Lisbon: Time Out Market
“A concept created from scratch in 2014 by the team at Time Out Portugal, with only the best ideas and business projects in Lisbon - according to the editorial team - which can stay in the market from one week to three years. If it’s good, it goes in the magazine, if it’s great, it goes into the market.
On the one hand, 26 restaurants, 8 bars, a dozen shops and a high-end music venue, all with the very best in Lisbon (the best steak, the best hamburger, the best sushi and the best live performances, amongst others); on the other hand, home to some of the city's best known (and longest-running) market vendors of meat, fish, fruit and flowers.”
This is where we ended up for dinner and to watch the world cup match that was playing.
With full bellies, we decided it was finally time to call it a day. Tomorrow we would be up early to catch a bus heading south to Arrifana.
