Portugal's River Of Gold Sunday, August 09, 2015 Lufthansa served breakfast as we were still over England but the omelets were bland and firm. Neither of us wanted them and our hope was that we could enjoy a German breakfast/lunch when we arrived in Frankfurt. Our thinking was that we would change money at a Cambio when we landed and then we could find a restaurant. We went through passport control which then put us into the European Union side of the airport. What we didn't realize was that in this area everyone would already have Euros. The Cambio could only be found on the international side of the checkpoint. Now I thought that when we got to a place we would just pay with a credit card. We chose Hausmann's Restaurant where Liz ordered Toast Eggs Benedict-Style: Wachsweiche Bauerneier mit gegrilltem grünen Spargel, Sauce Hollandaise & knusprigem Speck (slow poached eggs with grilled green asparagus, hollandaise sauce & crispy bacon). I ordered Omas Stulle: Hauchdünner mit Leberkäse mit Sauerkraut & zwei gebratenen Spiegeleiern (thinly sliced pork loaf with sauerkraut & two fried eggs). 101 Everything was delicious and we were famished. We also had four hours between flights so we could relax and enjoy being back in Germany. Of course, I still did not have any Euros and was prepared to charge our lunch but the ticket was printed in Euros, dollars, and Pounds. We could pay our bill in dollars and put off trying to change money until we got to Lisbon. Three hours later we were met at Lisbon Portela Airport by our transfer driver. He had two other passengers who had been delayed waiting for our arrival so the four of us could proceed to Hotel Tivoli. As we drove across the city the driver told us the streets were crowded and some might even be closed at there was a bicycle rally being held today. While we rode to the hotel we introduced ourselves to Jennifer and Phil Clarke, from Birmingham, England. This was their first visit to Lisbon but they have been returning semiannually to Maderia for years to celebrate their anniversary. This also would be their first river cruise and we discussed our previous experiences with Viking. When we arrived at the hotel we met by Ileana Alves, the Viking Representative. She gave us a briefing and explained our schedule for the next three days. She also told us of the availability of several optional excursions before we would meet the Torgil for the cruise. The first one she recommended was a trip to Cabo da Roca, the cape which forms the westernmost extent of mainland Portugal and continental Europe. This also included a trip to Sintra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We told Jen and Phil that two years ago Liz and I had a brief, one day tour, of Lisbon and Sintra but that was not enough ( Lisbon 2013 ). The purpose of our travels is to satisfy our curiosity about other people and their culture. We really enjoyed that excursion. In fact, that trip had intrigued us so much about Portugal that we planned to return. We had searched for a more detailed tour of the city and would be taking Sintra Heritage Tour Tuesday morning with Hillspot Tours . Paulo Fernandes, the program director, will be our guide for the day. Ileana then said there would be a cocktail hour and briefing at seven o'clock Tuesday evening for all of the 105 passengers on the cruise. In the meantime, we should plan to join Ileana one of her assistants for a Lisbon Walking Tour in the morning. A few minutes later, while Liz was speaking to Jen and Phil, I quietly asked Ileana for some help. We would be boarding the Torgil was on the 13 th and I had asked Viking to plan something special for us as it would be our wedding anniversary. They replied that my request was too close to the departure date and they would be unable to include it in their manifest but I could coordinate this with the ship's staff when we arrived on board. Ileana said she would insure things would be ready when we entered our cabin. We then went up to our room (544) which was clean, comfortable and roomy. We especially enjoyed the roll shutters on the window which, when fully lowered, made the room pitch black at any time of day. We partially unpacked our interim suitcase which held enough clothes and health items to use until we would board the ship on Thursday. Then we went up to the Sky Bar to relax. 102 Arriving at the top floor of the hotel we walked through the Terraço Restaurant, too early to be serving, and out on the terrace. We could look up the Av. da Liberdad to Praça do Marquês de Pombal, a major round about, which appeared to be a craft fair or a carnival in support of the bicycle rally. Walking the other direction we stepped into the Sky Bar, an appropriately named open area. The temperature had reached 34° Celsius (97° Fahrenheit) so we looked for a place under an awning to admire the view. A mile to the southeast was the Targus River. Seen in the distance was the Castelo de São Jorge, a Moorish castle site which has produced archaeological evidence of occupancy as far back as the 6 th century BC; was well known as a Roman fortification; and ultimately changed from Christian to Moorish, and back to Christian occupancy by the 12 th century. We enjoyed a couple glasses of Vinho Verde while listening to an unusual music from the sound system. The sound was more rhythmical than melodious, and seemed to concentrate more than on a beat than a musical scale. It was intriguing for a while but then the long day took over and we retired to our room. Monday, August 10 We were ready to enter the Brasserie Flo when it opened at six o'clock. We took a table near a window 103 overlooking the street. A waitress came by and served delicious and highly welcomed coffee to start us off on the day. Breakfast was Continental and offered great breads, cheese, cold cuts, fruit and juices, a dense scrambled egg dish, good bacon, baked beans and baked tomatoes, and too finely ground pork or chicken sausages. There was something for everyone but we concentrated on the baked goods and fruit. After breakfast we decided to walk up to Pombal Square and Eduardo VII Park beyond. Then we returned to our hotel. The street was busy with Monday morning traffic and people were walking with purpose to get to work. We did notice a police prescience around Novo Banco and subsequently learned that over 2,000 people bought commercial paper through the bank and saw their investments wiped out last year when the beleaguered, family-controlled conglomerate collapsed and the surviving part of the bank was re- named Novo Banco. Since then there have been repeated protests and people have been trying to recoup their losses. We returned to the hotel in time to join Sandra Quitiano, one of Ileana's team, who would be our guide for the walking tour. She began by telling us that on All Saints Day, 1775, there was a huge earthquake and tsunami, followed by raging fires over the next five days, which wiped out much of Lisbon. Between 30,000 to 40,000 of Lisbon's 200,000 people and eighty-five percent of Lisbon's buildings were destroyed. Prime Minister Sebastião de Melo, known today as Marquis of Pombal (the title granted in 1770, fifteen years after the earthquake) directed much of the recovery and, through his research, is is regarded as a forerunner of modern seismological scientists. We turned right, toward the Targus river, as Sandra pointed out some of the history of Avenida da Liberdade; a 90 meter-wide boulevard and 1100 meters long, with ten lanes divided by pedestrian sidewalks decorated with gardens. It was built between 1879 and 1886, and modeled after the boulevards of Paris. We immediately came upon the Monumento aos Mortos da Grande Guerra (Monument to the Fallen of the Great War). One sees an allegorical Fatherland crowning a helmeted soldier with a laurel. On either side of the main figures are two other soldiers who appear to be dealing with the ravages of war... one seems to be twisted and in torment, the other appears to be bound and captured. Written on the front face of the monument is Ao serviço da Pátria, o esforço da Grei (At the service of the motherland, the effort of Grei). 104 Portugal did not initially form part of the system of alliances involved in World War I and thus initially kept its neutrality. When Portugal complied with the British request to confiscate the German ships interned in Portuguese ports, Germany reacted by declaring war on Portugal, thus forcing the Portuguese officially into the war. Approximately 12,000 Portuguese troops died during the course of World War I, including Africans serving in its armed forces. Continuing our walk, Sandra pointed out the architectural qualities of the buildings and noted the many tiled (azulejos) facades along the route. In addition to the colorful azulejos decorating the buildings of Lisbon, there is also an abundance of decorative stonework. Many of the sidewalks and squares throughout the city have patterned cobblestones in various shades of gray. The Hard Rock Café was noted as a reference point but we turned the opposite direction to ride the Glória Funicular (Elevador da Glória) which links Baixa (Restauradores Square) with Bairro Alto (265 m).