September 3, 2023: Figueira da Foz to Lisbon by train

September 3, 2023

Accommodations: Al Fonte Luminosa

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Some of the young guests in an upper floor were a bit noisy in the early morning so I was awake well before our chosen time of 8 am for breakfast. It was not a big deal, though, as I had fallen asleep a bit early last night.

When we did go out, we were the only ones having breakfast in the very pretty room that looked out toward the estuary. Breakfast was quite extensive and delicious - in these cases I wish I could eat more, but there just isn't enough room!

Our gracious host prepares an excellent and large breakfast with breads, fruit, drinks, cereals and sweets. -- Figueira da Foz, Portugal

Not sure exactly where the station was, as is my way, we left early and cycled over and oops, sorry, we were there within about ten minutes so had more than an hour to wait for departure at 1058 am. Fortunately the train was sitting on the track so we were able to board the train, strap in our bikes, then await its departure. We chatted a bit then Alex watched videos and I read my latest Wilbur Smith novel.

The train left right on time and within half an hour we were to our next station, which was only about 25 km away. I am kind of kicking myself now because we could easily have cycled along the river to this station and enjoyed a nice cycling day rather than sitting in stations for so long. That being said, it was supposed to have rained a lot this morning but nothing really came of it.

Our wait for train 2 was supposed to be 42 minutes but our IC 720 train was late by about twenty minutes. It was the same procedure as our train from Lisbon to Porto so in no time the bikes were hanging on their hooks and we were in seats 15 and 17 and on our way.

The sky got cloudy, then there was some rain but not very long. I'm not sure if they were trying to get back on schedule but we were traveling at 200 km/h at times.

Still about twenty minutes late, we arrived to Santa Apolonia station, waited for everyone else to get off of the train then I popped the bikes down the stairs and pulled them to the side to load them up before heading out into the city to explore and make our way to our hotel.

After two trains, one connection, a few hours of waiting in stations, we had arrived at the Santa Apolonia train station and were ready to explore. -- Lisbon, Portugal

We followed the bike path just west of the station until we got to Praça Commercio where Alex was in awe of the buildings and the statue. We headed up through the Baixa but unlike earlier this spring, it was pretty busy so we continued to walk our bikes toward Rossio Square where I was hoping to have a capp or a glass of Port in my little cafe... only to find that they, too, were on holidays for another week.

First up after leaving the train station was to head to Praça Commercio where Alex was in awe of the statue of King José I and the beautiful buildings all around. -- Lisbon, Portugal

We cycled past the two fountains and made a little stop at the far end of Rossio where I took my regular photo, one with the scene and one with Alex. The trees are SO much bigger than they were twenty years ago!

I introduced Alex to 'my' spot in Rossio Square where I have taken a photo ecery time here since 2003. I also wanted to go to the little cafe at the other end of the square, but no, they are closed for holidays for another week! -- Lisbon, Portugal

It took some tricky cycling but we got our way up to the bottom of Avenida Liberdade. It was busy enough, and it seems the cycle route is now used by cars so we stuck to a side of the sidewalk out of the way of pedestrians. The street was leafy and beautiful and made a nice ride until we got to Pombal Square where we veered to the east and then got on to the actual green-striped cyclepath. This meandered around on quiet back streets until we appeared at the top of the Alameda Park from where I could see our hotel and the adjacent AS Lisboa hotel.

In order to save time and ease our hungry tummies we made a quick stop at the nearby Mini Preço supermarket where we got things for sandwiches, some fruit, some juice and ... Milka!

To get to our hotel we took a slightly indirect route so Alex could experience the beauty of Avenida Liberdade. -- Lisbon, Portugal

After a longish day, here we were at our hotel, Al Fonte Luminosa where Alex was sorting out our groecery goodies for a well-deserved lunch. -- Lisbon, Portugal

With our hunger issue solved, I decided to get working on the bikes to pack them into their suitcases - a job that is NOT fun. Such little fun that I think I might start limiting the use of these bikes for trips. A full bike box is awkward and is enough work to pack the bike, but not the torment of stuffing a size 10 bike into a size 9.9 bag.

With all of this complaining and a few grunts, I got the job done in about two hours, glad that it was complete and we'd only have to toss the final few things into our carry-ons and into the duffel bag with all of the extra stuff.

It kind of comes full circle, doesn't it? After two hours of struggling, the bikes were in their suitcases ready for the flights back home in two days. -- Lisbon, Portugal

All day rain was threatening, but to this point, still nothing. We're about to eat yet another huge juicy mango then head out for a stroll to who-knows-where.

Our stroll was short, where we headed up our street to the next main square. We were heading toward a restaurant where Alex's friend Judith and her mom had eaten when they were in Lisbon a couple of months ago. We easily found it and decided that we would eat there tomorrow for lunch or dinner depending on our schedule.

Stopping in a mini-market for a quick stop to get some movie drinks, we headed back to the Alameda to do a bit of a walkaround. On the way we were stopped by a young Brazilian traveler with a suitcase asking if we knew where there might be a hotel since the AS Lisboa was full. Of course, we suggested our hotel, and when we finished our walk in the park and returned to our guest house, that same tourist was checking in and thanked us for our help. We had done our good deed for the day!

Today's ride: 12 km (7 miles)
Total: 255 km (158 miles)

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