I’m sitting here and writing in my journal at Denver International Airport waiting for my flight to Newark, NJ, on Continental Air. I got here 2 ¾ hours early due to 9/11 paranoia and security upgrades. I got my ticket/boarding pass after only waiting 30 seconds at the counter! Then I got through security in only 2 minutes, no line at all. I guess this is what happens when you have a 6:30 am flight. I had to take my shoes off and put them in a tray-this was a first!

I’ve been lack-luster and subdued about this trip-I’m not sure why. While walking to my plane I had a strong rush of excitement that I was finally starting an adventure with my Portugal vacation.

Two nights back I read my journal of my Sicily trip, and I just now read my journal of my 1996 trip, London to Rome. Both were solo trips. This will be my 4^th solo trip. One thing in common with prior solo trips is being very tired and emotional after the long flight about being alone and I ask myself why am I doing this? I’ll be on guard for this tendency this trip-it’s a bad way to start a tour.

Well, time to get out my 4 by 6 cards with Portuguese common sayings so I can get around upon my arrival.

I’m in Newark and I’ve got to kill 3 ¾ hours now. Read, write and eat I guess. Watched "Chicago" on the flight and had a really good chicken dinner. Time is just flying by. I’m surprised to find it’s only a 5 ½ hour flight from Newark to Lisbon! What a short a flight.

My flight was short and uneventful and I made it to Lisbon without trouble. I watched "Bridget Jones Diary" and had another great chicken dinner. The seats were pretty tight. I much prefer the roomier AA. Seats and plane looked a little worn-I guess they’re saving money anyway they can these days. For the first time on an international flight booze wasn’t free-had to pay $5 for a beer or wine. Bummer!

The people manning the tourist kiosk at the airport spoke good English, and gave clear directions. I easily found a taxi to my Hotel Mundial for 12 Euros.

So far Lisbon reminds me of Athens, older buildings, a little worn, a little dirty. There are Jacaranda trees and Oleander bushes everywhere!

I walked around Lisbon a bit, in the immediate area around my hotel, before my 6 pm "Portugal Tour get-acquainted" meeting. In front of the hotel is a large stage set up for the Festival of Diversity. Many blacks from Africa and young people (like street kids) were attending this festival. The tour was later warned to stay away from them, just to be safe.

I’m in the heart of Lisbon, near Rossio Square/Station. I’m a quick walk from many famous Portuguese squares, the Tagus River, the "Elevator" (by Gustaf Eiffel), the funicular and hopefully the National Port Institute.

The 6 pm meeting went fine. The tour director is a native Portuguese and seems like an intelligent and prepared person. I was disappointed that there were no singles to hang out with except for a couple of mother-in-laws and a single 80-year-old gent with a cane. However, after the meeting, the tour provided samples of red and white ports, and I found many open and friendly people. I met 2 crazy lady cousins from California and Las Vegas, who along with their husbands, I ended up having several meals with. There is a group of 10 from Massachusetts, who seem quite nice and little wild. Then there’s Steve and his wife (from California) and his mother-in-law (from Hawaii). I sit with Steve on the bus and we’ll be rotating together.

My first night in Lisbon I went to Castillo do Jorge, a castle that sits just above our hotel, and very high above the city of Lisbon. From this vantage you could see our hotel and the immediate city as well as great distances beyond. I went to the castle with the Cal/Vegas cousins/husbands. We walked about and took many pictures. A large group was having a wedding and reception up there. We ate dinner at a picturesque place that our new tour director recommended. The meal was only fair, but we got taken as tourists by all the local restaurant scams at this place. The waiters would put small shrimp platters and bread and butter on your table without anyone ordering them, then charge you double what they were worth—PER PERSON! I paid $35 for a spaghetti dinner, bread and ½ bottle of wine. But, I learned my lesson! I made it to bed by 11:30.

I got up 3 hours prior to our included Lisbon city tour. Did ok, but felt nervous rumblings in my stomach all morning. Our local guide, Helen, was really really good. She was very intelligent and funny, and pretty sarcastic. She was full of facts and interesting stories. I discovered that many famous "Squares" were just blocks from our Hotel Mundial. I’ve started checking out walks to take and things to do when I return to Lisbon at the end of this tour. I still hope to get to the National Port Wine Institute. The city tour took us to the Tagus River and to the Belem Tower (Belem---Bethlehem). Belem Tower survived the great earthquake and tidal wave of 1755. It was underwater for 16 hours after the passing of the wave. The Tower guarded the port of Lisbon from pirates. Climbed up to near the top, not a huge place, but very thick stonewalls. Also, saw the replica of a biplane that two Portuguese pilots flew to Brazil in 1922, several years before Lindbergh, but there were 2 pilots versus 1, so no fame.

Next, we saw the Monument of Discoveries, probably the most famous and photographed monument in Lisbon. The monument was built on the 500^th anniversary of Prince Henry the Navigators 15^th century discoveries in West Africa. The monument represents the Portuguese imperial ambitions from the 15^th century up to the 1970’s. Lisbon was the center of Europe’s longest-lived overseas empire.

Then we visited the Jeronimos Monastery where Vasco de Gama’s tomb is located. Then the tour went through the old section of Lisbon called Alfama. Saw a very old bullring, under restoration, that could hold 17,000! Saw a statue of Pombol, a famous Portuguese, among many others. The city tour was over at noon.

Then most of us went on an optional tour that afternoon along the coast and through the countryside just west of Lisbon. We traveled along the coast through Estoril (home of several modern day kings in exile) to Cascais for a great lunch on a hotel veranda overlooking the beach. I had pasta Fugachini? Next we traveled to Sintra with its 10-15 degree cooler microclimate. Sintra had steep hills, was very green, and had tall trees, and over 300 different plant and flower species. Visited the Royal Palace for a good 1 ½ hours—a long visit on a day tour like this. The palace was a livable size, not huge, and very ornate. We were told much of the history of the royals that lived here. Helen, our guide, told many fascinating stories. I bought some great pastries for a snack and next day’s breakfast. Visited a port shop that had vintage ports back to the 1890’s—should have bought one!! I still regret it. Now back to Lisbon.

That evening I went to an optional Fado-style Portuguese dinner. We had Port, appetizers (crab and fish cakes), fish, green beans, potatoes and carrots, chicken a vin and sherbet. Mandolin playing and very dramatic singing was the show-and was really enjoyable. I could have bought a CD of the show, but it just wasn’t as memorable as some prior tour shows-Italian show meals come to mind.

The single 80-year-old gent sat next to me at the meal, finished a full bottle of red wine, and kept leaning on me like I was the back of his chair. He looked terrible when we arrived back at the hotel. The poor old guy, the doorman mistook him for a bum that was trying to get in to the hotel upon our return. He’s really too old to be on one of these tours.

Again, I got up 3 ¼ hours before departure. Made my usual morning coffee, and then ate my 2 pastries from Sintra! They were quite fancy and quite tasty. I have a terrible sweet tooth. I skipped the tour breakfast as it’s just too late for my system to tolerate. I had a quick shower and got my bag out by 7:30 am for the 8:30 departure. To kill time I half watched CNN for news of home and wrote up 2 days in my journal.

We drive 220 km to Tomar today, with stops in Obidos, Alcobaca, Nazure’ and Fatima. Our final arrival in Tomar is scheduled at 5:30 for our tour one nighter.

I had a really good day today. We drove for 90 minutes to Obidos with its medieval walls and tower. The tower off to one side is now a high-end restaurant. There was a nice view, lots of flowers, shade. It was not a very large place. Sometimes smaller is better-it has a more human feel to it. Next, we traveled to Alcobaga to visit the 12^th century church/basilica of Santa Maria Monastery. It was very tall and had long, very thick walls. Interesting to see the stone masons marks and also the lower pillars cut/narrowed to give the feeling of more room. Here we saw the tombs of King Pedro I and his lover Ines de Castro, murdered by Pedro’s father. The style is plain Gothic, no ornamentation to distract you from praying. Out front of the church were numerous fruit and nut stands. I got some cashews and some honey covered almonds for less than $2 each. Dick and Elena got some kind of Lima bean that you squeeze/pop out of its skin and then eat. Apparently it’s common to eat these lima beans and drink beer. I think I’ll stick to chips and hot sauce.

Next we traveled to Nazare’, a beautiful seaside resort, for our lunch stop. The small city seems to be split between a lower beach level and the higher, newer town on a steep and high bluff that overlooks the beach. I’m sure a geologic fault caused the steep bluff. I spotted a funicular connecting the two levels. I suspect the lower beach level is quite old, but it's still the tourist trap area. The lower beach area is quite large with room for many hotels and thousands of tourists and curio shops. The long wide white beach was facing west, and the surf was loud and crashing. It was just a beautiful and picturesque area with the beach on one side and the steep high bluff on the other. For lunch I took off alone, and since I was missing US food, I got a cheeseburger to go and ate on the deserted cool beach, with the roaring surf to keep me company. For lunch, I somehow got separated from all my friends on the tour. They just wanted to sit and eat an overpriced lunch at a tourist café, and rest. I wanted to walk and explore! This was an interesting old place that must have been a tourist area for many many years. I suspect back in the ‘50’s Navare’ was a destination resort. The beach, though cool, was nice and sunny and comfortable.

Then we moved on to Fatima and the Shrine/Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary. The legend has it that this is where three children were approached by Our Lady with a rosary on the 13^th of the month, 5 months in a row, around 1903(?). Now this place is a HUGE pilgrimage spot where 500,000 show up for 1 day on the anniversary of the Lady’s appearance of the last month. The children were told 3 things by the Lady, one about Russia breaking from the Catholic Church with the coming of Stalin, one to pray and unite the world (World War II), and the last a secret never told to anyone except the Pope and the Vatican during a 1960 visit by the eldest of the 3 children, and the only living survivor (at that time).

Next we travel to Tomar where we spend the night. Our hotel is the Hotel Dos Templarios, and is quite large, beautiful and very 1^st class. There are two pools, a large airy bar area, and beautiful grounds. My room is huge, definitely not a single. I have a balcony looking to the south, overlooking a lazy winding river with a series of 3 large garden plots with gorgeous flowers and shade trees. Up high on a distant hilltop you can see a castle, which I think is the Convent of Christo.

Dinner was very nice, sat with Steve and his wife and mother-in-law. The included dinner was a huge first class buffet. I started with pineapple rings in wine, and then a twice baked potato, broccoli and a generous portion of pork tenderloin, then flan and coffee. There was also lots of fish and seafood. Later, I found Internet access and emailed Kim. Then I checked out the weather in Denver and at our mountain cabin. I even browsed some of my favorite Ebay sites a little. A little taste of home even in Tomar, Portugal.

I got up my usual 3 hours before departure. We are heading for Oporto today-probably one of the prime reasons I took this tour. The city where my favorite wine, port, is made. Maybe I’ll find some old port to take home for Kim and myself. It will be fun to search for some old wine!

Today was a nice day-easy and carefree. Just outside and above Tomar we visited the hilltop Convent of Christ. Its famous for the Manueline Window with all of its Portuguese symbolism. It’s much too complicated to delve into here. I bought a book of pictures and explanation of this Convent, and a Portugal T-shirt. Next we visited the Roman ruins at Conimbriga. This site reminded me a tiny bit of Pompeii. In the ruins I saw similar streets with crosswalk steps and chariot ruts carved into the stone street. The atrium of the ancient temple had been excavated and a protective translucent roof erected overhead. There were no walls. Numerous plants were replanted in all their original spots in the Atrium that gave it a great sense of reality. Also, there was originally a very elaborate system of small tinkling fountains in the atrium to water the plants and feed all the small pools surrounding the plants. These original fountains were restored and operated with the drop of a coin into a timer. It was amazing and beautiful. To have an atrium like this in the center of your home with all the plants and fountains! Makes me wish I lived in a warmer climate. There were also many original tile work floors remaining here. I was shocked that they were just left out in the open and the elements.

Next we went to the college town of Coimbra to visit the 700-year-old University and see its Baroque Library. It was like a temple for books. It was multistory and had much polished and carved wood with gold leaf overlay. It contained 35,000 very old books with old leather gilded bindings. Some of the books were several hundred years old. It was really impressive. The library would only allow 25 visitors inside at a time, so we had a long wait to get in.

Then we drove up one of only three mountains in Portugal to a national park (?) called the Bucaco Forest. It was lush with ferns and plants from all over the world acquired hundreds of years ago when Portugal was a major sea power and center of explorations. The drive was fascinating. At the base of the 2000 m mountain the climate was dry and quite warm, at the top, it was cool and moist.

We finally arrive in Oporto. We were greeted with fabulous views of the deep Douro River and several bridges crossing the steep river valley. Far down below we could view several barges loaded with barrels for the port wine trade. Dinner was pretty good at the hotel. We had beef Portuguese style-basically a very good minute steak.

The tour has been nice and cool until yesterday and today. Now I’m sweating my clothes out and the hotel room is just barely comfortable. The hotel location is poor-just busy and noisy downtown Oporto. This place is not for tourist, the place is cramped, has no relaxing grounds or pool.

We have our Oporto city tour this morning. Our afternoon is free. Unfortunately, the morning tour was pretty minimal. Most of older Oporto has burned over the years. Possibly there is little left to see or they didn’t want to take us to see many things due to expense. The church of San Francisco was very nice—full of deeply carved and gilded wood. Then to the old Stock Exchange with its Arabian Hall—now used for music, dinners, weddings. These sites were on the Douro River and across from the great Port houses of Portugal. I recognized and located many of the big name Port houses-Taylor, Sandeman, Cockburn, Warres, Offley, Burmeister, etc. Next we crossed the Douro and went to the Sandeman Port House. We took a fun tour and had a tasting. I bought a T-shirt, chocolates and Sandeman posters. Then we returned to the hotel.

That afternoon I took off on my own looking for an old port shop. I found a "Pour Tour" bar. For 9 Euros I tried 3 LBV ports and 4 Euros for a great cheese plate. Then I took a long and slightly scary walk across one of the busy bridges that cross the Douro River. While walking among the port houses I sampled 6 Kopke Ports, then a couple of Burmeister ports and a couple of Fierra ports. My private little port house tour was really fun and exciting for me. I ended up a slightly tipsy and sweaty mess. Since I was tired and running late, I took a taxi back to the hotel and got ready for our optional Douro boat ride and dinner. The medium sized boat was an old port barrel hauler that moved port from vineyards to port houses here in Oporto. Dinner was in a cubby-hole right on the Douro River. It was a great dinner enjoyed by all.

We left for Viseu at 8:15. We left the coast and headed to the interior of Portugal. Our destination was Villa Real, the largest town in northern Portugal. We then toured Palacio de Mateus, home of the well known Mateus Rose wine. Visitors were not allowed in the chateau, but there were fascinating, complex gardens with many geometric and precise hedges containing colorful flowers.

Next was an incredible drive through the colossal Douro Valley with its unique microclimate that is touted as the world’s best for growing grapes for port wine. The steep terraced valley walls as far as the eye could see consisted of row after neat row of grape vines.

Then we took off for our hotel at Viseu, the Hotel Grao Vasco. We got there early enough for me to have a quick swim and 3 well deserved beers! For dinner we had veal stew with wine, and potatoes. I ate with the Massachusetts crowd, minus 2, so 10 of this large group were present. This group is usually quite rowdy, but tonight they are tired from the tour.

CNN tonight says Gregory Peck died. With the "Rule of 3’s" I wonder who might be next. The tour so far has been very nice-interesting landscapes, vineyards, castles, monasteries and churches.

Our tour group is a pretty diverse group to me, an "isolated" American. There must be 5 different languages spoken at all times on the bus—English, Portuguese, Spanish, French and some type of Russian/Slavic. This doesn’t include some Hawaiian, Hebrew and some Middle Eastern language.

We have the longest drive of the tour today; form Viseu to Evora, about 380 Km. I’m starting to get homesick, as I miss Kim and the cat and our cabin. The drive was pretty, passing many farms along the way. In general it was hot and dry and uneventful.

That night we stayed at Albergaria Victoria Hotel, a privately owned place. We had excellent chicken in the basement restaurant-very cute place. Then at 8 pm, we had a free drink up on the 4^th floor bar. This was fun to do, and a smart way to get our group to eat fairly quickly and vacate the place so the second tour group could eat there.

We left at 9:15 am for our 2 hour walking tour of "old town" behind the massive wall that surrounds    medieval center-classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We saw old Roman Temple ruins dedicated to Diana, a Roman goddess.

Next we saw one the strangest sites I’ve ever witnessed. We visited the Ossuary Chapel, who walls are covered with thousands of human bones and skulls. ("Ashes to ashes, dust to dust—our life here on earth doesn’t matter, only the afterlife.")

I finally started buying some souvenirs here in Evora. Portugal is famous for its cork trees, so I bought several items made of cork, including a drinking cup and some Christmas tree ornaments. I also found a nice 3 tile set of 3 playful monks drinking wine in their monastery. I had lunch on my own in a small out of the way place where no one spoke English. I had pizza, beer, and a chocolate crepe.

We left Evora at 1 pm and headed for far southern Portugal, the Algarve area. Our hotel there is a luxury place right on the beach called the Hotel Atlantis at Villamoura. It’s a very nice 5 star place, but my room has seen better days. I have a huge room with an ocean view and two king beds, bottled water and a fruit platter. The hotel has 2 very large pools, organized activities, several bars, and some huge grounds with very well kept gardens of colorful shrubs and flowers. Dinner (gents had to wear long pants) was a huge buffet with ham, chicken, beef, fish, many many salads and soups, many different veggies, and a huge desert selection. It was a very special dinner and everybody left feeling very good about the hotel and the tour. I went for a walk and bought a dozen mini-bottles of port. Several of my tour went out for a walk or next door to the casino to see a show. This area is totally tourist—reminds me of Cancun.

Today I decided to just take it easy, no optional tours. I just got up, had a nice breakfast, and spent the day hanging out at the pool and the beach. I enjoyed several beers and just people watched. This has been a great tour. Portugal is a small country and the time spent on the bus has been really limited-this is what I planned on when I picked this tour. However, this tour hasn’t really been spectacular like some, especially the Southern Italy and Sicily last summer.

Tonight will be our optional farewell dinner-seafood with sardines, a Portuguese specialty. I don’t care much for seafood but I want to spend time with my new friends and say goodbye. Funny, no one cared much for the sardines. They looked burnt to me. I actually enjoyed the cod cakes, shrimp cakes, and the beans and rice dishes. The bread/butter, wine, coffee and desert were all quite good.

While the meal was quite enjoyable, there was little feel of a "farewell" dinner to me. I’ve been on some tours where there were tears among new friends. But, I still had a nice time. The tour members just never jelled as a tight group. I think one reason could be that several of the family groups on this tour came here specifically to explore their family roots and heritage, not to mingle so much with others. A good fraction of this group will stay in Portugal on their own and visit distant relatives and/or ancestral towns and villages.

Last day! I’m having a great time, but I’m counting the hours to departure. Tomorrow its home! We have a 9:15 am departure for Lisbon. Everyone was on time, as usual. That’s been one thing about this group of people; they have always been on time, very polite, very "professional" travelers! There has been no whining, complaining-everyone is always positive. This is a first among my tour travels. There was no let down due to last day exhaustion.

We toured through Setubal and took the scenic route over the Serra da Arrabida (another of the three mountains of Portugal), the peninsula of Troia with its luxurious casinos. This area is beautiful with steeply treed hillsides going all the way to the white beach and pretty resorts.

We returned to the same Hotel Mundial in Lisbon by 2 pm! I left quickly on my search for the Port Wine Institute. I finally found the place and enjoyed several glasses of port along with a cheese plate and some cheese cake. It was very plush, I felt like I was sitting in someone’s living room. I enjoyed 7 ports over a three hour period, slowly comparing and contrasting them. I bought some special Port Wine Institute glasses and a book on port wine for home.

I finally returned to the Hotel Mundial and repacked my bags for my return trip home. I was too tired to go out so I went to the hotel restaurant where I ran into my "bus buddy" Steve and his wife and mother-in-law. This was a fitting way to end the tour, with a meal with the people I got to know the best on this tour. This was really our "farewell dinner."

FINI