I find it interesting how before a trip, I go through a wave of different emotions. Excitement, nervousness, anxiety, relief and everything in between. Excitement just after the tickets are confirmed. Then, getting nervous about making sure nothing has been missed. Anxiety kicks in when flying and that's normal right? The feeling of relief when the plane finally lands! Right now I'm feeling tired. Almost two hours into the flight and four more to go. The plane is a buzzing mixture of engines, foreign conversations and the occasional baby cry. Now your probably wondering why I'm detailing the flight. Well, everything seemed to be going smoothly up until I yanked the head phones out of the audio in jack on the nifty tablets embedded into the back of the seat, when I got up to use the washroom. Yup. That's right. It snapped right off. I'm earbud-less. Lesson number one - Bring cheap ear buds and a back up pair.

Honestly, I'm not a negative person. Look at all the great things that have happened so far. The Park n' Fly was upgraded to Valet for free. Smooth sailing through check-in and security. Heck, the plane looks brand new with leather seats and the fancy tablets. I can't forget to mention the little mishap is giving me quality time to exercise my writing skills. Sounds like a win-win to me!

All in all, it will be an interesting trip. For those of you who have read my previous travel blogs, you know that most of my travelling has been alone. Well I have the pleasure of starting off this adventure with my good friend Peter. Truth be told, if it wasn't for him I wouldn't be taking this trip. He, more or less, convinced me to go. It didn't take much convincing though. He is Portuguese and use to live outside of Lisbon. So having a tour guide who speaks the language is a huge bonus. Or as Peter would say a 'uge' bonus.

We arrived safe and sound and after waiting almost an hour in line for customs and our luggage, we were picked up by Peter's dad and brother-in-law. There is a language barrier but they know some English. Hand gestures work really well. We went for a quick breakfast of coffee (galão) similar to a latte and toast (pão cazaeiro ) which is a traditional Portuguese bread toasted with loads of butter. Tim Horton's eat your heart out. It was delicious.

We came to the flat then freshened up and had a nap. We didn't sleep on the plane at all so needless to say we were very tired. We are actually in Barreiro, which is across the river from Lisbon. We walked around the neighbourhood. It reminds me of other cosy cities in Europe with narrow streets. It's a Sunday so only a few shops were open and hardly anyone was out. We did stop at a cafe that had amazing pastries called Mafraria. The sign boasts - The Best Natas in the World (see photo). Of course we had the natas - a traditional Portuguese tart custard. I could have eaten a dozen!

Tonight will be dinner at Peter's sisters. I'm looking forward to that. If we make it to Lisbon tonight - great! If not, then we will have a full day in Lisbon tomorrow. Hopefully a full night sleep will keep me going all day tomorrow.

Tonight I tried several different foods. Snails (large and small), different cheeses and sausage (farinhaera - a mixture of flour and pork in a casing and smoked). I only tried a few snails and they were surprisingly good. I was taught how to pull them out and extract as much meat as possible. You only live once! Looks like I really immersed myself in the Portuguese culture today.