The Good and Bad in Lisbon (mostly good)

Before I detail my misery, a little about the last 6 days in Lisbon.  I got to Lisbon the day before Melanie arrived on Friday.  The timing was perfect.  It gave me a chance to learn the Metro, get checked in to the room and learn the lay of the land so that when Mel arrived her and I could hit the ground running.  I knew she had a tough time in Spain and would be glad to see a familiar face.  It was difficult for us to communicate as neither of us had phones that work in Europe, which meant I had to hope that she made her flight as I stood outside the arrival area with my little hand made "Melanie" sign, scribbled the sleepless night before. It was so wonderful when she turned the corner.

The next five days are a blur of endless walks through the magical old streets if Lisbon, Starbucks every morning for coffee and free wifi, eating at sidewalk cafes, and late afternoon beers by the harbor.  We played the tourists one day and took one of those open air sightseeing buses all around town and to the small town of Bellum. We visited the Castle S. Jorge overlooking the city and got in as many museums as is humanly possible.  At night we would huddle up in our room and wait for the nightly American TV show that seemed to appear out of nowhere.  One night it was The Dark Night with only 2 commercial breaks.  But best of all it was spending time with my daughter, which is so rare these days and very much cherished.

Today, Wednesday, I'm very sad.  I dropped her off at the airport and we hugged goodbye.  I turned and headed off to see Europe by myself. You kinda hold your breath when your children fly.  I took the Metro back two stops to my new hotel to wait for my flight to Toulouse tomorrow.  I mopped around a part of Lisbon that couldn't be more different than the old historic district that Mel and I had explored.  It's modern, full of brand new glass and steal monstrosities, with a mall the size of an airport.  I hate every bit of it.  What was it the tin man said to Dorothy, "I know I have a heart, because it's broken".