11 Tips for travel to Portugal (in particular, Lisbon)

I have learned a lot in just a few days. Well, actually over several weeks as we grew closer to the event and our planning of the trip. We really left the lodging arrangements to within 2 weeks of light off. We had also decided to travel with only carry-ons for 2 weeks. This one is a mixed bag, so to speak. It was really good because we did not book through a consolidator or agency.  We booked Norwegian Air from Seattle to London Gatwick. Then we booked TAP (Air Portugal) from London to Lisbon.  Not having to pickup bags and clear any official lines made our transition between airlines at Gatwick easier. (There is a whole other story about that later.) The down side is a backpack and a 21 inch spinner can be a lot of weight to maneuver, especially if you have to go up or down rickety stairs to and from the plane. (We had to several times.)

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Zenith – Brunch and Cocktails

Zenith, Brunch and CocktailsDirectly downstairs of our accommodations is a lovely little restaurant called Zenith.  We went there out of convenience the first night we were in town.

The next morning we were going back but we got there right at 1100 and the place was mobbed, with a line out the door.

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Jet lag and living in Lisboa

We took a leisurely afternoon and explored the immediate area around our apartment.  The cobblestones are something else. I saw people slipping and catching themselves everywhere, so it isn’t just me and my propensity to fall on my face! Continue reading “Jet lag and living in Lisboa”

Heading for Portugal!

Never Ending Sun
Never Setting Sun from 40,000 feet

So as much as I can hardly believe it, we are on a plane to London Gatwick to pickup a flight from there to Lisbon, Portugal.  It seems like a dream.

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Meet the “Stripe” of StripedPot(dot)com

Striped Pot
Striped Pot

Meet the inspiration for one of my websites: http://stripedpot.com

“Stripe”, as it is fondly called here at the McBennett’s home, was discovered in a store room at the apartment building where we lived for about 12 years. It was about to be tossed in the trash during a clean out.  It was dirty and dusty without a lot of character. But I saw the beauty beneath the crud and asked for it to come home with me.  The maintenance person cleaning out the storeroom was more than happy to hand it off to me. Continue reading “Meet the “Stripe” of StripedPot(dot)com”

Reading materials, apps & devices to love or hate

My Original Kindle

I buy pretty much all my books on Amazon for reading on one or more of my Kindles. Yes, I have more than one. Actually, I still have (for old times’ sake) my first Kindle. It will still charge up, but mostly it just sits on the shelf. Very plain, but for nostalgia’s sake, I still have it. Continue reading “Reading materials, apps & devices to love or hate”