It’s not simple to travel to Angola. We knew there would have to be an intermediate stop. It turns out that even today, Angola’s colonial history still places its hand on the scale. The best flights to Angola are through Lisbon, the capital of its former colonial power. Since we had heard from many different people about how wonderful Lisbon is, and we love the natural areas and habitats nearby in Spain, we decided to spend a little time in Portugal as part of our trip to Angola.

On the way to Angola, we arrived in Lisbon very early in the morning. We’d chosen to stay at an inn that’s built in the kitchen of a former castle. Our drive up there educated us on the character of Alfama – only certain taxis are small enough to be able to fit on the streets in this ancient part of the city.

The inn – Solar do Castelo – was amazing and perfectly located for our objectives. We were able to check in and have a siesta when we arrived.

Then we spent time wandering around this historic center of the city and found character, history, shopping, food, and also serendipity. We’d picked our dinner restaurant, Claras en Castejo, so we could sit outside. But when we arrived, those two tables were taken so we sat indoors. This meant we had dinner next to Sara, a woman whose life and interests had many intersections with ours.

The next day, we toured the Castelo de Sāo Jorge early, before the rest of the tourists arrived. The castelo offered wonderful views of the rest of Lisbon.

Then we went over to meet our friends Dan and Barbara Williams, who reached Lisbon that morning and were sharing the Angola trip with us. Together, we navigated the Lisbon airport and the American Airlines lounges and gate areas. Our flight left Lisbon at 11:00 p.m.

Fast forward to the end of our adventures in Angola …

We landed back in Lisbon about 7 in the morning on June 18^th. There was confusion around the arrival – Karen had lost one of her contact lenses on the plane and we were separated from our group without good-byes. But we were happy to have our driver waiting outside for the drive back up to Solar do Castelo. It was great to be back!

The next several days were filled with touring Lisbon – both on foot and by car with a guide. The central areas retain much of their historic character. Closer to the river Tagus, there are more modern developments including both industrial and mixed use areas. Along with good food at every meal, we enjoyed a performance of ‘Fado’, a traditional Portuguese music that has some similarities to Spanish flamenco.

On the 20^th we had a long but fun day. We’d arranged a birding ‘day trip’ with Birds & Nature Tours Portugal. We met our guide, Bernardo Barreto, at Largo das Porta do Sol at 6:30 a.m. He brought a colleague, Amalia. We birded briefly looking out over the city, then began a 2-hour drive to the Alentejo steppes to the southeast of Lisbon. This area is similar to some we’d seen in the Spanish Extremadura. It was very beautiful, including natural areas, working farms and abandoned old farmsteads. Among the special birds we saw were Great Bustards, a Long-eared Owl and Spanish Imperial Eagles on their nest.  We stayed very late looking unsuccessfully for Little Bustards. So we returned to Alfama with barely time to get into Audrey’s Cafe before it closed.

Our last day in Lisbon was more relaxed, with a late breakfast at our inn. We enjoyed the exhibits at the Museo Calouste Gulbenkian tremendously! We wrapped up the visit with a delicious dinner and spectacular views at Chapitó.

There’s a lot more to see in Lisbon and the rest of Portugal, but this was a lovely introduction!