About 10 years ago, we wrote about our appreciation for Spanish cities and what makes them great places to visit. All the things we said then are still true, so here is the list again:
- They preserve, protect, and refurbish their old and ancient buildings. Even if they are ready to fall down or are just a set of ruins, these areas are treasured as part of their history and not destroyed in the name of progress.
- They plan wonderful wide boulevards, lined with trees and parks with pedestrian-friendly walkways.
- All of the cities have plazas that are free from cars and house little shops and cafés, great for relaxing and people watching.
- No space is too small for a sidewalk café. Narrow streets are lined with these little gems serving beer, wine, tapas, and paella.
- The streets are clean. When we go out into a port early in the morning, people are literally washing the sidewalks.
- There are lots of pedestrian-only areas, especially in historical city centers – a pleasure to walk around.
- The cruise port facilities are generally modern and easy to navigate with efficient shuttle and taxi transportation.
- Citizens obey traffic rules. If the signal says don't walk, they don't. Unlike us ex-New Yorkers, who are eager to go no matter what the signal.
- There is great local transportation. Buses, ferries, and trains are inexpensive, clean, and efficient.
- Drivers actually stop for pedestrians at crosswalks. Amazing!!
Cádiz, Spain
After our two-day festival in Barcelona, it was good to slow down a bit and visit a smaller, quieter but equally beautiful city. Located on the southernmost point of the Iberian Peninsula, Cádiz is the oldest city in Western Europe. On our extensive walk today, we got to see some of the major attractions:
- Torre Tavira: The highest point of the city - which is an 18th century Baroque watchtower
- Roman theater ruins: Rediscovered in 1980 in the shadow of modern buildings along the seafront
- The Castillo de Santa Catalina: A star shaped fortress built on the rocks at the seafront
- The majestic Cádiz Cathedral, also hugging the shoreline
- Multiple squares like Plaza de España and Plaza de San Juan de Dios.
There are two very popular destinations reachable from Cádiz that we have visited in the past. The first, an easy train ride away, is Jerez de la Frontera, a great place for sherry tasting, Andalusian horses, and flamenco.
Further away is the spectacular city of Seville, known for its fabulous architecture. One can visit the Plaza de Espana or the Seville Cathedral or the Islamic-era fortress known as the Alcázar.
Either of these cities would require more time than we had today. So, we just enjoyed our low-key walk around the perimeter of Cádiz, enjoying the sunshine and ocean views.
Lisbon, Portugal
No time to rest, we went on to Lisbon, the capital and largest city in Portugal for an overnight visit. We didn’t realize Zuiderdam would be there with us, so no plans were made to see friends. We had a Cruise Specialists group tour scheduled for our second day, so our plan was to just see some local sites and gather some geocaches relatively close to the port.
We ventured out shortly after our arrival at 10:00 am on a beautiful sunny day. About two hours later, we started to notice the traffic was unusually heavy. In fact, it was gridlocked in some places. The traffic lights were not working at all. We were glad we were on foot. The interiors of shops were dark, but restaurants and cafés looked busy. It wasn’t until we returned to the ship in the late afternoon that we learned about the massive power outage that hit all of Portugal and Spain. We heard stories of people stuck in traffic for hours, cell phones not working, flights cancelled, and people who were to leave today with no place to go. When evening came and the sun went down, the city was almost completely dark.
There was very little information about when power would be restored. The Shore Excursion team on board was unable to communicate with the tour operators, so in the interest of safety and because of the uncertainty, they cancelled all tours for the second day, including ours. It was disappointing but understandable.
Our tour would have visited several important sites in the city and the wonderful village of Sintra for lunch and a guided tour. Sintra is a UNESCO World Heritage Center, known for the Sintra National Palace, which was once the residence of Portugal’s royal family. We remember the narrow cobblestone streets were fun to explore when we were there many years ago. With no tour, we decided to try and get to the places near the city that we would have visited. A 5-mile Uber ride brought us to the district of Belém, along the shoreline, to three very important and memorable places.
The Tower of Belém is a recognizable symbol of the city of Lisbon and was built as a tribute to Saint Vincent. Parts of the structure are currently being renovated so we could not get very close, but it is still an impressive building - looking like a small fortress.
Right down the road is the equally impressive Monument of the Discoveries, honoring one of the country's great explorers - Henry the Navigator. Each side is lined with historical figures, larger than life sized and all looking out to sea.
Right across the street is the Jerónimos Monastery, a massive Gothic style building. Built over the course of a century, starting in 1501, it is now a museum. There were long lines waiting to enter when we strolled by. We think we made good use of our day but finished on the early side, saving our energy for another busy port day tomorrow.
Leixões, Portugal
Leixões is the port stop which provides the gateway to the much larger city of Porto. We had been here once before and remembered a wonderful walk along the seaside promenade - enjoying the crashing surf and never getting to Porto itself!
The weather report called for a 100% chance of rain all day, so we left prepared for the worst - and after a few hours, we got it. We did enjoy a rain-free walk along the shore and then took an Uber to the ship shuttle stop at the main square in Leixões. After exploring there for a while, the rain came, and we decided it would not be fun continuing through the quickly flooding streets. So, we returned to the ship, again not getting to Porto.
What did we miss? The ship was offering a variety of tours: a riverboat cruise on the Douro River; a port wine tasting at Vila Nova de Gaia - port wine capital of the world; a ride on a historical tram; exploration in the narrow streets of the old town, called the Ribeira Quarter; a tour to Guimaraes, the original capital of Portugal; and visits to other small cities like Aveiro and Braga. We’ll have to check out some of those more unique villages if we are back here in the future.
Only one day at sea before we have another 4 ports in a row. We love these Mediterranean ports, but the schedule is intense. Hoping for a restful day before we say “Bonjour” to Brest, France.
Fondly,
Wendy and Steve
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