Today we visited our new bakery ready afterward to walk up Liberdade Avenue for the 100th Anniversary Armistice Parade. We found a bench about a block down from the grandstand and waited. And then we waited some more. And some more. We people-watched and chatted with folks who joined us on our bench and waited some more.
Two hours later, even though the crowd had filled in and was patiently waiting, the parade still hadn't started so we walked toward the grandstand to see what was up. A few minutes after meeting Nala (an adorable cocker spaniel and her mom Felippia) the parade began.
Felippia gave us some great commentary and information about changes to Portugal in the last five years, and the current situation regarding the influx of tourists and the unintended consequences of being a destination for EU members and the rest of the world.
 |
| Looking across Liberdade Avenue at 10AM when the parade was scheduled to begin. Note the "crowd". |
 |
| 30 minutes later I zoomed in on the troops a block away. They were assembled in front of the WWI Memorial but they didn't look as if they were starting. |
 |
| I had plenty of time to notice stuff such as these little ships capping the street lamps. I didn't notice them last year. |
 |
| 1h 45 minutes of waiting later, I took this picture, thinking these National Guard members might be the only parade we'd see. |
 |
| After two hours we walked to the grandstand and that's when we saw the whole shindig getting underway. These are veterans marching to their reserved seats. |
 |
| And we're off as troops from the allied nations who fought in WWI marched down the avenue. |
 |
| Doughboy representatives. |
 |
| Nala and Felippia. |
Felippia said these are the "bad ass" guys!
And that's a wrap, folks! And now on to linner, our last (this year) at Tapas-n-Friends.
 |
| Couldn't resist the octopus salad again... |
 |
| the parma ham and mozzarella cheese bruschetta... |
 |
| and chocolate mousse. |
A couple of happy campers here!
 |
| Monday morning we started our day at our new favorite bakery just behind our hotel. And then...pack and hit the Metro for the airport. It'll be a long travel day, but we'll get home around 10PM local time and be able to ease back into a normal routine with not much jet lag. |
 |
| Just in case you need to check your social media account, because being connected 24/7 is crucial, here's a reminder on the Metro platform. |
 |
| Imagine our surprise when dinner was served a few hours into our Portugal Air flight. Check out the metal eating utensils! |
 |
| The wine service, like the meal, was part of the flight. Way to go TAP! |
No comments:
Post a Comment