This morning we left early on the train to Lisbon.

Arriving in Lisbon we doubled over climbing an extremely steep hill (this was the beginning of things to come) and no sooner did we get to the top did we hop onto the famous No. 28 Tram.

Our first site was the Lisbon Cathedral. It is the oldest church in the city. Since the beginning of the construction of the cathedral in 1147, the building has been modified several times and survived many earthquakes. It is nowadays a mix of different architectural styles.

Figtree square was the centre of popular saints festivities and during the day it was used as the city's central marketplace. Nowadays the square is a lot different with an open market, shops, hotels and cafés and a bronze statue of King João, where he stands on a pedestal right in the middle of the square. Hard to miss are the hundreds of pigeons that perch near the pedestal.
Figtree square is also a busy transit point, located directly between Rossio and Martim Moniz, sporting all kinds of transportation, such as the Metro and buses to the charming trams, that will take you almost anywhere in the city.

We went up the Elevador De Santa Justa overlooking Lisbon with breathtaking views over the sea and Lisbon.

Although the Santa Justa Elevator looks nothing like the Eiffel Tower, it was designed by an apprentice of Gustave Eiffel and makes the connection between the Baixa (downtown) and Bairro Alto (high neighbourhood). It was opened in 1902, when it was steam powered, then in 1907 it became electrical and was the only vertical elevator in Lisbon in public service. The lifts within the tower go up to 45 metres. At the top we were treated to magnificent views over the centre of Lisbon and the Tagus River.

The ruins (left by the earthquake in 1755) of the Carmo church is situated alongside the Elevaodor. This amazing gothic monument was finished in 1423 and was at that time the biggest church in Lisbon.

Views from the Elevador

We then walked down to the Triumphal Arch Statue of King Jose 1 in Pracado Comercio before making our way to the "hill of all hills" and up to the Castelo De Sao Jorge.

The Commerce Square, also known as Palace Square (Terreiro do Paço) is one of the most majestic squares of Lisbon and was once the main maritime entrance to Lisbon. You can still see the old marble steps leading up to Commerce Square from the River Tagus. The name Palace Square is clearly a reference to the Palace that was located here for 400 years, until the 1755 earthquake that almost completely destroyed it.On the north side, the square is centred by an impressive 19th-century triumphal arch that leads to Rua Augusta, one of the main pedestrian shopping areas in downtown Lisbon. The arch is decorated with statues of historical personalities, like Vasco da Gama (Portuguese sailor) and Marquês do Pombal (responsible for the reconstruction of Lisbon after the earthquake).

Also, one of Lisbon's oldest café stands here: "Martinho da Arcada" opened its doors with oil burning lamps, it was later given gas illumination and then much later gained a different glow with the installation of electricity. "Martinho da Arcada" saw the big revolutions of the last two centuries and took in clients like Bocage, Fernando Pessoa and Amália.

We then made our way up to the castle and it was well worth the visit (even the climb).

More Castle views

We ended our Lisbon trip by traditionall taking a No 28 back to the train station and back to Estoril where we took a visit to the famous beach

The remainder of the afternoon was more pool time pool time and relaxing before heading out to, YES, the same restaurant as the previous two nights to have, yes, sadly the same incredible meal.